Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]
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So, I did a complete reinstall of my home computer. Hopefully the final one before it gets replaced by a new one. Mint 19 was recently released and the Windows 10 1803 update was refusing to install because of unknown reasons, so yeah.
This is the experience of me setting up Windows 10 on my computer. Now, Microsoft did outdo themselves and create a feature that's even worse than Windows Update. And that is, of course, the automatically install recommended apps feature where Microsoft will infest your computer with unwanted shovelware games and other buggy, ad-ridden and sometimes malicious software from the Microsoft Store. I can take Windows Update fucking me over with untimely updates, but when Microsoft are installing programs I do not want on my computer without my permission then they can go fuck themselves.
Now, this misfeature can be disabled by editing the apporpriate registry key. Because why ask for permission before enabling that shitefest feature, or even make an easy-to-find option? Nope, the registry it is. So before I would even think of granting internet access to Windows I of course set up the accounts and disabled that setting (as it's a per-user setting).
So I think to myself that I'll be safe now and connect the network cable. And literally the first thing that Windows does upon feeling its connection to the Microsoft servers is to download and install no less than SEVEN shitty adware and microtransaction-filled games. Games that I do not want, never want to play and doesn't have any sort of fucking permission to end up on any device that I own. So I of course uninstall them and think that's the end of it.
Well, I have two user accounts set up on my computer. And after clearing out the shite from the first account I go to set up the other. And the fucking shite gets installed AGAIN. All seven shitegames. So I forcefully remove them from my computer. And literally within FIVE FUCKING MINUTES Windows is INSTALLING THEM AGAIN. WHAT. THE. FUCK? Not only do I have to pay $250 fucking dollars for their shitty OS but I am supposted to be bombarded with ads and not get to decide over my own computer anymore? Normally when it comes to getting royally assfucked I should be the one getting paid to have my asshole looking like Goatse afterwards, not the other way around.
Also, for some extra salt in the wounds, this is me running the Professional edition. You know, the one that says explicitly in the name that it's made for professional use. What fucking part of installing a bunch of low-effort cash-grab games on the computer says professional? This is as professional as the clerk at the sandwich store coming out after heavily repainting the toilet in a lovely shade of brown, with unwashed hands, then picking his nose and depositing the contents between the ham and the cheese before handing the sandwich over to me with a loud burp. Seriously, do I need to go over to the Microsoft HQ and bash Satya Nadella's head in with a dictionary until he learns the meaning of the word professional? Because the way Microsoft treats their customers is the anti-professionalism extraordinaire.
Windows has ONE job and ONE job only. And that is to be as unobtrusive as possible and let me use my computer to do the things I want without getting in the way. And Windows KEEPS GETTING IN THE WAY. And I have to keep cleaning up all the shit it deposits all over my computer. If I end up becoming a die-hard Apple fanboy it will be 100% the fault of Windows. Because, unlike Microsoft, Apple at least lets me use my fucking computer the way I want without force-installing useless third-party shite on it. And it irks me I have to keep Windows around for the software I use that I can't run on Linux.
tl;dr: Microsoft keeps automatically reinstalling the same unwanted shiteware from the Store on Windows 10 despite that "feature" being disabled and doesn't take the hint from them being uninstalled, literally reinstalling within minutes.
gets furious, questioning why such a feature even exists in an OS calling itself Professional.
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@Atazhaia said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
Normally when it comes to getting royally assfucked I should be the one getting paid to have my asshole looking like Goatse afterwards, not the other way around
I'm pretty sure you can in fact pay to have that happen to you.
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@Gribnit said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@Atazhaia said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
Normally when it comes to getting royally assfucked I should be the one getting paid to have my asshole looking like Goatse afterwards, not the other way around
I'm pretty sure you can in fact pay to have that happen to you.
You're looking in the wrong places it seems...
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@Atazhaia said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
unlike Microsoft, Apple at least lets me use my fucking computer the way I want without force-installing useless third-party shite on it.
U2’s Bono issues apology for automatic Apple iTunes album download
Lead issues video apology for marketing stunt at September Apple launch in which new album was given to 500 million users
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@Atazhaia said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
this is me running the Professional edition.
Ah.... You don't recall this happening when Windows 10 was first released?
I had to get the version of Windows that basically could not even into the Store so that wouldn't happen.
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@Atazhaia said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
So, I did a complete reinstall of my home computer. Hopefully the final one before it gets replaced by a new one. Mint 19 was recently released and the Windows 10 1803 update was refusing to install because of unknown reasons, so yeah.
Now, can you tell us how your Linux Mint install went?
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Isn't there an option to disable installing "recommended" apps?
It's ironic, since for many years Microsoft complained that OEMs ruined the out of the box windows experience by installing loads of crapware.Anyways, this sounds malicious enough that they can probably counter all tricks to defeat this, but it might be worth a try:
Deleteshitegame.exe, replace it with a folder namedshitegame.exe, put something in it so it's not empty, and for good measure set the ACLs to deny all / deny system.
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@Atazhaia FWIW, the crappy games are in Enterprise, too. You know, the version you're most likely to be fired for playing games on a corporate PC.
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@Atazhaia said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
So, I did a complete reinstall of my home computer. Hopefully the final one before it gets replaced by a new one. Mint 19 was recently released and the Windows 10 1803 update was refusing to install because of unknown reasons, so yeah.
[...]
tl;dr: Microsoft keeps automatically reinstalling the same unwanted shiteware from the Store on Windows 10 despite that "feature" being disabled and doesn't take the hint from them being uninstalled, literally reinstalling within minutes. gets furious, questioning why such a feature even exists in an OS calling itself Professional.You're just angry you lost your Candy Crush Saga saves, amirite?
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@marczellm Good point. Apple wants me to listen to shit music. Dunno what's worse...
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@Tsaukpaetra said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
Ah.... You don't recall this happening when Windows 10 was first released?
At least back in the beginning there would only be like 1-2 apps and not 7.
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@TimeBandit said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
Now, can you tell us how your Linux Mint install went?
I started up the live USB. Formatted the drives with gparted. Installed Mint. Rebooted computer. Then enjoyed the visual improvements made in Cinnamon and how Mint is just getting better and better with each new version.
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@topspin said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
Isn't there an option to disable installing "recommended" apps?
The thing is, I had that one disabled. The first thing I did after installing Windows, before connecting the PC to the internet, was to disable that, hoping I would be safe. But nope, seems MS has added a bunch of shiteware to their install script, to be executed regardless of setting.
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@HardwareGeek said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
FWIW, the crappy games are in Enterprise, too.
I know. Because nothing says Enterprise-grade software like Disney's Magical Fucking Kingdom.
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@Atazhaia said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@Tsaukpaetra said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
Ah.... You don't recall this happening when Windows 10 was first released?
At least back in the beginning there would only be like 1-2 apps and not 7.
You seem to be confused as to the consumers role...
He who pays, plays. I wonder how much money they pay MS to be included in the base image...
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@Atazhaia said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@Tsaukpaetra said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
Ah.... You don't recall this happening when Windows 10 was first released?
At least back in the beginning there would only be like 1-2 apps and not 7.
ISTR about 5, Candy crush, Code writer, some PDF viewer, Get Skype (yes, you were forced to download an app to get an app), some painting app, Microsoft Solitaire collection, and maybe something else.
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@Tsaukpaetra said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
you were forced to download an app to get an app
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@TimeBandit said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@Tsaukpaetra said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
you were forced to download an app to get an app
Oh! That's right! The Get Office App! Man, my memory these days...
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@Tsaukpaetra said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@TimeBandit said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@Tsaukpaetra said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
you were forced to download an app to get an app
Oh! That's right! The Get Office App! Man, my memory these days...
Yeah, that's the one that would keep coming back with each update too. They finally fixed that shit. Now when you uninstall, it stays uninstalled. (Once you get past that whole initial system setup shit)
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@dcon Despite this being my work PC and Office being already installed by corporate IT.
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@HardwareGeek said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@dcon Despite this being my work PC and Office being already installed by corporate IT.
Guess that proves MSI is better than the Store!
MSI (CustomAction): Oh look, they have Office. We're done!
Store: INCOMING!!!
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@dcon said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@HardwareGeek said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@dcon Despite this being my work PC and Office being already installed by corporate IT.
Guess that proves MSI is better than the Store!
MSI (CustomAction): Oh look, they have Office. We're done!
Store:INCOMINGa great App is on its way!!!FTFY
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@Tsaukpaetra said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@dcon said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@HardwareGeek said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@dcon Despite this being my work PC and Office being already installed by corporate IT.
Guess that proves MSI is better than the Store!
MSI (CustomAction): Oh look, they have Office. We're done!
Store:INCOMINGa great App is on its way!!!FTFY
As close to :grenade:as I can get...
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@topspin said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
Anyways, this sounds malicious enough that they can probably counter all tricks to defeat this, but it might be worth a try:
Delete shitegame.exe, replace it with a folder named shitegame.exe, put something in it so it's not empty, and for good measure set the ACLs to deny all / deny system.C:\Program Files\WindowsApps\KingCom.ShiteGame_2019.18061.13911_x64_~_8wekyb3d8bbwe\shitgame.exe C:\Windows\InfusedApps\Packages\KingCom.ShiteGame_10.17112.19011.0_x64_~_8wekyb3d8bbwe\shitgame.exe C:\ProgramData\Packages\KingCom.ShiteGame_2019.18061.13911_x64_~_8wekyb3d8bbwe\S-1-5-21-123456789-987654321-012345678-1001\SystemAppData\SuperSeekritUpdate\shitgame.exe C:\Users\Me\AppData\Local\Packages\KingCom.ShiteGame_2019.18061.13911_x64_~_8wekyb3d8bbwe\shitgame.exePlus update it every time a new version is released. And potentially have your computer freeze on the "Hi." screen next update.
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Just uninstall the shit and you're done. Easy. Christ you people must have OCD or something.
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@pie_flavor There's also always the possibility that they're trying to administer a business network.
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GODDAMMIT DISNEY MAGIC KINGDOMS! HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO KILL YOU BEFORE YOU STAY DEAD?
FUCK! THIS! SHIT!
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@Tsaukpaetra said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@TimeBandit said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@Tsaukpaetra said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
you were forced to download an app to get an app
Oh! That's right! The Get Office App! Man, my memory these days...
The worst part: The Get Office app was, in fact, unable to actually download Office and you had to log in on Office.com to get the installer.
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@Atazhaia what about putting something bogus for the store in your hosts file? Block it at the router?
Of course, maybe you have stuff from there that you actually want.
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@pie_flavor said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
Just uninstall the shit and you're done. Easy. Christ you people must have OCD or something.
Yeah, right. I used to naively think this, the first time I dealt with Windows 10.A family member wanted a new laptop to replace their old eeePC. Since they had a small budget and didn't use their computer for much more than web browsing, email, and word processing, I got them a cheap Lenovo Yoga. Obviously, it came with Windows 10 preinstalled.
I knew they were gonna get confused with the plethora of preinstalled stuff they'd never use, so I spent several hours trimming it down (uninstalling apps, disabling stuff, set the privacy options to the most conservative ones, etc.). Since I didn't want anything to break now or later, I didn't use Regedit or any third-party tool, only the "official" methods to change settings or uninstall programs. It was an infuriating experience because of the clusterfuck that is W10's "design" (some settings are in the new control panel, some are in the old ones, some are in both but are labeled differently or interact in some unclear way... and they even managed to translate the same stuff differently in different parts of the OS).
Guess what happened after the next major update? Yup, Windows dutifully reinstalled what I had uninstalled, reset settings, etc. At that point I had enough of that shit, so I gave up.
Recently, that family member has been complaining that the PC has been running slowly after the latest Windows update. I took a look at it, and it's not a placebo effect: it is really as slow as molasses (even opening the list of processes takes several seconds). A quick Google search shows that this isn't an isolated problem.
I'm seriously thinking about nuking the whole think and install a Linux distro instead. I have little sympathy for that OS, but it honestly sounds like less of a headache at that point. So, well played Microsoft! You managed to drive someone who's been using your OSes since the DOS 5.0 days to the competition.
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@Zerosquare Never had any of those problems with mine. Shit like that is the fault of whoever is the OEM. I have both standard Windows bloatware and Gigabyte bloatware - the former stays gone, the latter comes back when I do major updates. Do a full from-scratch reinstall from a built Win10 ISO mounted on a thumb drive, and you won't see those programs come back.
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I think mine was upgraded from windows 8 and I don't have any of that crap.
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No. The things I mentioned are MS-bundled apps, not Lenovo's.
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@Zerosquare Well I have uninstalled all Windows bloatware, and done all major updates, and even did an in-place reinstall, and the default UWP apps don't come back.
Try what I said before abandoning entirely. You can simulate a major update with an in-place reinstall in case you want to test it.
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@pie_flavor said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
Just uninstall the shit and you're done. Easy. Christ you people must have
OCDlimited data plans/ time / tolerance for unasked for shit or something.FTFY.
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@pie_flavor said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@Zerosquare Well I have uninstalled all Windows bloatware, and done all major updates, and even did an in-place reinstall, and the default UWP apps don't come back.
Try what I said before abandoning entirely. You can simulate a major update with an in-place reinstall in case you want to test it.I regularly use the "Reset this PC" function (which does basically this) and every time they come back. COINCIDENCE????
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@pie_flavor: That's what I did, and the UWP apps came back.
But you know what? I believe you when you say it didn't happen on your machine. Because I've heard widely different experiences from people running Windows 10, even from those who are knowledgeable and have no reason to lie about it. That OS seems utterly non-deterministic. Even people using Surfaces are reporting weird problems.
This is not just MS getting a little sloppy ; they just don't care anymore, and they made it clear that they now view Windows installs as something they're free to tinker with whenever and however it suits them. Don't like it, and don't want to pay for the Enterprise version and support? Sucks to be you.
Thanks for the suggestion, but at that point I'm no longer interested in playing the game. If I wanted that kind of experience, I'd use something from Red Hat or Google. They're not better, but at least they don't charge for personal use of their products.
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@Tsaukpaetra Nope. Because those apps are baked into the recovery files. Hence why a complete from-scratch external reinstall of Windows would fix it.
Again, people searching for something to complain about. Don't like the apps your OEM preinstalls? Don't get it from that OEM. This is like saying Android sucks because of TouchWiz.
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@atazhaia You have to let it finish updating. Then uninstall will work. The problem is when it's just there as an undownloaded stub. (To help it, go into the store, click the "..." next to your account picture, select 'Downloads and update', click 'Get Updates' and wait till it's done.)
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@tsaukpaetra said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@pie_flavor said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@Zerosquare Well I have uninstalled all Windows bloatware, and done all major updates, and even did an in-place reinstall, and the default UWP apps don't come back.
Try what I said before abandoning entirely. You can simulate a major update with an in-place reinstall in case you want to test it.I regularly use the "Reset this PC" function (which does basically this) and every time they come back. COINCIDENCE????
Mommy, Mommy, it hurts when I smash this hammer into my hand!
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@pie_flavor said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
Because those apps are baked into the recovery files.
Candy crush is "baked" into the recovery files? Holy fuck that sounds terrible and backwards and wrong!
@pie_flavor said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
Don't like the apps your OEM preinstalls? Don't get it from that OEM.
So, in other words, don't get Microsoft from Microsoft? Because this is what happens on my MSDN-sourced ISOs.
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@dcon said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@tsaukpaetra said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@pie_flavor said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@Zerosquare Well I have uninstalled all Windows bloatware, and done all major updates, and even did an in-place reinstall, and the default UWP apps don't come back.
Try what I said before abandoning entirely. You can simulate a major update with an in-place reinstall in case you want to test it.I regularly use the "Reset this PC" function (which does basically this) and every time they come back. COINCIDENCE????
Mommy, Mommy, it hurts when I smash this hammer into my hand!
Does it? Maybe you should try smashing it against your head next!
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@Tsaukpaetra said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@pie_flavor said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
Because those apps are baked into the recovery files.
Candy crush is "baked" into the recovery files? Holy fuck that sounds terrible and backwards and wrong!
@pie_flavor said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
Don't like the apps your OEM preinstalls? Don't get it from that OEM.
So, in other words, don't get Microsoft from Microsoft? Because this is what happens on my MSDN-sourced ISOs.
Microsoft's pure Windows install does come with its own bloatware. But if you uninstall it, it stays uninstalled.
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I have upgraded multiple machines to Windows 10 and not seen any of this (except possibly the get office one, and that went away once I told it to get lost). It certainly doesn't install anything after updates.
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@pie_flavor ... on, your machine, right? could I summarize this as
WOMM- works on my machine
for a gist?
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@gribnit said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@pie_flavor ... on, your machine, right? could I summarize this as
WOMM- works on my machine
for a gist?Not just his. Evidently mine (all 7 of them) and @Benjamin-Hall's too.
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@Gribnit said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
@pie_flavor ... on, your machine, right? could I summarize this as
WOMM- works on my machine
for a gist?You could, or you could include the part where I explain why.
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@Zerosquare said in Windows and the unwanted apps [Angry rant time]:
...Even people using Surfaces are reporting weird problems.
My Surface experience: Within an hour of starting it up, every UWP app I tried to start would silently quit immediately. You'd just get a flash of the window appearing and then disappearing. This, of course, included the 'Settings' app.
Fixed itself when I hard-rebooted the thing; my best guess is that it was updating something and got into a weird state. Wasn't all clear after that though; after the reboot sound stopped working. Forget how I fixed that one.
Guess I shouldn't have bought Linux hardware.
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By the way, @Atazhaia's rant about games has reminded me of this ad from the Windows 8 days:
(Translation: With Windows 8, you don't have to choose anymore. Do what you have to do, and what you like to do.)What kind of message were they trying to convey? "With Windows 8, your employees can pretend to work when they're actually playing Angry Birds"? I think most bosses wouldn't be very "happy" about that.
(Not to mention the "huh, you don't need Windows 8 for that?". It's not the first time they did this either -- for the launch of Vista in France, they ran a prime-time ad on TV featuring a well-known celebrity, who told viewers "thanks to Windows Vista, I can now run two applications at once, and switch between them!")
