Solved Windows asking for your age?? What!!

SlicEnDicE said:

I "needed" the Terminal 4 times on my Mint install.

1. I added a few software repository outside of Mints own.
2. I installed the new apps I wanted from the repos above
3. I modified the bootloader, so it looks gorgeous to my eye.
4. I did a full Dist Upgrade, for the luls.

1 and 2 I could have also done in a GUI, but it was way faster and more efficient to do it in the Terminal.
3 was not even mandatory, just something I wanted to try out as the original worked well too.
4 I could have gone for many years still without having to upgrade my dist. but I was curious what was new and if I would run into any trouble. Upgrade was smooth as a babys bum.

All this was about 1-3 years ago...

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I dont remember the program name, but there is a GUI program to customize the bootloader.. I have never used it as i never modify that one.. I only add a few commands in grub file direct after install and i do that by my install script.. or i can do it from a text-editor like pluma, kate, mousepad if i want to do it GUI style.
Linux Mint have a GUI for dist upgrade.. But i dont know if others have that.


I see Brink is dropping in.. I'm guessing its time to clean up the thread. *lol*

We need to split this thread into two.
Windows asking for your age?? What!
and
Windows asking for your age?? What! Solutions how to get around it.

spapakons said:

Nobody forces you to reveal your age. You can decline, the age field will be registered as "unconfirmed" and you will be able to use your PC except make purchases from the Microsoft Store. To make purchases you must first confirm you are an adult, fair enough.

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It is not about revealing my age, but about having to go through hoops and loops to get Windows going at all. It is frustrating and time consuming enough as is. I don't need one more thing to waste my time on.

MS needs me more than I need them.

If Android/Google hops onto the same wagon, I'll dump them too in a heart beat. I'm fed up with the nurturing.

spapakons said:

Couldn't upgrade to the next version from the GUI? As far as I know in Ubuntu you can.

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Probably, but it's too time consuming to look around in the UI. A simple one liner in Terminal is much more efficient. Just press enter after typing the command and then I can focus on my delicious coffee or the family. Plus I would get full feedback what happens in real time.

SlicEnDicE said:

It is not about revealing my age, but about having to go through hoops and loops to get Windows going at all. It is frustrating and time consuming enough as is. I don't need one more thing to waste my time on.

MS needs me more than I need them.

If Android/Google hops onto the same wagon, I'll dump them too in a heart beat. I'm fed up with the nurturing.

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There is already a special version of Android running on PCs called Android-x86. You can use your Google account and all the applications and games from Google Play Store. The only drawback is that there are no drivers for any device. If the LAN device is not working then you can use a cheap wireless USB dongle to have internet. If the graphics card is not working properly you can switch to VESA mode (universal graphics library) but without hardware acceleration. Similarly for other devices. If they don't work you must replace them with external USB devices.


PS: Oops, I misread your post. I thought you said you wanted Android.

spapakons said:

Nobody forces you to reveal your age. You can decline, the age field will be registered as "unconfirmed" and you will be able to use your PC except make purchases from the Microsoft Store. To make purchases you must first confirm you are an adult, fair enough.

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It's totally pointless anyway. Say I go ahead and verify my age, but then I'm at work and my teenage son wants to download R-rated games from the Microsoft Store. Microsoft will allow it because they don't know who's using the PC at that time. It's just age verification for one person, and not for everyone who uses the PC.

BarryGuff said:

It's totally pointless anyway. Say I go ahead and verify my age, but then I'm at work and my teenage son wants to download R-rated games from the Microsoft Store. Microsoft will allow it because they don't know who's using the PC at that time. It's just age verification for one person, and not for everyone who uses the PC.

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That's why you should have a separate account for children with different age and lock your own account with a password which of course you don't reveal to the children. That's how good old parental controls work. The parents are the Administrator and the children are a standard (limited) user which is also controlled by the parental controls to be active only certain hours and access only approved applications and websites. Age verification is just another tool for parents. Even if your son has its own computer, he should not be an administrator, but a standard controlled user. The parents are the Administrator. Age verification helps enforce some limits, so it should be welcome by parents not seen as limiting their own freedom.

spapakons said:

Nobody forces you to reveal your age. You can decline, the age field will be registered as "unconfirmed" and you will be able to use your PC except make purchases from the Microsoft Store.

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How do you know that, though? Have you beta tested this new implementation?

cheaterslick said:

How do you know that, though? Have you beta tested this new implementation?

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Not me, from what I read on Microsoft's site. If you do a clean installation (aka format and install) of Windows 11 on a new PC, by default it asks to use a Microsoft Account to login. In that stage it asks for your age to connect your account with your age range. If you decline your age is registered as "unconfirmed" and the age range ins the lowest, "under 10 years old". Next time you try to buy a game or app from the store or download any higher rated content, you will be asked for age confirmation again and if you decline you won't be allowed to proceed.

One workaround is to bypass the Microsoft account demand and create a local Administrator account instead. You won't be asked for age confirmation at that stage, but as before next time you try to buy a game or app from the store or download any higher rated content, you will be asked for age confirmation again and if you decline you won't be allowed to proceed.

If you are not going to use Microsoft Store or any other application asking for age confirmation, you have no problems using your PC as before.

spapakons said:

but as before next time you try to buy a game or app from the store or download any higher rated content, you will be asked for age confirmation again and if you decline you won't be allowed to proceed.

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it sounds as the solution is to uninstall MS-store and then just download software the old way, as we did before the store was a thing.

No need to uninstall the Microsoft Store, just don't use it. There are Microsoft apps for photos, video, music, email. I just ignore them and use third-party alternatives. They are there for our convenience. We are not forced to use them.

spapakons said:

No need to uninstall the Microsoft Store, just don't use it. There are Microsoft apps for photos, video, music, email. I just ignore them and use third-party alternatives. They are there for our convenience. We are not forced to use them.

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True.. But as i see it.. if you never is going to use a software.. why have it installed.
The only thing its doing then is either taking up space or becomes a future CVE attack-vector.
But that is me.

Use Revo Uninstaller or similar tool to uninstall them. But be sure you don't want them. You might not be able to get them back.