Microsoft offers: Why? and is there a downside?


Strange footnote: I know several smart, technical people who are really into MSN/Live/Bing Rewards.

They know it's a stupid marketing campaign, but it's about the hacking of simple-minded offers. They're the same people who go on for hours on how to stack credit card or airline mileage programs. What's worse is they work for MS...


lol that’s a bit harsh
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 Build 22631.5039
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Sin-built
    CPU
    Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-4770K CPU @ 3.50GHz (4th Gen?)
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus VI Formula
    Memory
    32.0 GB of I forget and the box is in storage.
    Graphics Card(s)
    Gigabyte nVidia GeForce GTX 1660 Super OC 6GB
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    4 x LG 23MP75 - 2 x 24MK430H-B - 1 x Wacom Pro 22" Tablet
    Screen Resolution
    All over the place
    Hard Drives
    Too many to list.
    OS on Samsung 1TB 870 QVO SATA
    PSU
    Silverstone 1500
    Case
    NZXT Phantom 820 Full-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Noctua NH-D15 Elite Class Dual Tower CPU Cooler / 6 x EziDIY 120mm / 2 x Corsair 140mm somethings / 1 x 140mm Thermaltake something / 2 x 200mm Corsair.
    Keyboard
    Corsair K95 / Logitech diNovo Edge Wireless
    Mouse
    Logitech G402 / G502 / Mx Masters / MX Air Cordless
    Internet Speed
    100/40Mbps
    Browser
    All sorts
    Antivirus
    Kaspersky Premium
    Other Info
    I’m on a horse.
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 Build: 22631.4249
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    LENOVO Yoga 7i EVO OLED 14" Touchscreen i5 12 Core 16GB/512GB
    CPU
    Intel Core 12th Gen i5-1240P Processor (1.7 - 4.4GHz)
    Memory
    16GB LPDDR5 RAM
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel Iris Xe Graphics Processor
    Sound Card
    Optimized with Dolby Atmos®
    Screen Resolution
    QHD 2880 x 1800 OLED
    Hard Drives
    M.2 512GB
    Antivirus
    Defender / Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    …still on a horse.

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 Build 22631.5039
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Sin-built
    CPU
    Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-4770K CPU @ 3.50GHz (4th Gen?)
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus VI Formula
    Memory
    32.0 GB of I forget and the box is in storage.
    Graphics Card(s)
    Gigabyte nVidia GeForce GTX 1660 Super OC 6GB
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    4 x LG 23MP75 - 2 x 24MK430H-B - 1 x Wacom Pro 22" Tablet
    Screen Resolution
    All over the place
    Hard Drives
    Too many to list.
    OS on Samsung 1TB 870 QVO SATA
    PSU
    Silverstone 1500
    Case
    NZXT Phantom 820 Full-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Noctua NH-D15 Elite Class Dual Tower CPU Cooler / 6 x EziDIY 120mm / 2 x Corsair 140mm somethings / 1 x 140mm Thermaltake something / 2 x 200mm Corsair.
    Keyboard
    Corsair K95 / Logitech diNovo Edge Wireless
    Mouse
    Logitech G402 / G502 / Mx Masters / MX Air Cordless
    Internet Speed
    100/40Mbps
    Browser
    All sorts
    Antivirus
    Kaspersky Premium
    Other Info
    I’m on a horse.
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 Build: 22631.4249
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    LENOVO Yoga 7i EVO OLED 14" Touchscreen i5 12 Core 16GB/512GB
    CPU
    Intel Core 12th Gen i5-1240P Processor (1.7 - 4.4GHz)
    Memory
    16GB LPDDR5 RAM
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel Iris Xe Graphics Processor
    Sound Card
    Optimized with Dolby Atmos®
    Screen Resolution
    QHD 2880 x 1800 OLED
    Hard Drives
    M.2 512GB
    Antivirus
    Defender / Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    …still on a horse.
this is a hilarious thread.

If you question a link, you can mouse over it and you will usually get a line of info at the bottom of the window with the actual place it is linking to.

My email is a gmail addy so most spam gets caught by gmail. Not all - I have to be alert.

Something for free? Not in this world. If I click on spam, my addy is sold to 1000 other spammers. I am careful so I get very little. No offers of 2 mil LOL.

I use google search because none of the others give me what I am searching for. However, I use FF extension uBlock Origin so I don't see any ads. I also shut off the AI summary that you get at the top of the page.

I don't use Bing except for wallpaper, and I remove Edge.

I think I have facebook going to Outlook, nothing else, but I don't get any spam there. I use TBird.

"all search engines are suspect" - I don't have any prob w the way I use google, but I am careful.

Prize? sucker. Free? they just sold your email addy! LOL

MS is in the business of making money. Nothing else. They may come up with a windows release occasionally but that is just part of the game to suck you in to 365 , Bing, etc etc. They do not do it to do you a favor. Nope.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    win 11Pro 24H2 current
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    DIY
    CPU
    I9-13900k
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG STRIX Z790-E Gam wifi-6E, latest AMI BIOS 2801
    Memory
    G.Skill Ripjaws S5 32GB Kit DDR5 6000. 6000.
    Graphics Card(s)
    GeForce RTX™ 3060 Ti VISION OC 8G (rev. 2.0)
    Sound Card
    "Realtek USB Audio", ROG SupremeFX 7.1 Surround Sound High Definition Audio CODEC ALC4080, Bose Computer Music Monitor/ Desktop Computer Speakers
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell S3221QS
    Screen Resolution
    4K but I usually display at 1K
    Hard Drives
    Sam 980 Pro 1T M.2, 990Pro, WD 570, others(all NVMe)
    PSU
    Corsair RM750e fully modular
    Case
    CoolerMaster TD500 mesh white case
    Cooling
    CPU:Thermalright aio A-E-360 V4 TOP(Thermalright anti-bend plate), CASE:3 front fans IN, 1 back fan OUT.
    Keyboard
    Corsair K55 Core RGB
    Mouse
    Corsair Harpoon RGB wireless
    Internet Speed
    220Mbs Starry I226-V
    Browser
    Firefox current, Tab center Reborn, etc etc etc.
    Antivirus
    BitDefender AV Free
    Other Info
    WuMgr, StartAllBack, Terabyte Image for Win, Revo Uninstaller Pro Portable.
    Time Spy Extreme 6239, VRMark Orange Room 16430, etc.
    Been doing computers since '62(IBM 7070/4(just missed their 650!!!). Managed a bunch of 360's. My first PC I think was one of the RS puters (I tried them all), a commodore, an IBM PC w DOS 3.11, and others mainly DIY (COMPUTER SHOPPER!!!) w 95, 98, xp, vista, me, 7!!!, 8, 10!!!, 11.
    I use Wondershare Filmora Basic to process my vlogs. Pocket 2
  • Operating System
    win 10, Mint
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo P15s
    CPU
    i7-10510U 1.8-4.9GHz
    Motherboard
    Intel SoC
    Memory
    16GB DDR4
    Graphics card(s)
    Nvidia Quadro P520 2GB DDR5 supports 4K external via HDMI or USB-C
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC3287 HD
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15.6"
    Screen Resolution
    1K
    Hard Drives
    NVMe various

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 Build 22631.5039
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Sin-built
    CPU
    Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-4770K CPU @ 3.50GHz (4th Gen?)
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus VI Formula
    Memory
    32.0 GB of I forget and the box is in storage.
    Graphics Card(s)
    Gigabyte nVidia GeForce GTX 1660 Super OC 6GB
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    4 x LG 23MP75 - 2 x 24MK430H-B - 1 x Wacom Pro 22" Tablet
    Screen Resolution
    All over the place
    Hard Drives
    Too many to list.
    OS on Samsung 1TB 870 QVO SATA
    PSU
    Silverstone 1500
    Case
    NZXT Phantom 820 Full-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Noctua NH-D15 Elite Class Dual Tower CPU Cooler / 6 x EziDIY 120mm / 2 x Corsair 140mm somethings / 1 x 140mm Thermaltake something / 2 x 200mm Corsair.
    Keyboard
    Corsair K95 / Logitech diNovo Edge Wireless
    Mouse
    Logitech G402 / G502 / Mx Masters / MX Air Cordless
    Internet Speed
    100/40Mbps
    Browser
    All sorts
    Antivirus
    Kaspersky Premium
    Other Info
    I’m on a horse.
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 Build: 22631.4249
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    LENOVO Yoga 7i EVO OLED 14" Touchscreen i5 12 Core 16GB/512GB
    CPU
    Intel Core 12th Gen i5-1240P Processor (1.7 - 4.4GHz)
    Memory
    16GB LPDDR5 RAM
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel Iris Xe Graphics Processor
    Sound Card
    Optimized with Dolby Atmos®
    Screen Resolution
    QHD 2880 x 1800 OLED
    Hard Drives
    M.2 512GB
    Antivirus
    Defender / Malwarebytes
    Other Info
    …still on a horse.
The folks making DuckDuckGo did not have the mental acuity to come up with a better name. How could they possibly help me? How about scramble scramble eggs - now THAT I would go for!!! <sarcasm!>
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    win 11Pro 24H2 current
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    DIY
    CPU
    I9-13900k
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG STRIX Z790-E Gam wifi-6E, latest AMI BIOS 2801
    Memory
    G.Skill Ripjaws S5 32GB Kit DDR5 6000. 6000.
    Graphics Card(s)
    GeForce RTX™ 3060 Ti VISION OC 8G (rev. 2.0)
    Sound Card
    "Realtek USB Audio", ROG SupremeFX 7.1 Surround Sound High Definition Audio CODEC ALC4080, Bose Computer Music Monitor/ Desktop Computer Speakers
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell S3221QS
    Screen Resolution
    4K but I usually display at 1K
    Hard Drives
    Sam 980 Pro 1T M.2, 990Pro, WD 570, others(all NVMe)
    PSU
    Corsair RM750e fully modular
    Case
    CoolerMaster TD500 mesh white case
    Cooling
    CPU:Thermalright aio A-E-360 V4 TOP(Thermalright anti-bend plate), CASE:3 front fans IN, 1 back fan OUT.
    Keyboard
    Corsair K55 Core RGB
    Mouse
    Corsair Harpoon RGB wireless
    Internet Speed
    220Mbs Starry I226-V
    Browser
    Firefox current, Tab center Reborn, etc etc etc.
    Antivirus
    BitDefender AV Free
    Other Info
    WuMgr, StartAllBack, Terabyte Image for Win, Revo Uninstaller Pro Portable.
    Time Spy Extreme 6239, VRMark Orange Room 16430, etc.
    Been doing computers since '62(IBM 7070/4(just missed their 650!!!). Managed a bunch of 360's. My first PC I think was one of the RS puters (I tried them all), a commodore, an IBM PC w DOS 3.11, and others mainly DIY (COMPUTER SHOPPER!!!) w 95, 98, xp, vista, me, 7!!!, 8, 10!!!, 11.
    I use Wondershare Filmora Basic to process my vlogs. Pocket 2
  • Operating System
    win 10, Mint
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo P15s
    CPU
    i7-10510U 1.8-4.9GHz
    Motherboard
    Intel SoC
    Memory
    16GB DDR4
    Graphics card(s)
    Nvidia Quadro P520 2GB DDR5 supports 4K external via HDMI or USB-C
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC3287 HD
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15.6"
    Screen Resolution
    1K
    Hard Drives
    NVMe various
MS didn't sell your email, they found you because you have a MS Account. It's an offer to use more MS services.
Apple & Google spam you to use their services, too.

DUH.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7
MS didn't sell your email, they found you because you have a MS Account. It's an offer to use more MS services.
Apple & Google spam you to use their services, too.

DUH.
I have several MS accounts - all with legit email - skype and passport. I do not get any MS spam at all. Zero. and I do occasionally log on to MS community to ask a question.

I get no spam from google though I use google search all the time and have Chrome running (though rarely, just used it yesterday) on my build.(no, I do NOT let it sync to my google account)(I just use it to test sites that are problematic on FF (because I have a wrong setting) )
 
Last edited:

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    win 11Pro 24H2 current
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    DIY
    CPU
    I9-13900k
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG STRIX Z790-E Gam wifi-6E, latest AMI BIOS 2801
    Memory
    G.Skill Ripjaws S5 32GB Kit DDR5 6000. 6000.
    Graphics Card(s)
    GeForce RTX™ 3060 Ti VISION OC 8G (rev. 2.0)
    Sound Card
    "Realtek USB Audio", ROG SupremeFX 7.1 Surround Sound High Definition Audio CODEC ALC4080, Bose Computer Music Monitor/ Desktop Computer Speakers
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell S3221QS
    Screen Resolution
    4K but I usually display at 1K
    Hard Drives
    Sam 980 Pro 1T M.2, 990Pro, WD 570, others(all NVMe)
    PSU
    Corsair RM750e fully modular
    Case
    CoolerMaster TD500 mesh white case
    Cooling
    CPU:Thermalright aio A-E-360 V4 TOP(Thermalright anti-bend plate), CASE:3 front fans IN, 1 back fan OUT.
    Keyboard
    Corsair K55 Core RGB
    Mouse
    Corsair Harpoon RGB wireless
    Internet Speed
    220Mbs Starry I226-V
    Browser
    Firefox current, Tab center Reborn, etc etc etc.
    Antivirus
    BitDefender AV Free
    Other Info
    WuMgr, StartAllBack, Terabyte Image for Win, Revo Uninstaller Pro Portable.
    Time Spy Extreme 6239, VRMark Orange Room 16430, etc.
    Been doing computers since '62(IBM 7070/4(just missed their 650!!!). Managed a bunch of 360's. My first PC I think was one of the RS puters (I tried them all), a commodore, an IBM PC w DOS 3.11, and others mainly DIY (COMPUTER SHOPPER!!!) w 95, 98, xp, vista, me, 7!!!, 8, 10!!!, 11.
    I use Wondershare Filmora Basic to process my vlogs. Pocket 2
  • Operating System
    win 10, Mint
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo P15s
    CPU
    i7-10510U 1.8-4.9GHz
    Motherboard
    Intel SoC
    Memory
    16GB DDR4
    Graphics card(s)
    Nvidia Quadro P520 2GB DDR5 supports 4K external via HDMI or USB-C
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC3287 HD
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15.6"
    Screen Resolution
    1K
    Hard Drives
    NVMe various
maybe hippohippobump?
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    win 11Pro 24H2 current
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    DIY
    CPU
    I9-13900k
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG STRIX Z790-E Gam wifi-6E, latest AMI BIOS 2801
    Memory
    G.Skill Ripjaws S5 32GB Kit DDR5 6000. 6000.
    Graphics Card(s)
    GeForce RTX™ 3060 Ti VISION OC 8G (rev. 2.0)
    Sound Card
    "Realtek USB Audio", ROG SupremeFX 7.1 Surround Sound High Definition Audio CODEC ALC4080, Bose Computer Music Monitor/ Desktop Computer Speakers
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell S3221QS
    Screen Resolution
    4K but I usually display at 1K
    Hard Drives
    Sam 980 Pro 1T M.2, 990Pro, WD 570, others(all NVMe)
    PSU
    Corsair RM750e fully modular
    Case
    CoolerMaster TD500 mesh white case
    Cooling
    CPU:Thermalright aio A-E-360 V4 TOP(Thermalright anti-bend plate), CASE:3 front fans IN, 1 back fan OUT.
    Keyboard
    Corsair K55 Core RGB
    Mouse
    Corsair Harpoon RGB wireless
    Internet Speed
    220Mbs Starry I226-V
    Browser
    Firefox current, Tab center Reborn, etc etc etc.
    Antivirus
    BitDefender AV Free
    Other Info
    WuMgr, StartAllBack, Terabyte Image for Win, Revo Uninstaller Pro Portable.
    Time Spy Extreme 6239, VRMark Orange Room 16430, etc.
    Been doing computers since '62(IBM 7070/4(just missed their 650!!!). Managed a bunch of 360's. My first PC I think was one of the RS puters (I tried them all), a commodore, an IBM PC w DOS 3.11, and others mainly DIY (COMPUTER SHOPPER!!!) w 95, 98, xp, vista, me, 7!!!, 8, 10!!!, 11.
    I use Wondershare Filmora Basic to process my vlogs. Pocket 2
  • Operating System
    win 10, Mint
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo P15s
    CPU
    i7-10510U 1.8-4.9GHz
    Motherboard
    Intel SoC
    Memory
    16GB DDR4
    Graphics card(s)
    Nvidia Quadro P520 2GB DDR5 supports 4K external via HDMI or USB-C
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC3287 HD
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15.6"
    Screen Resolution
    1K
    Hard Drives
    NVMe various

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