I rarely if ever use AI. GPTchat or Copilot or whatever is just not what I do and usually I am able to avoid it. But lately Skynet is taking over. My computer at home is insisting I update Win11 and when I look at the “improvements” it is almost all invasive AI. As of October, Office 365 will not work unless you have the new CoPilot installed. And by the way, on my new computer at work the CoPilot installer refuses to run so my Office 365 is literally non-functioning because it will not run at all without that update.
With companies fighting right to repair, everything a subscription model and you never own anything you buy, this trend that has been going on that I need unnecessary shit on my computer that the company wants me to run (widgets, apps, add-ons, extensions, etc.) that I don’t want is getting me to the breaking point. It is my computer, I should be allowed to use it how I want to.
Over the past year or so I’ve replaced three computers with new ones that have Windows 11. As I set them up, I disabled or uninstalled every AI thing I saw. If there’s any AI processes happening in the background, I’m unaware of it.
Based on the OP’s mention of it, I should point out that I (as I always do) uninstalled all the MS Office stuff and replace it with Open Office.
Also, and I’m not sure how much this affects how integrated AI is into the system, I’ve found that doing the initial setup without an internet connection will allow you to bypass a lot of stuff MS wants to force on you (ie OneDrive).
Microsoft gonna Microsoft. Enshittification is just what they do. Now even the keyboards have a stupid Copilot key. Ugh.
This is one thing I do appreciate about Apple. On a Mac, one setting turns off all the AI stuff and it doesn’t keep spamming you about it the way Microsoft does.
But “computer you truly own and control” is going to become rarer and rarer. Better get Linux while you still can…
Edit: Funny, I just walked in a bookstore and saw this…
I don’t have a problem with Office 365 (I do have CoPilot installed — you can’t very well avoid it — but I disabled it in the OS in general and each of the Office apps I use in particular).
But part of the problem is the installer will not run and Office 365 won’t open saying I need the new CoPilot installed … and there is no way to say, “Naw, I’m good without CoPilot.”
Oh here’s another one: you must watch ads on your purchase. I have a Amazon Echo and every update it goes back to showing ads to make Amazon (not me) money and to take it off of my device, I have to jump through hoops … every update.
Libre Office works great for personal use, but if you need to interact with other folks who have standardized on MS Office, you’re going to have problems, generally with formatting.
I use Libre Office for all of my own personal stuff, but all of my work stuff goes through Office 365. CoPilot did install itself on my computers, but I’ve been able to completely ignore it (I think I may have turned some stuff off in settings, I can’t remember).
Of course, that’s not much help for anyone who can’t get CoPilot to install.
Yeah, i also use libre office for new stuff that’s just for me, and office 2023 (ish, the once and done version, not the subscription) for stuff that’s always been in office without being too annoying, and stuff i share with others.
Office 2023 keeps offering to upgrade to office 365, but it’s otherwise okay.
That’s been my experience too. LibreOffice is generally compatible enough to read MS Office files with sufficient fidelity that you can make it out, but not compatible enough to save files without making recipients go, “What’s wrong with your document? It looks all weird”.
As an aside, MS Office has seemingly become quite the canary/warning sign for “old-fashioned company culture”. In tech at least, and education too, it hasn’t really been popular for at least 10-15 years. Google Docs/Sheets and Canva have completely taken over in those sectors, at least in my experience. I don’t think any of my coworkers even have a copy of MS Office anymore, and if I ever see a .docx file these days, it’s either spam (more likely) or else some hundred-page proposal sent by someone who doesn’t know how to make PDFs.
And when interviewing, a company that uses Microsoft (for email, online office, etc.) is a big red or yellow flag, usually signaling other significant bureaucratic issues within the organization.
Anyway, I’m sure Office (and Microsoft in general) are still popular with the older generations and bigger, more bureaucratic businesses. Microsoft thrives on capturing that long tail of change-averse institutions. Thankfully, it’s rarer and rarer to see Microsoft in newer, smaller companies…
…just in time for Google to become the next Microsoft, adding their own Gemini spam to everything. Sigh.
I thought I read somewhere that reading is enjoying somewhat of a renaissance with Gen Z & Alpha? I can’t find a cite though. Maybe I’m misremembering…
But at least there’s BookTok, that part of TikTok for readers: BookTok - Wikipedia
