Author: trparky

Windows 10 Diagnostic Data

trparky January 26, 2018January 26, 2018 0

OK so I did some deep diving into the app Windows Diagnostic Data Viewer that’s part of the new Windows 10 Fast Ring Build that was released recently and to be honest, it was an eye-opening experience.

If I am using the app correctly (and I most likely am) there is a toggle that will show you what is being collected and sent based upon the diagnostic level you have chosen (Basic vs Full). After seeing some of the data that’s being sent to Microsoft I would suggest that everyone, and I do mean EVERYONE changes their diagnostic mode to Basic. Do not pass Go, do not collect $200… CHANGE IT TO BASIC RIGHT NOW!!! I’m not even kidding here!

Now onto why. Oh man, yeah… this is a doozy even by my standards. So I opened Microsoft Edge and went to my web site, closed Microsoft Edge, and then launched the Windows Diagnostic Data Viewer app and did a search for a String in the data containing my domain name. Much to my horror, it was there!!! And worst of all, it was being sent to Microsoft as part of a sampling group. Microsoft even told me that my system was part of the sample group. Now I don’t know if this system is part of the sample group because I am running a Fast Ring build. No, I don’t use this system for every day usage; it’s only a VM for testing purposes.

With all of that said, I then toggled the mode to Basic meaning it would show only the data that your system is sending if your system was set to Basic mode and sure enough, the most damning of data was not included in the data set. Let me repeat that… in Basic mode the most damning of data was NOT included in the data set. Below are links to the two data sets.

Basic Mode Data
Full Mode Data

As you can see between the Basic Mode and the Full Mode that the Full Diagnostic Mode collects and sends a hell of a lot more data than Basic Diagnostic Mode. I have uploaded both files for people to see exactly what is being collected and sent to Microsoft.

Let’s just put it this way… if you have any want for privacy, even a little bit, Full Diagnostic Mode is DEFINITELY something you want to avoid like the plague!

Identity Politics

trparky October 21, 2017October 21, 2017 11

I usually don’t write about politics here because it usually ends up in nothing more than a series of insults being traded between one another in the comment section. I feel I have to write this because of the current political climate in the United States. First of all, I voted for Trump. There, I …

Wow Microsoft… just wow.

trparky September 17, 2017April 4, 2022 1

So I’m sitting here writing some code in .NET and I have myself a File System Watcher in my code to check if a file has been changed and if it has, it’s supposed to load the file and process any changes. In this case, it’s a log file and if the log file changes …

Completely re-installed my WordPress installation

trparky August 27, 2017 0

I have completely reinstalled my installation of WordPress. I tried to import as much of the old stuff as I could get from the old site installation into the new installation.

Intel better be running scared…

trparky July 13, 2017 0

Until recently Intel used to be the king of the computing processor market while AMD languished on the side-lines with chips that were barely worth speaking about let alone buying. But things have changed, introducing the AMD Zen Architecture. For the first time in more than five years, AMD has been making some really big …

Windows 10 Telemetry

trparky October 29, 2016 1

I know that many of you may have read stuff about Windows 10’s telemetry and that Microsoft is using it to spy on their users. Every little thing that you do on your Windows machine is being tracked, collected, and sent to Microsoft. Every keystroke, every mouse movement, every word you say to Cortana is …

Microsoft OneDrive vs. Google Drive

trparky September 30, 2016 1

And the winner is… Microsoft OneDrive. Yes, I know… I have been critical of Microsoft and in a lot of cases they deserve it but when it comes to Microsoft OneDrive vs. Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive wins. The syncing of data between PCs using Microsoft OneDrive is far more stable, accurate, and faster than Google …

The Death of Windows Mobile

trparky September 30, 2016 0

Paul Thurrott just released an article of his time at Microsoft Ignite and he brought up several key points in his article involving Windows Mobile during the developer conference. Windows 10 Mobile is only for businesses. This was stressed repeatedly in different ways. There’s no consumer play here at all, and that is not changing …

Hey Microsoft… you messed up!

trparky August 25, 2016 0

Not only did the Windows 10 Anniversary Update manage to destroy webcam functionality for users across the world but you gone ahead and messed up again and broke Powershell too. Seriously Microsoft, what the heck is wrong with you? Didn’t you test this kind of stuff before you released it? Oh wait I forgot… you …

Open Android vs. Apple iPhone

trparky August 9, 2016 3

I’m not denying that Android is more open and that it does allow for the user to change a lot of stuff but outside a small circle of geeks, most people don’t change a thing about their Android phones. Geeks like to say that on Android you can change your launcher, your default web browser, …