On 2/21/2016 10:02 AM, Uncle Monster wrote:
On Sunday, February 21, 2016 at 8:13:25 AM UTC-6, Don Y wrote:
On 2/21/2016 3:46 AM, mike wrote:
On 2/20/2016 8:37 AM, Don Y wrote:
I have to build some computers for homeless teens. I'm
unsure if we'll be able to get W7 licenses (MS has tried to
dry up the availability of older OS's to push everyone
to their latest).

W10 allegedly is rife with spyware ("data collection"
that MS no doubt uses to sell *you* to THEIR customers;
you are no longer a customer but, rather, a commodity).

Does anyone have first-hand experience with how pervasive
this is? And, if there are *reliable* ways to disable it?

Finally, how much risk these students will later be at
(for it to reintroduce itself to their machines) as they
accept future updates.

[I prefer to lock-down these sorts of machines so the
student doesn't come looking for "support" (from me)
later when an update mucks something up...]

[[I'm sorely tempted to install a FOSS OS but figure that
would leave them even farther out on a limb...]]

Wouldn't homeless teens be better served by building them...
wait for it...
HOMES???

You can often *find* homes for them -- friends, extended family,
other charitable programs, etc. But, in most cases, they will
leave school before graduation. Then you end up with a
"less than productive" member of society.

Last time I checked, "homes" were pretty expensive. For
the monies spent keeping ~800 kids in school "for another
year", you might be able to build 20 homes (assuming you got
the land and labor for free). If you're just interested
in *renting* space for them, maybe put 200 of them into "low rent"
units?

Then, who's going to heat/cool/electrify/maintain those homes?
And, feed them?

And, does having a home keep the kid in school? Or, force him
into the workforce so he can pay his utilities, upkeep, etc.?

Of course, if you're willing to donate ~$4M/year, then those 800
kids could stay in school AND have a place to call their own.

That's the problem when you look at a problem superficially;
you convince yourself that you've got a solution when, in fact,
you've just changed the problem (now you have post-teens
wondering how they will be able to afford to live without
an education! Simple: just keep the $4M donations coming
indefinitely -- for each group of 800 "young people" : )

Are there not a number of closed military bases around the country that could be repurposed for housing the homeless kids and families? Heck, those FEMA concentration camps could also be put to good use. o_O

[8~{} Uncle Homey Monster

Think I just read some place that there are 7 abandoned houses in the US
for each person that is homeless.