There are lots of IDs in any machine. For example, the network card MAC address is unique as well. The point here is not the ID. The point is that it gets sent to Microsoft and they are willing and able to track people with it.

The chance of a collision is much, much smaller than the one of an undetected hardware error that creates a collision. And the chance of the latter happening is basically zero for all practical purposes.

Nice! Funny how reasons to not use Systemd (in my case with non-systemd Debian, Devuan and Gentoo) becomes more and more of an advantage over time. I definitely made the right decision on that PoS back when.

Indeed. I have stopped doing anything important on Windows.

That does not block all telemetry. It just prevents the connection of the telemetry to your MS account. They still send plenty of telemetry and the Win11 ID is very likely part of it. The only way to be sure is to either block all traffic with an external firewall or not to use Win11.

Also this makes it amply clear what MS is using telemetry for and it is not fighting crime. It us user surveillance. They clearly have the capability and they clearly (being Microsoft) are using it.

Including the occasional fuel price hikes when some idiot causes the Strait of Hormuz to be closed ...

Have fun with your obsolete tech!

The deniers will move the goalpost, fabricate stories on failure, lie directly, etc. These people are mentally defective and use the process of first deciding how reality has to be and only then starting to look for evidence they are right. And when that evidence cannot be found, they just make crap up, because they are utterly convinced they are the smartest people around and whatever they think is right must be right. A complete failure of reality perception. I think this should be recognized as a severe mental disability and treated as such.

And there really cannot be any possibility to sue that person if they are lying. None at all. And it surely is not criminal either to lie about the main characteristics of a product you sell! Perfectly fine to do so! Hence that person is free to make up whatever they like with NO consequences at all!

Meanwhile, down here in the real world ...

Vendors are required to state what you get in the worst case. Or at least the risk getting sued into oblivion if they do not. Obviously, the average case is much less hard on the batteries and they will perform well much longer.

This is no surprise at all to anybody with some actual insight into the technology and the legal situation. None at all.

xv used to do that. Now far too long out of maintenance, sadly.

Exactly. This could be called the "DOGE attack model". Whoever accepts this "help" is screwed.

Sorry, cannot help you there. The transformation from actual insight to "idiotic" you have to do all by yourself. So far you have managed well.

They promised anything that would get their product sold. They continue to do so, although the customers have gotten a bit less ignorant about what LLMs can actually do now. So they adjusted the scam. It is still Microslop all the way down, just with some glitter on top now.

Yes. This is "We will steal all your secrets, train our AI on it and then sell them back to you....and sell them to others as well". This is an attack, not "assistance".