Windows 10 This is getting weird!

[MikeHawthorne]

Hi

I just booted up my computer and what do I see on my desktop?

An icon to open Google Chrome.

Why is this weird, because I haven't downloaded and and installed Google Chrome or anything else in a while.

I quite using chrome about a year ago because for some reason it didn't work with Windows 10 since the Anniversary update.

As I posted at the time, every time I opened it in several different builds of Windows 10 my computer would grind to a snails pace until I uninstalled it again.

Where did it come from, it wasn't there when I turned my computer off earlier today.

Very weird, I haven't decided if I will click on it or not, I do have a backup that I made this morning so I guess I could take a chance.

Mike

 

[BIGBEARJEDI]

Hmmm. I certainly didn't experience the Chrome problems you have going back a couple of years to the Tech Preview versions. A couple of my tekky friends mentioned loss of icons; rearrangement (RichM), and removal of programs (Folding @ Home); but not installation of new programs that weren't there prior to the v1703 CU update! That is weird. You sure you didn't click on something while watching the News or the Pizza guy rang your doorbell and in your haste to get to your Pizza you clicked on something to install it, such as that annoying little Java update popup window down in the lower-right-hand-corner of the desktop system tray area where the Clock is?? ;0)

I'll be installing the W10 CU v1703 on some of my test machines in the next week or two; and I'll let you know if I see Chrome mysteriously installed. I guess to test it, I'll need to remove Chrome from my W10 test machines prior to running the Update as you know I use it on all of ten (10) of my W10 machines. Perhaps some other folks here can have a look too. First instance I've heard of the CU update installing a new program like I said.

Best,
BBJ

 

[Joe S]

Mike did you install any freeware ? Sometimes it gets slipped in there and you miss it.
Joe

 

[MikeHawthorne]

Hi

I haven't installed any thing in a couple of weeks, pretty much all I've done for weeks is play Conan Exiles. LOL

And when I have installed it in the past there was a process involved.

I did open it after carefully checking it out, and it is Chrome and so far it seems to now be compatible with the new Windows build and my computer.

If it keeps workings I'll keep using it, I still prefer it to Firefox.

I figured that at some point it would become compatible again.

I still have no idea why, after using it for years and years it suddenly didn't work after a Windows update, and subsequent updates.

Mike

 

[BIGBEARJEDI]

Who knows? It could be your location; you're in the Midwest, Chrome is more of a West-Coast (Cali) browser! LOL. That's as good an explanation as any, right? Glad it's working for you now. I'm getting ready to update one of my test machines, and I'm going to remove the Chrome and try to update to v1703. Will let you know result.

Best,
BBJ

 

[hrast128]

If you had Chrome installed before but you just weren't using it, possibly it decided to silently auto-update in the background one day.
Another possibility is what BBJ mentioned, some other application installer or updater that offers Chrome as a bundle somehow installed it.

If you decide to investigate further, you can check the modified time on the main Chrome executable and the installer log located under C:\Windows\Temp\chrome_installer.log (or possibly under %appdata%\Local\Temp) if it's still there.

Might I just add that Chrome, especially if you are signed in with a Google account, provides a lot data to Google (ostensibly, mostly "analytics"). Should you be concerned with privacy, Firefox with uBlock Origin (as an ad and tracking blocker) and DuckDuckGo (as a default search engine that doesn't track you) is a more privacy-oriented option. Or, if you like the Chrome experience (I do admit it's very slick), consider using the open-source Chromium variant that doesn't include Google's tracking code (but also lacks an auto-update feature, but there are ways to augment this).

 

[Neemobeer]

Mike you can determine where Chrome was installed from by opening a powershell prompt and type the following
Get-CimInstance -Query 'select * from Win32_Product' | ? Name -like "*Chrome*" | select name,installsource

 

[MikeHawthorne]

Hi

Back to being weird, I opened my computer yesterday and noticed that the Chrome Icon was missing from my Task Bar.
I went to the Start Menu and tried to open it from there, and it wouldn't open.

I went to the All Programs list and tried to open it from there and it wouldn't open either.

So I uninstalled it, ran CCleaner to remove any leftovers and then went to the Google site and re-downloaded and installed it.

It wouldn't open from the new install?

I said the hell with it and uninstalled it again and went back to my Firefox install.

I really don't know what's going on here, I used chrome for years before I started having these problems.

I tried running Get-CimInstance -Query 'select * from Win32_Product' | ? Name -like "*Chrome*" | select name,installsource

And from the command prompt I got, "Get-Cimlnstiance" not a recognized command.

From the Power Shell nothing happened at all.

Mike

 

[davehc]

A worthless note: Just tried mine (Not my browser of choice) working 100%.

 

[MikeHawthorne]

Hi

That's the weird part, I have no idea why I'm having problems with it, I used it for years, and everyone I know is still using it with Windows 10.

I don't have problems with any other software, or browser, so why doesn't it work on my computer, even after many Windows updates?

Mike