The new Pixel camera/phone I'm now evaluating has problems similar to what you just described. Google has an identical cloud system as Microsoft but with different names for the devices. It's MyDrive instead of OneDrive for example. It's hard to understand why Microsoft would want your password; it's normally encrypted and does them no good to have it. I'm guessing what they really want you to do is have a cloud (OneDrive) account that is verifiable. They don't want just anybody going into your brother's stash and stealing your Christmas present. DropBox works the same way. The sender specifies the login credentials, and you better match them or your don't get to drop the box.
In the case of Microsoft I have a general account for all their services - likewise with Google. That general account will get me into any of their services, including a login to my Windows 10 service. OneDrive is included with Windows 10 and cannot be deleted. I tried, believe me. LOL That's fine. Let them track my cloud activity even if I don't use it. But, if your brother were going to send ME a Christmas present via OneDrive, I have little doubt that I could get it with my general account. They know you are a dedicated Linux user, I'm afraid, and thus go out of their way to give you a hard time.
My solution to situations such as yours is to make a bogus account with fake profile information. They really don't care unless you are going to buy something with a credit card. Even then you only have to validate the credit card and not the name on the account. The fake account would be used for occasions such as gifts from your brother and not used otherwise. Microsoft will be tracking a zombie account in that case, but you will benefit from the service nonetheless.
Microsoft Is Amazing
Re: Microsoft Is Amazing
I tried the fake account by using a gmail address and password. Still wouldn't let me use the link my brother sent to my real e-mail account. So he sent a link to my new fake account, and it wouldn't work because I have to install an exe program to access the online OneDrive system.
I've invited several folks to get data from my DropBox account, they never had a problem that I know of anyhow.
I mentioned this to someone else who told me they were not asking for the password to my e-mail account.
They want the password to my OneDrive account under that e-mail user name.
This makes more sense than asking for my e-mail password, hi hi.
He's probably right, but you have to have a OneDrive account first, under your e-mail username and OneDrive password.
Something I don't need or want!
Have a great day Yogi!
I've invited several folks to get data from my DropBox account, they never had a problem that I know of anyhow.
I mentioned this to someone else who told me they were not asking for the password to my e-mail account.
They want the password to my OneDrive account under that e-mail user name.
This makes more sense than asking for my e-mail password, hi hi.
He's probably right, but you have to have a OneDrive account first, under your e-mail username and OneDrive password.
Something I don't need or want!
Have a great day Yogi!
Re: Microsoft Is Amazing
You're getting closer to the truth of the matter. LOL
As you would expect the big three, Microsoft, Apple, and Google, all offer something similar. The reason for similar systems is because they all want the business from mobile device users. Since mobile vs desktop vs laptop sharing is a nightmare, something had to be invented that would tie them all together. That's where The Cloud comes in handy. If you store everything you want to share among your various computer devices, the cloud is the best place to put it.
That's all easy to comprehend, but of course it's not that simple. Being a Linux user means there is no competition from the Big Three for you to be concerned about. Your computer life is further simplified by the fact that you avoid mobile devices, and the need for synchronization, as much as possible. However, there are times when you may have a need to use one of their products, such as the case with your brother's gift. Using the cloud involves overcoming a lot of security risks, not to mention a need for a positive ID because money is frequently being exchanged over these cloud transactions. So, the need to know who you are becomes paramount.
This works for all three of them, but I'll talk Microsoft since that is what you have dealt with lately. The most common form of ID in The Clouds is your e-mail address. Most people have at least one and it's frequently associated with the service provider of choice. In this case I'm suggesting that a lot of Microsoft fans have Hotmail accounts. Microsoft is providing the e-mail service in this case. However, Microsoft has a lot of other services they also provide. These days they all require an e-mail account (of your choice) in order to receive the service. It's simply a way for them to verify your identity. You can use different e-mail accounts for each service you get from Microsoft, but that's insane. So they generally take the one you set up initially and have you use that one for all future service use. So, if you use Windows as a service, they want your e-mail to be associated with that. If you use PlayStation, they want that same e-mail for that account. If you use Skype, again they want that initial e-mail address. If you use their OneDrive cloud storage, again, that e-mail ID is what they want from you. It actually makes sense. Why have several e-mail identities when you are dealing with the same company for multiple services that they provide?
So ... the best approach for using anything Microsoft (Google, or Apple) is to set up an e-mail account from them. Here is where it gets tricky. Just having a Hotmail account doesn't automatically give you access to all the services offered by Microsoft. It just gives you an ID. If you want to use Windows OS, PlayStation, Skype, or OneDrive, you need to create an account for each one of those services. They will all ask you for an e-mail address to associate with that service account. And, to keep things straight in everyone's mind, using that initial Hotmail addy is what you should do. The password for getting into Skype, for example, is one of your choosing and not necessarily the same as the password on your e-mail. Those are two different services with two different sets of credentials. You should use the same e-mail address across the board, but the passwords for access would be different (in theory) for each one. Doing it that way, Microsoft knows who you are (e-mail ID) and will let you use a specific service if you have the password for that service (login credential).
I think you will grasp what I'm saying here if you think about it for a minute. It's complicated but at the same time makes sense. What your brother did was add a degree of complexity to the formula. You don't have a Micorsoft ID nor do you have a OneDrive account. However, you may still have access to the specific folder/file on your brother's drive if HE sets it up properly. He must put permissions on the specific folder/file that he wants to share, and those permissions would spell out your e-mail ID and the password associated with that ID. Keep in mind that the e-mail address part is the ID, not the password. So, your brother and you have to agree in advance about what your e-mail ID will be and what password you will use. He must put whatever you two agreed upon into the permissions for access to OneDrive's folder with your gift.
All of the above is exactly how DropBox works. The difference is that there is no universal e-mail ID required. Any old e-mail address will do because DropBox doesn't handle financial transactions. Thus they don't need the same level of security as would any of the Big Three. You and your brother would still have to agree in advance about what e-mail and password to use for access.
TMI, I know. Sorry. But I needed to explain it all to myself because I'm going through all this with Google and that new Pixel gizmo. Then there is my wife who has an iPad with a whole new world of ID's and passwords.
As you would expect the big three, Microsoft, Apple, and Google, all offer something similar. The reason for similar systems is because they all want the business from mobile device users. Since mobile vs desktop vs laptop sharing is a nightmare, something had to be invented that would tie them all together. That's where The Cloud comes in handy. If you store everything you want to share among your various computer devices, the cloud is the best place to put it.
That's all easy to comprehend, but of course it's not that simple. Being a Linux user means there is no competition from the Big Three for you to be concerned about. Your computer life is further simplified by the fact that you avoid mobile devices, and the need for synchronization, as much as possible. However, there are times when you may have a need to use one of their products, such as the case with your brother's gift. Using the cloud involves overcoming a lot of security risks, not to mention a need for a positive ID because money is frequently being exchanged over these cloud transactions. So, the need to know who you are becomes paramount.
This works for all three of them, but I'll talk Microsoft since that is what you have dealt with lately. The most common form of ID in The Clouds is your e-mail address. Most people have at least one and it's frequently associated with the service provider of choice. In this case I'm suggesting that a lot of Microsoft fans have Hotmail accounts. Microsoft is providing the e-mail service in this case. However, Microsoft has a lot of other services they also provide. These days they all require an e-mail account (of your choice) in order to receive the service. It's simply a way for them to verify your identity. You can use different e-mail accounts for each service you get from Microsoft, but that's insane. So they generally take the one you set up initially and have you use that one for all future service use. So, if you use Windows as a service, they want your e-mail to be associated with that. If you use PlayStation, they want that same e-mail for that account. If you use Skype, again they want that initial e-mail address. If you use their OneDrive cloud storage, again, that e-mail ID is what they want from you. It actually makes sense. Why have several e-mail identities when you are dealing with the same company for multiple services that they provide?
So ... the best approach for using anything Microsoft (Google, or Apple) is to set up an e-mail account from them. Here is where it gets tricky. Just having a Hotmail account doesn't automatically give you access to all the services offered by Microsoft. It just gives you an ID. If you want to use Windows OS, PlayStation, Skype, or OneDrive, you need to create an account for each one of those services. They will all ask you for an e-mail address to associate with that service account. And, to keep things straight in everyone's mind, using that initial Hotmail addy is what you should do. The password for getting into Skype, for example, is one of your choosing and not necessarily the same as the password on your e-mail. Those are two different services with two different sets of credentials. You should use the same e-mail address across the board, but the passwords for access would be different (in theory) for each one. Doing it that way, Microsoft knows who you are (e-mail ID) and will let you use a specific service if you have the password for that service (login credential).
I think you will grasp what I'm saying here if you think about it for a minute. It's complicated but at the same time makes sense. What your brother did was add a degree of complexity to the formula. You don't have a Micorsoft ID nor do you have a OneDrive account. However, you may still have access to the specific folder/file on your brother's drive if HE sets it up properly. He must put permissions on the specific folder/file that he wants to share, and those permissions would spell out your e-mail ID and the password associated with that ID. Keep in mind that the e-mail address part is the ID, not the password. So, your brother and you have to agree in advance about what your e-mail ID will be and what password you will use. He must put whatever you two agreed upon into the permissions for access to OneDrive's folder with your gift.
All of the above is exactly how DropBox works. The difference is that there is no universal e-mail ID required. Any old e-mail address will do because DropBox doesn't handle financial transactions. Thus they don't need the same level of security as would any of the Big Three. You and your brother would still have to agree in advance about what e-mail and password to use for access.
TMI, I know. Sorry. But I needed to explain it all to myself because I'm going through all this with Google and that new Pixel gizmo. Then there is my wife who has an iPad with a whole new world of ID's and passwords.
Re: Microsoft Is Amazing
I messed myself up when I set up the Google+ account, which uses the Bookmark Bar in my Google Browser.
At the time I joined Google+ it was for my publisher, so I used my author account to set it up.
On the bright side, I can access my Bookmark Bar on all of my devices by signing into my author account.
From there can use any account I want for everything else.
You said a mouthful above, and I do understand all of it.
And like I said previously. I think I misunderstood what they meant when they asked for my Password.
I assumed, since they asked for my e-mail, and then my e-mail password, they meant my e-mail password.
The frau called about 10 minutes ago to tell me my lunch is ready, so I had better hop to it before she tosses it in the trash.
At the time I joined Google+ it was for my publisher, so I used my author account to set it up.
On the bright side, I can access my Bookmark Bar on all of my devices by signing into my author account.
From there can use any account I want for everything else.
You said a mouthful above, and I do understand all of it.
And like I said previously. I think I misunderstood what they meant when they asked for my Password.
I assumed, since they asked for my e-mail, and then my e-mail password, they meant my e-mail password.
The frau called about 10 minutes ago to tell me my lunch is ready, so I had better hop to it before she tosses it in the trash.