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Your Daily Dose of Microsoft

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the a-day-without-microsoft-is-like-a-day-without-sunshine dept.

The European Union is considering anti-trust action against Microsoft. The Wall Street Journal ran a column today about the Windows XP registration process, which is apparently news to a lot of people who don't read enough Slashdot. IBM says Microsoft is arrogant. Microsoft's XP Beta program is a little more open than they thought. And finally, and most amusingly, one of the threat letters being sent out by the BSA on behalf of Microsoft was sent to (wait for it...) OSDN. Okay, no more Microsoft submissions today, please.

29 of 541 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Getting WinXP Preview without registration by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4
    You can download the source here:

    http://svmsftwxp.conxion.com/download/wxp_pro_rc1_ core.tgz
    http://svmsftwxp.conxion.com/download/wxp_pro_rc1_ tools.tgz
    http://svmsftwxp.conxion.com/download/wxp_pro_rc1_ drivers.tgz
    http://svmsftwxp.conxion.com/download/wxp_pro_rc1_ extras.tgz

    You need Visual C++ 6.0 or better, and be warned: it's a 2G (yes, 2 gigabyte) download. (Oh, and it took about 3 days to compile on my PII 266MHz too, but that's another story.)

  2. Re:that's not the issue I'm wondering about by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4

    BSA investigators to visit the accused company unannounced and accompanied by local law enforcement officials such as U.S Marshals

    So the courts will grant pseudo-governmental powers to operate investigate? Is this normal? Will the US courts also grant requests for environmentalists to do research in the records of big-polluters? Will the courts grant requests for AIDS activists to do audits of BigPharm's research in order to prove that the government really funded the research on the drug they now hold patent on?

    Oh, of course not, these are the interests of the community - of the people - and the *people* aren't really being advocated by their courts *or* their government any longer... silly me - I forgot.

    US of America is a sick-twisted corporate run shithole. Can you people please wake the fuck up and do something about your goddamn government? P-L-U-T-O-C-R-A-C-Y : LOOK IT UP!!

  3. Hmm... by Wakko+Warner · · Score: 5
    Does the BSA reimburse companies for the waste of manhours it takes to find and verify all software licenses?

    They should, you know.

    - A.P.

    --

    --
    "Remember when the U.S. had a drug problem, and then we declared a War On Drugs, and now you can't buy drugs anymore?"
    1. Re:Hmm... by SnapShot · · Score: 4

      Interesting point: that OEM copy of MS Office that came with one office computer (and has been copied to the 9 other computers in the office) has kept the purchasing department from looking for cheaper alternatives.

      Sure, if you're paying full price, the MS Office "office" is pretty expensive (e.g. 10 x $500 = $5000) but if one copy is hidden in the cost of a computer and the other 9 copies are pirated then as far as the purchaser is concerned that only cost $0 dollars.

      That makes it pretty hard for WordPerfect or WordPro to compete even if their Office Suites are half the price of Microsoft Office.

      Make people pay full price for their software, then maybe they won't necessarily follow the herd but attempt to limit the amount of money they need to spend.

      --
      Waltz, nymph, for quick jigs vex Bud.
    2. Re:Hmm... by einhverfr · · Score: 5
      I am starting a small company devoted to promoting Linux. We will have a couple of machines running Windows in order to work out any potential interoperability problems, but nearly all machines will be running software which is freely redistributable.

      I have thought about asking my business partner to turn us into the BSA for an audit claiming that we are pirating RedHat Linux 7.1 to see how they respond... It would be an informative experience, though we would have to plan ahead and make sure that the few proprietary products we have do have (again, for interop testing purposes) all the documentation associated...

      I think that it is great that Microsoft is cracking down so hard against piracy. Most software piracy involves software which is "industry standard" and so harms the competitive system as much as anything Microsoft has ever done (who recently pirates Word Perfect for Windows?? Compare to Microsoft Office 2000). Hence a pirated copy of Office 2000 might have denied StarOffice or Lotus a piece of the market share. Same goes for Windows and Linux.

      More importantly, these generate real business liabilities in addition to the issue of lost documentation. Adobe used to have very restructive technological measures in place to prevent the piracy of their fonts (many of which resemble Microsoft's current tactics). However, it became popular for disgruntled employees to send print jobs to postscript printers which woudl change the password on them, hence the eeprom would have to be replaced and the fonts relicensed. The very real problems that this created forced Adobe to drop these measures.

      Microsoft has not learned from Adobe's mistakes. Imagine viruses which tamper with the activation process, forcing you to relicense your copy of Office or Windows... Such viruses would be an exact parallel to the attacks against postscript printers and font licensing that forced Adobe to rethink their licensing position on fonts.

      This will surely cause some companies to rethink their dependence on Windows....

      --

      LedgerSMB: Open source Accounting/ERP
  4. Re:Does it bother anyone else... by BRock97 · · Score: 5

    You do have a choice. I just wish more people would realize that they don't have to put up with this sort of thing, and choose to eschew Microsoft.

    I couldn't agree more. That is why I think a grass roots effort needs to be mobilized. Creating a website or posting this sort of thing on Slashdot won't help, it just leads to informed people complaining to informed people. The informed people need to get in touch with the uninformed. Around my house and where I work, I am considered one who has a some what informed opinion on things computer related. Lately, I have been getting asked quite a bit about WinXP and I tell people what I think. Stay with 2000/98SE. Got to get the word out! The people I feel bad for are those who buy a new computer. Ouch.

    Bryan R.

    --

    Bryan R.
    The price of freedom is eternal vigilance, or $12.50 as seen on eBay.....
  5. Free Consultation? by Maledictus · · Score: 4

    Let me get this straight. The most amusing thing you could come up with was to call a customer service line and ask about licensing open source products? Didja ask if their refrigerator was running? Did they say yes? Didja ask 'em to go catch it?

    As my older brother used to say: cute, but not funny.

    Next time someone wants to call Zones, or Softchoice or hell, even the BSA, give them a real world example to start the giggling. Tell them you have 100 users and you need licenses for 100 copies of Outlook, 15 copies of Excel, 50 copies of Word, 10 copies of Access, NO copies of Publisher, and 5 copies of Powerpoint. Now...is that all Office Standard, Office Pro or Office Seriously Diluted and Preinstalled on the Dell for the Home User?

    How many points per copy, per package, per user, per workstation? How much per point? Now, now! No fair using the scientific calculator.

    I'd love like all hell to comply to licensing...well, maybe not "love." I'd do it without much complaint. And somewhere in my desk drawer is a proposal from a reseller to get my company up to compliance. The bottom line was $20,000. And even in all that licensing mumbo-jumbo, there still was no guarantee that I didn't have a missed workstation, or a missed application that would instantly put me out of compliance.

    *shrug* I'll get in compliance, as soon as I figure out exactly what that means and how much to hit up the boss for. In the meantime, 3 letters from the BSA, each with a different "truce number," 1 dated last year, and all 3 addressed to different people at this company. Am I to believe that these are NOT mere direct mail advertisements?

    --
    Consigned to flames of woe.
  6. You think Microsoft's stuff is leaking out... by hamjudo · · Score: 4
    The folks at Red Hat made the same mistake, you can download ISO's from them too. And when they say download the "code", they know what they're talking about.

    More great news! I heard on a hacker mailing list, that Debian's stuff isn't protected either.

    I snuck into the Debian site, and I got lots of good stuff. Programming tools, games, an OS that works, a couple of desktop environments, networking tools, server apps, ... gigabytes of cool stuff. Way more complete than that Microsoft ISO image.

    Ignore the XP crap, and grab the good stuff before someone notices.

  7. Nope! by Greyfox · · Score: 4

    Once they have an excuse to kick the doors down, they will always find something. Could just be that copy of Word on the long-unused Windows 3.1 partition of the secretary's machine, but by God they'll find something. And when they do, you'll pay them. Generally in the fashon of having $50 worth of nickles pulled out of your ass.

    --

    I'm trying to teach myself to set people on fire with my mind... Is it hot in here?

  8. that's not the issue I'm wondering about by budcub · · Score: 5
    Lets say I run a small business, and one day a strange man walks in my door, shows me a business card saying he's from the BSA, and demands to audit all my computers, to make sure I don't have any pirate software. That's the issue we need to discuss.

    Suppose I tell him no, you can't enter, and call the police to have him arrested for trespassing. What's he going to do, get a search warrant? On what grounds? These are the questions I'd like to see answered.

    1. Re:that's not the issue I'm wondering about by SuiteSisterMary · · Score: 4

      There have been horror stories about BSA investigators trying to install their Windows-based software finder on Solaris boxen, and the like.

      --
      Vintage computer games and RPG books available. Email me if you're interested.
  9. If you want to use wget by dudle · · Score: 5
    It has to fit in the same line...

    wget --dot-style=mega --header="User-Agent:Download Manager" http://svmsftwxp.conxion.com/download/wxp_pro_rc1. iso

    H.

    --
    Looking for a great online backup: Green Backup
    1. Re:If you want to use wget by djrogers · · Score: 4

      or more simply:
      wget -U "Download Manager" http://svmsftwxp.conxion.com/download/wxp_pro_rc1. iso

      --
      Think outside the... Hey, where'd the friggin' box go?
  10. BSA? by zpengo · · Score: 5

    Boy Scouts of America? Geez...Microsoft is more sinister than I thought....

    --


    Got Rhinos?
  11. American Business vs European Union by Rushuru · · Score: 5

    What influence can the European Union have on an american company like microsoft?

    Sure, Microsoft sells billions of dollars of software in Europe each year, but I hardly see what kind of "punishment" the EU could inflict to Microsoft.
    -Ban their Microsoft products? Then it would pose some serious problems to european businesses and their competitivness.
    -Impose an extra tax on Microsoft Products? As Microsoft is a monopoly, I guess people will still buy their products even if it's more expensive.

    I really have no clue on how the EU could force Microsoft to do something against its will.

    --
    !
    ^_^
    1. Re:American Business vs European Union by tb3 · · Score: 5
      The same way the EU could stop General Electric and Honeywell (two U.S. companies) from merging. Check out the cnnfn story.

      From the article: "The European Union Tuesday officially rejected General Electric Co.'s planned $42 billion acquisition of Honeywell International Inc., the first time a proposed merger between two U.S. companies has been blocked solely by European regulators."

      --

      www.lucernesys.comHorizon: Calendar-based personal finance

    2. Re:American Business vs European Union by 10Ghz · · Score: 4

      Here we go again... First of all, the Kioto Treaty demands MORE from European countries than it does from USA! And we are willing to comply! You are not, even when it would be easier for you to follow the guidelines set by the treaty.

      As for EU trying to regulate american companies.... Funny, it wasn't long ago when USA threatened to punish european companies who did business with Libya or Cuba (Elf Acquitane and Peugeot-Citroen just to name few).

      So, either you don't know what you are talking about or you are just plain hypocritical. USA can do whatever it pleases to others, but nobody else can do the same to USA, eh?

      --
      Lesbian Nazi Hookers Abducted by UFOs and Forced Into Weight Loss Programs - -all next week on Town Talk.
  12. Call BSA and Dun & Bradstreet by jestapher · · Score: 4

    I received one of these "you are a criminal" letters at the ISP I work for, so I called up the BSA at (888) NO-PIRACY and had them remove us from their mailing lists. I asked where they got our name and address, and they said they purchased the list from Dun & Bradstreet. I gave DNB a ring at (800) 234-3867 and had them remove us from their lists. I asked the operator if there was a space to note the reason for the remove request and she said yes, so I made sure she noted that I had been offended by a mailing the BSA did using their lists.

  13. Re:Does it bother anyone else... by Erasmus+Darwin · · Score: 5
    Just don't install Windows XP. I don't use Windows anything. So I'm not succeptible.

    Well good for you. Unfortunately, those of us not living in never-never land have discovered that, contrary to popular belief, there's a lot of software out there that hasn't been ported to Linux.

    Don't get me wrong -- I love Linux. I use it both at home and at work. It's been my general operating system of choice for about 6 years now. However, that doesn't change the fact that there're some computer-related activites for which Windows is the better answer, either because more commercial developers supports it or the software requires less effort to install-and-use.

    So until Linux fully addresses these issues (something which, as much as I'm a fan of Linux, I doubt will every fully happen), there will be a need for some people to install and use Windows. Claiming otherwise is at best misguided advocacy and at worst trolling.

  14. Re:Getting WinXP Preview without registration by DarkEdgeX · · Score: 5

    For people who are copying/pasting this guy's URL, make note of the fact that there's an extra space in his (eg: ..._rc1. iso, note the space after the dot.. the real URL has no space). Also note that if you just try to download this file using IE or Netscape or [insert browser here] the file will fail to download because your User Agent won't be set to "Download Manager". You MUST set the User Agent correctly. 90% of people who say the link is broken or doesn't work are suffering from this problem.

    --
    All I know about Bush is I had a good job when Clinton was president.
  15. Is it just me... by megaduck · · Score: 5

    ...or is Microsoft being incredibly stupid? Let's see... According to this article, they've managed to piss off:

    The DOJ. A thick, plodding, but huge and relentless adversary with the legal power to carve up the company like a turkey if they are ever found guilty.

    The EU. I don't think that they have the legal authority over Microsoft that the US courts do, but they can effectively create a "Microsoft-Free" zone named Europe where rival tech companies can flourish.

    Sun. One of the biggest server and workstation manufacturers in the world. No big loss on immediate sales (Windows on SPARC? Thank God, no!), but Sun has a lot of clout with standards committees and governments like the EU.

    IBM. The 800 pound gorilla. Lord of the mainframes. One BILLION dollar investment in Linux. Army of lawyers. Need we say more?

    The Wall Street Journal. This kills me. The most respected newspaper in America says not to upgrade to Windows XP. Unmitigated PR disaster.

    The Open Source Movement(TM). You know, this isn't as stupid as it sounds. I still think they could make a ton of money with an MS branded Linux distro and Office for Linux. Heck, I'd buy it.

    Consumers. This "registration" bulls**t is going to piss off a lot of ordinary people. It's not like they don't have alternatives, too. *Cough*Apple!*Cough* *Cough*

    The truly mind-blowing thing is that Microsoft hasn't tried to mitigate any of this damage. No olive branches, no buyoffs, no positive spin, no nothing. With their blind arrogance and greed they are slowly turning the entire world against them. Good work, guys! Keep it up!

    --
    This .sig for rent.
  16. Re:Its about time... by karmawarrior · · Score: 4
    It's not that ironic: IBM themselves acknowledge that they've acted the same way as Microsoft in the past, and have learned from their mistakes, viz:
    Andy Hoiles, IBM's Linux business manager for the company's European Enterprise Systems Group, believes Microsoft's anti-open source, pro-.Net strategy is the arrogance of a company that has succeeded in conquering markets more often than it has failed.
    "We had that arrogance a few years ago," he said. "Then we nearly went out of business. You learn from that."
    I'd agree that it's ironic that the computer industry is waiting for IBM to save them from a giant, out of control, monopolistic market monolith. But it's perfectly reasonable for IBM to criticise Microsoft and be a pro-open source body, just as it's reasonable for a reformed alcoholic to encourage a drunk to go to the AA, and be a steadfast teetotal.

    Way to go, IBM.
    --

    --
    KMSMA (WWBD?)
  17. Windows XP Licenses and Consumers by Compulawyer · · Score: 5
    I for one question the legality of this scheme with copies of XP sold to consumers for home use. The problem is with the way it is done. Courts have invalidated terms of shrinkwrap software licenses on the grounds that the terms of the sale (and thus the company's contract with the consumer) were set at the register and that the license terms are an invalid attempt by one party to unilaterally change the contract terms.

    It seems to me that unless these terms are clearly and conspicuously disclosed BEFORE the sale, it is a breach of contract and an invasion of privacy to which the consumer did not consent.

    --

    Laws affecting technology will always be bad until enough techies become lawyers.

  18. Register in 30 days or less by uigrad_2000 · · Score: 4
    This is new news to me. WinXP gives you 30 days free without registering (submitting innermost details about your prized hardware for piracy check).

    <flamebait>
    30 days is a long time. I've rarely gone for 30 days without having Windows crash so bad that I needed a full reinstall anyway. How is this going to help them?
    </flaimbait>

    --
    Free unix account: freeshell.org
  19. Re:Its about time... by s20451 · · Score: 4

    its good to see IBM standing up for something that it seems to believe in: open source. It makes me proud to be an employee.

    On the contrary; the irony is so thick you could cut it with a knife. If slashdot had been around 20 years ago the object of its obsessions would have certainly been IBM. Not so long ago IBM's questionable trade practices in the mainframe industry was the subject of a Slashdot post. Yet here is IBM, complaining that a company that their market dominance helped build has turned into a monster, and is acting arrogantly.

    Don't kid yourself; IBM is embracing open source only to the extent that it can give them an advantage over MS in the marketplace. Not that I think that's bad; but let's be clear about their motives.

    --
    Toronto-area transit rider? Rate your ride.
  20. Re:Does it bother anyone else... by Magumbo · · Score: 5
    I just wish more people would realize that they don't have to put up with this sort of thing, and choose to eschew Microsoft.

    Here's what I do to "spread the word":

    I dress up in a furry penguin suit and drive around town blowing my horn in my black, white, and orange "penguin motif" 1970 Super Beetle. I've got a loudspeaker mounted on top that I blare ice cream truck sounds from. When the little kids come running outside I hand out free linux cds and say "Spread the love".

    It's very important to get the younger generation involved, you see.

    --

  21. Beginning of the end... by powerlinekid · · Score: 5

    I have no problem with Microsoft, infact they're a smart business... but their latest decision is very very very dangerous. The PC was so popular because it was open, because you could add hardware... run whatever you wanted, and had an incredible wealth of software. This is part of the reason Apple wasn't so successful... people don't want closed systems with little software. And the feeling in my gut is that Microsoft is trying to reverse the decision that the ibm developers at Boca Raton originally released the PC under. Of course Microsoft exploited IBM in the beginning, but setting a standard which they did with DOS/Windows isn't such a bad thing. Now though, by telling people what they can and can not do with their hardware, and also what they can and cannot do with their software (how long until Microsoft kills Sun, AOL, etc software compatiblity) they are overstepping their bounds. For the love of freedom of choice, I hope they fail... otherwise, if you think Microsoft is "evil" now, give them a few years. *sigh*

    --

    can't sleep slashdot will eat me
  22. Re:Windows 2000 sucks by RU_on_weed · · Score: 4

    sorry but I have to do this

    "I can barely get it up on 128 Megs of ram and still be productive."

    Hmmm me thinks maybe you should try alternate methods ...maybe magazines , movies .. I just don't think 128 megs of ram is gonna do it for you :-)

  23. Actual Windows XP registration dialogue by SilentChris · · Score: 4
    *After a minute on hold*
    Me - "Hi, I downloaded the Windows XP beta, but I installed it on another machine. I didn't realize you could only install it on one. Can I pay for a second CD key?"
    Operator - "You installed it on more than one machine?"
    Me - "Yes."
    Operator - "OK, hold on."
    *Another minute on hold*
    Operator - "Are you just using it for testing purposes?"
    Me - "Yes. Like I said, I'd be willing to pay for an extra key."
    Operator - "No need. My supervisor says I can override it."
    Me *surpised* "Really? Uh, cool."
    Operator - "What's your installation ID?" [this is the hardware hash they display on the screen]
    Me - "1098.."
    Operator - "Ok, here's your new code. Ready? 2037..."
    Me - "OK".
    Operator - "Then click "next"."
    Me - "OK. It says thank you registering your copy of Windows XP. Very nice."
    Operator - "Will there be anything else, sir?"
    Me - "No. Thank you very much. That was surprisingly easy. Goodbye." *click*

    MY THOUGHTS - Yes, the registration process sucks, but as I learned this morning, not every member of Microsoft is an asshole (at least the guy I spoke to). I didn't have to "pay" for an extra license (to test their beta, I know, but it's a pretty good OS. Hasn't crashed on my yet), and the total process took a little less than 3 minutes. Plus, as could be seen here, the operators can easily be swayed in certain instances (note, I don't think it's going to be so easy when the "actual" XP comes out).

    Still, I'm pretty happy with the OS and service. Solid. $10 is not too bad considering I normally pay $9.95 - $14.95 to Cheap bytes for the latest RedHat distro.