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Microsoft/HP to Market Crippled Entertainment PCs
gustywinds writes "CNet is reporting that Microsoft and HP recently announced the details on their Media Center PCs that will be coming out this Christmas season (this used to be called 'Freestyle'). The big story is that these PCs will have anti-copying mechanisms built-in to them -- ie can't burn recorded TV shows to DVD, or even copy and play them back on other PCs. And they are going to be expensive... $1500 for the starter box. Sounds like this thing is going to be DOA. Lots of other PC-based TV recording products that aren't restrictive when it comes to copying stuff goes... Snapstream, WinDVR... And, of course, Hauppauge, nVidia and ATi have products too but their software is pretty lacking..."
doesn't MS do that already with their OS?
Where can I get one?
Has Comcast disconnected your Internet account? Same here. You can read about it at http://comcastissue.blogspot.com
I though HP said they were trying to get OUT of their trend of losing business and market share..
Producing entire warehouses of dead computers that no one will buy seems quite counteractive to that plan.
Shrug.
=-Jippy
And your typical college student surely has $1500 to toss around on a new computer.
**from the twisted dreams of MS's marketing dept**
Salesguy: And it's a lot like your current computer, but it does less and costs more.
College kid: And it's new and hip, right?
Salesguy: Absolutely.
College kid: Do you take cash?
*************
If I had ever had $1500 at one time while I was at college, I would have changed it into 20's and rolled around in it naked.
-B
Sounds like a good way to get the underachieving, lazy, waiting for daddy's job, dishonest, thieving, substance-abusing, parasitic growths amongst the generally upright and ethical student population to knuckle down and start studying for a change.
</flamebait>
But then, if pigs could fly, we'd need much stronger umbrellas.
Karma:Chameleon (sometimes very affected indeed)
You're a happy owner of a Microsoft Web TV, aren't you?
But wouldn't having stupid enemas actually make them *less* stupid?
They're not "crippled PC's"...
They're "differently abled operating systems"...
Mod Karma -1: I sed bad wurds. If I cep my mouf shut, I wud be at riyses.
...
...
quack. quack. quack! quack! quack!
DRM protects the consumer.
quack. quack. quack! quack! quack!
Why is Triangle Man so MEAN?
POC? Oh Proof of Concept. I thought you meant Piece of Crap.
"Instead, this is an attempt to gain lobby support from MPAA/RIAA ... so that congress can bless the "proven Microsoft Way" and force the Microsoft "technology" onto the rest of us"
:)
Well, look at the bright side: Since it's MS, you can bet it'll be exploitable.
It'd sure beat the hell out of anything Sony'd dish out. Anybody remember that Spiderman soundtrack that had PC stuff on it, but the anti-PC protection prevented it from working? Heh.
"Derp de derp."
RichMan wrote:
n ium/mgoals.html especially "What would such a system be like?").
;)
;)
n ...Dominate. ..
> Anyone know of popular fiction references to
> Microsoft. Directly or by implication.
"Godzilla 2000 Millenium" (American version "Godzilla 2000" chops out the "Millenium" references). Millenium was a Microsoft research project in the late 1990's (http://research.microsoft.com/research/sn/Millen
In the movie the "Millenium alien" seized control of Earth's computers (PC's, Macs, and even ones running the open source game emulator MAME). It planned to rule the world, and to do that, it needed a terrestrial form. It attempted to embrace, extend, and extinguish Godzilla.
The Mac-loving Monster King had no intention of giving up his crown to the ursurper, but was having trouble destroying it, after it had assimilated Godzilla's own healing abilities. Finally the alien opened its mouth way too wide and extended a big flap with tentacles grasping at him. Godzilla came to a decision, and dived in. Millenium gulped down his DNA with "Organizer G1" (a component of G-cells left over from earlier in the history of life when life was still evolving into widely diverse forms). All was well, until Millenium noticed Godzilla's spines begin to glow. The alien died in a massive nuclear fireball. Then the Dreaded God bellowed his triumph!
Microsoft's Millenium distributed network did have a cameo in the Japanese version of the movie. As Shinoda was about to leave the computer room with the MAME computers, he whirled around and stared at the monitors. All of them were displaying the "Millenium" boot screen.
It was the only moment in Toho's kaiju eiga where a Microsoft OS was shown with any unique identifying parts (window title bars, etc.) unblurred. Toho does not usually give Microsoft any product placement, even if a PC is used in a movie and its screen has vital info for the plot. PCs are rarely used, and usually by the bad guy (or at least the "wanting to destroy Godzilla" guy, or the "hasn't yet been reformed by Mothra" guy). Good guys use Macs.
The best thing that could happen with these crippled PCs would be product placement on the next Godzilla movie. Compaq stupidly tried that for two movies in a row, and look at where are they now!
"At this moment, it has control of systems all over the world.
And...we can't do a damn thing to stop it."
Miyasaka, Godzilla 2000 Millennium (Japanese version)
Millenium's Message (words appeared on all computer monitors):
"Earth...Destroy...Erase...Suppressio
Terror...Prosperity...Oppulence...Oppression...
Revolution...Kingdom..."
Godzilla 2000 Millennium (Japanese version)