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Microsoft Sues and Gets Sued
wubo writes, "Microsoft is apparently stepping up its anti-piracy measures by publishing the locations and specifics of their pending lawsuits. Check out the snazzy map — warms me heart and soul." And to even the scales of justice, one of the last remaining class-action antitrust lawsuits filed against Microsoft in a state court is set to go to trial in Iowa later this year. An anonymous reader writes, "Iowa consumers who purchased Microsoft products in the last 12 years are being represented in a class action anti-trust lawsuit against Microsoft. The jury trial begins on November 13 and is expected to last 6 months." Bill Gates is on the witness list.
.... but what is the point of this? It shows that Microsoft is 'trying' to curb piracy (of casuals of course) but do they make more busts with flashy graphics and threats?
Aw. I live in Iowa; now I wish I had actually bought my MS stuff.
Innocent before proven guilty? I don't think so.
Microsoft is apparently stepping up its anti-piracy measures by publishing the locations and specifics of their pending lawsuits.
Wow, a whole 73 lawsuits. In a nation of 260 million people. That tremble in the force you feel is the pirates quaking in their boots.
Push Button, Receive Bacon
The "Bad boys bad boys. Whutcha gonna do?" tone of the Microsoft site reminds me a lot of this site from the DHS (department of homeland security).
The actual list of people getting sued.
Is this the best time for Microsoft to be making sure as few people as possible pirate Windows? Surely now, as XP is going out to make way for Vista, and OS X is gaining momentum, they should be practically encouraging it.
Microsoft has a few important things going for it, but the user share and market dominance is the most important; I wouldn't want to test it, it's easier than ever to switch to Linux.
// MD_Update(&m,buf,j);
Suing... Microsoft? Isn't it the epitome of a law-abiding corporation? It is supposed to sue people, not the other way around.
This makes me sick. For example, we have strict privacy laws in Poland -- in theory. Every single database that includes any personal data needs to be reported to GIODO -- and you need every person on your list to agree to that use. You also need to provide a way for every person to review whatever data you have on file about them, and/or request their removal.
And if you anger the powers that be, you will be controlled and face stiff penalties. Unless you have enough political clout, that is.
Now, take a wild guess who is playing a major role in building the henhouse...
The creatures outside looked from Alt-Right to Antifa; but already it was impossible to say which was which.
This is a good thing. A lot of people have no problems with downloading software or other copyrighted materials illegaly, as long as it is for free. But a lot of people are against selling such items, or making a profit off of it. Unfortunately, the copyright lobby views both groups as filthy stinking pirates, but the public don't really care about the first group, and only view the second group as the real pirates that actually ought to be punished for it.
What Microsoft is doing here, is targeting the second group only. And that is a good thing.
Im NoT On The List :P :P i found my coppy through aol.com so my search will be totaly confidential
Guess that havent found me yet
HAHAHAHAHAHAH
See im anonymous so they wont know my Ip or anything
Im sooo LEET
As if anybody uses computers in South Carolina.
Personally, I don't care. They're not employing *AA tactics by suing individuals. So they're suing a bunch of low-rent compu-chop-shops...good riddance.
This being Slashdot, I know nobody bothered to read the article before bashing Microsoft, but if you'll look at the list of defendants, they're almost all small time computer sales or software sales companies. Microsoft isn't the RIAA; they don't waste lawsuits suing Grandma or Little Susie because they're running a copy of Windows without a valid product key. What they do care about is companies who sell pirated copies of Windows to consumers for a profit. Some of these consumers even PAY for a pirated copy of Windows and are told they're getting a licensed copy. I know some people will argue with me that this is a good thing, but if you are a consumer who's been sold a pirated copy of Windows without your knowledge, Microsoft will even help you get a free or discounted copy if you just let them know who sold it to you. A lot of people instantly think it's Microsoft's way of getting you to rat on your family friend who's loaned you his install CD and key, but again, that's not who MS is looking for. So before you start crying foul, this sort of site isn't meant to scare you, it's meant to scare the guy selling 1000's of copies of Windows to unsuspecting consumers for a profit.
Because pirating Microsoft products is actually easier than using them legitimately (to an extent)!
:)
To clarify this, I don't condone pirating software that you don't already own. While this statement sounds odd, anyone who has had to deal with Windows Product Activation or Office Product Activation should know just how painful Microsoft makes it to activate your software after you've passed some arbitrary threshold. I spent a half hour on the phone with one of their activation people a few days ago attempting to get the copy of Office I paid for activated on a computer that had a hdd failure and had to be reinstalled from scratch. After being told that it was my fault (yeah, I shoulda known better than to buy a WD hard drive) and told that I needed to call tech support I finally gave up and cracked it, which took a grand total of two minutes.
The same holds true for Windows. I own legitimate copies of XP (paid out of the nose for them), and it's worth noting that some of these copies have been around since XP was released (how many years ago was that?). During this time I have upgraded, had hardware failures, and then there are the infamous Windows failures that render the computer useless until you reformat and reinstall. Now every time I touch one of those licenses, I have to call Microsoft and report. This entails entering (or speaking) a lengthy activation number into the phone, then going through the same boring script with a person who doesn't speak English very well. Why bother when I can run two executables and be done with the entire affair?
Microsoft needs to stop treating every customer like criminals and then maybe more of them will feel inclined to start paying for the software.
The Plaintiffs claim that Microsoft harmed Class Members by illegally overcharging for its software, by denying Class Members free choice in software products and the benefits of software innovation, and by making computers increasingly susceptible to security breaches. This is crap right here. It realy sounds like a bunch of people who know *nothing* about computers are suing because their own ignorance angers them. First off, how the hell can it be illegal to overcharge for a product? Isnt the point of a free market that you can charge whatever the market will bare? Will they be suing disneyland next for selling three dollar sodas? Second, ive never had a problem installing any software onto my computer, whether im using Windows or Linux. At no point has windows ever actively prevented me from installing whatever software I wanted to. Anyone willing to shell out $40 at best buy or compusa can pick up a packaged linux distro and load it onto their machine no problem. I realy hope microsoft uses OpenOffice as an example of a FREE and open alternative to their software that anyone on the planet can use. Are these iowans going to force microsoft to bundle OOo with their own office suite? Finaly, isnt the fact that microsoft keeps on publishing patches a clear sign that, as crappy an OS as windows might be, they are trying to fix it? As paranoid as Vista is, to the point of annoying me, I strongly dissagree that microsoft is making computers less secure. Im reading through the list of complaints, and one of them is, in summary, that Windows is a crappy, bug-ladden, bloated cow of an OS. Clearly these people dont know what a Macintosh is, and have never heard of any *nix OS. Does this lawsuit have any ground at all? I never liked these suits against microsoft for the simple fact that no one has *ever* been forced to use microsoft windows. these people chose to buy a computer with windows on it, they chose to not use an alternative operating system, and they shouldnt win this suit. Caveat Emptor
I've gone through several Windows machines this decade, but the Mac I bought my wife in 2000 is still kicking, and still quite useful. The difference is in the software.
I'm not sure what kind of mac you're talking about, but if you bought it in 2000, it certainly can't be useful for anything more than email, considering that OS X ran miserably on existing hardware when officially released in 2001. (And if your wife is running OS 9, then your comparison is even more ridiculous and irrelevant.)
Push Button, Receive Bacon
as some have already pointed out lawsuits are against people selling pirate m$ software.
6 /9/12/5269
i was just reading on ars how with vista VLK versions of vista will have their own version of product activation... since a whole bunch of the pirating of XP was leaked VLK program keys... I wonder what this means?
http://arstechnica.com/journals/microsoft.ars/200
if anyone is interested....
actually I am happy to see you, however that is in fact a banana in my pocket.
In spite of my personal feelings about M$'s dog's breakfast of software, people selling something that they didn't buy themselves or make themselves should be shut down. I alway had the credo that if I made money or was entertained in some way with some commercial software, I'd pay for it. Same with music. It is important to get the money into the hands of the creators if you use their stuff or like it. I don't mind at all if someone cooks my music onto a CD for their mom but I'd be right pissed if some jackass was selling a van full of them behind the mall.
Unlike Apple, Microsoft doesn't sell computers. They rely upon other companies to do that for them.
Notice the header on that Web site: it's for OEM System Builders.
At every gathering of OEM System Builders, the common refrain is "What are you doing about piracy?" The builders are competing against pirates who can undercut their prices. Microsoft makes a show of these prosecutions for their benefit.
The new Windows Genuine Advanage program is another response to the OEM's demands... and it's also a source of information about the pirates, because most people who get the pop-up messages complain directly to Microsoft. By tracking the number and locations of complaints, it's easy for MS to identify the repeat offenders and serial pirates, and prosecute the biggest targets.
Well judging from Microsoft's past experiences in court, they'll probably be found guilty, and not do jack sh*t about it. Even the EU couldn't get them to budge. They're not bringing anything new to the table, I don't see why the folks in Iowa decided to sue Microsoft at this particular time, when they could've brought the same claims to the table around 5 years ago. Microsoft will probably bring the "but there are alternatives to Windows" claim in its defense. Well for 93% of the population, Linux is as much an alternative to Windows as a Segway is to a car.
Some people said in the comments "piracy will always exist as long as there's money in it" or such. Yeah. likely. But there's another important reason for piracy: CONVENIENCE.
Count steps, cost in time and effort, behind purchasing a legal piece of software, and obtaining it from illegal source.
Legal, downloadable:
- Find website.
- Access "shopping part"
- Dig through marketing junk, looking for "buy"
- Enter full billing information, usually involving grandmother's dogs name and shoe sizes of all children.
- Agree to terms and conditions.
- Click "download".
- Open mailer, download mail, read serial.
- Install.
Legal, purchasable online, boxed:
- First, as above, till terms and conditions.
- Click "buy"
- Wait a week.
- Go to the post office to pick it, the box didn't find in mail. It's a single CD but packed in box that could hold 300 of them and won't fit in your mailbox.
- Rip through 5 to 8 layers of packaging.
- Insert the CD.
- During installation, retype the 30-character serial from the box.
Legal, purchasable at shop.
- Instead of going to post office, go to a local computer shop. Or 10 if the package isn't so common.
- Follow steps from above, till installation.
- Register online for update (the version purchased is a year old)
- Update to newest version using online updater.
Illegal:
- Launch your favourite P2P program.
- Type program name, Click "download" on the list.
- Relax as it downloads.
- Unzip.
- Click "serial.txt", copy the serial.
- Install.
Legal install, from the moment you start to want given program to the moment you have it running, rarely lasts less than a hour, often more than a week. Following the illegal way can often accomplish the task in 3-5 mins.
45 5F E1 04 22 CA 29 C4 93 3F 95 05 2B 79 2A B2
is this a by product of wga?
_ In Egypt Networks: Network Solutions with a Twist
There is a tendancy (of which I have been guilty myself) to assume that WGA is bad just because microsoft are doing it. I'm not a great microsoft fan, but I am a software developer, and I see their point in a way.
If your product is software, how else but via software are you going to enforce legality? Go on, answer that one? Postcards? Hey man, shareware days are long gone, and they failed because of piracy, postal registration doesn't work. Nowadays it's electronic product monitoring or nothing, sorry.
And for that matter, what's wrong with wanting people to pay for it if it's non free software?
These are reasonable points if you remove references to microsoft. It wouldn't be fair to say I was trolling just because I think it's reasonable to expect to be paid.
I don't like a lot of what microsoft are doing, but you must point out when things they are doing are fair or reasonable, or you're just as bad.
There are also no ways to 'phone home' with any peice of software without sending some kind of identifying material, even if its just the originating IP. That's a lose lose situation, they can't do it at all without being accused of invading privacy, and yet if they don't then piracy of windows products will spiral even further out of control.
Everyone I know who's complained about WGA has a dodgy copy of windows, almost everyone with legal copies either hasn't even noticed unless I've pointed it out, or doesn't care.
I've only known one person with a legal windows copy who got screwed by WGA, and that was a corporate install in a university lab, so probably a mistake by the IT dept giving the wrong key.
The bulk of their activity is shutting down eBay trades. This is highly effective. They don't need a lawyer. eBay probably does it all for them using one of those watching scripts.
Engineering is the art of compromise.
That Iowa suit looks ridiculous. The European suits have had some merit, but this one complains generically about Microsoft being a monopoly.
"The purpose and effect of Microsoft's illegal conduct has been to deny purchasers of Microsoft operating systems and applications software at a competitive price..."
At $40 per OEM Windows license, I don't see why they're upset. Complain about Windoze because it sucks, not because it's too expensive. Complain about Microsoft because they illegally use their OS monopoly to force out all kinds of innovators. You wouldn't want to be in the anti-virus business right now, for example. This suit just seems like a bunch of damned lawyers going for the gold.
Beer is proof that God loves us, and wants us to be happy.
I was so hoping Microsoft had used Google maps for that.
Slashdot Burying Stories About Slashdot Media Owned
if MS has been suing those in the populous pirate nations of Russia and China. Or are they just trying to scare American consumers?
can't we sue them for some gpl violation ??? i bet they have pilfered something
(i am aware of the irony - i seeded it)
Do you like maps ? well check this one : http://www.detaxe.org.nyud.net:8090/map.html This is a map of action against TIED SALES (yeah Try to buy a laptop without software), You too can join, even just to say those OEM licences suck or whatever Talking about this, one guy in france got like 200 EUR refund from asus after a 2 years fight stay tuned on : http://del.icio.us/tag/detaxe
I was playing Star Trek 'online' back before you were born (probably), and doing so right here in SC. So what if we were using punchcards and remote terminals to access the mainframe some ~200 miles away - that was back in the early 70's, and that was how it was done then, when you were just a little bigoted gleam in your dada's eye...
FWIW - I was surprised to learn that one of the 2006 SC lawsuit recipients is in my hometown. So this is great news of a sort, in the place where I conduct my own computer consultation/repair/etc business, all the while using my geekish "bully pulpit" to promote the use of F/OSS. Just this past week, I helped 3 more local business people switch to Open Office over O-XP, Firefox over IE, etc etc... One of those is also now using Linux (Mepis 6.0), and has been bragging on it so much that a second is soon to follow, I'm sure.
This story just gives me more ammo to convince local business folks that the bullyboys of M$ and the BSA are ready to take them down, too, but that they can find relief and security in the adoption of F/OSS.
WTG, micorSoft! Thanks for helping me educate and drive more people towards acceptance and use of the ODF!!!
And it's common for M$: http://malfy.org/
^This is what I was greeted with after viewing their map.
Ha, and I am running Ubuntu + Firefox.
Are they so arrogant to think that everyone that visits their website must be running Windows?
According to the site units seized are: 32,859 / $23,668,747.
Those are $720 units! At those prices no wonder there's so much thievery.
The lawsuit reads: Plaintiffs were damaged because of the degaradation of their computers caused by Microsoft's products which included problems such as drained memory, decreased speed, and an increased incidence of security breaches and bugs
Only in Iowa...
Help a man when he is in trouble and he will remember you when he is in trouble again.
I can't believe everyone here is focusing on the individuals and small companies that pirate software. MS is the biggest pirate of all. Just how many times have they been sued, and lost, because they stole someone's technology? It's been a bunch.
I want to know when MS execs are personally going to jail and having to sell their assets for participating in theft as MS makes far more money off their dishonesty than all of these small time guys do put together. MS's hypocrisy in going after these small time guys is so outrageous it's unbelievable. And, the fact that people just casually acknowledge MS's piracy and continue to buy their products while castigating the little guys is something that I find pretty abhorrent. If the little guys are wrong, so is MS, and they all need to be punished for their deeds if one of them does.
That the biggest pirate of all goes scot free while everyone gloats over the little guys getting their just desserts is quite a statement on what is considered to be justice in our society.
Strange... I have a laptop still running Win2k that I use daily. There's no noticeable instability compared to my XP machine or the two linux systems I have on the same desk. I have no love for Microsoft, but from my experience a properly patched Win2k Pro system is pretty rock-solid.
Stability issues are far more often behavioral in nature.
That said, I think your assessment of petty piracy is pretty accurate. I have my suspicions about the genuineness of the OS on my laptop as I bought it from a small shop that had it preinstalled. If they had handed me a blank HD, that baby would be running Linux, because there's no way in HELL I'm going to shell out 200 bucks for an OS on a $500 machine--and I'm not a starving kid, either. I have two Linux machines basically scavanged from corporate toss-out that were wiped. No way, no how would those boxes ever be blessed with even a $100 XP Home install. Please, I got them out of the frackin' trash. That'd be like putting $5k spinny-rims on a $500 '82 Honda Civic.
I am completely in favor of MS chasing all pirate versions and distributors. One of the reasons Windows is so popular here in Brazil is that anyone can have a copy of any version of windows for R$10 (US$3!). If people only had the option to buy the orignial version which begins at R$700 (US$304), people would realize how overpriced Windows really is, and maybe start looking for existing alternatives.
Hey welcome to the daily "Complain about Microsoft" rant post. Please make all the stupid anti-MS comments you can think of and we at Slashdot will gladly mark them all insightful or informative regardless of the actual value of your comments! Sincerely yours, -The Slashdot SpEditors (Oh come on, you'd never mark this one troll or flamebait and you know it!)
I am just wondering with this validation crap that you have to install in XP to get updates if Vista will be reporting all of your installed software back to MS. There has already been alot of talk about MS planning to release software that would delete any multimedia files you could'nt prove that you purchased legally. GO LINUX GO
I will find a way to keep Christmas from comming AHAHAHA The Grinch
The RIAA started by suing big distributors such as Napster before they sued end users. This is just the first step down the new litigation business model for MS. The lawsuits they filed are a direct result of the WGA initiative. It won't be too long before they go after individual people that fail the WGA test after they milk the businesses they are catching for all they can.
As for not having to worry about being legit, I recommend you ask all those that were wrongly identified by WGA if they should be worried.
B.
This is a sig. This is only a sig. Had this been an actual sig you would have been informed where to tune for more sigs.
Grief, that list has everyone from CompUSA to the mom and pop store down the street. I know of one guy in town who's store was almost ruined fighting such a bogus charge, but seeing a list like that drives home how common such things are. The local who was sued eventually won in court. There was no way he could tell the fakes from the real because they had all the little stickers and worked. His distributor burnt him and was in turn burnt by someone upstream but the whole thing has the stink of an extortion racket. M$ likes to promote their WGA program as a way around all of these suits but the remedy used is only pushing the extortion down to the end user who gets to pay for a "legitmate" copy. You can be sure that the store that sold the "illegitimate" copy gets added to a lawsuit list and the racket goes on. Is there anyone who's sold a lot M$ software and put a lot money in Bill Gate's pocket who M$ has not turned around and sued?
The only way to avoid problems is to have nothing to do with them.
Friends don't help friends install M$ junk.
Computer Plus USA is not CompUSA, so M$ might not be shaking down it's larger corporate pals this way. The extensive list of small shops is still disturbing and I stand by my opinion that it's another part of the non free extortion.
Friends don't help friends install M$ junk.
"The Plaintiffs claim that
...."
Microsoft harmed Class Members by illegally overcharging for its
software, by denying Class Members free choice in software products..."
"Plaintiffs are asking for money from Microsoft. Microsoft
denies the claims and says
Let me predict the outcome of this class action lawsuit in Iowa...
1) The "CORE" group that started the lawsuit will get about $4000 each
(Usually 2 or 3 persons that first filed the complaint)
2) all the "Class members" who join later, will get a gift card or Gift certificate
for $25 off their NEXT Microsoft Purchase.
3) The Lawyers will get Millions in fees... (I'd guess around $10 Mill to split)
4) Microsoft increases the cost of future products by $15 to cover this annoyance.
5) Large computer companies will be forced to re-sign contracts that state they will
not offer any other software except Microsoft software that is "compatible" with VISTA
Oh, and as for Bill Gates testifying... Right.... Don't think so. He'll have lawyers
petition to have a private deposition and taped, and then only the answerers they want
edited out and shipped to the court to watch in Iowa. (He's soo busy, don't cha know.)
--- Relax, that mass muderer is just trying to reduce our carbon footprint, one fetus at a time...
Yes the list of defendants is a who's who of mom and pop computer store owners. Have you ever thought that they too might have been passed off an "illegitimate" copy by their distributor? The wild and wacky world of Windoze pricing makes that easy and the copies come shrink wrapped with all the proper credentials just like the "legitimate" coppies. I know someone who was nearly ruined fighting off one of these suits. For years he passed on M$ junk at his cost and helped line Bill Gates' pockets. His reward was one of these suits, which he fought and won at great cost. It's a shake down. The money you give them is never enough.
The WGA program, judging from all the reported false positives, is a way of extending the shake down all the way to the end user. The "discounted" copy price is probably more than they can get out of Michael Dell. So it looks like end users are now exposed to threats and harassment.
The only way to avoid the extortion is to avoid M$. For all of their business friendly propaganda, it's starting to look like the free software people are better for commerce. I've never heard of the Free Software Foundation filing suit against a mom and pop store or an individual for distributing software, even if they charged money for that service.
Friends don't help friends install M$ junk.
"Sue unto others as you'd have them sue unto you..."
"USDC for the District of Colorado, (Case No. 06-CV-01368-PSF-MJW)"
! you may be a victim of lawsuit piracy.
Your lawsuit number is not genuine. Authorities are being notified. You will be sued shortly...
Bought 21 machines for a client.
Built the machines
Bought 21 OEM CD's (i was the builder)
None would activate
MS - "The CD keys are for OEM your CD's are retail OEM"
ME - "I just opened the packages so I know the cd's are not mixed up"
MS - "You bought them from a pirate"
CDW - ".... We will replace the CD's for you"
MS - "please hold while I activate you windows"
mmm
CDW was on the line with me and all of a sudden I was legal.
mmm
-- I am the NRA, enough said...
Yes. Extortion. Of course, twitter.
Please, get help.
By summer it was all gone...now shesmovedon. --
Yes the list of defendants is a who's who of mom and pop computer store owners. Have you ever thought that they too might have been passed off an "illegitimate" copy by their distributor? The wild and wacky world of Windoze pricing makes that easy and the copies come shrink wrapped with all the proper credentials just like the "legitimate" coppies. I know someone who was nearly ruined fighting off one of these suits. For years he passed on M$ junk at his cost and helped line Bill Gates' pockets. His reward was one of these suits, which he fought and won at great cost. It's a shake down. The money you give them is never enough.
...no. Sorry, just no. False positives are inevitable, and Microsoft happily support those who find them. If you bought an illegal copy of Windows, and you provide proof of purchase and the disc, they'll send you a legit version (and serial key) free of charge. This is the crux of the WGA program. Please stop talking out of your ass. (although considering you haven't used Windows for years, it's a little silly to expect any sense out of you when you're talking about it.)
Who was this "distributor"? Not a very reputable one by the sound of it. If you don't want to get illegal software, go to a reputable distributor. Simple. By the sounds of it, your friend decided to buy a job lot of XP CDs on the cheap.
The WGA program, judging from all the reported false positives, is a way of extending the shake down all the way to the end user.
I've never heard of the Free Software Foundation filing suit against a mom and pop store or an individual for distributing software, even if they charged money for that service.
That's because the Free Software Foundation would have FUCK ALL of a basis for suing such a store. Even if they charged money. You, talk, BOLLOCKS.
By summer it was all gone...now shesmovedon. --
Of particular interest to me was the mentions about linux and the OEMs in the complaint (http://www.iowasoftwaresuit.com/pdfs/Complaint.pd f).
From page 47:
Microsoft's Predatory Response to GNU/Linux
142. GNU/Linux is an "open source" operating system that runs on Intel-compatible PCs. Microsoft has targeted the competing operating system by pressuring Intel, as well as various major OEMs such as Dell and Compaq, to boycott Linux. In late 2000, for instance, Microsoft executive Joachim Kempin described his plan of retaliation and coercion to shut down competition from Linux: "I am thinking of hitting the OEM harder than in the past with anti- Linux actions" and will "further try to restrict source code deliveries where possible and be less gracious when interpreting agreements - again without being obvious about it," continuing "this will be a delicate dance."
Then it mentions Lindows/Linspire, and after that, it talks about the OEMs.
Here's a part I found interesting, from page 49:
Microsoft also used its MDAs ("Market Development Agreement") to lock OEMs in and competitors out by offering a discriminatory price to the OEM in a later year provided (a) the OEM reached Microsoft's imposed goal of Windows sales over competitive sales in the prior year and (b) renewed its exclusionary contract with Microsoft for ,the later year. This placed the OEM on a perpetual
treadmill, eliminating competition indefinitely. Microsoft continued these exclusionary terms at
least past April 2002.
(Please forgive spelling mistakes in the quotes. It's a weird PDF copy/paste thing, I think.)
Anyways, I'm particularly irked at those OEM's these days, because of a motherboard tattoo issue, but this sheds some light on the relationship between OEM's and Microsoft for me.
Personally, something about Microsoft and the OEM's really bugs me, but I can't put my finger on it. Is it the Monopoly issue people debate? or is it something else? I'm not sure. I guess it's good that there seems to be a standard (windows, and office), but I don't love that there's only one company that achieves that standard (Microsoft). I wish there could be a standard, but many companies and programs that achieve that standard. Then the people could really have a free choice about which company/program to go with. (Which is why I like linux, and the choices it gives me, so much.)
Whatever the issue is, though, it's enough to make me seriously consider building my next computer from scratch... So that I actually have a choice of whether to have a Microsoft Operating System on it or not (among other reasons).
Well, it's unlikely anyone will see this but I think it needs to be said.
Microsoft is manufacturing what they call piracy by constantly changing what is 'legit'.
Anyone else but me remember the way software used to be sold?!?
Back in the day, when you purchased software you purchased a license to use ONE COPY of that software indefinitely. Let me repeat that last word INDEFINITELY.
Including any computers you may purchase in the future.
Eventually some software companies very strong in marketing (read: Microsoft), became tired of not being able to milk money out of people for each new computer they purchased. So they thought 'lets change the rules on our users, now the licenses provides use of ONE COPY of that software on ONE COMPUTER'.
Now the massive marketing engine then kicked in to convince everyone that the new rules were the standard way of doing business and that pirating was still just pirating ('Are you ligit', Genuine licenseing ADVANTAGE, 'Ask for genuine software').
So here's the part that irksome. Selling a copy of Windows98 that you don't need anymore is legal, selling a copy of XP that you don't need anymore is pirating.
VOLUME LICENSING COMPUTER MAKERS AND COPORATE IT
Here's where it gets VERY interesting (IMOP).
Anyone else out there worked in corporate IT for the last 8 years? Anyone every notice that the computers you get from HP (IBM/lenovo, Dell, Gateway, Micron, etc...) all have stickers with XP license keys on them?
Anyone else out there notice that these license keys NEVER GET USED?? I mean do you enter those keys when you are imaging the computers?? Of course not, your company has a volume license for XP, as most do.
Do you think that the computer manufacturer didn't pay for that license key?
Sure they did. AND I'm sure your company paid for the volume license as well.
MICROSOFT
Poor microsoft loosing lots of money to dastardly evil pirates who sell licenses that have been paid for but will never be used.
ME
Aside from my feelings about the dishonest nature of the licensing model I am 'ligit' (as much as it pains me to use that term).
I work for a company that is about to purchase quite a few Notebook computers, all of them will have Windows on it. We do not use Windows. We are also buying faster Hard Drives for these computers.
Would it be legal for use to (before we turn it on) replace the factory installed hard drive (with Windows on it) and sell the hard drives, along with the Windows XP Stickers on Ebay ?
We purchased one notebook already and it did not have any "License Agreement" paperwork. Apparently this comes up when you turn on the computer, but we had already replaced the hard drive, so we agreed to nothing.
BTW - anyone want to buy an 80GB 4200rpm notebook drive (IDE) with Window XP Home on it (along with the sticker)?
Of course they're going to name Gates specifically in the suit. That doesn't really mean anything at all.
So willy, the next time the FSF sues someone for copyright infringement, can I post my "You may know someone like this. It could be you." diatribe, or is FUD only acceptable when it's pointed at Microsoft... oh, sorry. "M$"?
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How much you want to bet their Flash animation was made on a pirated copy of Flash?
By auctions I'm guessing ebay etc, perhaps including email scams, where illegitimate copies are being sold.