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Microsoft Office Genuine Advantage (OGA)

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the have-to-lock-up-those-.docs dept.

Ant writes "PC World is reporting that Microsoft's Office Genuine Advantage (OGA) program will require mandatory validation of Office software starting October 27 (2006)." From the article: "Similarly, starting in January, users of Office Update will have to validate the legitimacy of their Office software before they can use the service, Microsoft added. Users absolutely hated the first iteration of the Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) program, and their protests pressured the company into revising it about a year after it launched in July 2005."

11 of 192 comments (clear)

  1. Just gets easier by krray · · Score: 4, Insightful

    It is getting easier and easier to continue using Open Office is seems...

    1. Re:Just gets easier by sporadic · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Great timing too, I just uninstalled Office 2000 from my main desktop yesterday and installed OO 2.0.4. I thought about checking out the Office 2003 standard edition (free 30 or 60 day eval from MSFT) but decided against it; what would be the point? OO is more than enough for my personal use, and appears to open all my existing doc and xls files correctly (granted not very complicated files).

      Sporadic

    2. Re:Just gets easier by interiot · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Microsoft is betting that Windows and Office are so easy to use versus the open source counterparts that they can afford to decrease the ease of use a little bit with these shenanigans, and still come out on top. Which makes it all the more important to make sure open source software is as user-friendly as absolutely possible, so end users aren't forced to choose between two difficult options.

    3. Re:Just gets easier by kimvette · · Score: 4, Insightful

      The OOo manual is every bit as thorough as the typical OEM Microsoft Office manual.

      What? There is no manual for M$ Office, you say? At least not one worth the paper it's printed on?

      Well then, we are indeed comparing apples to apples here.

      --
      The Christian Right is Neither (Christian nor right). See: Matthew 23, Matthew 25, Ezekiel 16:48-50
  2. Huh? by aero2600-5 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I don't understand Microsoft. The Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) is actually very easy to defeat, and I'm sure this new OGA will be just as easy. Why irritate customers when the people who intend to use without purchasing it will do so anyway? Did they buy a copy of Sony's playbook titled "How to piss away your loyal customers and then blame them for your lack of growth"?
    I really don't get it. Why continue to do something after it's been proven ineffective?
    Aero

    --
    Please stop hurting America -- Jon Stewart
    1. Re:Huh? by Shados · · Score: 4, Insightful

      That really shows how clueless the Slashdot crowd can be sometimes, considering how many places this comment pops up.
      Yes, WGA is easy to defeat. Thats not the point. There are douzans of thousands (dare I say hundreds of thousands?) of people who copy CDs and install them all over (even large corporations!) because they don't realise that its 1 license per user. Read that again: They don't realise it, they don't know it. Many -consulting firms- (thats geeks here!) buy 1 MSDN Universal subscriptions, and use them for 20 developers, thinking its what you're SUPPOSED to do. Same with Windows, same with Office, same with everything. These tools are ONLY meant to stop those people. No one else. Yes they will lose a few customers (a lot even) in the process. But they'll make it back up. You have no idea how many people I know purchased legit copies of Windows just because of the original WinXP's activation scheme, going "Wha? You mean if you own the CD its not enough to install it on my 8 computers? How come?", until they got explained how things work in the non-free world.

  3. Office Update? What's that?? by denebian+devil · · Score: 4, Insightful
    ...any Office Online templates downloaded from within the Office 2007 Microsoft Office System applications will require validation of legitimacy...


    ...users of Office Update will have to validate the legitimacy of their Office software before they can use the service...


    The joke's on Microsoft. Exactly how many people use Online templates or Office Update? Compared to people who use Windows Update, I'm guessing not that many. And of those people who do use Office Update *and* don't have a legit copy of Office, how many of them are savvy enough to *ahem* figure out/find a way around the mandatory OGA?
  4. One more reason... by pla · · Score: 5, Insightful

    ...To never, ever upgrade from Office 97.

    Seriously... The more companies make the old or cracked versions of their products more useful than the latest-n'-greatest, the less right they have to whine about illegal copying and decreased sales.

    Whether we talk about DVDs or WGA or software that phones home, people just want to use what they own (and spare me the BS about licensing-vs-owning). Making that harder will eventually drive people to the competition, up to and including piracy.

  5. Who needs Open Office when you've got piracy? by Channard · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I work at a fairly large chain that sells, amongst other things, computers. None of these PCs come with Word or Office, rather they come with Works. I explain that Works may do what they want. I explain how much Office is, and sometimes I mention you can get Open Office for free, since I don't realistically think many people are going to lay out the cash in store for the software. Know what they say typically? 'I know someone who's got office, I can get them to copy it for free.' I used to mention product validation but now I just don't bother. It's just they know Word and Office and that's what they want, by hook or by crook.

  6. Bravo! by jcr · · Score: 3, Insightful

    The more the Evil Empire irritates its users, the more opportunity arises for other vendors.

    Remember when using MS office was the path of least resistance?

    -jcr

    --
    The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
  7. Re:I want software piracy to stop, altogether, NOW by misleb · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Indeed. It is like software companies don't understand that a little piracy supports their dominance. Just like giving away software to schools actually helps "indoctrinate" new users.

    -matthew

    --
    "THERE IS NO JUSTICE, THERE IS ONLY ME." -Death