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EU Could Force Bundling Firefox With Windows
Barence writes "The European Commission could force Microsoft to bundle Firefox with future versions of Windows. The revelation came as part of Microsoft's quarterly filing with the Security and Exchange Commission. Among the statements is a clause outlining the penalties being considered by the European watchdog, which recently ruled that Microsoft is harming competition by bundling Internet Explorer with Windows. The most interesting situation outlined in the filing would see either Microsoft or computer manufacturers forced to install Firefox, Chrome, Opera and Safari by default alongside Internet Explorer on new Windows-based PCs."
The Microsoft monopoly wouldn't be so bad if Windows didn't suck as much.
So I guess that Macs will have to go along with this too? I hate the fact that Mac has Safari pre-installed, so I have to go and download another browser. It isn't fair!!!1! I mean, they forced MS to build "Windows N", which doesn't include Windows Media Player. Why didn't they insist that they install WinAmp, MusicMatch, iTunes, etc., instead of removing Media Player? This is just stupid. Hey, European Union - You're stupid.
and as such it is easy to vilify?
Plus concentrating on browsers is something that some people can understand which covers the real issue of, how do we extract more tax dollars from this money machine called Windows?
Oh, that's right, portray our solution good for THE CHILDREN! Crap, its a computer program... uh, its good for European companies which in turn is good for THE CHILDREN.
Really sometimes I think stuff like this sticks around simply because its far easier that doing something hard, y'know, like dealing with terrorism or such.
* Winners compare their achievements to their goals, losers compare theirs to that of others.
Microsoft should just stick to the EU and not add a damn browser at all over there. Then these people who get a nice new computer can plug it into their router and get nowhere. The browser is almost a necessary item now. Who wants to buy a PC and have to remember to grab the free cd to install the browser of their choice. Then again they could always go home and FTP the browser install files, wait. That will be the next one MS will have to take FTP out of windows because its hurting companies that sell FTP software. Hmm what else could be add to the list. While we are at it take notepad and wordpad out of the OS. After you take all of this out ship to the EU and call it Windows FUEU. If DELL or any of the other vendors start adding more crap to a PC that will make the market better for sure. What about those of us who custom build our boxes. And to anyone who thinks apple isn't a monopoly then you are sadly fuckin mistaken. Apple locks down more proprietary shit then MS ever has or will. Look at the fucking Psystar lawsuit that made them the larger monopoly than MS. The difference in Apple is a monopoly by force, MS is just a market leader. Monopoly - exclusive control of a commodity or service in a particular market, or a control that makes possible the manipulation of prices. If that isn't Apple and forcing you to buy their hardware I don't what the fuck is.
In these hard economic times if your job depended on bashing Microsoft you'd be looking hard for any reason to justify your existence. The alternative is having to work a real job and who wants that!
It's pretty apparent that you're an idiot who chooses not to understand.
Even more so. Since IE is free, I didn't pay for it.
Windows wasn't free. IE came bundled with Windows. Therefore, you paid for it and it wasn't free.
Even if it takes up a couple of hundred megs of disk space, that's a trivial amount seeing as I can't easily buy a disk that's less than 300G anymore so it's not the same as a car taking up space in my driveway.
Affordable parking doesn't break the analogy.
As for others causing damage and me being responsible, how does that work? Can you point to a single case in which someone utilized an unutilized IE on someone else's machine and that second person had to provide restitution to some third party?
Together, IE and ActiveX have provided the foundation for countless examples of viruses, spyware and identity theft. Inasmuch as those have consequences to be faced, they are faced by the individual, not by Microsoft.
BTW, if someone steals my car and does damage with it, I'm not responsible. Know how I know? Happened to my stepfather a few years back. Someone stole his car, and during the high speed chase slowed down, jumped out and allowed the car to continue down a busy street where it pretty much managed to hit or swipe every parked car for three blocks. So, you'll have to come up with an analogy that closely mirrors reality in order for it to work.
This isn't a literal car. It's an analogy. The fact that your stepfather didn't have to take responsibility for the car that was stolen from him is irrelevant, and doesn't change the fact that if your computer is hacked, you will have to take responsibility for the consequences. If your identity is stolen, you will have to take responsibility for the consequences. If you are unable to get your work done on time, you will have to take responsibility for the consequences.
Fucking idiot...
-1 Uncomfortable Truth
Nice straw man, Microsoft shill. This is not about what the majority of users prefer. This is about the fact that Microsoft broke the law.
Again, nice try, shill. Microsoft is not being punished for developing a product, it's being punished for illegally abusing its monopoly in one market to prevent competition in another.
A nice third attempt, shill. However, antitrust laws are there for a reason. Your company, Microsoft, actually went after Google with the very same antitrust laws. Hypocrisy is great, isn't it?