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Windows Tax Shot Down In Italy
An anonymous reader writes Italy's High Court has struck a blow to the practice of forcing non-free software on buyers of PCs and laptops. According to La Repubblica, the court ruled on Thursday that a laptop buyer was entitled to receive a refund for the price of the Microsoft Windows license on his computer. The judges sharply criticised the practice of selling PCs only together with a non-free operating system as "a commercial policy of forced distribution". The court slammed this practice as "monopolistic in tendency." It also highlighted that the practice of bundling means that end users are forced into using additional non-free applications due to compatibility and interoperability issues, whether they wanted these programs or not. "This decision is both welcome and long overdue", said Karsten Gerloff, President of the Free Software Foundation Europe. "No vendor should be allowed to cram non-free software down the throats of users."
What about the very blurry line between the definition of software and hardware? A compute devices shipping with no BIOS? Compute devices won't even power up without software. Then there's all the code that's embedded in the various silicon devices on the motherboard.
Well, according to the original article on La Repubblica (hint: I'm Italian), the judgement came from the Cassazione, so it is as definitive as it can be in Italy (I know, I know...).
many new laptops come without a cd/dvd drive. ... how do you go about installing an OS on your shiny new os-free laptop if you don't already have an os to boot to to download your os of choice, or another computer to do the same, and no place to stick an install DVD?
off a bootable USB pendrive? Something that's been available and working for many years now.
here you go: Cyanogenmod Downloads
Sorry grandma, you need to purchase and install windows separately. No, the same model laptop with windows pre-installed is out f stock - it always is. No, I don't have time but the store geek cage will install it for $70/hr. Yes, I know it costs as much as windows to install it. Just shut up, take your pills, and fork over the money. Yes, yes, I know you are getting ass raped. OK, just order you one with Windows pre-installed. [Hangs up. Thinking to self - if that bitch calls again, I and sending her to voice mail.] If they did do this, each model from each manufacturer will sell a version with Windows installed and without Windows installed. The majority, the average fart sucking person does not want to install windows or linux, does not know how, and will not ever want to waste their time learning now to. Because average people do not do that kinda of thing. Now the geek will be happy (maybe 5% of sales will be OS-less models sold) and probably just pirates windows anyway. Offering different models will just add additional cost to the OS-less version, which will make it 20 bucks cheaper which negates the trouble of doing this whole exercise. Also, the OS-less version would probably be a special order because very few people will purchase one. Just think how many less people (80%) would have even bothered to buy a PC is this policy was in place. Think of the 90s wen you really have to be above average to a blank computer and get it working. For the children out there, you have no reference and probably cant even understand this concept. Now, is this really a good idea?
Fuckers
Monopoly does not mean owning 100% of the market and it does not mean there is no competition. It means that they dominate the market enough that their position in one market will leverage them unfairly in other markets. There have been legal judgements declaring Microsoft a monopoly, it's not just my opinion.