Standard IANAL disclaimer. But I _did_ return Windows, last year. Got a refund as well. (My website's down at the moment, so I can't point you to it.)
Here's how to get your refund:
Read the EULA carefully. At the top of the page: "This EULA is a legally binding contract between you, the manufacturer, and Microsoft".
Read down through the next paragraph or two. You'll find (unless they've made a lot of changes in the last year or so): "...if you do not agree to the terms and conditions of this EULA, then Manufacturer and Microsoft Corporation do not wish to license the Software Product to you. In such event, you may not use or copy the Software Product, and should immediately contact Manufacturer for return of the unused Software Product for a refund".
So there we have a legally binding document which states you are entitled to that refund. You need to contact the OEM, since that's what is specified in the EULA.
If the OEM refuses to allow you to return the software, they are placing themselves in breach of contract. This can be a fairly serious issue. I recommend you inform the OEM that unless they agree to allow you to return the software for a refund, that you will file charges with your local small claims court. Check in your area - some counties' small claims courts do not allow corporations to be represented by an attorney.
Keep in mind, though, that the average person you'll be talking to at the OEM doesn't have a clue as to what's in the EULA. If you have a hard copy of it, it may be helpful to fax them a copy - that way, when they tell you again that you can't return it, they are aware of the consequences of what they're doing.
Document everything. Keep copies of any emails you send (bcc yourself); document any phone calls you make - get people's names or employee numbers, note times and what was said. Be polite, but firm. And remember that THEY ARE WRONG AND YOU ARE RIGHT.
If you need more advice on this, feel free to email me. (Remove the sheep sounds from what appears above.)
"Please review this Specification copy only if you licensed and downloaded it from Microsoft Corporations website; if you did not, please destroy this copy, but you are welcome to license the Specification at http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/kerberos . If you are an authorized licensee, when you downloaded the following Specification, you agreed to the Agreement for Microsoft Authorization Data Specification v. 1.0 for Microsoft Windows 2000 Operating Systems (the "Agreement"). For your future reference, that Agreement is reproduced at the end of this document."
This strikes me as a bit odd. 'Cause I can go to their site and download the.exe without agreeing to anything.
So, basically, we have a licence agreement to which we are assumed to have agreed - before we were aware that any such agreement even existed.
Doesn't this remind anyone of the 'shrink-wrap' EULAs on most laptops and PCs lately? 'By opening the package, you agree to the EULA contained within the package' kind of stuff.
IANAL, but doesn't this strike anyone as just a little bit unenforceable? It's the equivalent of asking you to sign your name at the bottom of a contract, before you're allowed to see said contract. Which is, I believe, not legal.
A few weeks ago, my bf and I went out to Area 51 on vacation. We couldn't get very close to it at all, but we _did_ get pictures....of the bus, the guards in a pickup, the signs, the Little A'Le'Inn, etc. Lots of fun.:) Pictures are at http://www.employees.org/~densaer/area51.html.
"...even in the professional workplace environment, I find that my voice is drowned out. Many times when I start to speak, some male will start talking over me, and if I continue talking, he will start shouting. This subtly gives women the message that they have nothing worth saying."
I know _exactly_ what you mean. I have a similar problem. It's especially annoying when the man yelling over what I'm saying clearly hasn't a clue what he's talking about. Unfortunately, the mostly braindead management here doesn't know enough to tell the difference. I did find it interesting that, at a company-wide meeting, all the guys in my department were named as having done great work on a specific project, while I, the only female on the team, was ignored - and I was standing right next to two of them at the time. And if that's not enough, the project in question was one that I'd done without any input from any of them.
When I stand up for myself, they write me off as 'hormonal', or make crude references to what time of month it must be.
What do I have to do to get them to listen to what I say, wear a strap-on?
Keyboards and mice, and mice, and mice....
on
Ergonomic Keyboards
·
· Score: 1
I've had RSI for almost a year now, and have tried various keyboards/mice. I do have to agree that the MS keyboard is nice. Except for the feet. According to my doctor and physical therapist, the keyboard should optimally have a 10 - 15 degree _negative_ tilt. So the little feet should be on the side of the keyboard closest to you. Yet every keyboard I've seen thus far has them on the opposite side.
A good mouse to try is the Kensington Expert Mouse. It's a little more expensive (about $100), but it's helped a LOT. It's a large trackball, about 2 inches in diameter, and you can either use your fingers to move it, or your palm. It has 4 buttons, which can be programmed for various things - although only under Windows. I contacted Kensington regarding this, and was told that they have no plans of releasing a Linux driver. It should function as a regular mouse under Linux, but you can't use the nifty functions.
DO NOT use the Logitech TrackMan mouse! Yes, it's great if you have carpal - but it puts all the strain from any motion directly onto your tendons - which can be worse. My employer gave me a Logitech mouse when I mentioned wrist pain, and it immediately got MUCH worse - to the point, after about 2 - 3 weeks of using the Logitech, that I was unable to hold a fork. These things are EVIL!
What we really need is good voice-recognition software....
It seems that during the filming of this movie, they caused a LOT of environmental damage to the island. Which Fox promised to correct - but guess what? They didn't. And reportedly half the beach was washed away in the first monsoons, due to lack of plant life that would prevent erosion (Fox didn't keep its promise to replace the plants they removed for filming.)
There's a story on MotherJones about this, at http://www.motherjones.com/news_wire/leo.html
There's also a boycott by Womens' Voices for the Earth. Info is at http://www.wildrockies.org/WVE/beach.htm
And, ironically, guess who is the host of Earth Day 2000? You guessed it... http://www.leonardodicaprio.com/environment/envi ronment.html
...
God, first the MPAA pulls that crap with DeCSS, and now this. Is this _really_ an organization you want to give money?
"Defendants' actions threaten the financial stability of this new digital video format for viewing movies and other images -- which has thus far been well received by the consuming public."
- Seems to me that enabling the use of DVD with Linux would _increase_ the DVD market - since now more of us would be able to view them. We'd end up buying _more_ DVDs.
Also, from paragraph 38 - "The CSS Agreement mandates that licensees provide the proprietary CSS technology at issue only to the strictest minimum number of licensee's employees who require access to the information, beginning with only three employees and expanding beyond three only upon notification to the licensor of the names of the additional employees. Licensees who violate these requirements are subject to liquidated damages in the amount of $1 million per violation (with a cap based on profits made from the sale of licensed products). "
- This sounds like they should be going after the company who didn't encrypt their key properly (Xing), rather than the people who cracked it.
And even scarier is paragraph 47 - "On information and belief, this proprietary information was obtained by willfully "hacking" and/or improperly reverse engineering software created by CSS licensee Xing Technology Corporation ("Xing"). Xing's software is and was licensed to users under a license agreement which specifically prohibits reverse engineering. "
- The last sentence says it all. "Xing's software is and was licensed to users under a license agreement which specifically prohibits reverse engineering."
Let's read that again "...licensed to users under a license agreement..."
I don't know about the specific DVD disk they used, but none of the DVDs _I_ bought ever had an EULA.
It sounds to me as if CCA are trying to nail people for violating a nonexistant license agreement.
Personally, I'd have to say 'Hell NO!' to that one. Of course, I'm not sure if I ever want to be mother to _anyone_, regardless of species.
I am wondering, though - just how much difference is there between a domestic cat and the African wildcat? I read somewhere (IIRC) that the African wildcat is an ancestor of the domestic cat...and there doesn't appear to be much difference between them. Can the two species crossbreed? (If they can, this experiment would be a lot less impressive.) The mother and baby animals, by definition, have to have compatible blood-types (no cow birthing a rhino) and such...
I think what we need to do is send a _polite_ letter to etoys explaining why we will no longer purchase their products.
It might be best to email their Public Relations Manager - this is an issue that should be of some concern to him, considering the implications.
I found this contact information on their website (http://www.etoys.com/html/about_information.shtml ):
Company Contact Information
eToys 3100 Ocean Park Blvd. Suite 300 Santa Monica, CA 90405 (310) 664-8100 service@etoys.com
News Media Contact
Ken Ross Vice President of Communications (310) 664-8410 kross@etoys.com
Jonathan Cutler Public Relations Manager (310) 664-8550 jcutler@etoys.com
Investor Relations Contact
Suki Shattuck Director of Investor Relations (310) 664-8356 ir@etoys.com
Customer Service Contact
If you would like to speak to a customer service representative about your order, please call us at 1-800-GO-ETOYS (1-800-463-8697). We are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If you are calling from outside the United States, please dial 1-310-664-8530.
Slashdot Mirror
Standard IANAL disclaimer. But I _did_ return Windows, last year. Got a refund as well. (My website's down at the moment, so I can't point you to it.)
Here's how to get your refund:
Read the EULA carefully. At the top of the page: "This EULA is a legally binding contract between you, the manufacturer, and Microsoft".
Read down through the next paragraph or two. You'll find (unless they've made a lot of changes in the last year or so): "...if you do not agree to the terms and conditions of this EULA, then Manufacturer and Microsoft Corporation do not wish to license the Software Product to you. In such event, you may not use or copy the Software Product, and should immediately contact Manufacturer for return of the unused Software Product for a refund".
So there we have a legally binding document which states you are entitled to that refund. You need to contact the OEM, since that's what is specified in the EULA.
If the OEM refuses to allow you to return the software, they are placing themselves in breach of contract. This can be a fairly serious issue. I recommend you inform the OEM that unless they agree to allow you to return the software for a refund, that you will file charges with your local small claims court. Check in your area - some counties' small claims courts do not allow corporations to be represented by an attorney.
Keep in mind, though, that the average person you'll be talking to at the OEM doesn't have a clue as to what's in the EULA. If you have a hard copy of it, it may be helpful to fax them a copy - that way, when they tell you again that you can't return it, they are aware of the consequences of what they're doing.
Document everything. Keep copies of any emails you send (bcc yourself); document any phone calls you make - get people's names or employee numbers, note times and what was said. Be polite, but firm. And remember that THEY ARE WRONG AND YOU ARE RIGHT.
If you need more advice on this, feel free to email me. (Remove the sheep sounds from what appears above.)
....you're going to need it. The second the new box is up, it'll get pounded by all the lamers trying for a first post...
"Please review this Specification copy only if you licensed and downloaded it from Microsofts .
.exe without agreeing to anything.
Corporations website; if you did not, please destroy this copy, but you are welcome to license the
Specification at http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/kerbero
If you are an authorized licensee, when you downloaded the following Specification, you agreed
to the Agreement for Microsoft Authorization Data Specification v. 1.0 for Microsoft Windows 2000
Operating Systems (the "Agreement"). For your future reference, that Agreement is reproduced at
the end of this document."
This strikes me as a bit odd. 'Cause I can go to their site and download the
So, basically, we have a licence agreement to which we are assumed to have agreed - before we were aware that any such agreement even existed.
Doesn't this remind anyone of the 'shrink-wrap' EULAs on most laptops and PCs lately? 'By opening the package, you agree to the EULA contained within the package' kind of stuff.
IANAL, but doesn't this strike anyone as just a little bit unenforceable? It's the equivalent of asking you to sign your name at the bottom of a contract, before you're allowed to see said contract. Which is, I believe, not legal.
- |0|4
A few weeks ago, my bf and I went out to Area 51 on vacation. We couldn't get very close to it at all, but we _did_ get pictures....of the bus, the guards in a pickup, the signs, the Little A'Le'Inn, etc. Lots of fun. :) Pictures are at http://www.employees.org/~densaer/area51.html.
"...even in the professional workplace environment, I find that my voice is drowned out. Many times when I start to speak, some male will start talking over me, and if I continue talking, he will start shouting. This subtly gives women the message that they have nothing worth saying."
I know _exactly_ what you mean. I have a similar problem. It's especially annoying when the man yelling over what I'm saying clearly hasn't a clue what he's talking about. Unfortunately, the mostly braindead management here doesn't know enough to tell the difference. I did find it interesting that, at a company-wide meeting, all the guys in my department were named as having done great work on a specific project, while I, the only female on the team, was ignored - and I was standing right next to two of them at the time. And if that's not enough, the project in question was one that I'd done without any input from any of them.
When I stand up for myself, they write me off as 'hormonal', or make crude references to what time of month it must be.
What do I have to do to get them to listen to what I say, wear a strap-on?
I've had RSI for almost a year now, and have tried various keyboards/mice. I do have to agree that the MS keyboard is nice. Except for the feet. According to my doctor and physical therapist, the keyboard should optimally have a 10 - 15 degree _negative_ tilt. So the little feet should be on the side of the keyboard closest to you. Yet every keyboard I've seen thus far has them on the opposite side.
A good mouse to try is the Kensington Expert Mouse. It's a little more expensive (about $100), but it's helped a LOT. It's a large trackball, about 2 inches in diameter, and you can either use your fingers to move it, or your palm. It has 4 buttons, which can be programmed for various things - although only under Windows. I contacted Kensington regarding this, and was told that they have no plans of releasing a Linux driver. It should function as a regular mouse under Linux, but you can't use the nifty functions.
DO NOT use the Logitech TrackMan mouse! Yes, it's great if you have carpal - but it puts all the strain from any motion directly onto your tendons - which can be worse. My employer gave me a Logitech mouse when I mentioned wrist pain, and it immediately got MUCH worse - to the point, after about 2 - 3 weeks of using the Logitech, that I was unable to hold a fork. These things are EVIL!
What we really need is good voice-recognition software....
It seems that during the filming of this movie, they caused a LOT of environmental damage to the island. Which Fox promised to correct - but guess what? They didn't. And reportedly half the beach was washed away in the first monsoons, due to lack of plant life that would prevent erosion (Fox didn't keep its promise to replace the plants they removed for filming.)
i ronment.html
There's a story on MotherJones about this, at
http://www.motherjones.com/news_wire/leo.html
There's also a boycott by Womens' Voices for the Earth. Info is at
http://www.wildrockies.org/WVE/beach.htm
And, ironically, guess who is the host of Earth Day 2000? You guessed it...
http://www.leonardodicaprio.com/environment/env
...
God, first the MPAA pulls that crap with DeCSS, and now this. Is this _really_ an organization you want to give money?
If the Xing EULA were something to which a user could agree _before_ using the product, then it would most likely be enforceable.
However, I have yet to see a DVD or a DVD player that shipped with any sort of license.
I think the question to ask here is - "What EULA?"
Keep in mind that a shrink-wrap EULA has never been questioned - or found enforceable - in court.
From The Letter:
"Defendants' actions threaten the financial stability of this new digital video format for viewing movies and other images -- which has thus far been well received by the consuming public."
- Seems to me that enabling the use of DVD with Linux would _increase_ the DVD market - since now more of us would be able to view them. We'd end up buying _more_ DVDs.
Also, from paragraph 38 - "The CSS Agreement mandates that licensees provide the proprietary CSS technology at issue only to the strictest minimum number of licensee's employees who require access to the information, beginning with only three employees and expanding beyond three only upon notification to the licensor of the names of the additional employees. Licensees who violate these requirements are subject to liquidated damages in the amount of $1 million per violation (with a cap based on profits made from the sale of licensed products). "
- This sounds like they should be going after the company who didn't encrypt their key properly (Xing), rather than the people who cracked it.
And even scarier is paragraph 47 - "On information and belief, this proprietary information was obtained by willfully "hacking" and/or improperly reverse engineering software created by CSS licensee Xing Technology Corporation ("Xing"). Xing's software is and was licensed to users under a license agreement which specifically prohibits reverse engineering. "
- The last sentence says it all. "Xing's software is and was licensed to users under a license agreement which specifically prohibits reverse engineering."
Let's read that again "...licensed to users under a license agreement..."
I don't know about the specific DVD disk they used, but none of the DVDs _I_ bought ever had an EULA.
It sounds to me as if CCA are trying to nail people for violating a nonexistant license agreement.
|0|4
=====
Does steel wool come from iron sheep?
"being mother to a chimpanzee" ???
Personally, I'd have to say 'Hell NO!' to that one. Of course, I'm not sure if I ever want to be mother to _anyone_, regardless of species.
I am wondering, though - just how much difference is there between a domestic cat and the African wildcat? I read somewhere (IIRC) that the African wildcat is an ancestor of the domestic cat...and there doesn't appear to be much difference between them. Can the two species crossbreed? (If they can, this experiment would be a lot less impressive.) The mother and baby animals, by definition, have to have compatible blood-types (no cow birthing a rhino) and such...
I think what we need to do is send a _polite_ letter to etoys explaining why we will no longer purchase their products.
l ):
It might be best to email their Public Relations Manager - this is an issue that should be of some concern to him, considering the implications.
I found this contact information on their website (http://www.etoys.com/html/about_information.shtm
Company Contact Information
eToys
3100 Ocean Park Blvd.
Suite 300
Santa Monica, CA 90405
(310) 664-8100
service@etoys.com
News Media Contact
Ken Ross
Vice President of Communications
(310) 664-8410
kross@etoys.com
Jonathan Cutler
Public Relations Manager
(310) 664-8550
jcutler@etoys.com
Investor Relations Contact
Suki Shattuck
Director of Investor Relations
(310) 664-8356
ir@etoys.com
Customer Service Contact
If you would like to speak to a customer service representative about your order, please call us at 1-800-GO-ETOYS (1-800-463-8697). We are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
If you are calling from outside the United States, please dial
1-310-664-8530.