Microsoft Wins Windows XP WGA Lawsuit 307
Rish writes "A lawsuit that accused Microsoft of misleading consumers to download and install an update for Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) under the guise that it was critical security update has been tossed out. Last month, a federal judge refused to certify the lawsuit as a class action, which would have meant anyone who owned a Windows XP PC in mid-2006 could join the case without having to hire an attorney, and on Friday the same judge dismissed the case completely."
No good (Score:5, Insightful)
Microsoft knows how to carefully word their alert to make sure they understand that it could be caused by counterfeit software, but does not even suggest that this alert could be because they just haven't yet validated, or they need to activate.
I used to get angry calls because customers thought I was providing them stolen software. So then I decided I'd make their copies of windows genuine for my customers before they leave. But that's when the pirates come out of the wood work! What do you do when a copy won't validate? Well now you've got a customer who thinks you've stolen their software right off the bat due to the non-genuine alerts you just caused.
It's lose/lose for the pc repair industry- and it's win/win. How many frightened people have gone to staples and picked up a new copy to avoid getting in legal trouble? I know a few...
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Re:No good (Score:5, Informative)
And, yes, calling microsoft does give you an option there. Buy a genuine copy for a reduced price.
Anybody in the repair industry worth their salt knows there's more than one way to be invalidated by WGA.
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You can explain the situation all you want to the people, but there are people who always side with the family.
Best I could do with that is "okay, give me the Windows CD and the key it comes with and Ill fix it", when they cant produce it, they shut up.
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Windows CD and the key it comes with and Ill fix it", when they cant produce it, they shut up.
No... they don't... And if they do then you aren't getting paid. If you're really an ass and they still want to do business with you then they will bring you a burned disk with the key written on it that has no service packs or fixes slip-streamed. The only way to win is not to play the game, and by that I mean go out of business and die in a ditch somewhere...
Computer repair almost always equals you have just broken some law. OEM copy's of windows are tied to the motherboard so legally if you need to repla
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So 20% of your customers try to screw with you. Check around, you'll find that to be true in most industries. And guess what, it's very likely they'll try to screw you anyway, even when you deliver as promised.
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Re:No good (Score:4, Interesting)
Either way, I can't turn down everybody who lost their disc or can't find their product key (we can get it out of the registry if it's not on a sticker). I'd go out of business. It's a tricky line, and I'm pretty certain I've found an equilibrium, it's just annoying that MS gets away with this crap. I was just trying to demonstrate the effect it had on repair companies and MS customers.
Re:No good (Score:5, Insightful)
Then refuse to repair people's computers if they have invalid keys. Or request their Windows CD when they take it to the shop. There are about a hundred ways around this.
Yeah, 100 ways to fold your business.
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Oh... I forgot a very good one: http://opensolaris.org/ [opensolaris.org]
Re:No good (Score:5, Insightful)
And then the customers says "hey, why did mass effect stop working, this is useless for everything I want to use it for"
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You can also repair the computers by installing software that's free, technically superior and reasonably more secure than Windows.
And don't forget, doesn't support many of the applications and games that many people enjoy (or at least know how to use).
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Yeah, Ubuntu is terrible with updates. I tend to have to reinstall Ubuntu regularly. Usually from trying to get video cards to work how I want them. And OS version upgrades. Granted, I do insist on having the most recent release. OTOH reinstalling is made so easy that it's hardly worth trying to fix it.
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You should throw that right down in front when the computer is brought in and explain the consequences (No windows update or whatever the hell it may be, i can't keep track) and if possible validate the key right then so they can see it for themselves.
Regarding your OP, maybe print a flyer with instructions on how to proceed through the validate/activate warnings when WGA eventually shows up, and what it all acutally means? I suspect most of your customers don't really give a shit about stolen software (af
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On the other hand buying off eBay is the quickest way to get yourself some counterfeit goods.
Re:Pirates (Score:4, Insightful)
Any decent PC tech knows which file to delete to remove the nag screen. Get rid of the nag and let them reinstall WGA next month.
You're there to fix the PC, not to enter into a legal battle.
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You're not cracking it, you're hiding the nag for a few weeks. Even Microsoft gives you 30 days grace period.
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Well, that ain't necessarily what the GP is talking about.
If you buy an OEM copy of Windows and your PC dies, can you pop the hard disk out and put it into a new PC? No. The OEM license only allows you to install that copy onto one machine *ever*.
The problem with hobbyists is that they upgrade their machines. Windows looks at the configuration of the machine, and if it has been upgraded too much, it makes you call Microsoft and explain what you are doing. Change enough things (memory, hard disk, CPU) a
Re:No good (Score:4, Informative)
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Microsoft allows replacement of a motherboard for repair. I replaced my board a couple years back and got the validation problem. I called Microsoft about it and they fixed it without selling me a new license.
The big problem they had was not with hobbyists upgrading motherboards, but with counterfeit operations selling thousands of copies of Windows to shops around the world. Occasionally, I'm sure somebody at Microsoft loses sight of this, but for the most part, if you have the guts to pick up the pho
Re:No good (Score:5, Insightful)
if you have the guts to pick up the phone
But why should anyone have to do that? The software failed not because of an honest mistake or bug but because they deliberately broke it. Defective by design. Software is quite buggy and unreliable enough as is without anyone purposely making it worse! Stop apologizing for MS.
Even fairly sophisticated users might not know the finer points of the difference between an OEM license and a retail license. And why should anyone have to know or care about that? Wholly artificial distinctions created by MS that does absolutely nothing for their customers and tramples upon the First Sale doctrine.
Even if you believe that they're allowed to add DRM to their new products, should they have the right to change old products retroactively? But never mind rights. Is it smart? No!
And why did they try to sneak it past everyone, lying about what it really was? It seems they anticipated that their customers would take a dim view. So instead of being sensible and not doing it, they compounded the problem by trying a stupid deception. Anyone in MS who didn't understand they'd be found out wasn't using their brains-- if indeed they have any. And also the very name-- "Genuine Advantage"-- was, as everyone quickly learned, an offensively steaming load of marketspeak that insulted our intelligence. It is sad how often corporations try this sort of idiocy. And most people are far too forgiving of it. I at least don't want to use products that were screwed up by people who have demonstrated their incompetence in such a wanton fashion. I don't trust Windows. Bad enough wondering if this incompetence means their honest bugs will be worse than usual. But to also have to wonder what more the managers of this software might arrogate is beyond the pale. What will they try next, have the Malicious Software Removal Tool go rather beyond its stated purpose and also check for piracy of other MS products such as Office? Maybe even disable the software? Check your music collection on behalf of the RIAA? Does Windows also purposely sabotage competitors' offerings, making it slower and buggier? Who do they think their customers are?!
It's too bad MS was let off the hook. The court didn't do them any favors. They'd be a better company if they got roasted for this. Instead, MS is still pushing the DRM, and still trying stupid cheap marketing to try to smooth things over with wholly cosmetic changes. They've renamed it to WAT in an attempt to move on from the bad name WGA deservedly earned. WAT is the same old thing, and it shows that they still don't get it.
Re:No good (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:No good (Score:5, Informative)
Import this key at every system restart. (saved as c:\windows\system32\reg.key, it would be regedit
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\WPAEvents]
"OOBETimer"=hex:ff,d5,71,d6,8b,6a,8d,6f,d5,33,93,fd
"LastWPAEventLogged"=hex:d5,07,05,00,06,00,07,00,0f,00,38,00,24,00,fd,02
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion]
"CurrentBuild"="1.511.1 () (Obsolete data - do not use)"
"InstallDate"=dword:427cdd95 "ProductId"="69831-640-1780577-45389" "DigitalProductId"=hex:a4,00,00,00,03,00,00,00,36,39,38,33,31,2d,36,34,30,2d,\
31,37,38,30,35,37,37,2d,34,35,33,38,39,00,5a,00,00,00,41,32,32,2d,30,30,30,\
30,31,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,0d,04,89,b2,15,1b,c4,ee,62,4f,e6,64,6f,01,00,\
00,00,00,00,27,ed,85,43,a2,20,01,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,\
00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,31,34,35,30,34,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,ce,0e,\
00,00,12,42,15,a0,00,08,00,00,87,01,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,\
00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,94,a2,b3,ac
"LicenseInfo"=hex:9e,bf,09,d0,3a,76,a5,27,bb,f2,da,88,58,ce,58,e9,05,6b,0b,82,\
c3,74,ab,42,0d,fb,ee,c3,ea,57,d0,9d,67,a5,3d,6e,42,0d,60,c0,1a,70,24,46,16,\ 0a,0a,ce,0d,b8,27,4a,46,53,f3,17
+ Anti WPA 3.46
= Away you go
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Is there a way to auto-import the key?
I've had a copy of windows that I bought earlier in the decade, and transferred it from machine, to machine, to machine as I either upgraded hardware or replaced dead components. The old machines were gifted to friends/family with a linux installation.
This last time, I messed up something and got the WGA notification. (Maybe it didn't like that I had it on 10 machines, even though only one at a time) I can't really use linux on this machine, I just don't have the ti
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*.reg files enter keys into the registry. Saving it in the start-up folder might work.
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Just make a batch script that uses the reg command to import said key, this is what scripts are for.
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You can stick anything in a startup folder and it will try to run or open the file. Putting a registry entry into the startup folder brings up a pop-up window on boot that says "Do you want to install these registry keys?"
Re:No good (Score:4, Funny)
/me waits for a DCMA takedown notice to fly from Redmond to Slashdot's headquarter :D
Re:No good (Score:4, Funny)
/me waits for a DCMA takedown notice to fly from Redmond to Slashdot's headquarter :D
Too late. Already copy-pasted to a local file on my hard disk, and ready to appear on my website once it goes down from Slashdot. Website hosted outside of the US of course.
And probably hundreds of other Slashdotters living in the free world have done exactly the same.
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Typical Slashdotter. Copyrights and licenses should not be respected, unless it's the almighty GPL.
Re:No good (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Half an install (Score:2)
Maybe you know, I accidentally got caught clicking through the approval for update and the WGA started installing on an old XP machine. I cancel the update (when it asks to continue each frigging time I reboot). I would like to kill the update so That does not happen and I don't want to install WGA. Any thoughts on how or where to kill the in process installation?
Thanks,
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Don't use Windows. It's out to get you.
Re:No good (Score:4, Insightful)
You totally got this wrong. The correct way to post this sort of thing is the same sort of technique as the way to avoid upgrading your chips back in the days of the SX/DX split:
"To avoid having your Windows show up as genuine when it isn't, do not add the following registry keys on bootup ..."
Re:No good (Score:5, Interesting)
That does not always work. I replaced the motherboard on my GF's PC and reinstalled Windows. WGA would not activate. She spent about an hour on the phone trying to get a human at Microsoft. When she finally did, she was told that there was nothing they could do.
This was a retail copy of XP that she paid over $100 for. Microsoft has her $100, she has no OS. Those of you who like to compare piracy to theft, this is what real theft looks like.
I did put her on Ubuntu for quite a while, until she decided that she couldn't live without Freehand MX (which has some problems under wine). So we pirated XP. Seems fair to me.
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You could have installed Virtualbox for these one off applications that really need windows...
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That would still require a copy of Windows.
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Yes, but it also makes your GF less dependent on Windows overall.
I think most people are on Windows because they do not know better and are reluctant to move because strange things are scary.
By getting your GF used to Linux you make her less scary to use it.
Unless of course you changed it back to windows because she really does not like it, in that case you did the right thing.
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She might have bought it from a retail store, but at $100, I'm guessing she bought an OEM version.
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Oh, upgrade deactivation anecdotes! Last time I installed XP on my home system, I scrapped my old computer and built a brand new one. I installed XP, crossed my fingers and toes, and activated. It worked! I'd been worried that activating my old key on a totally new configuration would fail. So I shut down, installed the rest of my hard drives, and rebooted. Deactivated for making significant changes to my hardware configuration. Honestly, all I'd done between activating on the new configuration and g
Re:No good (Score:5, Insightful)
Also, your DVD player analogy is flawed. Consider the same analogy, except after 1 year, the player breaks because the manufacturer installed a kill switch, that they decided to push. That wouldn't exactly be the fault of the consumer, would it?
XP users shouldn't expect lifetime free security and feature updates. But what they should expect is that the software will continue to function as it did when it was purchased. If it discontinues to function, it would need to have been caused by anything except the manufacturer of the software. Viruses and hardware failures are expected. MS killswitches are not.
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Now I wasn't on the phone, so I can't tell you for sure if she just had problems navigating the phone menu or not. But she had done it before about a year earlier and had the experience you had. About 10 minutes to get a human and then a new key with no questions asked. I don't know why it was a problem the 2nd time.
And no, being stolen from does not make piracy legal. It does however make it just. Comparisons to shoddy consumer goods are irrelevant as information is fundamentally different.
Re:No good (Score:5, Interesting)
Two things. On your first paragraph, all it takes is someone unfamiliar with the terminology to say something that doesn't mean what she thinks it means and you're in the wrong part of the call script. Given how confused the average end-user gets when faced with terms like CPU, PC, memory and so on, this is fairly easy to happen. Say Microsoft asks if the CPU was replaced, and the caller thinks that means the whole case thing, which hasn't been changed. (There's plenty of people who call the whole box the CPU.) Immediately you're going the wrong way, because the activation codes say "new CPU" but the customer says "no, same CPU".
On the second, a DVD player is a physical product. I have absolutely no qualms about replacing DVD DISCS that have failed with copies I made from friend's originals or rentals. About 2% of my collection has failed in this manner, more 20 discs, including the very first James Bond DVD releases. (I couldn't find a trace of the UPCs on imdb.com or amazon.ca; it's like the studios disavowed those particular pressings.)
So making a pirated copy of Windows when you have the retail box, store receipt and original disc? What's wrong with that? You've met the terms of the license agreement, but a technical fault is preventing you from using the software. Overcoming that fault does not make you a software pirate.
I have done similar things with commercial software. The company took our money for a particular configuration, but their license manager won't allow that configuration to be enabled. So I decompiled the code and removed the license manager. We pay our annual maintenance and are well within the legal terms of our support contract, it's just a defective technical limitation that's in the way.
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WGA may serve the purpose of keeping unlicensed copies of MS Windows off the average machine. I question what use that is, since such unlicensed copies only increase perceived market share of MS, and
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I have to agree a million times with you here, they way that windows validates their genuine advantage, is a farse.
Someone can brute force the key, and guess what, that key gets blacklisted if used enough times to validate, well, low and behold if it was your key that was guessed, your sh*t out of luck. I have many times in the past used the sticker to call in and say hey, I got this sticker on the side of my machine saying its valid, and now you have blocked that key, what gives, they then give you a new k
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Couldn't you just tell them that they may need to validate/activate their copy? You should probably stick a note to the case telling them exactly what to do, and what will happen if it is an illegal copy - then it's completely up to them.
I can't really believe you haven't thought of that yourself, so what is the problem with that approach?
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That's easy. do what Microsoft suggests. if after updaing a customers PC will not validate and says it's "pirated" you tell the customer that Microsoft knows they have an illegal copy of windows and they need to buy a legit copy right away.
If they disagree, you say, I am bound by microsoft to report this, but I will look the other way for you just this one time.
You come out looking like a good guy, and it shuts them down and points them at little cousin johnny that gave them the copy of XP.
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Then you say, well there was no way of telling until after the repair.
Then they say that the bill is creeping and that they'll have a talk with their lawyer
and I'll say, even if I can win in court, it wasn't worth the hassle. Thanks Microsoft!
Good. There *should* be consequences for using MS. (Score:4, Insightful)
If you don't like the "we can do anything we want to you at any time" EULA, then the solution is to switch to and support a different OS, not to bitch and moan about the EULA that you chose to accept.
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Yes. Because we all know that corporations should be able to put whatever egregious language they want in their contracts and mere citizens should just bend over and take it.
Fortunately, real contract law doesn't work that way.
Although I am sure that corporate boot-lickers such as yourself will do their best to erode what consumer rights and protections do exist.
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No one is shoving the operating system down your throat, if you don't like the EULA, as mentioned above, switch to an alternative OS. The corporations can only put in "whatever egregious language they want" if you (and a bunch of others) fork over money to them. Stop giving them money, and you'll see how quickly their EULA changes...
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If this is the case, is there really an issue? If they tried to enforce it, a bunch of people would probably realize they are doing silly things and stop giving them money...
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We all get it, MS's EULAs suck, I dont know about everyone else, but I got over the outrage a long time ago. When I use windows, I comply with the EULA, and if my customers have an issue, i just put the activation phone call on speaker so they can hear for themselves what I have to go through. Its not my problem, if activation doesnt work
Re:Good. There *should* be consequences for using (Score:5, Interesting)
I agree, to a point. However, I don't believe all of the "we can change everything we want to" was in the original Windows XP EULA. It got added in with the various service packs, etc, that were included in the purchase price of the original software. So the only EULA I feel I "chose to accept" original one on my XP CD. I was coerced into agreeing to the others in order to get updates that I was told I already had the right to. I'd agree with you fully if I had had the opportunity to accept or deny the new EULA in return for something new.
Oblig. car analogy: "Now that you've had your car for 5 years and it's paid for, we've decided to reduce your 10-year warranty to a 5-year warranty, which has now just expired. If you want your 10-year warranty back, you have to allow us to install this box that monitors to make sure the car hasn't been loaned to anyone else without our consent, and if we think it has we can deny you warranty service, and the "Check Engine" light will light up every time you start the car and warn you that your car is no longer genuine."
But, you're right - Microsoft does business the way they do business, and it's pretty clear that they are unapologetic about these sorts of one-sided contract changes. They've got you by the short-and-curlies, and that's just the sort of behavior they are known for now.
I also agree with your solution. I switched to Linux Mint, largely in response to the underhanded tactics that crammed WGA on my computer without my knowledge or consent. It took a while to migrate everything I do over to Linux, but it's done now, and I can happily say that my household is now 100% Microsoft-free.
"RIP one Microsoft Customer, starting with MS-DOS 3.0, ending with Windows XP+WGA".
I'm also only one customer, and I fully realize that Microsoft doesn't give a flying shit about my stance. It's OK, the feeling is now happily mutual.
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I was coerced into agreeing to the others in order to get updates that I was told I already had the right to
Do you actually know what coercion is? Or are you just a big fan of hyperbole? This isnt how contracts work, you dont get to agree to 5 different contracts and then choose which one you want to comply with, but feel free to continue justifying it to yourself.
Re:Good. There *should* be consequences for using (Score:5, Informative)
The first contract was a voluntary agreement. One which I did not have the opportunity to review before I broke the shrinkwrap and rendered the product unreturnable, but still one that I feel I entered into reasonably freely.
The remainder were conditional to receiving a benefit I had already bought and paid for, and the consequences of not agreeing to the new contracts were that my product would not receive updates and therefore become increasingly insecure.
I can understand the "fine, then don't update it", and I can understand the argument that updates are "added value". But I see them as part of what I purchased in the first place. Maybe I'm wrong in that point of view, but I slowly grew more and more uncomfortable with the additional conditions foisted upon me in return for those updates. With WGA, it reached the point where I had had enough.
And, by the way, I have complied with every one of Microsoft's agreements I have "agreed" to. It's just reached the point where I'm tired of "agreeing" to changes to the EULA.
I'm not going to pirate their product, and I'm not espousing that others do so. I don't even want a refund of my purchase price for XP. I feel I've gotten fair value out of it.
I just don't want to spend any more money on software sold by a company that has changed the conditions under which I can use previous purchases with them. If I go out and buy Windows 7, what's the guarantee that Microsoft won't change the EULA again to their favor?
Maybe you don't care, and that's certainly your right.
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I admit that I came to this thread just because it amazes me to see how much crap people are willing to put up with just to be part of the herd and/or avoid learning something new. The cesspool is full of flailing, complaining people, but you'll never get more than one or two to leave it no matter how pure and sparkling your little pond is.
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They may have won in the courts.... (Score:2, Interesting)
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Re:They may have won in the courts.... (Score:5, Funny)
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Swings and roundabouts. They put a lot of effort into tying the hardware and OS, but then largely trust their customers to do the right thing after that.
I guess they reckon that it pays to not treat their paying customers like thieves and liars. Case in point, a workmate just bought a new MiniMax external drive for his Mac from the Apple Store. When it was delivered, he opened it up and found a few small smudges marks on the case that indicated it was a refurb. He called up the local store, and within
See, this is why I come here (Score:2, Funny)
You were so upset by WGA that you decided to do business with Super-Lockdown-Incorporated? Really?
Posts like these are what's great about Slashdot. You read the opinions here, and you get a really good understanding of how real people feel about things.
Reading the mainstream tech sites, you'd think that customers loved Apple's products. That people were lining up to buy Apple's crap, that its customers were loyal and highly satisfied, that Apple was making tons of money, and that its products Just Worked the way people wanted them to.
Here on Slashdot, we learn the ugly truth. Apple's products don't let
Re:They may have won in the courts.... (Score:5, Informative)
If you were talking about iPhone OS, you might have a rational argument, and would have earned your moderation.
But I thought we were talking about an operating system for a general-purpose computer. Contrasting Mac OS X with any post- W2K Microsoft OS:
- I've never had to enter an 'activation' key to install it.
- I've never had to worry if it's going to turn on me and accuse me of using a 'counterfeit' version of it.
- I've never had to call Apple and ask, "Pretty please, is it okay to have my computer back?"
I think you're a little bit confused as to "Super-Lockdown-Incorporated" really is.
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But I thought we were talking about an operating system for a general-purpose computer. Contrasting Mac OS X with any post- W2K Microsoft OS:
- I've never had to enter an 'activation' key to install it.
- I've never had to worry if it's going to turn on me and accuse me of using a 'counterfeit' version of it.
- I've never had to call Apple and ask, "Pretty please, is it okay to have my computer back?"
Your activation key is the hardware itself. People complain that they have to reactivate windows when they swap out the motherboard in their desktop. Try that with a Mac. Go on. Replace the motherboard. You are an Apple certified repairman with access to Apple certified hardware, right? Fail on both counts? Yeah.
If Microsoft required you to have a Dongle instead of an activation key, you would be crying like a fucking baby about it. But there it is.. Apple requires you to do exactly what you would cry a
Re:They may have won in the courts.... (Score:5, Informative)
Apple primarily makes money on the hardware sales, any money coming in from software is mostly gravy. Microsoft primarily makes money on software sales, so piracy means they get nothing.
If Apple did not have a monopoly on computers which can run OS-X then it's very likely you would be seeing license keys, activation and anti-counterfeiting measures in place.
Re:They may have won in the courts.... (Score:5, Informative)
You're missing the forest for the trees. Mac OS never asks for validation at any stage of installation. Just put your disc in, install, reboot. That's it. Change your hardware, no need to validate. Ever. Starting with Mac OS v.10.5, upgrade discs no longer checked to see if you had an older version already installed.
Lockdown!=Lockout
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>Starting with Mac OS v.10.5, upgrade discs no longer checked to see if you had an older version already installed.
There was never any point to doing this. Since all Macs come with Mac OS X, *ALL* copies of OS X are "upgrades".
There's no such thing as a non-upgrade install of OS X, technically.
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i've had more than one paid-for copy of windows make me do the activation dance. this has not happened to me on osx yet. my anecdotal evidence indicates to me that there is no apple genuine advantage software running on my computer.
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Except that apple is probably much worse than MS when it comes to DRM. You can't even save certain files on iphone, or so I've heard.
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Re:They may have won in the courts.... (Score:5, Funny)
I has a similar situation.
The patriot act was the final straw for me and what ultimately forced my hand. I have migrated to North Korea and will never look back.
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WGA was the final straw for me and what ultimately forced my hand. I have migrated to Mac and will never look back.
I has a similar situation.
The patriot act was the final straw for me and what ultimately forced my hand. I have migrated to North Korea and will never look back.
Best. Analogy. Ever.
Comparing Apple's control over their platform to North Korea.
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I have migrated to North Korea and will never look back.
Because of the potential eye-gouging if you do?
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"Thanks for the helping hand Microsoft, I'm much happier now."
Yes, you sound it too!
Re: (Score:2, Interesting)
now you have steve watching every single thing you do on his computer, you will pay 130$ for service packs, and good luck getting parts or repair on that mac (which has a very high chance of failure within the first year)
Try using Apple HW instead of just bashing it. There are a lot of MB/MBP out there running MS crap because they are so reliable, and actually run software without machinations. Rating a new version of an OS as a service pack is ludicrous. Maybe you ought to actually use a permissions based OS before you run your keys the next time
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This should have been thrown out .... (Score:2)
I hate WGA as much as the next guy, but trying to file a class-action suit against Microsoft because they decided to push out an update for their OS that they deemed "critical" but some users didn't? It seems to me that Microsoft is the one who gets to choose which category they place their updates in, and a "Critical Update" like WGA authentication might seem a lot more critical to MS than to their customers....
As many people already posted here -- if you dislike the way their OS handles things, maybe it'
WGA was fantastic for the malware industry. (Score:2)
The minor problems upgrading, or incorrectly triggering WGA are nothing compared to the harm done by Microsoft in denying security patches. Years of propagated malware and vast monetary damage to other Windows owners simply to force a few people to buy new copies of their products. For that reason alone I feel a class action suit is justified.
Those with the Gold... (Score:2, Insightful)
...make the rules. Do as I say, not as I do. It's the same in every authoritarian government, whether it be a superpower, a multinational corporation, or just the family next door.
Sloppy reporting by Ars (Score:5, Informative)
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If the employer requires specific software, I think it is reasonable that they also provide it. I think it is reasonable that they also provide it. Goes with the whole package of desk, chair, computer, and all that. Of course, that doesn't necessarily extend to outside the office, but you could negotiate about that.
Enterprise Office Home Use For $10 (Score:2)
Yeah, I tried to convince her to switch to OO, but according to her, it's incompatible with her employer (big publisher) and she must use MS Office.
If she has a corporate e-mail address chances are good her employer participates in Microsoft's Home Use Program. [microsoft.com]
Microsoft® Office Enterprise 2007 is hers for ten bucks. Microsoft Home Use Program [microsofthup.com]
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Yeah, I tried to convince her to switch to OO, but according to her, it's incompatible with her employer (big publisher) and she must use MS Office.
Enjoy this great excuse to stop working from home!
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Well yeah, it is her problem.
She has to take it up with the retailer, they sold her dodgy goods. This is the same with any product, if you buy an item that is not legitimate then you wont get support from the producer, you have to deal with it through your retailer.
If your retailer has dissapeared, you can file a fraud complain with the police because they sold you an illegal copy as a legal copy and it is up to the police to track down the people involved.
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So, the publishers have switched away from LaTeX now, eh? Disappointing all around.
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While I feel for your friend, I must point out that "sold it at a HUGE discount from other retailers" is a clear warning sign.
"HUGE" discounts almost always mean that the retailer has purchased a Microsoft site license and is reselling the activation code for fun and profit. When you buy one of these volume licenses, you have to sign a contract saying that you won't resell or sublet them and that they are strictly for the use of your own company. The retailer is now out of business probably because they g