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139 Comments
- Roger, on 10/12/2007, -15/+91I actually own a legal copy of Windows XP, but I prefer using my pirated copy.
Not sure what my point is, just wanted to mention that. - sundancekid503, on 10/12/2007, -0/+75No, but you may have to question the brand of HD you're buying.
- Sirocco, on 10/12/2007, -4/+62>> I actually own a legal copy of Windows XP, but I prefer using my pirated copy.
Same here. I have a perfectly legal copy of XP professional, but due to the WPA component malfunctioning every few months I just gave up and inistalled a corporate version with a generated key. Problem solved; and to be frank I don't give a damn if you people care to go all holier than thou on me. MS ***** me over with their idiotic attempt at copy protection and I made the problem go away.
Remember the mantra kiddies: copy protection only serves to screw your legit users. - marcz, on 10/12/2007, -4/+50Atleast they don't declare it pirated right away.
- billisdog, on 10/12/2007, -23/+67Oh shut up. People pirate software because people are inherently cheap and getting something for free is infinitely easier than paying for it. The ratio of people who are pirating to save $200 vs. people who are pirating to make some moral statement has to be > 99% - 1%.
Remember, people pirate software all the time from nice, well-intentioned, non-evil mom'n'pop software shops. Just cause they aren't satan incarnate doesn't mean they don't get pirated just as hard. - ajb2015, on 10/12/2007, -12/+46What this means for geeks is that I will be looking forward to downloading the corporate edition as soon as it becomes available. I hate ***** around with "activations". If I buy software, I want to be able to use it without worrying that I have gone over my "limit". So, once again, they will have driven me towards piracy. And don't think I just want a free copy, I bought every version of windows up until XP.
- HoboMaster, on 10/12/2007, -6/+36Sounds a lot better than XP's 3 times, after which you had to beg and cajole Microsoft to be able to use your copy of XP. I had a computer that died constantly, and every time I worked on it, I had to call Microsoft and explain to get it working again. I hated that computer. Microsoft was amazingly nice about the whole thing though. They always activated it for me.
- radixus, on 10/12/2007, -7/+32That's all well and good . . . but in all honesty, you shouldn't have to call Microsoft, and that's really the point.
If the license you have is legal then you shouldn't have to be hassled. - jrizzo, on 10/12/2007, -2/+28@Roger
Ya, I have like 3 LEGAL copies of XP (free from MSDN, Work, School, etc...). Same deal with Office. I use the pirated copies because the activation is a freaking pain when you reinstall. They wouldn't even let me re-activate office, even after I called them and said my hard drive died. Owning the software and pirating it anyways is saying to MS this:
"No matter how hard you try, we can still pirate it. Internet hackers are smarter than you and they always will be. Everything you do to stop them just makes it a pain in the ass for your legitimate users and INCREASES piracy."
That goes for most software companies. When will they realize that there are too many people on the net for them to outsmart? Give up on the brute force protection and find a better way.
EDIT: Sirocco beat me to it. - Phatt138, on 10/12/2007, -3/+26Tom - Well, it depends on how often you change out parts, and the extent to which you do so. Being a DIYer who doesn't mind plopping down a little cash to keep abreast (heh), I find this pretty intolerable. Hardware issues aside, formatting a reinstalling is what keeps me from accumulating endless gigs of leftover data. I've reinstalled XP so many times that I know my 25-digit code by heart.
Unless Vista somehow eliminates the need for system maintenance (I even format my Mac every 4 or 5 months - nothing beats a fresh install, period.), which I sincerely doubt that it does, this is ridiculous.
Most ironic of all is the fact that Microsoft's selling Vista as the next-gen platform for games and other forms of entertainment - gamers and technophiles are the people who MOST need reinstallation capability. They've got everything completely ass-backwards! It's like the crappy SonicWall program that my college network uses - it keeps average users from getting viruses and becoming zombies, but negatively impacts those who wish to run various OSs from the same MAC address and are versed in tech; in other words, the only people that it causes any frustration for are the people least likely to need its protection! Sigh. - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -2/+21This is what their Vista Betas and RCs are using. Once you exceed you activation it will probably be just a phone call to their activation line to talk to some foreign person, tell them your activation ID and then they will ask you why you are reactivating. You just have to say "I reinstalled it on my machine." Then they will give you the activation code and then they will say "Dank-you come again!"
- Canute, on 10/12/2007, -7/+22In my experience, as long as you take the trouble to actually call them, they are generally very helpfull and understanding.
I've installed one copy of MS Office on 4 computers at home, just had to call them for the activation code, which they gladly agreed to give me. - estvir, on 10/12/2007, -7/+21So, on your list of moronic reasons is:
5. They've improved upon activating in relation to XP so since I don't like them doing things which are better for customers so I won't upgrade. /hissy fit
That's about right, yes ? - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -10/+24Bill gates started life as a pirate
Bill got his empire by being a pirate
Bill gates purposely let windows be easy to pirate to make sure he had a lot of market share.
Bill gates on piracy "They'll get addicted, and then we'll collect"
He is just turning his back on the same people that got him where he is today.
It is is kind of like stereotypical drug pushers - icexe, on 10/12/2007, -9/+23It amazes me how complacent we've all become. The fact that people no longer see anything wrong with calling someone to beg approval to use something you legally bought with your own money just shows how easy it is to get people to accept any pile of crap you shovel their way.
- goat2, on 10/12/2007, -2/+14no it just "gets tricky"
- sundancekid503, on 10/12/2007, -0/+11"then I will be sending a few calls over their way demanding a refund, and a lawyer for the loss of business I would of obtained from upgrading."
Sweet, I hope CourtTV carries the case of Microsoft VS Joe Schmoe - szembek, on 10/12/2007, -3/+13At least they don't require you to buy your machine from a specific manufacturer!!!
- fatkiduluv, on 10/12/2007, -1/+11I think it will give you ten times before you have to call microsoft.
- leobaby, on 10/12/2007, -3/+12The activation for my legitimate copy of XP Professional (retail) expired after a hardware upgrade - not after a re-install. A piece of software that has never existed on two computers at once; a piece of software that I paid full box price for stopped working altogether. Internet activation no longer worked. An hour of fighting telephone activation and I was able to use MY computer again.
I feel that since I paid for the software, it should continue to function on at that one computer until I decide to stop using it; I could care less if they start charge me for support.
I consider myself not so evil when it comes to software. I'm probably going to buy vista for my desktop system. But as soon as I see the corporate version available online, I'm gonna get that too because I know that one day I'm going to be locked out of a product I paid full price for and have never pirated.
I'm not a pirate, but treat me like one and I'll act like one. - ElRayQuieres, on 10/12/2007, -2/+11Those are pretty old operating systems. I think they froze almost as much as OS 9. If someone switched from OS 8 or 9 to win xp, they'd think "computing has never been better" also.
- austindkelly, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8what planet are you from? the world of no market share?
- MattyLite, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7Lol . . . I love my Mac and all, but you can't compare OSX to 95, 98, or ME. Windows XP, if used properly, doesn't have that many problems. People like you blindly hating Windows just makes the rest of us Mac users look bad.
- unknownsoldierX, on 10/12/2007, -2/+9I had a similar situation. I activated XP four times in a four day span. On the fourth call, they asked me what was going on, but activated me no problem.
- the_atomic_ned, on 10/12/2007, -2/+9This will only hurt legit users.. Pirates will get a hacked version with activation turned off.
- DOUBLEz, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7So let me ask you guys this, do you always get 3 "free" activations with XP? because if you do, our PC provider is screwing my company.
- nofxjunkee, on 10/12/2007, -2/+8sorry ajb but the corporate versions will require an "activation server", so no more corporate pirated versions of windows floating around activation-free.
after vista's released and I have time to try it out a little, i might buy it. as far as windows at home my only use for it is testing websites in IE, so staying with XP where I can run IE6 is a must for now. man I can't wait till the millions of existing XP boxes are trashed and upgraded ... no more IE6, the thought brings a geeky tear to my eye.
for all the crap MS is getting about activation (which I think is a dumb idea, but it's their choice and their market so they basically set the rules, and people have to follow them if they're not willing to switch) and delaying the release, and for all the crap I've ever said bad about MS, I am actually excited for Vista. Except for a couple months of work this summer I've been using linux and mac os x exclusively since 2003, but I'm still excited. Not only to see if Vista is everything they promise, but because IE versions below 7 don't have a chance in hell of running on Vista. praise the lord and all his noodly appendages. - doodlebumm, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7I totally agree. People are being pulled around by a ring in their nose, and loving it. What kind of B&D computing world are we coming to.
"This is what we will give you and you will thank us for it." Total BS. What ever happened to "the customer is always right?" MS-BS. Got a monopoly? Do what Microsoft does and screw your customers. "Oh, thank-you, Microsoft! What would we ever do without you?" - 5thfreedom, on 10/12/2007, -8/+13Funny, my PC running XP stays up and running with no problem. In fact, it's at least as stable as my Mac. Go troll someplace else.
- leobaby, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4"So, instead of spending a couple of minutes entering your serial onto the phone and having an activation code read back to you you spent hours"
It took me over an hour to get my copy of windows activated over the phone last time it happened. I was so pissed off I insisted they give me a new key that will activate over the internet. *****... - gaijin, on 10/12/2007, -3/+7Three times? I'm constantly tinkering with my XP box. I've reinstalled the OS at least a dozen times on four different hard drives and I've never had to call them to activate it. I wonder what flags one machine and not another. Anybody know?
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -3/+7Pirates also tend to make life more convinent.
IN games.. no cd cracks means you cds will lats for reinstalls and you can play right away
in a lot of windows install they have it all set up to be automatic, enters int eh key for you and such and some will install things liek firefox and other common favs
pirate windows was the first to be bootable.. without having to make boot floppies
ANd teh pirate copy of allwindows is extremely helpful to techs
99% of copy protection simply hinders valid users as pirates normally remove all that crap or make it easier(by auto entering serials, or having nocd cracks) and hence the pirate copies tend to be better. - Eleo, on 10/12/2007, -7/+11Well eventually whatever activation scheme they have set up will be cracked, as will future activation schemes. I remember being unable to activate my legit copy of XP Pro, so I just downloaded a pirated copy that doesn't require a serial number and also has a crack for its activation. Works perfectly. I have no intention in putting up with any Vista hassles either.
- austindkelly, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5eww, you used winME in that case i dont blame you for the switch. but i do hope you are not compairing your precious OSX to 98ME, that would not be fair no matter who you are routing for.
- 5thfreedom, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Happens to me every once in a while too. Restart your browser.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6"Then they will give you the activation code and then they will say "Dank-you come again!"
I'm constantly surprised at how willing people are to have to spend time on the telephone to get a legitimate piece of software working. That you just accept it. I remember when MSFT started with product activation. Back in those days I said pretty soon MSFT would make you call to get your OS working again. Everyone said I was crazy, that people wouldn't accept that. Well, maybe they wouldn't have accepted that right off the bat, but they sure seem to now.
So, let me tell you what's going to happen next. To MSFT you're not a customer, you're a revenue stream. As more people jump overboard for Linux, that's more revenue MSFT has to squeeze out of those staying behind. You get a clearer view of that in Vista. Now the first thing many of you will have to do with a new Vista machine is BUY an upgrade to the OEM crip version that will almost certainly come with low end PC's. Right away they've figured out how to get their hand in your pocket. After that you'll notice a reluctance to re-activate XP, a little later they'll just refuse and you won't have any recourse because the EULA you click through limits damages to $5.00.
And I promise you that trend will accelerate going forward. Instead of their best efforts going to add value, their best efforts go to squeezing money out of their customers. - cquinnd, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4If you're an IT guy, why aren't you using or checking out the available tools that allow for just what you are asking for from the Windows Vista deployment kits?
How do you manage updates to those 50 computers now? - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -3/+7@szembek - This is actually the prevailing theory. I might have stated it wrong in my last post, but media distribution including software needs to view piracy as competition. Would you be more willing to pay for the $200 upgrade for Vista by running down to the store and picking up a copy or a $40 Torrent you can download that updates your system in 5 minutes? You could also include Service Packs per quarter with cool new toys to entice customers to purchase them at like $20 a download
Makes sense right? - szembek, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6Yeah right buddy.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4I think you'll have to stop buying Fischer-Price hard drives.
- JMJimmy, on 10/12/2007, -3/+7I'm happy with my XP thanks - once they give me a hard time about it I'll simply switch to Apple or Linux (probably both) and say goodbye to M$.
- MikeUnwired, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I don't see calling after 10 installations to be begging so much as a nuisance. My big question is let's say I work on lots of projects and each time I start a new one, I buy a legal copy for each machine by the way. I want to start-off with a fresh system on my development and test machines. So, I re-image one of the workstations -- maybe monthly or even every few days. Does each re-image count as one install -- I haven't changed the hard drive or any components. Ten installations would run out real quickly and I'd be stuck calling and explaining every time I decided to start out with a clean machine.
At home, where I would be using a developer or professional version, my kids have a habit of installing crap that locks-up their systems really well. I've started to think that re-imaging their computers regularly might be the way to go to keep me from having to surgically remove the nasty stuff I keep telling them not to install. But, over a few years I'd most likely eat-up more than 10 helpings of Vista in this constant effort to protect my kids from the blessing of their own unsafe computing. Making that call to M$ would be a hassle, but I'm pretty sure my hands wouldn't be tied.
I've had to call M$ to ask for activation on an Office package a few times. I went through three new laptops in a week once and had to call on the third activation. It wasn't a big deal and they gave it to me right away. Over a year or so, installing Office on three of four systems as you upgrade isn't flagged, but all in one week -- they start to sense that someone might be sharing their media in a way that violates the EULA.
Remember, we don't "own" the software -- we license it from Microsoft. It's like beer -- we can't ever really own it, we just rent it while it's in our bodies... - dezent, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3this is insane!
- lithuin, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5"Piracy should be viewed as their competitor"
OK, I've heard similar statements from a few posts now and it just doesn't make any sense to me. Should GM view car thieves as a competitor? They don't produce anything to compete with!
thespace, I'm not just picking on you; this applies to everyone defending piracy.
Piracy, BitTorrent, and P2P programs are not a form of competition. They are a means of theft. You can rationalize it however you want, but if you don't like Microsoft for their practices, make a statement by not using their software!
If you don't like Microsoft for whatever reason and declare that you will not purchase their software, then you can't pirate it without lying to yourself. If it's good enough for you to pirate and use, then you have to decide if your qualms about them are worth not using the software. If they are, then DON'T USE IT! :)
I don't like SUVs because they are not fuel efficiant. Does that mean I should still get an SUV and steal my gas? - Cowboy5995, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5What do you people do with your XP machines that make them crash so much? I have had this version of XP installed for at least 6 months with out any crashing or kind of virus and that is with file shareing and every thing.
- tashpool, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3"...you got 10 goes, geek"
Real geeks probably found this confusing since they haven't booted windows in years. - Zuggy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3This is why my next computer will be a mac. I've gotten screwed over twice by microsoft with XP. Twice since 2004 I've had to buy new XP keys for the same computer. After a couple reformats and reinstalls it says my key has been activated to many times, so I spend hours with MS support just to find out they won't activate it over the phone, so I go to my local computer store and buy a new license, because I use Adobe CS2 for school so I can't switch to straight linux.
Microsoft, like most big companies don't get that they aren't detering pirates, they are alienating faithful users. Software pirates are smart enough to overcome anything they come up with, but us honest people keep getting screwed. And then we turn into pirates because it's less of a hassle. - sigmaman2, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I have a legitimate copy of Windows XP (WGA told me so). If I upgrade the hard drive, and say, the DVD-RW (that's one more component, right?) it sounds like I'll have to re-register. If If I upgrade one HD, then add an additional HD, I'll have to re-register too? What about graphics cards? Sound cards? Firewire cards? video capture cards? And if I use a transfer program to move my OS and data to a new PC, that's another?
I don't like having to keep track of how many systems changes I have made, just so I can stay under some arbitrary number, set by someone I've never met, who used criteria I have no knowledge of.
I'm a cheap, lazy, simple man. I always choose the option with less money, less worry, or less effort. Vista is looking, more menacing, more complicated, and more expensive now. I've been using Linux for a while now as well. Piracy or not, in my opinion, MS is shooting themselves in the foot with this move. - markr, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5I tend to agree with you - but there are alternatives.
However, people are generally complacent about DRM issues and the restrictions that they place on something that we've legally purchased. I don't think that general consumers understand the importance of DRM and what affect it could have on us in the future... - khyberkitsune, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Microsoft has a way of telling if it's the same machine to avoid piracy problems - it's called your CPUID. Windows can get access to the hard-coded serial.
Still, the main problem I have is "If I pay for it, I own it. I pay for a legit key, I pay for the media it comes on." Microsoft seems to not agree with me.
I think I should charge them for the usage of extra unnecessary wasted cycles and memory usage, since nothing in their EULA says I can't bill them for wasting MY resources they're not paying for. :) -
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