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- 13thHouR, on 10/12/2007, -0/+34Who are they trying to kid,
1. Its nigh on impossible to create such a hardware failure on demand. (If it wasn't then they would have never have been able to issue such a challenge as the actual physical failure would have been so numerous that nobody could have ignored it).
2. The (Code 41) error still occurs.
3. The DMA step down still occurs.
4. It is still grants Ring 0 access to Ring 3 level programs.
5. SF clashes with SCSI and SATA systems and makes the games unplayable
Now I wonder why they excluded issues 2, 3, 4 ,5 from their challenge ;)
We at NGH issued a counter challenge against Starforce Technologies, to come to our head quarters in England and prove that the issues we where raising where not factual.
We even offered to publish the findings on NGH and around the net should they be successful, given that we are one of the main players in the Boycott Starforce campaign, you would have thought they would have jumped at the chance.
Did they?
Well actually they refuse to even acknowledge that we even exist, although we are the ones that have been clearing up the problems in the wake of their so called protection software.
We posted the DMA fix, the Code 41 fix (Which SF did not know how to cure) and explained the other issues where in some rare circumstances hardware failure does occur.
With my many years experience as a Prototype/Test Engineer, I am fully aware of just how difficult such hardware failures would be to replicate as there are too many variables involved. It would take several hundred drives from a single manufacturer to even think about replicating it. - master_of_fm, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8"Just to make sure, StarForce decided to have a worldwide contest among users of StarForce protected applications. We had an open invitation to visit our office in order to display the issue and receive $10.000 US in case the person would have proven the problem to exist. January 31st was the last day to apply for the contest which lasted for almost two months. The contest page was visited 48.000 times but we received 0 applications. No one showed up"
http://www.star-force.com/protection.phtml?c=261&id=707
if this was actually publicized, how come this is the first I have heard of this contest, you would have expected something like this to hit the homepage of digg or slashdot in the past 2 months. - SmartyMcGenius, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7"Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence."
- opera, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6I don't think I've read this much pro-usa-anti-russia ***** from ignorant Americans in a long long time...
Russia has a lot of skilled programmers, and it's just like any other country. The fact that this company is rather disgusting is something else, don't draw everyone over the same line and mensioning communism and russia as a whole, and russian people and what good have come out of there and so on.
You're just a bunch of tragic kids from the states that really don't know much about the rest of the world. You aren't better than the company this post is about. - binkitybonk, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4i lived in russia for four months, and it is an interesting place indeed. rather than sharing my own observations, here's a great article that will give you some insight into the sort of business climate in which this company is operating, and you may draw your own conclusions...
Mafia Capitalism or Red Legacy?
Russia's Ministry of Internal Affairs recently pegged the number of criminal organizations operating in that country at 9,000. One prominent Moscow think tank now figures that four of five Russian businesses pay protection money. An estimated 8,000 Russians have mysteriously vanished from their homes, which have become lucrative pieces of real estate since the collapse of communism...
What Russia needs, however, is not "more government" or "less capitalism" but a greater commitment to fulfilling the core tasks of liberal governance: the prevention of harm and the protection of property rights. Continuing failure in those areas will jeopardize the long-term viability of Russia's capitalist reforms and expose it to financial crisis.
More: http://www.cato.org/dailys/1-07-98.html - thenativeraver, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Altufevskoe shosse, 5/2
127106 Moscow, Russia
Tel +7 (495) 9671451
Fax +7 (495) 9671452
E-mail: sales@star-force.ru
Http: http://www.star-force.ru/
Those crazy russians. - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Yeah, let me go to MOSCOW to tell them their software is a piece of crap, I think I will never see American sun after that.
- Koskun, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3http://digg.com/software/Prove_Starforce_Ruins_Your_Computer_for_$5000
I put this up about a month ago, when it was $5000, before that it was $1000, now it seems they put it up to $10,000.
They do state that: "...we will be happy to award you with $10 000.00 US, cover your trip to Moscow and pay 2 days’ lodging."
Now I do not want anyone to believe that I support StarForce. I think it is crap. This is so that the information can be correct when being submitted. - Meow, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2A friend of mine was just complaining today about how he could no longer burn DVD images (he has Starforce installed). Instead he had to burn the .iso file as an entry on a data disc to back it up. He also experimented with installing/uninstalling Starforce and noticed his load times in other games increased with it installed.
Nice going Starforce.
I'll never have that junk on my system. - rspeed, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Careful, if you disagree with them THEY'LL SUUUUUUE YOU!!!
- MrHolla, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I guess this means they will never admit that StarForce is malware. More gamers will eventually wise up and wait 2-3 months for a cracked version of the game. Waiting beats being infected with their malware.
- toaste, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2In Russia, capitalism began in organized crime rings that used bribes and government connections to keep the KGB off the trail of their cottage industry making and selling booze and such; 40% of the Russian GDP is still being generated by organized crime groups. Contrast this with the situation in the States, where free enterprise began as small proprietorships and grew into corporations that manipulate government with lobbyists and behave like mobsters (think RIAA).
In Capitalist Russia, software company brings complaints to YOU! - BiGdUsTy, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Only thing good to come from Russia was Tetris.
- mikeyG9x, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Nobody showed up, so we must be Right! hahahaha
Where's the logic in that? You can't prove macro-evolution because of the gaps in the fossil record so some god must have intervened!
Idiots. - OBKenobi, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3What does Starforce have to do with Russia or Communism, other than that they happen to be based in Moscow? Starforce is not a government enterprise, it is private, capitalist corporation that services American and European corporations. You would be more correct if you called them NWO Fascists, rather than Communists.
- CaptSnuffy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Let them think what they want, but the game companies will soon realize that using starforce guarantees bad sales, and then the problem will fix itself.
- RiddickRom, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I check now whether starforce is used, if it is? It gets ignored. Boycott starforce and the problem will go away all by itself.
A truly nasty piece of copy protection. - LineNoise, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1"Also StarForce has a special Contest offer!
All users of StarForce protected applications (licensed games, etc) can purchase Safe’n’Sec Plus Anti-Spyware for only $10! Buy Now"
Who in their right minds would trust Anti-Spyware software written by a company preducing software the likes of Starforce? That's almost as stupid as purchasing an adware blocker built by Gator (or whoever they are this week).
Having just spent all morning pulling this software off our PCs here (people have been playing Trackmania Nations at lunch time : ) because of Code 41 errors galore I'm not exactly a fan of it.
As a question...I'm not much of an expert on this stuff so can someone explain the where with all about it allowing Ring 0 access to Ring 3? - zbeast, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Wow, Moscow, the'll shoot you in the head and dump you in the Volga.
The old Russia is still around. - Darkshine, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Anyone else think Starforce is a remnant of the old KGB?
- Darkness123, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2BiGdUsTy: And the poor guy who created tetris didnt get much money from it.
- the_mole1314, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2In Soviet Russia, the computer crashes YOU!
- techlinks, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Hurray zbeast!
I bet a handful of people showed up. And now they are laying at the bottom of the Volga. - brydude, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I hate DRM. But, thanks for the submit. Very useful uacheesehead. Also, I love your avatar. And your comic is friggin hilarious. I read every installment. Keep up the good work.
- mindlessxd, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1If someone did show up, they'd probably claim that "$10.000 US" means $10 and the extra zero was just a typo...
- mtmitch, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1"We had an open invitation to visit our office in order to display the issue and receive $10.000 US in case the person would have proven the problem to exist. January 31st was the last day to apply for the contest which lasted for almost two months. The contest page was visited 48.000 times but we received 0 applications. No one showed up.
Therefore, we now have proof that such issues with StarForce protected applications are pure fiction and all of these rumors are false and probably initiated by frustrated pirates."
Wow, that's like saying the Grand Canyon doesn't exist because you've never seen it.
1. Make crappy malware
2. Break users PCs with said malware.
3. Deny, deny, deny
4. Profit!!! - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/StarForce
- Reddog_x2000, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1RE: Only thing good to come from Russia was Tetris.
What about Anna kournakova - Deguello, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0"If you are acknowledged as the Winner StarForce shall compensate your travel expenses (air fare round trip to Moscow economy class, pay your two days lodging (three star hotel of your choice) in Moscow and pay 1000 USD as prize.
Your full name will be mentioned on www.star-force.com as the Winner of the Contest."
So is it $10,000 or $1000...
- crainte, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Road trip to Russia! I call the first shift but someone else has to drive accross the Atlantic...
- nogami, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Well, I won't _buy_ any product protected with starforce that farks around with my system or tries to make me uninstall drive emulators. Any publisher who chooses to use such a system can rest assured that they will never see a single cent from me.
- Brainfish, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
- Slanzinger, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Interesting that nobody brought up this little gem from their T's & C's:
3. .....A legal version of operational system must be installed and there must be no other third company products installed....
Mull over that a second - "No other third company products". Define that, please? Especially seeing as (practically) no PC now comes without third party applications... And I'm pretty certain that they've said this as it would be StarForce's interaction *with* these third-party products that causes the problems in the first place!
Secondly:
# If you fail to reproduce the mentioned above terms, you will be acknowledged the loser and StarForce will mention your full name on www.star-force.com in the list of Losers of the Contest and any expenses shall not be compensated.
So basically they would permanently besmirch your name if the error (potentially) caused by their program cannot, in this case, be reproduced.
No wonder nobody out of the 48,000 "applied"... And they probably ignored those that truly did. - Xalorous, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Last I heard, the guy what invented Tetris worked for Microsoft, making more puzzle games (like the ones on msn zone games and such). http://www.answers.com/topic/alexey-pajitnov. Not a horrible turnout for someone who grew up in the USSR.
- penisZhidkov, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0i am PENISZIDHKOV, i can explain . .. u know our software is blah blah blah maamy come to my rescue . .blaaaaaaaaaah blah blah..and i will sue u .u too .evryone . .
Your apparent company policies and threats to parts of the community can only be compared to practices of a criminal organization and you are also clearly trying to undermine the right to freedom of speech. Possibly you are unaware of this, as your country is only now beginning to discover the rights given to people of the so called free world?
I am glad to see that your protection program is meeting with more and more resistance and I sincerly hope, (in fact I am certain), that your company will meet its eventual demise!
( i love russians , i just hate the politicians ) - MrKite, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I'm actually surprised that no one won the money. Considering that thousands of gamers complain about it, you'd think that one of them would keep their laptop in the broken state and go to their office in Russia. It would be worth the $10,000. Personally, I've installed Splinter Cell: CT without any problems or slow-downs.
- Elxx, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Wow, didn't actually realize that Starforce is Russian. Now it's definitely evil in some way, those damn Soviets do nothing but cracking on their computers.
I'm serious. - thetwix, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0[quote]Starforce is an excellent piece of software, IMO. I have bought about 4 games that had it running. All of them worked well with no harm to my system. I am glad to see this stuff out there to try and get more gamers to buy these fine games as opposed to stealing them. I know that it will encourage more games in the future on PCs.
Also, StarForce is a very effective measure to preventing piracy. [/quote]
OMG, get the ***** off these forums you trolling Starforce lackey.
This software is a poorly written mess of code that causes more issues that it is worth.
This does nothing to prevent piracy, only a feeble attempt to protect the profits of companies who should have gone out of business long ago. - uacheesehead, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I'm disappointed that this post brought on ignorant anti-Russia comments.. but I guess that's to be expected these days on the internet. Definitely a handful of good comments about what Starforce does and how lame their contest is..
- Slanzinger, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I'd like to add to the above post that I have not used StarForce, and am not in particular attacking (or for that matter glorifying) them or their practices... I'm simply concerned that their contest terms seem to have been written in such a way as to deter people from actually responding.
- brux, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0$10.000
You can add 3 million 0's to the end of the decimal, and it still translates to 10 US dollars. This company gives me the creeps. I wouldn't dare fly there for 10 US dollars, or even 10,000 dollars (which I am positive they meant to say 10 US dollars). Is it worth the risk of something serious happening to whoever even attempts going over there... "He never came here, we never saw him". - Legion303, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0"I guess this means they will never admit that StarForce is malware. More gamers will eventually wise up and wait 2-3 months for a cracked version of the game."
I've played two games now that were cracked within a day of retail, and were "protected" by StarForce. So my anecdotal evidence suggests it works *real good* for the first 24 hours. - penisZhidkov, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0i will hack ur site starforce . .muhaha...
this is ur Server: Apache/2.0.54 running FreeBSD PHP/4.4.0 - OBKenobi, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0[quote]They are raping our gaming PCs like Putin is raping Chechnya.[/quote]
What the hell does Putin have to do with Starforce? That's like saying Bush forced game publishers to use it. - tunnel, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0lol crazy russians. Just looked through the list of games and they all suck just like the protection they are using.
- Skrolnik, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.
- howie, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0In Communist Russia, StarForce burns YOU!
- mockstar, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0*ahem*
IN SOVIET RUSSIA, RUMOR ENDS YOU!! - sud0n1m, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I have 10,000 dollars (just under) for you if you come to Houston, TX. However, you have to bring with you the solution for Dual-booting Windows XP and OS X on an Intel Mac. http://windowsxp.onmac.net
:) - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Naive...
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