This is amazing! I mean I'm completely dumb-founded at this.
I know, as a previous computer gamer, hardware in my machine changed
drastically from one week to the next. I remember at on point, inside
one month, I added two new HDD, I added a new video card and then swapped
in a better one. Not to mention going through two different sound cards
then the one already in the machine. So after I've added/subtracted all
that, I may have to call Microsoft and tell them about it?
As well as this is Windows. Everybody knows that you need to reinstall
Windows every 3 or 4 months because the registry gets to contaminated and
you have driver problems, the system slows down, and the blue screen
starts to be come your only screen! What happens then? Do you have to
call and ask for permission to reinstall something you already paid for?
If a consumer has paid X amount of money for a product why is the use of
it being governed like this?
Now I have absolutely no intentions of ever owning WindowsXP or using it
in any fuction what so ever, but as a consumer I can't believe somebody
would be interested in giving this product a try.
I know I'm a more advanced user, I play with the hardware of a machine,
and I build my own machines. I know there are people who will buy a
machine, or install WindowsXP on a machine and never changed the hardware
configuration, but does this practice still seem very extreme?
I mean could you imagine buying a car and then the vendor calls you up
saying, "Sir, your car has been activated. You're only allowed to use
reverse 5 times a day. You can only put and remove objects from it's
trunk 3 times. If you exceed those numbers you will have to call
Technical support to gain access to your vehicle again. Thank you for
buying a _____" Which, if you ask me, translates to, "Thank you for
letting us screw you!"
People are learning more and doing more with their computers. They're
more comfortable buying and installing a new video card so they can watch
DvDs on the machine. So why would they do something like this, that's really
just becoming more constricting to the consumer.
People are already extremely paranoid about their privacy. I remember
working at ISP and a customer calling me frantically saying he visited a
porn site that asked him to become a member, and he was worried they
already had their credit card number, or if his name was added to some
smut list for the FBI. So why would people allow their MAC address, or
serial numbers to the parts inside their machine to be sent to Microsoft?
Now for me, this is the first time I've heard this. And for all I know
others have really gotten into this debate, but I'm shocked that I've not
heard about some lawsuit on preventing this.
I know I've become anti-Microsoft due to my years of working with, and
hearing more of their actions on how the see competition, but as a
consume this scares me.
tdh
--
T. Holmes
-----------------
UNIXTECHS.org
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
-----------------
"Real Men Use Vi!"
Uptime:
--------------------------------------------------------------------
1:56pm up 4 days, 14:23, 7 users, load average: 0.00, 0.00, 0.00
--------------------------------------------------------------------
|
| ,--------------- Forwarded message (begin)
|
|
|
| > Windows XP Activation Changes
| >
| >
| > We spoke with Microsoft about how it is addressing user concerns over
| > XP's inflexibility toward hardware upgrades.
| >
| > Microsoft has revealed that it plans to change its antipiracy measures
| > in Windows XP to respond to the beta testers' concerns of that XP's
| > product activation system wasn't tolerant enough of typical system
| > upgrades. Windows product activation (WPA) is a method of tying the
| > serial number to a specific system's hardware. Windows XP prompts the
| > user to "activate" Windows in the first month of installation, and
| > once the serial code is used for one configuration it cannot be used
| > to activate Windows XP on a different hardware configuration. However,
| > savvy users have been concerned that incremental hardware upgrades
| > would be enough to cause WPA to lock Windows from use. Microsoft has
| > indicated that the final version of Windows XP, set for release in
| > late October, will modify the activation procedure to allow for a
| > certain number of hardware changes within an unstated amount of time.
| > A German company recently revealed how WPA generates its hardware
| > fingerprint from 10 hardware components, including the model
| > identification codes for the processor and graphics card, as well as
| > the hard drive's serial number and network card's MAC address.
| > GameSpot spoke with Allen Nieman, technical product manager for
| > Windows XP, to get more information on how product activation will
| > work.
| > GameSpot: Tell us a bit about the changes to Windows product
| > activation. What now triggers the prompt for reactivation?
| > Allen Nieman: What triggers the prompt for reactivation hasn't
| > changed. What has changed is that we have addressed feedback from
| > power users participating in the beta that the need to reactivate by
| > telephoning can be a hassle. Therefore we have made changes in the way
| > those reactivation requests are handled to allow it to be done over
| > the Internet based on the amount of time that has passed since the
| > last time that product key was used to activate Windows XP. As we've
| > always said, we are trying to strike a balance between our desire to
| > reduce piracy and our desire to ensure a positive customer experience
| > with Windows XP.
| > As far as what changes will prompt for a reactivation, we plan to
| > provide the user community with more information on this in the next
| > couple of days.
| > GS: You mention that the changes have to do with the amount of time
| > since the key was last used, presumably for either the initial
| > activation or one due to hardware changes. How long are we talking
| > about?
| > AN: The amount of time is based on initial activation. If you make
| > changes to your PC--changes that would normally prompt a need to
| > reactiviate--120 days from the time you initially activate the
| > product, it will automatically do it online for you.
| > GS: What's the process for reactivation if the upgrades do exceed the
| > new limits?
| > AN: As before, the user still has the opportunity to contact Microsoft
| > via telephone to obtain another confirmation ID.
| > GS: Does the activation system need access to the Internet after the
| > initial activation to confirm hardware changes with Microsoft?
| > AN: No, there is no ongoing access to Microsoft or "phone home." The
| > only time a user may have to reactivate is when a substantial hardware
| > change occurs such that the PC appears to Windows to be a completely
| > different PC. This is to protect against hard disk cloning piracy.
| > GS: Thanks, Allen.
| >
| > By Sam Parker, GameSpot PC [UPDATED: 07/20/01]
| >
|
| Heh....in other words "We're M$ Winblows, we'll be kind enough to make you pay
| too
| much for a 'license' to use our OS, and also, since we believe you don't know
| what you're doing, we think it'll be best if you let us control how you decide
| to
| upgrade any part of 'your' system. We'll let you change 'certain' different
| things on 'your' system only a certain amount of times, then we feel it'd be
| best
| that we lock up your system until you let us know what you've done and we'll
| make
| a decision to allow/disallow you to use our OS again....Now, don't you feel just
| rosy and warm inside knowing that we have you by the cods?"
|
| John
| --
|
| Freedom equates to the use of Linux and GnuPG
| Registered Linux user #214117
| Reply to: YochanonATyahooDOTTEcom
|
|
| `--------------- Forwarded message (end)
|
| --
|
| Freedom equates to the use of Linux and GnuPG
| Registered Linux user#214117
| Reply to: YochanonATyahooDOTTEcom
|
------------------------------------------------------------------
