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The "Not Quite Amiga but still computer related category" => Alternative Operating Systems => Topic started by: redrumloa on May 16, 2006, 05:48:09 PM

Title: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: redrumloa on May 16, 2006, 05:48:09 PM
You are not compliant! We will sue!! (http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=111263&source=NLT_MSFT&nlid=74)

Doesn't matter if you are or not, you are guilty unless you pay up! Looks like MSFT is getting desparate (http://finance.yahoo.com/q/bc?s=MSFT&t=6m&l=on&z=m&q=l&c=)! :roll:
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: Fester on May 16, 2006, 08:03:51 PM
Yes, that's quite interesting...

But it just sounds to me like an overdriven sales-minded person doing anything to land a contract and the kickbacks that come along with it.

...But Microsoft is more strict about licensing for sure. Everytime I upgrade my computer, I get these pesky messages from XP...

Here's the latest one I get these days: "Welcome to the Microsoft Activation Wizard. Microsoft Access 2002 has detected a significant change in your machine configuration. For Microsoft Access 2002 to continue functioning properly, and to avoid entry into reduced functionality mode, you must reactivate your product."

I added a sandisk reader and a couple USB devices. Now my Access disks are somewhere in my warehouse and I can't update my filing system unless I go digging in tubs to find MS Access...

This is silly.

Fester

Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: motrucker on May 16, 2006, 08:05:59 PM
And.... What ever happened to the anti-trust legal problems MS had back when Clinton was President? Did Bush just sweep it all under the carpet?
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: motrucker on May 16, 2006, 08:12:57 PM
Quote

Fester wrote:
Yes, that's quite interesting...

Everytime I upgrade my computer, I get these pesky messages from XP...
I added a sandisk reader and a couple USB devices. Now my Access disks are somewhere in my warehouse and I can't update my filing system unless I go digging in tubs to find MS Access...
This is silly.
Fester


There is no ryhm or reason to these messages either. A friend has had a similar problem, yet I have upgraded my graphics card (from an ATI 7000 to an 850XL - Big jump!) and upgraded the CPU (an AMD 2600 to 3000) and have never had to fool with XP! Go figure.
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: InTheSand on May 16, 2006, 08:23:00 PM
Product activation is a pain! But to be fair, when XP or MS Office has whinged to me about hardware changes, it has only ever taken a quick phone call to a 24-hour freephone number to get a new code.

 - Ali
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: Hyperspeed on May 16, 2006, 08:33:35 PM
Quote
by InTheSand:
Product activation is a pain! But to be fair, when XP or MS Office has whinged to me about hardware changes, it has only ever taken a quick phone call to a 24-hour freephone number to get a new code.


Yeah, but did you first have to give over voice pattern identification, have your iris scanned, DNA sucked out and your GPS coordinates uploaded to the CIA database?

:-D

Long live Workbench/Linux.
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: InTheSand on May 16, 2006, 08:36:11 PM
Quote

Hyperspeed wrote:
Yeah, but did you first have to give over voice pattern identification, have your iris scanned, DNA sucked out and your GPS coordinates uploaded to the CIA database?


Yep, all of the above!  :-D

The unmarked black helicopters have appeared overhead several times now, ensuring my licence compliance!

 - Ali
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: Fester on May 16, 2006, 08:44:41 PM
Quote

InTheSand wrote:
Product activation is a pain! But to be fair, when XP or MS Office has whinged to me about hardware changes, it has only ever taken a quick phone call to a 24-hour freephone number to get a new code.

 - Ali


Well, I sent Microsoft an email through their support site (support.microsoft.com) about my activation problem. I couldn't find the number you were talking about. I know it exists though because I had to re-install XP home on my EPIA SP once before and eventually reached some sort of activation hot line after being transferred to India a couple of times...

Fester
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: InTheSand on May 16, 2006, 08:53:58 PM
Heh! Yeah, you never know which country you'll end up being put through to!

When I had to re-activate, the number I needed to call was shown on-screen automatically. I may have had to select my country, but that was about it.

 - Ali
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: KThunder on May 16, 2006, 09:23:30 PM
Quote

motrucker wrote:
And.... What ever happened to the anti-trust legal problems MS had back when Clinton was President? Did Bush just sweep it all under the carpet?


i know i shouldnt but i cant help it.
what the heck is wrong with you?!?!
do you really think that clinton had anything to do with the investigation into ms in the 90's? and do you really think that bush did anything to help ms. you have no idea how our government really works do you. its no wonder nonamericans think we are stupid.
bush does not control the whole world, he does not mandate every decision in every office in washington. in fact not only does the separation of powers that is built into our government prevent that but so do numerous polititions on a personal basis both dem and rep.
noone from the british prime minister to the russion president to even saddam hussien gets talked about and blamed for more things that he has no control over whatsoever than president bush. and that mostly from americans.
from the start the ms investigation had nothing to do with a presidential mandate and all the way through president clinton and then president bush usually declined comment on the entire subject. neither had anything to do with the procedings or outcome.  
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: trekiej on May 16, 2006, 11:06:18 PM
Thanks KThunder.

I heard someone blame Katrina on Bush as well.  Hmm. Does Bush have the ability to control the weather too? LoL

I know they blame the gov. for the fouled up relief program but why blame Bush for everything.





( A500 , A1000 , A1200) and others
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: LP on May 16, 2006, 11:30:19 PM
Quote

but why blame Bush for everything.


BECAUSE IT'S ALL HIS FAULT!!11! :ponder:
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: Frags on May 16, 2006, 11:34:30 PM
If a piece of software asks me for information it doesn`t need or tries to make me jump through hoops then I abort the install and download the pirate version.  I will also pirate any further software I want from that from that company (as a form of revenge).
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: Marco on May 16, 2006, 11:52:16 PM
Quote

trekiej wrote:
I heard someone blame Katrina on Bush as well.  Hmm. Does Bush have the ability to control the weather too? LoL

I know they blame the gov. for the fouled up relief program but why blame Bush for everything.


Aside from the complete ballsup of a relief program, Bush's govt. were responsible for massive budget cuts; year on year for maintenance and expansion of the sea defences around New Orleans. And I'm pretty sure this was despite warnings that the then current defences would not hold against anything sizeable (like all the hurricanes they get in that area every year). So while he may not be directly responsible, his administration is at least partially to blame for the sheer amount of devastation caused - some of which could have been avoided.

Anyway, I must agree I fail to see what he or Clinton have to do with the MS case, I really doubt the US govt. likes Microsoft all that much.
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: KThunder on May 17, 2006, 12:00:15 AM
marco said:
 (like all the hurricanes they get in that area every year). So while he may not be directly responsible, his administration is at least partially to blame for the sheer amount of devastation caused - some of which could have been avoided.

huricanes have been coming to that area for the entire 200+yrs of us history and it was president bush's responsibility to come up with everything?
us gov works from the bottom up in these cases the city's mayor was directly responsible with the states governer next then the pres. there were numerous screwup on numerous levels but all of the damage was caused by the huricane not the mayor or anyone else. the federal government isnt allowed to barge in and take control of everything. it is supposed to start with local the state levels.
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: Marco on May 17, 2006, 01:41:05 AM
I've seen you get overly zealous on this kind of issue before KThunder, and I see now is no exception, anyway, if you read my post more carefully I never actually blamed Bush personally for the total failiure to protect NO.

Try and chill about this sort of thing, we're not always attacking Bush, only when he deserves it (which is often, but not here). Anyway, this is incredibly off-topic.
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: mr_a500 on May 17, 2006, 01:49:58 AM
What is this - a "Microsoft sleaze" thread or a "Bush hurricane responsibility" thread? (..or maybe Bush and Microsoft are both sleazy AND responsible for the hurricane;-))

I was hoping this thread would stick with the MS sleaze and point to lots of links. I know there are huge lists out there with detailed examples.

KThunder: Do you have a problem with your "Shift" key? Or are you just boycotting capital letters?
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: Fester on May 17, 2006, 03:21:51 AM
Quote

trekiej wrote:
Thanks KThunder.

Hmm. Does Bush have the ability to control the weather too? LoL



Perhaps he can. In know, in my humble experience, that I can control the atmosphere under the sheets after eating a couple of hot dogs with relish and raw onions.

Fester
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: KThunder on May 17, 2006, 08:23:58 PM
complete boycott of capital letters or the shift key i forget which.


i didnt start the thread hijack, motrucker trolled with a comment about bush.
i am kind of zealous about some things that are important to me. i got in a big argument once with a guy who called former president clinton something, he when off on senator clinton also.

lately i have been troll baited so easily. people have a normal conversation about computers and someone has to slip in a "pres x sucks" comment. they are as zealous about stupid comments that should be easy to ignore but arent... for me.
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: trekiej on May 19, 2006, 03:42:04 AM
 As for M$oft,  I know they want to protect their I.P., assets,  and etc.  I just wonder if they are going to run people off to other systems by their ways.  I like alot of systems(OS and Hardware Sgi,amiga,apple,Beos,etc).  Do people want to put up with M$oft if they are going to do this?

As for Bush and any other president, they are human. They do make mistakes too.( They are more responsible, aren't they?)    

How long has New Orleans been around?  Why now is it a big deal?

Coming up on the next phactor.
LOL  

@Fester  LOL
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: Hyperspeed on May 19, 2006, 09:12:36 PM
Quote
by trekiej:
As for Bush and any other president, they are human. They do make mistakes too.( They are more responsible, aren't they?)


Well there's a difference between a President with a kinky secretary and a President who's best friends are hell bent on nuclear war.

One thing that makes me curious about Bill Gates though... is he Jewish?
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: ricco32097 on May 19, 2006, 11:26:42 PM
Hurricane Katrina. I read that the state Louisiana is a poor state, and that was one of the reasons that they could not maintain the dams, barriers or what ever it is called. But yet the state is packed with tourists, I guess they do not spend any money. Oh well.
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: ricco32097 on May 19, 2006, 11:29:44 PM
Hyperspeed:
Bill Gates
Religion: Agnostic

Agnostic -> Agnosticism is distinct from, but compatible with, atheism. It is also compatible with theism. This is because agnosticism is a view about knowledge concerning God, whereas theism and atheism are beliefs (or lack thereof) concerning God. For example, it is possible to believe in God but to believe that knowledge about God is not obtainable.

Question, why do you think he is Jewish?
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: Hyperspeed on May 20, 2006, 01:50:11 AM
Quote
by ricco32097:
Hyperspeed:
Bill Gates
Religion: Agnostic

... Question, why do you think he is Jewish?


I was just wondering if he was. Being a rich, powerful American and wearing glasses seems to be synonymous with being Jewish...

;-)

But Israel has banned some Microsoft stuff because not enough was translated into Hebrew, at least I read something along those lines.

Agnosticism(?) is a reasonable and well balanced way of thought, you believe in the possibility of God but not in a god that has yet to be portrayed.

The sleaziest thing I heard about Microsoft was collaboration with the authorities in the Win'95 era to install code in the operating system allowing the security services to do their dirty deeds... Google wouldn't have any of this!

As for expecting the public to buy WinME & Win2000 I think that was just poor planning and with the X-Box they effectively bought market share instead of earning it. A bit like criminals would buy up corrupt cops (them being the pinstriped city PR men).
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: blobrana on May 21, 2006, 11:40:10 PM
Hum,
The final Windows Vista prices, classified by product editions (SKUs) just leaked over the web:

-Windows Vista Home Basic - €200 or $255.55 or £135.95
-Windows Vista Home Premium - €400 or $511.10 or £271.90
-Windows Vista Ultimate Edition - €500 or $638.88 or 339.87
-Windows Vista Business - €650 or $830.54 or £441.84
-Windows Vista Enterprise - €800 or $1,022.20 or £543.80

(They seem a bit high so i would suspect the authenticity)
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: Oliver on May 22, 2006, 01:28:54 AM
Quote

blobrana wrote:
...(They seem a bit high so i would suspect the authenticity)


They may have just leaked a higher price first, so that when they release the product for a lower price, people will feel happier about paying it.  'Oh look, I can get the full Vista edition for only $900.'
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: Lando on May 22, 2006, 02:04:21 AM
Quote

Oliver wrote:
Quote

blobrana wrote:
...(They seem a bit high so i would suspect the authenticity)


They may have just leaked a higher price first, so that when they release the product for a lower price, people will feel happier about paying it.  'Oh look, I can get the full Vista edition for only $900.'


Meanwhile OS X Tiger retails at $129.  If those prices are even close, and if Apple release a standalone version for non-Apple branded hardware, Windows could be in big trouble!  Vista could be the beginning of the end for Microsoft.
Title: Re: Micro$oft getting sleazier yet!
Post by: Waccoon on May 22, 2006, 02:57:19 AM
Quote
InTheSand:   Product activation is a pain! But to be fair, when XP or MS Office has whinged to me about hardware changes, it has only ever taken a quick phone call to a 24-hour freephone number to get a new code.

Excuse me, but isn't hardware the OS's business?  What the hell is MS Office complaining about?  MS Office needs to die.  Horribly.

The main reason I use Win2K is because I change my hardware often and don't want to deal with product re-activation.  Of course, people don't write drivers for Win2K anymore.

Quote
trekiej:  ...but why blame Bush for everything.

I'll skip the Bush bashing...

It would've been nice if the government had attacked Microsoft for contracts with major computer manufacturers to distribute Windows exclusively, rather than waste time on bashing a feature of the OS (the web browser).  After all the fireworks, it appears that every OS has a built-in browser these days.  Oh, a lot of good that ruckus did.

Quote
ricco32097:  Agnostic -> Agnosticism is distinct from, but compatible with, atheism. It is also compatible with theism. This is because agnosticism is a view about knowledge concerning God, whereas theism and atheism are beliefs (or lack thereof) concerning God. For example, it is possible to believe in God but to believe that knowledge about God is not obtainable.

Off topic:  I sure hope this isn't leading to some point that belief or disbelief in God somehow reflects a person's morality.  Morality is a social contruct (as is religion).

Bad business tactics exist because people tolerate them, not because the businesses are evil.  People may want to reflect on said failure of the government to attack Microsoft for the correct reasons.

Quote
Lando:  Meanwhile OS X Tiger retails at $129. If those prices are even close, and if Apple release a standalone version for non-Apple branded hardware, Windows could be in big trouble! Vista could be the beginning of the end for Microsoft.

Last I heard, Apple's Macintosh market share is declining.  My web server stats reflect this (and I get a lot of Mac people on my website).  Apple doesn't need the desktop now that they are making billions on iPod and service-based markets.

Also note that Microsoft supports their products for 6 years, and they offer new software all the time.  Apple re-releases OSX on an annual basis, and doesn't support each release anywhere near as long.  Apple touted this as a virtue at the last Macworld Expo.  Yeah, right.

I remember buying MacOS 8 for all the Macs in our newspaper office.  We had chronic problems with CD-ROMs not working afterwords.  After about 6 months of waiting, Apple finally released the 8.1 "superpatch" that corrected the CD-ROM issues, among other things.  They never released another patch for 8, though, because OS 8.5 had been released, and the only way to get any more bug fixes was to buy all-new copies of the OS.  Trust me, Apple is no shining light in the PC industry.