Posted on 03/02/2007 7:31:22 AM PST by sionnsar
Bengt writes "The Inquirer has a story about a brute force Vista key activation crack. It's nothing fancy; it's described as a 'glorified guesser'. The danger of this approach is that sooner or later the key cracker will begin activating legitimate keys purchased by other consumers. From the article: 'The code is floating, the method is known, and there is nothing MS can do at this point other than suck it down and prepare for the problems this causes. To make matters worse, Microsoft will have to decide if it is worth it to allow people to take back legit keys that have been hijacked, or tell customers to go away, we have your money already, read your license agreement and get bent, we owe you nothing.'"
haha, security, windows, business
They are not limitations of Vista. They are limitations of DRM. I now believe with the vast majority of uninformed people blaming Microsoft for the restrictions of DRM that Microsoft simply should've never supported playback of such content. Complying with AACS standards might turn out to be a nightmare.
ping
I didn't celebrate anything. I'm simply pointing out that putting your faith in anything as being 'uncrackable' makes some people eager to prove you wrong (especially Microsoft with it's long list of detractors), and sets you up for disappointment when they do.
The DRM isn't as restrictive nor as hard to break as everyone says that it is, it has already been broken. do some research.
That depends on the circumstances of the reinstall.
I've found many Dell computers that used a CD key for the installation that is different from the key on the sticky label. That causes problems on reinstalls, but it is a Dell problem, not a Microsoft problem.
So why doesn't Microsoft make their case to the general public? They do a really poor job of that. It should not be Microsoft's problem to enforce DRM, but they should at least explain their position to their customers.
BTW, Xandros is very good if you haven't tried it. I'm a windoze guy trying to ween off the tit. Linux is still Greek to me. Xandros has a feature to make it look and feel like Windows to lessen the learning curve.
you mean like loading keyloggers into Mac video card frame buffers? LOL
Because fighting against a barrage of FUD - largely uninformed FUD - is difficult. I don't know that it's a big enough issue yet for them to address it because as far as I know Vista is the only operating system capable of even supporting Blu-Ray or HD-DVD playback. There are likely very few people who are attempting to use their PCs as such players.
ping
Fixed it for you.
in order to view HD Content you must have HD compliant hardware, "HDCP" High Definition Copy Protection, this is the same no matter if you want to view it on a stand alone TV or if want to view it on a Computer. Regular DVD's DO NOT have this.
You would think this would be easy to stop or slow down from the server side. If repeated activation attempts are made in a short time from the same remote address, just block the remote address for a duration.
No doubt! this is insane! people complaining! VISTA Allows you watch Blu-ray and HD-DVD it sucks! LOL
Actually, I was thinking of the recent reports that someone had captured the decryption codes for HD-DVD and Blu-Ray disks by intercepting the memory dump information and then aborting it once the decryption codes were passed (aborting so it couldn't be purged).
http://www.boingboing.net/2007/02/13/bluray_and_hddvd_bro.html
Indeed. The RIAA cartel threatened to make their next generations of offerings incompatible with computer playback if Microsoft didn't comply. Given how much that would have affected the RIAA and how little that would have affected Microsoft, this was equivalent to caving in to the self-hostage-taking ploy from Blazing Saddles.
I've done that - upgraded my hardware significantly on multiple machines - and never had to reactivate. Would it irritate me? Probably. Do I care much about spending time on the phone to get my OS re-activated? Probably for a few minutes.
Having never been inconvenienced, I don't care about it, but I do understand why they take the measures they take.
Until you replace your motherboard or get a new BIOS.
Which is why I'm boycotting Vista.
It's my understanding that activation is tied to a BIOS checksum and your MAC address. If both of them are different your license has to be transferred.
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