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And they announced that in two years, when Gates retires, the new CEO will be Hippie Girl! And the Zune will download all Grateful Dead songs free! |
Posted on 11/02/2006 11:24:57 AM PST by HAL9000
Excerpt -
REDMOND, Wash.--Reversing a licensing change announced two weeks ago, Microsoft said on Thursday that it will not limit the number of times that retail customers can transfer their Windows Vista license to a different computer.On Oct. 16, Microsoft issued the new user license for Vista, including terms that would have limited the ability of those who buy a boxed copy of the operating system to transfer that license. Under the proposed terms, users could have made such a switch only one time.
However, the new restriction prompted an outcry among hardware enthusiasts and others. Microsoft is returning the licensing terms to basically what they were in Windows XP--users can transfer their license to a new PC an unlimited number of times, provided they uninstall and stop using it on the prior machine.
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(Excerpt) Read more at news.com.com ...
"And Ballmer's heart grew three sizes larger that day."
Perhaps customers made their displeasure known in sufficient numbers to make a difference.
It's called business. You tick off your customers too often and they quit spending their money with you.
Well, Vista's license limit will remain "for idiots only"... hehe
Glad to hear this.
I can understand why they would want to do it. I just find it unacceptable to have to repurchase Windows if I change too many parts in my computer and Windows recognizes it as a different computer, or if I decide to upgrade to a new computer and decide that I don't need Windows on the old one anymore.
Fortunately there are enough consumers that also feel that locking Windows to the hardware is unacceptable that it would be a bad business decision for Microsoft to do so.
However, I hardly consider a company making efforts to limit the ability of people to pirate their products draconian.
Windows has it's merits and it's flaws, but considering all that it does, as well as the continuous effort to supply security fixes, driver updates, and even some feature updates, I can't really complain about the nominal price of the OS.
If you think that nominal price is too high you can try Linux or one of the other free alternatives. However, they also have their good points and their limitations.
Currently there is no viable option for the typical PC user besides Windows. Linux is still not ready for prime time. It is great for people who know excatly what they are doing but the average user would find the learning curve daunting. Windows is as aeasy as turn on the computer and use it. Linux requires more end user input to use simple things like a CDROM. Of course OS X is only available on a Mac (who can use Windows also btw) so PC users are stucks until someone develops a more user friendly Linux.
You are right on point.
I wouldn't be surprised if they were going to soak up all the money from the impending Vista release, then announce that they are cutting Windows loose.
"We are spinning off our Windows subsidiary."
It is quite possible Windows will someday be available for free download from Microsoft servers, just as they have done with their Express versions of Visual C#, C++, Basic, Web, etc.. They would continue to charge for support, advanced versions of programming languages, SQL servers, and web servers and services. The Windows OS could be the free hook to draw you into the MS world.
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And they announced that in two years, when Gates retires, the new CEO will be Hippie Girl! And the Zune will download all Grateful Dead songs free! |
I was on MS's list for beta testing and then RC1 of Vista. Ran it in a Vmware machine. Don't like the strong WGA type checking. Probably will stick with XP until Ubuntu improves a little more ( and it's pretty good now).
Then of course there's the known fact that users of either Home version can't run it in a VM. There's nothing technical preventing it, Microsoft just doesn't want you to. You also can't use BitLocker or any MS DRM-based application (like media player) from within a VM.
It also denies the doctrine of First Sale, in that you can sell your license to one other person, but that person isn't allowed to further sell it.
At least it does admit that consumer protection and other laws may trump these draconian terms. But you test that at your own risk, just little ol' you vs. big multibillion dollar corporation with an army of lawyers.
At this moment, maybe. Windows is still a HUGE piece of their revenue pie. But going forward Office and SQL Server have some serious headwinds from online alternatives. Google has already released online word processor and spreadsheet apps and open source SQL engines are gaining ground also.
The OS gets sold with almost every PC today and at the prices they are getting for Vista, it remains vitally important. As the online apps gain more share, the days of office suites and such are drawing to a close.
Well played.
I think somebody pointed out that their "adhesion clauses" would be challenged and may not have stood up in court.
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