Windows XP's Activation

[JimboC]

For the first time since 1989 I am not considering upgrading to Microsoft's latest OS. I get a lot of promotional hardware through my job (usually I get to 'evaluate' new parts for a week or so while my distributors try to get me to implement the products). I change parts in my home PC almost daily. Two things remain fairly constant, my hard drive and my OS. From Microsoft's statement today, I'd be calling them once a week to keep my legally purchased OS running, and even then I'm probably going to get shut off after x-number of calls. That's a bunch of bull.

As I see it, for me to run WinXP at home I'd have to download the inevitable crack that will probably be available before the OS hits the shelves or I'd have to 'borrow' the Open Lincense key from my employer. So Microsoft's attempt to make the software less pirateable would turn me into a pirate. Good move Microsoft.

Another result of Microsoft denying me from running their latest OS is that I would now have enough incentive to learn Linux. I wonder how Microsoft'll feel when I convince my CIO that we should replace our 32 WindowsNT/2000 servers (used by our 4,000 users each with a legal CAL and Office 2000 Professional) with Linux and WordPerfect Office (which costs substantially less than Microsoft's Office). Hmmm, a stable, secure, free server OS with no client licenses necessary and cheaper Office bundle. Even support for e-mail and databases - yeah that'd be a tough sell for a money conscious CIO given that 90% of what our servers do is file sharing or e-mail related.

I've always been against software piracy but I don't believe in companies punishing their honest customers because people steal their software. Microsoft seems to have outgrown its useful ness in my eyes if they insiston pushing things like this into their products.

Jim Canuel
St. Luke's Hospital Network Administrator


I know there's a topic already covering this on the main page, but it keeps telling me that I have an incorrect username/password. When I tried to sign up a new user, the page I just got an error message

[T_Bird]

amen

[LordVampyre]

sounds most logical to me

[ScubaRescuePD]

i'll never go to win xp as long as they have this invade my computer crap going... xp sucks don't even do it.. my friend has beta version.. it pretty, with just colorful updates for video player and a bunch of Instant messenging crap... it's more of Bill Gates wanting to get into your system..

[Budster64]

Originally posted by ScubaRescuePD:
i'll never go to win xp as long as they have this invade my computer crap going... xp sucks don't even do it.. my friend has beta version.. it pretty, with just colorful updates for video player and a bunch of Instant messenging crap... it's more of Bill Gates wanting to get into your system..

So you're friend has the Beta and you saw a few things on his comp which of course qualifies you to make value judgements on this OS??
I think not.

JimboC you have an excellent point, I am a beta tester and have been using XP since the first. Notwithstanding our friends most colorful opinions about XP it is a good OS, but the product activation BS is just way out of line. I'm the IT Systems Manager for an Aerospace company and first off I didn't like their " Upgrade by Oct or the price will go up" marketing ploy. I finally got the staff to agree to upgrade to Win2K and that's where it ends unless MS changes their tune. But for that matter XP in the workplace is really not monumentally better than W2K is and even MS will tell you so.
BUT it is way better than 98/ME at home and I was glad to see that they were doing away with the 9X Kernel and basing it on the NT 5 Kernel ( See Scuba this is the REAL difference )
But this product activation thing is going to do precisely what you said ...make users who would never have thought of pirating software actively become pirates.