Posted on 04/05/2006 2:04:05 PM PDT by steve-b
Naked PCs: Free software supporters are angry that Microsoft is putting pressure on PC vendors not to sell machines without an operating system installed
Microsoft has urged UK PC vendors not to give customers the opportunity to buy a PC without a pre-installed operating system....
The FSF Europe is alarmed by the prospect that customers who request a base systems would risk a visit from Microsoft's investigators.
"It looks like a private sniffing service which is supposed to spy on these who do not want to pay the Microsoft tax anymore. It is an incredible piece of impudence which any politician, customer and journalist should recognise carefully," said Jakobs....
(Excerpt) Read more at news.zdnet.co.uk ...
herewegoagain
just make your own system. all part can be bought on line
If this doesn't define a monopoly, I don't know what does.
Are monopolistic practices legal in UK? They're not here but when has anyone seen a PC for sale with anything but either
Microsoft operating system or Apple's? Don't know how they get away with it.
In a worst case scenario, I'm not sure I could install MS Windows so it works right or not and don't want to find out with everything else that is on my system.
Maybe they think we are too dumb to install it, but it's mostly to ensure they get their money.
We have Office It is licensed for up to three computers.
What is this crap that Microsoft is foisting on the public? are they trying to force us to by PC's loaded with buggy,memory hogging software or what.
If people wish to buy a Microsoft operating system that should be up to them. They should not be coerced into buying it.
Maybe if Microsoft would make more memory efficient software that was also dependable they would have a ready market that people would not mind purchasing their products.
In order to properly appreciate Microsoft's admonition, you have to read it with a heavy 'New York Mafioso' accent. Then it becomes much more compelling...
Back to their old habits, I see.
Next subject.
I agree about buying parts. A little research and you can build yourself a much better PC then Dell ships for less. They use cheap components. Even if you buy Dell get your RAM elsewhere. They mark that up about 300%.
If you need a MS license there are plenty for sale on E-bay.
I don't know the answer to that and recently installed Adobe CS2. You have to deactivate it before you can install it on a new computer, but they say you can install it like on a laptop you own and make backup copies. But you can't be using it on both computers at the same time. How would they know unless both are connected to the internet?
I'm not sure how they know unless it can write something onto the CD. The minute I boot up, I'm online, but I could disconnect from the internet to install. I wish I understood better how and why these things work.
It's got me worried because I don't know how to back it up, don't want to purchase Norton Ghost yet, and if my hd crashes without deactivating it, I could be in trouble convincing Adobe to let me install it on a new computer. Maybe it works the same with Windows now. They probably built in safeguards in some products because so many people were/are sharing software.
The MicroSnott-ies must be liberals. They confuse opportunity with the desired outcome . Couldn't possibly be that someone dared make the choice they don't approve of. Affirmative action for Operating Systems!
What bullcrap. Tigerdirect sells computers with no-OS. Ebay has tons of them. Even WalMart sells one. They used to sell a few. But you can buy one with Linux on it and do what you want with it. http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product_listing.gsp?cat=231791
You can buy nice bare bones systems on Ebay and Tiger Direct. Last time I bought a computer with an OS was quite a while ago
We bought two Dells. They have some "Support" programs that are forever calling hone for who-knows-what reason. Support.exe is one, and on the support forums Dell refused to explain it. All computers since have been built here with a fresh OS.
Some are Red Hat, some are WinXP. Call me "Bi", I guess..haha.
No BSD? You're missing out.
Ya know you could just treat this like those pesky gun locks that firearms manufacturers are required to include...
Just toss Windows into the dumpster next to the trigger locks after you get your computer home and install what you like on them.
With no way to force people to actually bundle the OS, there is no working monopoly. And I don't think Microsoft is capable of that.
You routinely throw away something you just paid for? That you already own an unused copy of?
MS does not have the legal right to tax all new PCs. At least ebay the license.
Microsoft cant force companies to install an OS beforehand.
Anyone with the technical savy to deal with a non Apple/Microsoft OS will know how to buy a PC with an OS other than Apple/Microsoft or with no operating system.
If you are really interested in a PC running something other than Appple/Microsoft, try Walmart.
monopolies are legal in the US.
Microsoft's trial was a 2 parter.
1st the judge had to detrmine if MS was a monopoly ( He did )
He then had to determine the anti-trust part - if MS used the monopoly to bully it's market ( he did...then the deals for settlement began)
If major PC vendors don't sell their desktops and laptops with Microsoft Windows OS, most likely it will end up to be installed with bootleg Microsoft Windows XP anyway. Not a lot of people know Linux and even Linux users still boot to Microsoft Windows XP as needed. Dell can sell you servers with OS. :-)
http://www.ihatedell.net
As a former Dell owner that literally put the remains of an XPS700T Dimension into an industrial shredder (and it felt SO good!), I can tell you that we can do MUCH better than Dell.
Never again, hear me Michael Dell? *NEVER AGAIN*
Opppps, I should say: Dell can sell you servers without OS.
I run my computers with the OS. Who needs the headeaches!
This why Microsoft has never attempted a take over of Apple, as long as they exist, Micro$oft is not a monopoly. ô¿ô¬
Cracking down on counterfeiters is "impudence"?
If your company can't get around this problem, you need some new management.
bump for later .... should see some interesting holy war splatters by then.
Why load an OS at all? Try ELive OS - run from CD.
Pretty nice Free Operating System and Utilities,
http://public.www.planetmirror.com/pub/elivelinux
No, assuming that every PC runs Windows is impudence. RTFA.
Read the article?
Where do you think I got the quote?
I meant for ME.
According to this, I can't buy a Dell without an OS for example.
Greed is the word.
Now, we await your explanation of how installing a non-MS OS on a computer sold with no OS at all constitutes "piracy"....
Referee services available free of charge...
Pretend that people don't install bootleg (stolen) software on their new computers.
That's a bit like not allowing people to sell Sudafed because a few bad apples... oh wait... my commie state is actually stupid enough to think that way... bad analogy.
S/W pirates build their own PCs, steal their own PCs, or pull them out of dumpsters. Someone who pays for a brand new, brand name vendor is not going to quibble over $70. The only people who will buy OSless PCs are corporations and people doing so on principle. The former doesn't tend to intentionally pirate and the latter wouldn't be caught dead with Windows.
http://search.yahoo.com/search?p=fsf+%22software+tax%22&ei=UTF-8&fr=FP-tab-web-t-332&x=wrt
Oh, I don't know. Maybe because it's happened before?
For the record, The Business Software Alliance was created by Microsoft.
They are the enforcment arm of Microsoft's thuggish behavior.
Microsoft sales drones routinely threaten BSA audits.
The EU is pretty harsh about it. Microsoft is currently going through something with their antitrust department, but I don't believe the complaint involves behavior like this.
EULAs are the problem. They require you to submit to an inspection of ALL of your machines.
The reason that Ball and Virgina Beach were fined is that they couldn't come up with licenses for all of the software that they had installed.
Actually, they weren't fined. They settled rather than have their doors continue to be locked while the BSA performed months of audits.
As for naked PCs, the BSA has no authority to conduct license compliance on machines that aren't shipped with licensed products. Period. End of story.
Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Read your EULA. If you have a copy of Office, and Microsoft thinks you may have it installed on another machine, they have the right to inspect that machine no matter what OS shipped on it. You agree to this when you click your EULA.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.