Hey,

I had to reformat my computer today and I went to micro$oft to download all the updates and it said that my machine isn't "genuine" because it was not activated. In order to activate I had to input the proper sticker which was stuck to the back of my computer box which is under my desk, imobile because of all the wires stuck to it.

Whose idea was it to put these darned stickers on the back of the machine and than make us "activate" the product by disconnecting all the wires and pulling out the machine.

I hate Microsoft and I hate Emachines.

They treat me like criminals until I literally bend over backwards to meet their biddings!

GAH!

David

YOu have a hell of a point, but bitching about it here does no good. I hate all of microsofts new ways of preventing pirating, it pisses me off, it even becomes an annoyance to those who do not pirate their sofware.

Obviously yours when you bought an EMachines box.LOL!! Copy the number and keep accessible.

http://computervitals.com/

Its a shame to know that when windows vista (longhorn) comes out, it will be just like this if not worse, but what can you do, im sure billions have emailed bill gates about this and im sure he doesnt care all he cares about is his money. But he kinda needs to get a life, what is the point if you are the richest man in the world, im sure he can afford to let people get away with their pirated software, he doesnt need to make a hassle about it.

Gort-You are forgetting about the taxes the government loses on pirated software. They will support Gates to the bitter end.

http://computervitals.com/

bill gates is the biggest hypocrit ever, he started microsoft after he was fired from ibm for stealing computer parts, that is what started microsoft, those stolen computer parts, he found out how to make them, how to make them better, and microsoft grew, bottom line, bill gates stole to start a business, he is just as much a theif as anyone who pirates software.

I am not one to go around bad mouthing microsoft because they make a much better product than Linux hands down. I just can't wait till Linux Desktop is as powerful as Microsoft. Than I won't need to worry about stupid keys and the like.

My current complaints about linux include:
Software installation
Video Support
DVD Video Support
Resolutions that are never as good as those in Windows.
Speed.
Memory Use.

Oh well, I just hope the government makes a law saying that Microsoft is required to pay technicians to come out to your house, move the appropriate hardware and furniture to access the CD key on the back of the computer, enter it themselves, (it's hard to tell the difference between an 8 and a B when there is little light under the desk) activate etc...

MS really bugs me.

David

Remember the good ol days of windows 3.1? No licenses, no activations, no spyware, no viruses, no firewall, no automatic updates, no popups, no security centres, Audio CDs only had music on.

The good ol days....

Yeah!! Lets go back to the '57 chevy! I loved my '57!

http://computervitals.com/

>> he started microsoft after he was fired from ibm for stealing computer parts, <<

I don't know where you got the story from but Bill Gates started Microsoft before he had even graduated from high school. I don't believe BG ever worked for IBM other than as a contractor supplying MS-DOS and BASIC long after Microsoft came into existence.

If he was fired from IBM why would IBM set him in to the road by buying MS-DOS and BASIC from him?

Stuart

Speaking of Good Ol Days.

I never had Windows 3.1 bluescreen when freshly installed PowerDVD 6.0 is told to eject a non-playing DVD Drive.....

GAHHH!

Somebody needs to do a little reading about Bill Gates and Microsoft history before they go around calling a person a thief.
Maybe a liar, with questionable business practices, but not a thief. lol

To the original poster,
They probably put the stickers on the back so no one walking by in an office or at home could just write down and steal your number.

,,,but Bill Gates started Microsoft before he had even graduated from high school....

Just to set the record straight (quoted from this biography on Uncle Billy)...

In 1973, Gates entered Harvard University as a freshman, where he lived down the hall from Steve Ballmer, now Microsoft's chief executive officer. While at Harvard, Gates developed a version of the programming language BASIC for the first microcomputer - the MITS Altair.

In his junior year, Gates left Harvard to devote his energies to Microsoft, a company he had begun in 1975 with his childhood friend Paul Allen. Guided by a belief that the computer would be a valuable tool on every office desktop and in every home, they began developing software for personal computers. Gates' foresight and his vision for personal computing have been central to the success of Microsoft and the software industry.

i_XpUser

HEY I'VE GOT A GREAT IDEA----

Let's get all the manufacturers to put the CD key and other serial numbers RIGHT ON THE FRONT of the machine, that way, when I walk past some machine---possibly belonging to dlublink I can just JOT DOWN the product key and be on my way

my sticker fell off and was picked up by the cleaning ladies vacuum cleaner. now her machine constantly restarts and doesn't get anything done.

www.... I wish I'd said that!

Once I thought I was wrong, now I'm not so sure!

It is my understanding that BG stole an os and made it into windows.

Apparently M$ have stole lots of thing.

I can't believe how easy it is to bypass the 'genuine advantage' tool.

Tt Lanfire
MSI K8N Diamond
AMD64 3000+'Venice'
1gb pc4400
OCZ Powerstream 520w
6600GT
WDCaviar 160gb sata x2

;~}

>> In his junior year, Gates left Harvard to devote his energies to Microsoft <<

I knew he dropped out of something. Not high school but university.

But as the article says, BG had the foresight to see what was coming in 1975 with the Altair. IBM dragged their feet for another six years and even then they only used off the shelf parts to make the first PC.

IBM used the 8088 which only required 8 bit motherboard components instead of the 8086 which required 16 bit components which were more expensive and harder to get hold of in 1981. IBM didn't have much faith that desktop computers were ever going to amount to much.

As for sharp practise, all he did was take advantage of the way US Commercial Law is framed. Other companies did it, its just that he was better at it than anyone else.

Stuart

As for sharp practise, all he did was take advantage of the way US Commercial Law is framed...

He is still doing it. He just asked the U.S. government and the Department of Justice to intervene on its behalf in the software company's ongoing European Union antitrust case.

i_XpUser

>> It is my understanding that BG stole an os and made it into windows <<

You understand wrong. He bought out a company called Seattle Computer Company which had an OS called QDOS which then became MS-DOS.

Windows started out as a co-operative affair with IBM who where developing OS/2. MS didn't like the way things where going so dissolved the partnership and went it alone with Windows.

IBM where better positioned to develop OS/2 as the premier desktop graphic operating system but didn't. Why?

If you are going to accuse people of theft, at least get some facts right instead of believing all the crap you read in the Internet.

Stuart

A Short History of IBM, Digital Research, & Microsoft

I never knew that Microsoft was a language vendor. Bill Gates and Paul Allen had written Microsoft BASIC and were selling it on punched tape or disk to early PC hobbyists, which was probably a step up from the company's original name and goal - they were Traf-O-Data before, making car counters for highway departments.

i_XpUser

"To the original poster,
They probably put the stickers on the back so no one walking by in an office or at home could just write down and steal your number."

That's a good point.

"It is my understanding that BG stole an os and made it into windows."

People say that he stole the idea of a graphical user interface from Apple. I think this is downright retarted to say so because a graphical user interface was merely the next logical step. It just so happens that Macintosh had it first.

Although Macintosh had the start menu a good ten years before microsoft.

David

Although Macintosh had the start menu a good ten years before microsoft.

Not so. Check this out...

Timeline of Computer & GUI History

I vividly remember being in favor with GEOS/Geoworks Ensemble because of its simplicity and less resource-hog than the relatively sluggish M$ Windows 3.0 on 386 and 486 PCs. GeoWorks was used by AOL for their DOS-based AOL connection and browsing software from the time of introduction on IBM compatible PCs until the late 1990s when AOL dropped development for graphical DOS in favor of M$ Windows. By then almost everybody had gone to Windows.

i_XpUser

My kids friends all think it is funny and stupid because I purchase my programs.

They all have some kind of a number generator for different programs.

Broke but happy, Bob

If you wake up to see the day - it can't be that bad.

Quote www

"my sticker fell off and was picked up by the cleaning ladies vacuum cleaner. now her machine constantly restarts and doesn't get anything done."

Surely at least it sucks...............lol

My kids friends all think it is funny and stupid because I purchase my programs.

They all have some kind of a number generator for different programs.

Broke but happy, Bob

I know, why would anyone actually *pay* for software when they could just steal it?

The number generators they speak of are the reason Microsoft has "Validation Check Tool" on their website. It makes sure that you are not using a generated key.

I remember reading an article about the potential problems from key generators and product activation back a few years ago. Funny because at the same time one of my MSN buddies was trying to send me xpkey.exe which would generate a key...

I actually have a lot of licenses to Windows, I just find it a pain in the behind using them when I reinstall.

For anyone who is annoyed by this, a workaround is to setup the autoinstall feature of Windows XP. Burn your own copy of Windows XP with your CD Key and slipstream Service Pack 2 into it.

Trouble with this is you need a CD for each computer....

David