I want your opinion how Microsoft could destroy the Internet

I beleive M$ is damaging the internet because of it's current policy regarding service packs and the like.

Whilst I am against pirate software, it is a fact of life that many users of M$ products have not paid for them.

It is getting harder and harder for the users of the pirated software to get security updates and the like wihout paying for legit versions. While I understand that M$ is simply trying to ensure it isn't ripped off the large pool of unpatched M$ products if a large source of internet problems from infected/owned/zombied machines.

What's the answer to this, dunno?

Any thoughts?

Steve

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It is getting harder and harder for the users of the pirated software to get security updates and the like wihout paying for legit versions. While I understand that M$ is simply trying to ensure it isn't ripped off the large pool of unpatched M$ products if a large source of internet problems from infected/owned/zombied machines.

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I'm not sure I agree with you there Steve. It's a trivial matter to by pass microsoft genuine advantage, at the moment. That may well change in the future. I would hazard a guess that it is not worth microsofts effort to fix the problems with genuine at the moment, for xp atleast. In anycase it is not anti piracy technologies that are creating the problem. It is still the uneducated end users.

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It is still the uneducated end users.

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"Microsoft's biggest and most dangerous contribution to the software industry may be the degree to which it has lowered user expectations."
-- Esther Schindler, OS/2 Magazine

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And not just that..
Also the point at which one feels he/she is computer literate..

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Originally posted here by jinxy
I'm not sure I agree with you there Steve. It's a trivial matter to by pass microsoft genuine advantage, at the moment. That may well change in the future. I would hazard a guess that it is not worth microsofts effort to fix the problems with genuine at the moment, for xp atleast. In anycase it is not anti piracy technologies that are creating the problem. It is still the uneducated end users.

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It may be a trivial matter for you or I, but you got to remember that most PC users have little technical know how.

Steve

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Originally posted here by R0n1n
And wtf is a "yuppie gay Mac user"??

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http://images.apple.com/switch/image...op20050726.jpg

http://images.apple.com/switch/image...op20050726.jpg

Refer to their marketing -- I never said the products are bad -- but boy do they put "hip" and "hot" as top priority agendas. I guess thats why so many yuppies want to marry their Mac's.

Microsoft does a reasonable job of patching and keeping their OS secure. The only way the 'hackers destroy the internet' scenario would work is if all hackers united or something. but that wont happen. and if IE gets ruined beyond repair by some worm, use firefox. ;)
i already do

I really have to disagree with some of the anti-microsoft views. Yes, they are trying to make it so only legit copies can get updates, but how is this really bad? Can you really blame them for protecting their intellectual property? How much does this really affect users?

The main arguement I've seen is that this creates a large number of unpatched systems out there spreading more worms. What are these unpatched systems really spreading to? Other unpatched systems. If you system is up to date and patched, these unpatched systems won't effect you (other than a little bandwith usage maybe). This arguement seems to say that people who use pirated software deserve the same things as those that paid for it. Thats like saying that "Trojan" (the condom manufacturer) should give free condoms out to people who don't want to pay to stop the spread of aids. Clinics do, but the manufacturer still gets paid.

I don't believe Microsoft will destroy the internet. I'm more in line to believe the Cisco will.

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Originally posted here by zENGER
I really have to disagree with some of the anti-microsoft views. Yes, they are trying to make it so only legit copies can get updates, but how is this really bad?

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#1 - illegal/illegit guy gets no security patch = unpatched system
#2 - zombie infection on unpatched system
#3 - infections spreads to other systems = networks start to go down
#4 - everybody starts complaining and Microsoft bashing
#5 - Microsoft goes, "you suckers! go buy Vista!"

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#1 - illegal/illegit guy gets no security patch = unpatched system
#2 - zombie infection on unpatched system
#3 - infections spreads to other systems = networks start to go down
#4 - everybody starts complaining and Microsoft bashing
#5 - Microsoft goes, "you suckers! go buy Vista!"

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I haven't patched my pirated Windows systems in literally years. I suspect that most people who pirate software are more knowledgeable than people who actually buy the OS for home use. If for no other reason than most legit copies were included with pre-built systems. Which means that people who pirate not only needed to have pirated the software (which I assure you is way out of the technical capabilities of computer users like my grandmother), but that they also most likely built their own system.

cheers,

catch

hey rowdy_yates, if your going to start picking on Apple about their marketing, why don't you actually look at Microsoft's marketing. http://www.microsoft.com for starters.

*browser loads page*....BAM!.... big ugly picture of that yuppie middle aged guy named Bill Gates. he may not be "hip" but that certainly looks like alot of the yuppies i've seen. Let's go ahead and click on the windows link on the left side.

what's that picture? oh, its a crappy artsy photo of the jaded poet. dressed all in black, staring almost despairingly over the city scape....i'd call that "hip" or "hot". it reminds of some crappy picture a high school photographer took and showed everyone because they think it's soooo cool and emo. I bet that guy in the photo is wearing women's jeans, just like most of the subculture kids in highschool nowadays. Now let's go check out Windows XP Home, the links on the right side.

WHOA! it's a hip and hot girl in her 20's, who looks higher than the flood waters in New Orleans (sorry couldn't resist). That shirt has more colors than any iMac product line that i've ever seen. I'm starting to think that Microsoft has a much gayer marketing staff than Apple does. At least apple doesn't try as hard to look like they've got 3 dead gerbils up each staff members ass. Now on to XP professional. Link's on the left.

There we go...We have mixed race guy. What country did he come from? It's harder than finding Waldo in any of his books. Is he Indian? Is he just a really tan white guy? well anyhoo, he looks like that nice 30-40 year old entrepaneur (i know i can't spell). That guy who's business savvy but still knows how to party. We all know that guy. Sells sells sells, and goes to the bar and drinks drinks drinks. Definition of a yuppy if i ever saw one.

I didn't mean to rip on you dude, but seriously, before you start picking apart marketing images, look at the nearest competitor. They're all the same. Except for linux, all i see for linux marketing is bearded balding older men, penguins, and random distro logos that don't make any ****ing sense, like lizards and hats. Although i do really like Suse's main page for linux, they're banner looks like a techie going "Suck my balls". At least, thats when i think when i see a photo with a man's genitals nice and centered.

So yea. All computer marketing shows everyone as a yuppie faggot. I'm waiting to see an ad that has the overweight slob who's sweaty staring at internet porn, or the high school kid surrounded by trash, wearing a D&D shirt, or a Magic the Gathering shirt who hasn't showered in weeks ( i was that kid once, except i had punk rock stuff surrounding me, which didn't make me much better off), or the girl in her 20's getting naked for some guy she doesn't know, who finds out 2 weeks later her webcam session is all over shooshtime or some sexblog. That would be honesty, and as we all know, marketing has nothing to do with honesty.