Microsoft, Microsoft
...when will they learn? It sure looks like they can't do much right in the last few weeks. First, a Google engineer finds a 17-year-old bug in the kernel that can be exploited. Then on this past Patch Tuesday, they screw up the patch and cause lots of XP users to end up at the Blue Screen of Death. The only fix requires an install CD -- which few home users will have and netbook users can't use. Now they're rolling out Windows Genuine Advantage, Part II.
For those who haven't seen this come over the wire yet, Windows Activation Technologies (WAT) are an optional update which causes Windows 7 installations to phone home every 90 days and nag you if your installation suddenly is discovered as a pirate copy. If you buy a legitimate copy of Windows, how in the world is that going to magically become a pirated copy?
I still wonder how this will do anything but cause more problems -- software pirates are a tricky lot to deal with. They are very smart and band together to rebel against "the man," meaning Microsoft, among others. Every antipiracy technique has been broken or worked around. Every one. Even that hardware-based TPM module from years ago. Making it an optional update renders the whole thing less-than-useless.
The problem with copy protection and other antipiracy tools is that it rakes proper customers over the coals and does nothing to stop pirates. Apparently M$ hasn't learned this one yet. One thing I've learned, though: with each successive version of Windows, you pay more to get less out of a product which is slowly taking away your freedom to use your computer as you wish.
For those who haven't seen this come over the wire yet, Windows Activation Technologies (WAT) are an optional update which causes Windows 7 installations to phone home every 90 days and nag you if your installation suddenly is discovered as a pirate copy. If you buy a legitimate copy of Windows, how in the world is that going to magically become a pirated copy?
I still wonder how this will do anything but cause more problems -- software pirates are a tricky lot to deal with. They are very smart and band together to rebel against "the man," meaning Microsoft, among others. Every antipiracy technique has been broken or worked around. Every one. Even that hardware-based TPM module from years ago. Making it an optional update renders the whole thing less-than-useless.
The problem with copy protection and other antipiracy tools is that it rakes proper customers over the coals and does nothing to stop pirates. Apparently M$ hasn't learned this one yet. One thing I've learned, though: with each successive version of Windows, you pay more to get less out of a product which is slowly taking away your freedom to use your computer as you wish.
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