Nothing is as handsome as a secret - French proverb
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Sony gets sued for banning Linux
JAPANESE GAME CONSOLE MAKER Sony is being sued for banning Linux on the Playstation 3.
Kotaku reported that a fan of the free software Linux operating system has filed a lawsuit against Sony for dropping dual-boot support on its PS3.
Sony removed support for booting Linux in a recent firmware upgrade. The 3.21 upgrade was not optional and removed the "Install other OS" feature that had been present since the first PS3 model initially went on sale.
Sony's excuse for binning the feature was that it was a security issue. Patrick Seybold, Sony's senior director of corporate communications and social media blogged that the "feature enabled users to install an operating system, but due to security concerns, Sony Computer Entertainment will remove the functionality through the 3.21 system software update."
Users who chose not to install the 3.21 upgrade have been denied access to online gaming on Sony's Playstation Network. That also stopped Blu-ray playback of movies that require the 3.21 feature, so no Avatar. A sin in anyone's book.
US resident Anthony Ventura filed the lawsuit "on behalf of "a nationwide class of all persons who purchased a PS3 during the period November 17, 2006 and March 27, 2010 and who did not resell their PS3," according to Kotaku. µ
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OK 1 yes you did have to instal said patch, or you lose out on the features that was the highlight and there selling point.
2 the reason sony used to set the msrp as high as it was, was in fact that you could install another operating system as said by sony when it came out.
in other words sony said "bye this, you can watch blurays, play our games online, install another os, etc,etc"
then comes the patch, install this we only take ONE feature away, dont and we take two features away, all three features that were already bought and paid for in the original package.
yes they are allowed to change the EULA, not disable all the features after you pay for it.
like a TV company coming to your house, and patching the tv, stopping you from getting a chunk of channels, but if you dont patch it, you get no channels
I've warned so many folks against Sony products over the past 5 years, that I've lost count. NOW will you folks listen to me? Blu-Ray was just the start, force feeding us this ill-conceived format. They will also start charging for the PSN soon too. Sony doesn't give a rat about consumers.
Lets try to explain this in terms even you can understand.
Scenario 1:
I buy a widget for mending socks and feeding the cat. After I get it home, the cat-feeding function breaks. What should I do?
Scenario 2:
I buy a widget for mending socks and feeding the cat. After I get it home, the manufacturer offers a firmware upgrade that disables the cat-feeding function. True, I dont *have* to install it - but if I dont, then the sock-mending feature will stop working. What should I do?
Can you see the analogy? I bought something for a purpose and it is *for whatever reason* not fit for that purpose.
I hope your answer to (1) is "take it back and get a refund". Yes?
But presumably, your answer to (2) is "accept that the manufacturer can do whatever they want, including make material changes to terms and conditions after the fact, and stop acting so butthurt over it".
Can you see why some people might not be entirely happy with that answer?
No?
Oh well, I tried.
Figures that Americans bring forth a law suit...
I think people forget that its:
A: Optional
B: Software
Try reading the license agreement you agree to but setting up the PS3. Sony has the right to change things, just like Microsoft or anyone else. (Though I generally stay away from Sony products).
Is it a rip that they are doing this? Yeah...
Do you have to install 3.21...? NO! This is the same for xbox360 with their interface updates or Microsoft introducing new patches that prevent people from getting updates if they do not install the 'prevent piracy' patches...
No one has sued over that...
Grow up, if you don't like it, SELL IT. Your not going to get anything out of it!
As for the "Manufactures who take away features without compensating purchasers are E v i l ." If it causes them to loose money (IE hacks) then they have the right. Would you want to loose more money out of pocket? I didn't think so...
goob
for shooting itself in the foot. There's not much to Sony these days but a ho-hum tv manufacturer.
Good for Anthony Ventura, and good for the rest of us.
Manufactures who take away features without compensating purchasers are E v i l .
Actually ned, this is worse as they mean it's a security issue for them, not the owner. This is more like activating a remote lock on the hood so that only they can open it from now on to do repairs or install new parts etc.
It's funny really. Saying it is a security issue is a bit like a car manufacturer coming along, welding up the doors on your car, and then saying that they could let burglars in....