Vista EULA stirs up a storm

SUBJECT: For Limited Viewing

Most people don't read the EULA. I've never read it. Not everything in the EULA is enforceable and I doubt legal. But one must ask what Microsoft is up to. The way you have the story written it would seem that no one can even look at your screen while you work on it. You could debate it is a screen shot only thing but that's sort of pointless because Microsoft can't tell you that you can't show portions of their product underneath portions of your product.

So, one must really ask what that clause is all about. If it is not clear it is not legal. I'd suggest Microsoft clarify that right away.

If Microsoft isn't just intending it to be an issue with just screen shots and they are making it an issue to have anyone see your desktop how on earth are people supposed to affect repairs to a problemmatic OS?

Was that clause just put in there for the purpose of the Beta or pre-Beta and never removed? What billions of dollars go into making the OS and they can't remember to remove some pre-beta clause?

So, let's say that they intend to restrict who can and can't see Vista, which is utterly stupid. Let's say that it forces everyone to use their computer in a closet. Let's say they are intending that businesses be forced to make secure areas where the computer can be used. Utter nonsense.

Anyway, let's say it is something else. Some new idea that they came up with. What exactly could it be? And why does Microsoft seem to think that they are the ones that can do this? It is like the Windows Genuine Advantage Notification. This opened the door to any number of hundreds if not thousands of other software developers to do the same thing because Microsoft is in no way more entitled to put this sort of program/restriction in than any other developer?

What, if Microsoft goes on and creates some new restriction, which is utterly stupid anyway, what is to stop any other developer from doing the same thing?

Is Microsoft trying to stop people from copying their icons? The same icons that were stolen from the likes of varying icon sets under Linux? Are they trying to keep the layout or organization of their screens protected as an IP right? I think that was done away with in the 90s when Apple sued Microsoft over Windows and the judge said basically that some things just can be copyrighted. Is Microsoft worried that the Linux community might try to copy their structure and implement it into various distibutions of Linux?

What troubles me is that that part of the EULA that you submitted makes no sense in and of itself. But because it is there and it made it to print, that has to mean that something is up, some reason has to be there or this to get published.

Any comment from Microsoft?

jdblaich

Subject: Vista in a nutshell [take that any way you want]

Hi, Mike

I saw the following post in a Microsoft beta newsgroup and thought it captured the Vista essence pretty well. I would only add that Vista is a SUV with detailing specified by Sean "Puffy" Combs.

The start of this thread, BTW, was a reference to an Inquirer article, "Microsoft Vista is still a mess."

The poster is "Sgt Rock":

What is your problem? Vista ROCKS!

He's probably a penguin.

You are so right, dude! He probably hates America, too.

Vista is an operating system a real American can be proud to boot up. It's the SUV of OSes, and not just any SUV, it's an Escalade. Let the penguins have their Italian scooters, let Jobs mob enjoy their Lamborghinis (with a '65 Mustang engine), and let those Slowaris geezers drive whatever they want (who cares?), Microsoft owns the future, and this is the ownership society, right? When I turn on my rig, I want the lights on the block to dim, I want to see black smoke coming from my dual-GPU exhaust, I want 2 gigs of memory to be insufficient to the demands of a truly awe-inspiring and resource-hungry OS--I want to know that the OS is working all the time, not just sitting there. I want private intellectual property right protected--that's what made this country great and DRM will keep it great. First come, first served, as the libertarians say. But most of all, I want my transparent Aero interface--that alone is worth twice what Microsoft will be charging for Vista and they're practically giving it away. Vista doesn't just rock, it rules! Semper fi!

Robert

Subject: Vistula EULA

EULA's these days are just "terms of engagement". This is the new MS "friendly fire" policy : shoot first, ask questions later.

Or maybe the EULA is just in beta and needs to be kicked around a bit.

colin

Subject: Microsoft allows security firms to see Vista code

So basically Microsoft waited till it was almost to late for anyone else to get a product to market, and then relented.

Woohoo for the freemarket, just not in PC software.

Morgan.

Subject: Climate Catastrophe

Interesting debate this.

It's interesting how every time I ask environmentalists to explain how the greenhouse gas output of humanity is 'catastrophically' changing global climate, when Krakatoa (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krakatoa) and Mount St Helens (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_St._Helens) dumped (roughly) somewhere near 140,000 years of humanity's current estimated greenhouse gas output into earths atmosphere?

I've always noticed glazed eyed, spittle flecked frothing fit of paroxysisms ensue, followed by random cries of "think of the children!!" et al. ('sorry I can't walk & talk at the same time there's a rather sharp camber to the path' perhaps?) I live in Sydney. I'm all for pollution reduction (we have an insulating brown layer of petroleum-based pollution 'protecting' us from the cancer-causing blue sky above) and want to see clean energy. But the best that I can see the environmental 'climate change FUD peddlers' movement doing is trying to cripple developing nations from developing, and get us all back to living in mud-brick hovels chanting 'Ommmmmm' with unshaved armpits around a communal bong.

Also, China + India are building circa 850 coal-powered power stations in the next decade. Who's going to tell them their burgeoning middle-class should live without electricity?

The other interesting thing (just adding more petrol) coal power stations produce more deadly radioactive waste (strontium 90) than nuclear do ;)

Joe Stewart

Subject: State of The Inquirer

Hello!

I'm a long time reader of the Inq and the Register before it went sour. In case you were interested in the input of someone who has been reading you since day one, I thought I'd describe the experience I've had so far. Basically it's pretty much positive. I enjoy reading a website that honestly (after a fashion anyway, a fashion I apparently consider realistic) tells me what's going on in the industry. In your reviews, you go through the trouble of cutting through the marketing crap for the end user and usually end up telling just what are the features of the product that are interesting to the user. And don't ever start using graphs instead of numbers when telling about frame rates. They can be an addition though. With your no-BS no-NDA attitude buying a lot of credibility, it has been a pleasure to see you grow into one of the most important IT news sources in the web.

Based on the flamemail you get, you walk a fine line with your witty and provocative writing style and it's quite obvious that you, Mr. Magee, have a PhD in sarcasm. For years, Inq's feet were steady on the rope but I'd say some of your new journalists are not "quite there yet". It's evident that they sometimes rash into new stories (http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=35140) and if Fudo could just be asked to count to 10 and check the text before he presses the submit button or however you do it in your system because his texts are consistenly, from week to week, full of typos. I get that you want to get your stories out ASAP but I'm asking 10 seconds here, most of your stories aren't that long anyway which is nice. I'm not a journalist but I would think writing correct text is almost as a "matter of honour" just like a smith keeps his tools clean.

And speaking of that you're walking a tightrope with your writing style, I would guess keeping your stories just provicative enough without stating anything obviously biased is the key. My humble subjective view of things is that Fudo is slightly rocking the boat in the favour of MADATI. I guess nicknaming one of their chips after him finally did it.

I mean it's nothing really obvious or bad but slowly the cumulative circumstantial evidence is building up like saying the Nvidia control panel sucked big time. A remark like that would usually just reward a smile and one wouldn't pay any attention but when the situation is the same from story to story... Maybe some of the colleagues have been trying to throw some hints like "and apologise, huh, Fudo? News Ed."?

The DX10 works under XP story was quite a blunder and could have maybe been avoided with some patience. Anyway, thank you very much for the great website.

Name, email address supplied.

Subject: Climate catastrophe to cost trillions

After trying for some time to find actual CO2 numbers which correllate to actual temperature numbers, I was shocked to find that the normal 80 ppm inter-glacial period swing from 200 ppm CO2 to 280ppm had already been exceeded by 100% to 360 ppm. Either we are in: 1)deep HooPoo and will have to go back to pre-industrial-revolution carbon consumption levels, or 2) more hopefully, that the temp leads CO2, rather than the other way round (as the data are read by some).

Source: the many Wikipedia charts and writings on the subject plus additional readings. There is one key W.Pedia heading which lists all the others - which unfortunately slips my mind at the moment.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Carbon_Dioxide_400kyr-2.png

I also found it interesting that the temperature change resembles a sawtooth pattern with very rapid temperature rise, a sort of oscillating plateau top, followed by a more gradual decline in temperatures perhaps 2-3 times slower than the rise.

Toby

Subject: file sharing, p2p, parents ...

While i am somewhat shocked that 1/3 of parents have told their kids not to download illegal music, i am also suprised at the lack of available administrative tools to prevent such action.

If file sharing is truely so bad, then why havent companies such as netgear and linksys added some sort of packet inspection algorithm to the routers to flat out prevent the downloading of mp3 files (based on file name maybe) as an extra administrative tool? Afterall, we there are keyword filters. Why not ftp and http file download type filters?

--Eric

Subject: The dangers of open-source software

Well let's see what they aren't :

- changing the EULA every version to allow for more and intrusiveness and less and less responsibility
- actually scanning your hardware at regular intervals to detect changes
- phoning home every time you start your PC to check if you should be blocked or not
- locking down the PC if the hardware has changed in a given proportion (for Vista that will be anything apparently)
- changing the licensing to make you pay every year instead of just once
- foisting so-called bugfixes on you via AutoDownload that can do worse than the bugs did
- forgetting to create a truly secure environment and circumventing that with methods of dubious efficiency - that can be disabled
- not allowing you to see the code and check on what it is actually doing (Heaven forbid the public actually knew what we are doing !)
- lobbying the government to ensure that any competition from inside or abroad will be crushed under the iron heel of US Law and/or Diplomacy

So one the one hand, I have some garage developers that keep everything open and I may not get immediate support but I can make sure that nothing fishy is going on, and on the other hand I have these silent men in black suits that charge me enormous sums of money, don't show me anything, assure me that all is well, and shut me down as soon as I add/upgrade a bit of hardware and they don't like it.

Guess who I think is more dangerous ?

Pascal.

Subject: Vista EULA madness

Dear Staff,

Perhaps it is time to mention that no EULA can ever override a persons legal rights. And I doubt any EU citizen could ever be taken to court and sentenced for not having obliged to follow any EULA to the letter.

Aren't they mostly made for the benefit of the litigation horny northamericans? Do they have a leg to stand on in EU countries?

In fact I believe the software makers should be taken to court for imposing these ridiculous things on the unsuspecting public. No one should HAVE to read and agree to that pile to use a program. Ever.

Soren

Subject: Looks like Asus is going tits up to me

Their sales have been down, their products have been defective, they had to buy Gigabyte to eliminate competition and get some more sales volume.

It would not be a loss to see them bite the dust.

Randy

Subject: vista EULA

Well

That buggers up remote connections then doesnt it? Does that mean if I want to do a remote desktop to help a collegue with Vista I have to purchase a licence as well......

ckdwales

Subject: ACCUSER!!!

.. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who is no doubt googling furiously for "how to build a nuclear bomb."

you are quite an accuser for an IT online tabloid, aren't ya? Or is it your christianity that somehow grab a hold of ya and let your paranoia overwhelm your sanity?

strivearth

Subject: mujimuji

Thats freakin great, their going to start moving backward in time now but the only thing moving forward will be the bomb, as mujimuji or whatever his name is, is sitting at home with his sattelite internet beating off to nuclear weapon blueprints

ROFLCAKES