That free Vista policy explained

AFTER WRITING ABOUT Vista's time-bombed beta yesterday , we were deluged with emails from readers who had participated in the pre-release test programme.

One quite wittily pointed out that a copy of Vista that reset itself every couple of hours wouldn't be much different from normal.

However, many readers were wondering how to get their free copy of Vista out of the Vole, which claims to have given a great many copies of the full OS away to beta testers.

The caveat, which many did not fully comprehend, is this: free copies of Vista only went out to those whom the Vole specifically invited to the test. Its most carefully fondled testees, if you will.

Anyone who, like the majority of you 'orrible lot, simply downloaded the beta from Microsoft and applied for a key through the website is non qualificando (or 'SOL', as we say here in the 'hood).

There is always a dark side of the moon, however (shurely silver lining of the cloud? -Ed). The Vole's lesser testees can at least buy the 'Upgrade' version of Vista to install on their beta machines, rather than the full version, thus saving them a significant quantity of smackeroos.

Here endeth the lesson. µ