| From: | Michael Beecham |
| Date: | 19 Sep 2000 at 09:40:57 |
| Subject: | Re: AMIOPEN: OT: Microsoft licensing policy, was: Console Market, was: Sega |
Friends,
I would just Like to add that although you do not normally have to pay to
move a licence from one Unix box to another (my experiance is with SG's).
These licences are in the region of several £K. You also have to buy support
for the product also for serveral £K every year. The licence move is a
function of support not of owning the product. This is a model which works
for business where a rapid response is required and volumes are low. I doubt
very much that this model would work in a consumer world where 100s of
people may phone Dell, Gateway or who ever every day. Also the Microsoft
idea was that you could not change any hardware as I read it. On SGs at
least you could still add new hardware, even extra processors and processor
boards. I think Microsoft was mainly intersted in forcing people to upgrade
every 6-18 months. After all people are paying £200+ on a new graphics card
in that time frame, why should they moan about paying £80 on a licence to
run that hardware. It is just another Microsoft TAX.
Just my opinion,
Mike Beecham
>From: Ed Dana <EDanaII@CSI.com>
>Reply-To: open@amiga.com
>To: open@amiga.com
>Subject: Re: AMIOPEN: OT: Microsoft licensing policy, was: Console Market,
>was: Sega
>Date: Mon, 18 Sep 2000 13:51:58 -0700
>
>Staf Verhaegen wrote:
>
> >
> > Martin Baute wrote:
> > >
> > > Hello Staf
> > >
> > > On 18-Sep-00, you wrote:
> > >
> > > > What's wrong ? This policy has been all the time in the UNIX world.
>You
> > > > buy a software license for a product on a certain hardware ID. If
>you want
> > > > to run the software on another machine you have to ask for another
> > > > license. If your OEM doesn't provide a recovery CD just buy from
>another
> > > > vendor.
> > >
> > > I would like to be able to change my motherboard and CPU without
> > > having to pay M$ yet again for the OS. That�s the idea behind the
> > > "IBM compatible" if I am not mistaken.
> > >
> > > Or would you like to pay again for your AmigaOS just because you
> > > changed your accelerator board?
> >
> > I just wanted to make clear this practice is probably not illegal.
>
>No, it's not illegal, but it's not smart, either. That practice works fine
>for
>unix because unix caters to the business world. Home user would be outraged
>by
>such a policy. But, I have to add, they'd probably buy anyway in a market
>without
>any real alternative.
>
> > If I buy a machine with a OEM version of an OS installed I won't
>complain if I
> > cannot use this OS on another machine. If you don't like it, don't buy
>such a
> > machine. (BTW, I'm using linux most of the time so no problem for me). I
>just
> > hope MS still will distribute a stand-alone version which can be
>installed on
> > a self build system, maybe with on-line registration and free license
>update
> > for new hardware.
>
>That'll be yet another reason for me to hate M$. :)
>
>--
>Sincerely, | Good and bad I defined these terms,
>Ed Dana | Quite clear, no doubt, somehow...
>Software Developer | Ah, but I was so much older then,
>Amiga Enthusiast. | I'm younger than that now!
> | -- Bob Dylan, My Back Pages.
>=========== http://OurWorld.CompuServe.com/Homepages/EDanaII ===========
>
>
>
>
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