Pirated Vista may be useless, Microsoft says


Recommended Posts

Microsoft said supposedly pirated copies of its new Vista computer operating system "will be of limited value" to those who use them.

Microsoft responded Tuesday to reports that some Web sites have been circulating pirated copies of Vista and the Office 2007 applications suite.

But Microsoft said in a prepared statement that those pirated copies of the OS won't work for long.

"The copies available for download are not final code and users should avoid unauthorized copies which could be incomplete or tampered. This unauthorized download relies on the use of pre-RTM [release-to-manufacture] activation keys that will be blocked using Microsoft?s Software Protection Platform. Consequently, these downloads will be of limited value," the statement said.Source:b> InfoWord

"The copies available for download are not final code"

this worries me.......

They're bluffing. It's final code, but the workarounds are not going to be sufficient to evade WGA and activation in the long run. Ultimately MS will lost the piracy battle and frustrate their legitimate consumers with increased activation demands. Our university is already having public discussions with various departments on how to handle Volume Activation because it's going to be such a pain in the ass.

"The copies available for download are not final code"

this worries me.......

I think it is merely relating to the fact that there are alot of bug fixes to come, either that or the fact that some of the torrents are basically RC2 rebranded

It's so funny to see people in this board get upset at Microsoft for protecting their property and rights. Here's a newsflash: If pirates didn't rip off what doens't belong to them we would never have heard of WGA or activation or any of the anti-piracy measures beyond maybe a keycode.

If you don't like it, that's fine. But don't blame Microsoft, blame the pirates; they're responsible for it all.

Even if a proper keygen is created, it wouldn't matter. The little perks, such as Ultimate Extras, and many of the non-critical updates will most likely not be available to the pirates because MS will check and black list keys.

I personally installed RTM without a key so I could check compatibility with drivers, software and stability. So far, not so good... I'll have to stick with XP even when Vista supports 90% of my stuff. That 10% would be problems with audio IC dev kits and my old mp3 player that uses proprietary DRM. The mp3 player is also EOL, no drivers for Vista. :(

Hm, from what I've read, it's very easy to install it without a key and forget about activation... Just a small year change in bios. HOW THE HELL DID YOU MISS THAT, MS?!

Can't comment on that here, as hypocrisy plays a major role on this forum, but it works, and it involves no hacking or cracking. Many people have confirmed that working.

Edited by Leo Natan
"The copies available for download are not final code"

this worries me.......

I think they might be referring to the fact that the original billgates release has a couple of the files replaced with RC2 files so that beta serial keys will work.

Ah yes...nexus speaks again. Please lets all get on our foot and kiss your shoes for you are always right.

:rolleyes: :sleep: When will you ever learn to just shut up?

Seriously I could care less about wga or oga or anything else. I have formatted my machine 3 times in the last 5 days and installed XP and Vista. All of them activated just fine...why because they are legit licenses.

If everyone just here got off there moral high horse about how pirates/crackers always win...maybe wga/oga would never have had to happen.

Please, whether people were vocal about pirates winning or not, we'd have seen WGA. Why? Because people, in general, would rather get something for free if they can. Here's an idea, maybe if MS didn't charge out the nose for their software, they'd have less of a problem with piracy. I'm a student, in a video game design course. I'm going to NEED DX10, but I cannot AFFORD paying for Vista. See the problem? I'd LOVE to pay for it, and this is coming from a Linux SUPPORTER, but the price is way too high.

It's so funny to see people in this board get upset at Microsoft for protecting their property and rights. Here's a newsflash: If pirates didn't rip off what doens't belong to them we would never have heard of WGA or activation or any of the anti-piracy measures beyond maybe a keycode.

If you don't like it, that's fine. But don't blame Microsoft, blame the pirates; they're responsible for it all.

Macintosh: For the 3% who insist on not having the best.
:rolleyes:

Why don't you apply for a job at Microsoft?

Who knows. I won't be suprised if when Microsoft releases that update to bring Vista to the same kernel/version as Longhorn Server, that they start blacklisting, adding more checks / balances, etc...

One question though..

when they do updates like that, will that new version be released to OEMs/Vendors, etc. so that consumers get the latest and greatest? (I'm also curious to see how that goes wtih Powershell, etc.) ? :unsure:

This topic is now closed to further replies.
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Posts

    • This seems backwards. You should have to explicitly authorize files for outside use. It shouldn't be the default.
    • Wow you are right, I never even noticed this until you said it! (870E Aorus Master) Before testing this card I had a TP-Link tx401 10GbE PCIe card in that slot (now using XikeStor 310 Thunderbolt to Ethernet adapter).
    • Lack of 5.1 makes this a no sale. What I really wish creative would make would be a USB version that supports 5.1 analog audio for speakers, can switch to headphone mode, and matches the specs of their top tier cards. The current X870E AMD motherboards dont have a great option for adding a PCIE x1 card without cutting down pcie lanes to the graphics card.
    • The Microsoft Office feature that time forgot by Usama Jawad I have been actively using Microsoft Word for the past couple of decades in academic, professional, and personal capacities. Although I used it through the perpetual version of Office apps at the start, I have been an active subscriber of Microsoft 365 Family subscription for over five years now. This means that my Word installation is regularly updated with new features, some of which I don't really like, but that's beside the point. As new features get continuously added, old ones that used to be a staple of Word have started to take a backseat. While I was reminiscing over my Windows experiences from my childhood today, I suddenly remember one such capability that I heavily used in my younger years but have not really touched in over a decade, and haven't seen in documents created by others either. That feature is WordArt. Just to clarify, WordArt is not a Microsoft product specific to Word, and is included in other Office apps like PowerPoint and Excel too. However, Microsoft Word is the app that I used Word Art in heavily, while making assignments or other deliverables for school. If you're unaware, WordArt offers a collection of styling techniques for text, introducing 3D effects like shadows and reflections in the text. It used to be one of the coolest things ever when I was at school and me and my classmates would often compete to ensure that our assignment's title in WordArt was truly the best and stood out above the rest. See some examples of WordArt, still present in the latest versions of Word below: Although WordArt is undeniably cool, it has taken a bit of a backseat, and has been relegated from the Home tab to the Insert toolbar, along with a bunch of other utilities, making it very easy to miss. This isn't exactly surprising because WordArt doesn't really have a place in academic and professional documents anymore, and while I have seen some creatives using it while developing promo material, even that sector has gravitated more towards dedicated graphic designing tools in the past years. For the vast majority of us, WordArt doesn't really exist, and that's alright. At least, it's still an option that can allow us to reminisce our childhood or even make some quick text stylization, if we really need it. Perhaps its usage has waned over time or the novelty has worn off, but I haven't even seen children use it in their academic assignments anymore. In fact, many don't even know that it exists. Maybe that's the fate of every beloved feature. What once felt cutting edge eventually becomes a relic, quietly tucked away as tastes, trends, and technology move on. WordArt may no longer dominate school assignments or decorate the covers of classroom projects, but for those of us who grew up with it, it remains a colorful reminder of a time when making text glow, bend, and cast giant shadows felt like the height of creativity. Hidden behind a few clicks in modern Word, it still survives not as a productivity tool, but as a small piece of computing nostalgia that refuses to disappear.
  • Recent Achievements

    • First Post
      DrWankel earned a badge
      First Post
    • Reacting Well
      DrWankel earned a badge
      Reacting Well
    • Week One Done
      Supreme Spray LV earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • One Month Later
      Genuinetonerink- Dubai earned a badge
      One Month Later
    • Week One Done
      Genuinetonerink- Dubai earned a badge
      Week One Done
  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      495
    2. 2
      +Edouard
      158
    3. 3
      PsYcHoKiLLa
      88
    4. 4
      Steven P.
      74
    5. 5
      Michael Scrip
      70
  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!