Windows is Free (Article)

[Kristian Erik Hermansen]

On 8/16/07, Samuel Baldwin <shardz4217-Re5JQEeQqe8AvxtiuMwx3w at public.gmane.org> wrote:
> http://tlug.jp/articles/Windows_Is_Free
>
> Found this on a slashdot article, extremely interesting, thought you
> guys might like it.

Most college students are given Microsoft Windows for free, LEGALLY!
At the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Microsoft had/has a deal
to offer licenses for almost any Microsoft product (except Office) for
free.  You pay nothing, unless you want the IT department to burn it
for you, in which case it costs $1.  This is the pressure we were up
against when I was running the Linux User Group.  One way to deal with
this is leading by example.  People notice and start asking questions
when they see things like Compiz / Beryl.  In fact, that was one of
our biggest draws at the booths we had set up in the main campus area.
 People would drop by and ask "Hey, what is this?  It is so cool,
where can I download that program?".  Sometimes we would get questions
like, "...but you can click on stuff and move the windows around?  Why
doesn't Microsoft sue Linux?"

In any event, I switched to Linux because I am lazy!  Cracking
software on a daily basis is not that interesting, especially when
groups like C.O.R.E. haven't even produced a keygen or no one has
leaked a serial.  Then you have to do it yourself.  And what if a new
version comes out?  You have to do it again.  Oh, and how do you get
updates?  So, I have to go to this site and that site and this site
over here and "don't download that patch, because it doesn't work on
that version of windows", and "this software will not get updates if
you do not activate", etc etc etc and on and on and on....

$ sudo aptitude update
$ sudo aptitude dist-upgrade

/me walks away and grabs a beer :-)
-- 
Kristian Erik Hermansen

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