Re: Windows XP professional product activation

Tech-Archive recommends: Repair Windows Errors & Optimize Windows Performance

Mistoffolees wrote:

Alias wrote:

Ghostrider wrote:


Ken Blake, MVP wrote:

On Sat, 3 May 2008 20:30:15 -0400, "Alan" <somewhere@xxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:


Hi Ken,

That IS a disadvantage of an OEM version.

However, for those of us who buy branded computers with the O/S pre-installed, I don't think many of us are going to buy a separate retail copy of Windows.

At least I know that _I'm_ not. :>



Your choice, of course. *My* choice is not to buy such a computer.



Might not be anyone's choice in the near future. Just finished helping
a major institution's IT outfit set up a number of Windows XP systems.
Not a single one came with its own Windows XP cdrom. Every one of them,
however, had the XP installation as a recovery image in a 7-GB partition
on the hard drive, restoring to factory setup.

And the reason for the re-installs: To eliminate the bloatware, trialware
and junkware installed by the OEM. Found printed recently in a throwaway
computer business magazine somewhere, the trialware and junkware will be
more common in the future as they represent "payoffs" to the OEM's.


So buy white boxes and stop complaining. Anyone who buys a large OEM computer from the likes of HP, Dell or Packard Bell is not very computer savvy.

Alias

Might be easy for you to say from Spain (and Europe) but it is getting
so much tougher in the good old US. The small, white-box mom-and-pop
builders are being squeezed out. It is not by forces of competition
but the myriad of local, state and federal regulations. I use to build
large quantities but no more. My overhead had increased to cover general
liability insurance, health insurance, worker's compensation as well as
the lawyers to keep me informed and sign off on agreements that certify
that I have no conflict-of-interest, meet equal employment opportunity
standards, have not hired any felons, all employees are legally in the
US, and so on. The same requirements and related ones pertain to almost
every major business, education center hospital, etc. Such overhead costs,
however, mitigate with much larger organizations. Just in case you haven't
noticed.

None of that would prevent someone from buying the parts, putting it together themselves and loading the OS of their choice without the trial versions and other crap the big OEMs include with their computers. Or are you saying that NewEgg and the like aren't selling audio cards, videos cards, hard drives, RAM, motherboards, mice, keyboards, speakers and motherboards?

Alias
.

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