Microsoft turns on deactivation for non-genuine Vista

[Conrad Knauer]

On 9/12/07, David Gerard <dgerard at gmail.com> wrote:

> http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&amp;taxonomyName=windows&articleId=9035478&taxonomyId=125
>
> I fully support this move by Microsoft and fervently hope they expand
> its reach such that it is as absolutely difficult as possible for
> pirate copies of their valuable Intellectual Property to run. Better
> one hundred innocents get their computers bricked than one pirate get
> away with running or spreading a possibly-illegal copy.

Unfortunately, the article (which was featured on
http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/09/11/1615211) is incorrect in
that Microsoft is not actually disabling 'non-genuine' Vista copies
any more than they have been previously.  See
http://blog.wired.com/monkeybites/2007/09/microsoft-vista.html

While I disagree with the wired.com characterization of the
computerworld.com article as a "hoax" (vs. say a "mistake"; a hoax
implies chicanery), it seems that the "Black screen of darkness" is
just "a poorly-worded description of Vista's Reduced Functionality
Mode, which we've known about for a while".  There is no "new tough
antipiracy move" by M$.

CK