Registration Code

[Steven D'Aprano]

On Tue, 04 Apr 2006 12:02:24 -0700, Ross Ridge wrote:

> Steven D'Aprano wrote:
>> Look at Microsoft. Their first version of Word (for Macintosh, as it
>> turned out) was copy-protected. Their second version of Word, and every
>> version since, as well as Excel and Powerpoint, have not included copy
>> protection, time-limitations, product activation, or any other barrier to
>> keep users away. On the contrary -- Microsoft have turned a blind eye
>> to piracy until fairly recently. Same with Windows -- although, a few
>> years back when Microsoft felt secure in owning the desktop, they
>> introduced product activation.
> 
> Microsoft has been using product activation in it's office software for
> a while now, before Windows XP in fact.

You're right, Office has Product Activation as well as Windows, that was
my error. 

However, consider how easy Microsoft make it to avoid Product Activation:
if you purchase volume licences, and by volume I mean five licences or
more, you don't have to use PA. I know plenty of people who have activated
their version of Windows; I don't know anyone, home user or corporate, who
has needed to activate their version of Office. It is so easy to legally
avoid PA on Office that I wasn't even aware you needed to do so -- and
let's not even talk about illegal installations.

Presumably there are a few SMEs and home users who have had to do PA on
their Office installs, but as a percentage, I'd be very surprised if it
was more than a tiny minority.


>> What are the odds that Vista will have it?
> 
> About 100%.

Considering that you can hardly walk into a university, school or
corporation without finding Windows or Office supplied without PA, would
you care to revise that number? 

(That's a rhetorical question, by the way.)


 
-- 
Steven.