3 ms·

As with any MS licensing press release it is necessary to read the fine print: this is only for upgrades, so first you need to install something and then upgra

by patja 12y ago

As with any MS licensing press release it is necessary to read the fine print: this is only for upgrades, so first you need to install something and then upgrade it, and only upgrades from Windows 7 and up as opposed to the more easily acquired/pirated Windows XP that is prevalent in China.

cwyers 12y ago
There were a lot of people trying to read the fine print about the free Windows upgrades "for one year," spinning out wild conspiracy theories about how everyone would have to pay a yearly license that turned out to be based on a misreading of some journalist's summary of what Microsoft said. If we're going to read the fine print and look for loopholes, we should wait for something more substantial than a Reuters article.
- yohui 12y ago
  Read on Ars Technica that ZDNet's Ed Bott received confirmation from a Microsoft spokesperson. ZDNet shows a chart. Ars Technica: http://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2015/03/windows-10-will-be-a-free-upgrade-for-genuine-and-non-genuine-users/ http://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2015/03/window... ZDNet: http://www.zdnet.com/article/windows-10-to-launch-this-summer-with-free-upgrades-for-pirated-copies/ http://www.zdnet.com/article/windows-10-to-launch-this-summe...
  - cwyers 12y ago
    From the ZDNet article you linked: > The additional detail about free upgrades for "non-genuine" (i.e., pirated) copies of Windows was a surprise, and it leaves multiple unanswered questions. Earlier, Microsoft said that consumer PCs running Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 would be entitled to free upgrades to Windows 10 for the first year after the product is released. A Microsoft spokesperson confirmed via email that the plan to allow free upgrades for non-genuine copies of Windows applies to all markets and is not limited to China. So it's not limited to China. But there are other "unanswered questions." I think it's prudent to wait for those to be answered, rather than assuming based on early news reports. Windows 10 isn't out until some nebulous summer launch anyway.
yohui 12y ago
Couldn't users just install Windows 7 without a license key? The trial period initially lasts 30 days and can be extended up to 120 days, I believe.
- tdicola 12y ago
  Oh that would be too funny if you could do it. Given how MS fired all their Windows org QA folks it wouldn't surprise me if something like that slipped through too.
  - cwyers 12y ago
    Or they don't care if you do it. The number of people willing to do that is small, the amount of money they would pay for Windows if they couldn't do that is probably even smaller. They are literally willing to replace every pirated copy of Windows 7 in the world with Windows 10 just for the marketshare. They don't want another zombie OS like XP, they want people in the Windows Store and Xbox Music and Xbox Video, they want people using Project Spartan and Cortana. They are doing everything they possibly can to get Windows 10 into as many consumer hands as possible without totally gutting their OEM licensing fees (which they are willing to take a hit on to compete with Android and Chromebooks) or cutting into their enterprise fees. They are putting up JUST enough barriers to getting free Windows 10 to keep their actual Windows profit centers (OEM and enterprise) paying happily, while passing it out like candy at a parade to consumers, who have as a rule never paid for Windows directly anyway.

by patja 12y ago

cwyers 12y ago

There were a lot of people trying to read the fine print about the free Windows upgrades "for one year," spinning out wild conspiracy theories about how everyone would have to pay a yearly license that turned out to be based on a misreading of some journalist's summary of what Microsoft said. If we're going to read the fine print and look for loopholes, we should wait for something more substantial than a Reuters article.

yohui 12y ago
Read on Ars Technica that ZDNet's Ed Bott received confirmation from a Microsoft spokesperson. ZDNet shows a chart. Ars Technica: http://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2015/03/windows-10-will-be-a-free-upgrade-for-genuine-and-non-genuine-users/ http://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2015/03/window... ZDNet: http://www.zdnet.com/article/windows-10-to-launch-this-summer-with-free-upgrades-for-pirated-copies/ http://www.zdnet.com/article/windows-10-to-launch-this-summe...
- cwyers 12y ago
  From the ZDNet article you linked: > The additional detail about free upgrades for "non-genuine" (i.e., pirated) copies of Windows was a surprise, and it leaves multiple unanswered questions. Earlier, Microsoft said that consumer PCs running Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 would be entitled to free upgrades to Windows 10 for the first year after the product is released. A Microsoft spokesperson confirmed via email that the plan to allow free upgrades for non-genuine copies of Windows applies to all markets and is not limited to China. So it's not limited to China. But there are other "unanswered questions." I think it's prudent to wait for those to be answered, rather than assuming based on early news reports. Windows 10 isn't out until some nebulous summer launch anyway.

yohui 12y ago

Couldn't users just install Windows 7 without a license key? The trial period initially lasts 30 days and can be extended up to 120 days, I believe.

tdicola 12y ago
Oh that would be too funny if you could do it. Given how MS fired all their Windows org QA folks it wouldn't surprise me if something like that slipped through too.
- cwyers 12y ago
  Or they don't care if you do it. The number of people willing to do that is small, the amount of money they would pay for Windows if they couldn't do that is probably even smaller. They are literally willing to replace every pirated copy of Windows 7 in the world with Windows 10 just for the marketshare. They don't want another zombie OS like XP, they want people in the Windows Store and Xbox Music and Xbox Video, they want people using Project Spartan and Cortana. They are doing everything they possibly can to get Windows 10 into as many consumer hands as possible without totally gutting their OEM licensing fees (which they are willing to take a hit on to compete with Android and Chromebooks) or cutting into their enterprise fees. They are putting up JUST enough barriers to getting free Windows 10 to keep their actual Windows profit centers (OEM and enterprise) paying happily, while passing it out like candy at a parade to consumers, who have as a rule never paid for Windows directly anyway.