yeh i aleady read about over @ www.iexbeta.com , but didn't see the screenie , LOL

I think its funny!

Damn, that was funny.

umm, is it true?

hope so... lol immagine all the sad faces if they dont support those poor ppl
EDIT: its up to u to belive it or not... of course this could be a trick to make pirates download n install ...
Well if u go on to the site Sigh Told u bout there is a article bout it... for those who are to lazy to give a quick look just read the red:::


Microsoft will make XP SP2 Available to ALL!
Both legitimate and unlicensed users of Microsoft's XP operating system software will be able to download the Service Pack 2 security patch for free.

Microsoft's increasing concern over information security has translated into its decision to bite the bullet and make its upcoming SP2 (Service Pack 2) security patch available to all users - including those using pirated copies of its Windows XP software.

"We haven't explicitly done anything to SP2 to exclude it from pirated copies," said Microsoft group product manager Barry Goffe. The United States-based executive was interviewed via telephone.

This is unlike SP1 (Service Pack 1), which had features to prevent users with pirated copies from downloading it. In SP2's case, the mammoth 80MB to 250MB patch can be downloaded and installed on computers running both legitimate and pirated copies.

Users can also request a free CD copy of SP2, although shipping charges could apply, something which the company has yet to finalise, said Mr Goffe. "It was a tough choice, but we finally decided that even if someone has pirated copy of Windows, it is more important to keep him safe than it is to be concerned about the revenue issue," he added.

He admitted, however, that it is more than altruism that helped Microsoft come to this decision.

"Having these unsecured users means bigger worm and virus outbreaks - which also impacts the Internet and consequently, our legitimate users as well." www.iexbeta.com

Meanwhile, Mr Goffe noted that pirate users should not assume that the change of heart in SP2 means that Microsoft is going soft on piracy. "We have and are developing new technologies to combat piracy for our software, but for SP2 we'll make one exception."

Funny pic.

As for SP2 supporting illegal copies of XP...I think it's a bad move. People who downloaded their copies from the net and/or got them from friends don't deserve security from worms/viruses/etc. They don't care to support MS and pay for a legal copy, but MS feels they need to support them and give them security. Kind of puts the idea out there that MS supports the illegal download of their operating system. Either that or they just don't care anymore.

Pirates aren't off the hook yet, MS has something up their sleeves! lol

I think that the main reason for this is not to support illegal users but to help in stopping or slowing down the spread of worms and viruses. If people that have illegal Windows installs dont get security patch support then you have millions of vulnerable PC's helping spread nasty worms such as Blaster and Sasser. It is a corporate decision and a good one from a business standpoint. If a worm is released and spreads super fast because of millions of vulnerable PC's, in the PR world, it does not matter why the worm was spread so quickly, the reason being illegal copies of Windows being installed on millions of PC's, it only matters that it was millions of Windows PC's that spread the infection. Even though not allowing millions of users to get the latest security patches because of pirated software would be the justified thing to do, it would have a long term bad effect for company PR.

I think I'll stick to my Windows Server 2003 180-day Trial Licenses (Got 15 of them legally )

WHere can i get those licenses? I havent tried server 2003 yet i i want to try it...

https://microsoft.order-5.com/windowsserver2003evaldl/

I dont wana pay shipping...is there a place where i can just download it..

That is the link to download it. Just add it to basket and procede to the next steps, they will give you a download link and send you a cdkey via email.

Thanx... sorry for the misunderstanding....

lol i notice on the 2nd option , it says that name , address , everything is required. a £5 says u get microsoft lawyers knocking on ur doors

not that im greedy or anything but alot of people in this site say that we should just go out and buy a valid version of Windows XP, but xp is very expensive, and Microsoft is like the only company that makes Windows type products so they could make a very stiff price and we couldn't look elsewhere to get another Windows at a more reasonable price. Don't respond by saying get the student version, because the its still overpriced, i can get about 3-5 PS2 games, 5-10 Music albums, about 4-8 DVD's, have food for about 2-3 weeks. Alot you could do with this money and Microsoft, should realize this. The XP-Sp2 thing is bull, and its a way for microsoft to get people to expose themselves. Hate on me if you want but alot of people even the people who do got a valid XP version knows that the price is not reasonable.

Well, then you can just use Linux (FREE), or buy YellowTab Zeta (Only $99).

The average lifecycle of an OS is approx 4 years. $200 every four years to me is not a lot to pay.

God bless America!! You can't blame Microsoft for making a solid product and pricing it higher than others. Until another company comes along and creates an operating system that is even close to Windows, Microsoft can charge whatever the hell they feel like. Nothing wrong with that, it's called Capitalism. I'd do the same damn thing if I was in that position. In fact, I would probably charge twice as much for my OS (code named Kelpows).

All I ever hear is the open source community pissing and moaning about Microsoft and Windows, but if it were that important to them, then why isn't there one distro that has the capabilities that Windows has??!! There are thousands of developers working on Linux and an open source operating system, but I have yet to see even one installer.

Hey, Microsoft products may be overpriced, but damn it, they have their s**t together. No matter what people say, Microsoft does make some damn good software, and Windows is right at the forefront. When another comparible OS is made, i'll be the first one in line at Staples picking up my copy, but until then, Windows costs what it costs because it is just that good and there is absolutely no competition.

Economics 101.....

There you go!

*clap clap clap*

correction what Microsoft did and still does, is not called capitalism its called a monopoly, this is they got sued, clap, clap, clap to that, and yes i do agree that their products are good, but why are they always vulnerable to different viruses, bugs, system crashes, and then like about 6 months a year later they come out with an update, then a follow up and then about 2 years after they release another windows, not every 4 years, 98, 2000, XP (2002)

Windows is NOT vulnerable to viruses and worms, most viruses and worms are written for Windows, because that's mostly what everyone uses (A wide audience), so if the so-called stable Linux or Mac were the majority, then I'm pretty sure they would've had a lot of security "issues" too!

Kepls told u... just admit it... Well done Kepls... Microsoft is not where near perfect in their products... but in my mind they are far from a horrible compagnie... they are ahead of the game in my opinion. Of course there are always gonna be bugs n viruses... Ppl seem to find holes in microsots products but u have to admit if microsoft did that perposly they sure wouldnt release patchs n services packs... Viruses are usualy writen by ppl who seem to hold a grudge agaisnt compagnies like Microsoft, Like you ... n of course microsoft is gonna make a new os n charge ppl for the new tech. in their content... why would u offer ppl a upgrade for free when u could make money on it... alot of ppl are just jelous of microsoft but u do know that u would be alot more gready if u were in their shoes.

Some good points there. But, I have to disagree. The actual meaning of monopoly would account for multiple companies all having the same products available and one of the companies holding a vast lead in the market share, such as cable. Cable companies are monopolies. Cable channels are available to any company that wishes to offer a service to provide them, but would never survive due to the overwhelming market share such as Time Warner has already, that my friend is a monopoly. The definition of monopoly is one company dominating the market with the same product. Sorry to burst your bubble, but Microsoft does not have a "Monopoly". They have a product that no one else can create and therefore dominate.

As far as viruses go, well, this is another good point, but a statement made without taking into consideration other elements. A flaw is found in Windows, but, contradictory to your "6 month" statement, Microsoft actually does a fine job in a very timely manner with actually releasing patches. It does not take Microsoft 6 months to create a patch. Take for instance the SQL Slammer worm. Nasty, nasty worm. A patch was released just 10 days after the flaw was found. 6 months after the flaw was found, the SQL Slammer was released into the wild. The Slammer worm did major damage, but, not because Microsoft did not release a patch, but because IT Administrators have become very lazy and complacent when it comes to actually patching their systems. The patch was available well before the Slammer worm was released. That is an IT error, and every single IT Administrator and IT Director that does not patch their systems in a timely fashion should be fired on the spot. This would include me if I were to be so lazy as I am an IT Director. I constantly worry about security issues and patches. The systems in my company are always patched and up to date. That is my job. So lets stop whining about Microsoft with the flaws and simply take 10 minutes out of the day and apply the patches that are released. Another instance of this would be Sasser. The patch for this flaw was released well before the Sasser worm came on the scene. Why has it spread so fast? Why is Sasser.B now a category 4 threat? Because IT Administrators are the laziest pricks on the face of the earth, thats why. It has nothing to do with Microsoft, they did there job, it is the people that actually get paid to apply the patches turn to actually do some goddamn work.

System crashes? I don't know about this one. I have three systems running in my office. An IBM Intellistation Z Dual 2.8 Xeon system running XP, a G4 dual 2.0 G running Mac OS 10, and a Dell Dimension 4300 2.4G P4 running Red Hat 9. In the past 6 months, 2 of the systems have crashed multiple times, one has stayed running with no down time at all. Can you guess which one stays running? Thats right, the XP machine. The Mac crashes constantly. The Linux box, not too bad. I get a system crash maybe once a week and it requires a reboot.

Yes, Microsoft does release an OS about every 2 years, but, that is not what I said. I said that the average lifecycle of an OS is 4 years. Which means that the average person uses the same OS for an average period of 4 years. Not everyone upgrades as soon as a new OS is released. For the majority of users, the lifespan of the OS is 4 years. But, that is not because they go to Circuit City and buy an upgrade, nooooo, not in the least. It is 4 years because that is the average length of time that PC owners buy a new PC, which, when purchased, would have the latest OS already installed.

Now, lets put yourself in a hackers place. If you were writing a virus or worm that you wanted to have the biggest impact on companies, would you write it to infect a Linux box or a Windows box?

If you can't afford to buy it, then you don't get to have it. I can't afford a BMW, but you don't see me going and stealing one do you?

I've got a bunch more to say, but it seems kelp shares the same feelings as me. Good on you dude.

Wow even better put this time.... I think microsoft does their job verry well... think of all the good products they have brought to us with Great quality... n instead of bitching u sould be happy they release patchs against virues n to keep hackers out of your system...without their work alot of machines wouldnt be running at the moment.. i know sumtimes they might seem unresonable but they are pros... i think this know wut they are doing more than sumone sitting at home complainning bout everything all day... Of course there are always gonna be flaws,viruses... Think of how long it takes to make a stable OS... as soon as it is released hackers go right to work n try to find holes in their products...it takes microsoft years to build quality products n its a shame that ppl go about ruinning their products n making a hasle in ppls lives.. Microsoft has decency to provide ppl with good service and reliability n yet ppl stil find things to bitch about

yea he pretty much said everyting i wanted to say... ur very right matt...

The student copy of xp pro is only 100$.
Come on, 100$ every 2 years can't be that bad.
Also, many university students including a lot of my friends have both the student versions of windows and office. The only problem is that student copies of windows xp aren't always available, but if you look hard enough, you will find some with reasonable prices.

PS. I agree with quig.
Anyway, I have a legal version of windows xp pro. I just installed sp2 2120 and I didn't get the activation issues everybody's been talking about.