[lug] M$ does it again...down under

[Ferdinand Schmid]

While a number of non profit organizations don't have lots of money to
spend of Software that doesn't give them the right to pirate software. 
I often get frustrated with those folks because they simply don't seem
to care.  There are choices and Linux/StarOffice or whatever they want
to choose would work just fine for what most people want to do.  But
there is a great lack of flexibility among the volunteers and I have
banged my head against the wall for a long time now trying to change
that in some organizations I was involved with.  They think I am a weird
nerd for not wanting to participate in software piracy.

Ferdinand

John Hernandez wrote:
> 
> Agreed, the charity is technically wrong.  However, in situations such as this, I think it behooves Microsoft to turn their heads, because otherwise they risk getting flamed by the press.  They also risk more people turning to Linux and other open source software.  It doesn't take a genius lawyer to realize that they're not getting a dime out of an organization that has no dimes.  Sure, in principle, Microsoft is in the right, but if they're trying to prove a point, they should pick on a less saintly (and more well-funded) organization.  A pat on the back and a lifetime supply of product registration numbers would have been good NO COST PR, as opposed to the bad PR they achieved.
> 
> > "Riggs, Rob" wrote:
> >
> > The friggin' charity is blatantly pirating Microsoft's OSes. They've got a number of free OS choices, and instead of using one of those they are choosing to pirate Windows. I've got no sympathy for them. This is a good way to get a Microsoft tax institutionalized. Their argument is essentially, "we've already paid the Microsoft tax on this box, your honor". That's not the way copyright law works folks. If you lose your copy of "The Cat in the Hat", you don't have the right to go down to the book store and help yourself to another book. You don't even have the right to go to the library and photocopy theirs.
> >
> > Copyrights are important to the Linux community. Don't think that a charity subverting Microsoft's copyrights helps us at all.
> >
> >      -----Original Message-----
> >      From: Taz [mailto:feenix at ticnet.com]
> >      Sent: Monday, August 06, 2001 7:25 PM
> >      To: lug at lug.boulder.co.us
> >      Subject: [lug] M$ does it again...down under
> >
> >      surprise, surprise, surprise!!!  No, not really  from M$!  How pathetic can they get?!?!?!?
> >
> >      http://www.zdnet.com/anchordesk/stories/story/0,10738,2800646,00.html?chkpt=hud00224dp
> >
> >
> 
> --
> 
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-- 
Ferdinand Schmid
http://www.archenergy.com
303-444-4149 x231