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Desktops: OEM software for sale online, is this legal?
Re: OEM software for sale online, is this legal?
by Mahayani - 11/5/04 3:39 AM In reply to: OEM software for sale online, is this legal? by no9to5wdmI just reread your message. Who actually sold you the PC???
I don't think HP would sell directly to you without the OS CD.
As for the other softwares, yes they are probably just trials.
Yes complain to HP!!!
You might want to contact your attorney general about who actually sold you the PC and see if you can rip them a new A-ole.
Re: OEM software for sale online, is this legal?
by knightsga - 11/5/04 4:24 AM In reply to: Re: OEM software for sale online, is this legal? by MahayaniHaving looked at a customer's HP PC, I found that the OS is backed up on the "D" drive and no OS disk came with the system. You are the mercy of HP as you cannot make a backup of the "D" drive. During copying, the system will balk and terminate your disk copying. Does anyone have a solution to that problem?
Re: OEM software for sale online, is this legal?
by Glanmire - 11/5/04 5:08 AM In reply to: Re: OEM software for sale online, is this legal? by knightsgaHP does supply the software in the form of a utility that will burn cd's from images on the hard drive. You can also get the CD's from HP for a shipping charge only. I recently had to restore a customers computer for them and they did not have CD's for the OS. The customer had attempted to restore the computer and I could not access the utility to burn the CD's. I contacted HP they shipped the CD's for an $8 shipping charge. My advice read the documentation that comes with your system and create the CD's immediately. Also many companies are installing a utility such as PC Angel or Phoenix first ware these utilities reside on a protect partition on the hard drive and can be used to restore your system when Windows won't start. Manufacturers are doing this to cut support costs. I agree you should get the CD's and Microsoft requires OEM's to provide the CD's with your purchase. HP has found a way to cut costs and still meet that requirement. Q: Why does one purchase an HP? A: Price
Re: OEM software for sale online, is this legal?
by Firefly21645 - 11/6/04 8:12 PM In reply to: Re: OEM software for sale online, is this legal? by GlanmireTo Glanmire:
Maybe Hp sold YOU the CDs for an $8 shipping fee, but they're not that generous with their consumers! My HP Pavilion had no Recovery Disk(s) when I bought it, nor was there anything in the instruction manual (which I read cover-to-cover) regarding how to make same. I recently ran into a problem where HP Tech Support told me I'd have to save all my data, completely uninstall WinXP, then re-install it with Recovery Disks. They offered to sell them to me for $99.95, plus S & H. It was cheaper to go to Best Buy and buy WinXP myself. It really ticks me off that I had to buy the same OS that was already installed on my PC, for a problem that was a defect in my computer that occurred TWO DAYS after my warranty expired! What a rip-off!!!
Firefly
Re: OEM software for sale online, is this legal?
by mike68zz - 11/7/04 7:59 PM In reply to: Re: OEM software for sale online, is this legal? by GlanmireThe most important part of the operating system is the product key. All Windows disk are the exact same with the exception of release dates and service packs updates and so nobody yells at me I will say that xp is not the same as say windows 98 or even xp pro however if your computer came with a COA (certificate of authentcy) the product key will be printed there it is a series of numbers and letters 5 to a section and 5 section long, you can barrow a disk from a friend and use this key to reinstall the operating system. After the install you will have to activate windows again just as you did when you first got the system, If this reinstall is on the same machine then there will be no problems however if you try it on another system it will not activate because Microsoft records the motherboard and cpu during the first activation you can get around this by calling microsoft if this was an upgrade and you can prove that you are not using this on another system. One other note
if your ststem was built by a major manufacter ie dell, HP, gateway ect. the key will only work with thier hardware I called gateway once about this and was told that I did not accutaly own the operating system in question and that they did there for I could not use the operating system in another build without their permission I guess that is why the system was regiestered to a gateway user and not to my name to see this just right click on the my computer icon and select properties to see who your machine is registered to also there you will see another number about 20 digits long if your machine was buitl using an oem operating system the number will have the letters OEM in it and microsoft will not supply free support for this software you will have to back to the manufacture or pay microsoft for support.
I hoped this helped
Could not copy D-Drive?
by governrcad - 5/18/05 1:18 PM In reply to: Re: OEM software for sale online, is this legal? by knightsgaI use Drive Image7, which is able to copy anything, including all sorts of XP system data, which seems to be inaccessible to various file management software I have used.
So far, there has been no reason for me to restore my C-partition with XP System files, but I assume that Drive Image7 would have no problem doing it.
Is your D-Drive a CD device?
Re: OEM software for sale online, is this legal?
by jacquesg926 - 11/5/04 6:23 AM In reply to: OEM software for sale online, is this legal? by no9to5wdmUsually you purchase OEM software when your building a brand new computer. The versions are full versions and are totally legit. They usually have a stripped down version of the manual and come shrink wrapped.
The problem with trial versions of XP are that they're designed to give you a glimpse of what the product is and once the trial is over, you have to purchase the retail version.
The versions of XP you can buy from Europe are cheap they're is just one problem. You usually cannot download the Service Packs.
I would probably call the store you bought your PC from to find out why you got the trial version. You'd get a much quicker response than waiting for HP to email you back
Re: OEM software for sale online, is this legal?
by xfloaterx - 11/5/04 6:26 AM In reply to: OEM software for sale online, is this legal? by no9to5wdmYour HP probably did come with a FULL version of Windows XP. Windwos XP must be activated within 30 days or it will cease to function. If on the side or top of the PC you have a COA "Certificate of Authenticity" then you will need to activate Windows using the 25 digit key on the COA. The other software may be trial - but may also need to be activated.
Reactivation....
by S Barringer - 1/13/05 9:24 PM In reply to: Re: OEM software for sale online, is this legal? by xfloaterxIn addition, if you fiddle with the innards of your computer and change the hardware (new video card, etc), you will have to call MS and reactivate again.
They did this to stop people from using on OS CD to install on many different computers, saving themselves a ton of money on an operting system for each new computer.
It's illegal to do that, but it didn't stop some people.
Re: OEM software for sale online, is this legal?
by TechHeadBob - 11/5/04 6:46 AM In reply to: OEM software for sale online, is this legal? by no9to5wdmI am a pretty and smart guy.. not in that order.
For the past 16 years I have built white boxes and developed software.
I have always bought cd's at their full price with the understanding that I can get upgrades at a nominal price. It was also the right thing to do. But lately it seems the upgrades are only a few dollars less than the full price. It's the old story, "Upgrade or die".
Every software company is nickel and dime'ing me to death and my kids need shoes!
So, against all of my common sense I finally sent money to company "XYZ" in Europe. My reasoning was what the heck, it's only $300.00. I won't mention what software I purchased...call me paronoid, you might be in my computer right now, and I don't even know it...
One month later I received two cds with key codes.
I installed them and both cd keys registered with no problems. Obviously everthing changed at the moment. I sat their in total disbelief. I kept saying to myself, "How can this be..."
The cd's are professional looking in everyway.
Really I thought some kid with an ink jet printer was kicking these things out in basement in Prague. Wrong.
Surely the back of the cd was going to be blue with the obvious burn ring. Wrong.
This is the real deal. I even received a paper cover for each cd with the cd key on it.
I honestly can say I saved over $2,000.00.
I don't care how they do it but they do it.
Hey, if Dell can bundle XP Pro from Microsoft for $30.00 why can't I cash in too.
Although, during the month of waiting I pleaded with them to send me the cd keys. I already have the original cd's here.
But they were not willing to send them via email.
One minor drawback, because this is OEM software, you don't get two free support calls to India. I know this is a let down but time heals everything 
So, if you are not in a hurry it's worth every penny.
I have since purchased many more cd's with no problem.
One last thing, me and my kids really went to the shoe store!
Re: OEM software for sale online, is this legal?
by ricbrink - 11/5/04 11:02 AM In reply to: Re: OEM software for sale online, is this legal? by TechHeadBobAll this comentary, but not answers. It is illegal for the company that purchased the oem version from the vendor to resell it outside their agreement with the vendor. When Dell pays $30 for a copy of XP Pro that it puts on your new PC, it can only sell it to you with that new pc. IT's not a CD they get from MS, it's a paper sticker with your cdkey on it. Since Dell didn't buy a cd, they can take the current version of XP Pro and put it on your new PC, give you a backup disk and be happy until the next major OS release. At that time, MS will allow they to trade in the stickers of new ones. See, Dell doesn't "buy" the CD's up front, they sell you a license to "use" windows on that box. You didn't buy a copy of XP Pro, you bought the right to use XP Pro on that box of hardware. IT's a contract you purchased, not a piece of software.
When you go down to circuit city and get boxed software off the shelf, you are purchasing a contract and a version of the software at the same time. The CD in the box is your's to use (within the law) as you see fit. The "contract" in the box from MS says they will give you updates, support, etc. for some period of time. They may ever promise to replace the disk if it's damaged or lost.
Get the differnce?
When you buy a XP CD from that guy in Prague, sure it's a real microsoft Cd with key. But there's no license agreement (ie, contract) in the box. So what you have is a copy of a disk. I can buy legal copies of MS XP Pro Disks for $10 each by the thousand, from companies right here in the US of A. Totally legal. They are just like the one you paid $50 for. And like them, they have no license agreement. Why is this possible? Because Microsoft sells the license separate from the media. There other senarios where people can get copies of the CD's, even with a license paper in the package.
So the answer here is that OEM cds for Microsoft OS are illegal copies if they don't come with an agreement between you and microsoft that is your contract to use the software.
When you buy a ticket to a movie, it doesn't give you rights to take the film from the theatre, video tape the show, or otherwise make other use of your personal use of that one show. Your movie ticket is valid for one show only. If you use it, you can't give it to a friend or sell it in the parking lot afterwards at a discount. Like the movie ticket, OEM versions of MS XP are good for that PC only. Can you buy a ticket and give it to someone else? Sure. Can you resell a movie pass to someone else? Sure. But they better be in line behind you. Because once you leave the theatre (and the show time passes) your ticket is worthless. Just like you right to resell an OEM license that you got at an auction from XYZ computers when they went out of business. That box of stickers and CD's doesn't come with a contract between you and microsoft that allows you to resell them. They have expired when XYZ computers went out of business. Can you get away with it. Probably. That doesn't make it legal.
As a legal MS partner, I can sell you a copy of XP Pro. I can buy it at discount direct from Redmond and have it shipped to your house. I can build you a PC with the OEM version. It will come with papers proving I paid for it and MS will give you support (limited as are all OEM versions). You will be the legal owner of the right to use the software. Stockholders will get paid, Bill will get money to help him "keep up with the Saudi princes".
The people I feel most for, are the ones who paid a real price for boxed software. Install it and are happy for a few weeks. Then, when they try to update, or register, they find out the key they used isn't real. They've been sold bootleg, pirate copies. Did you know that microsoft has often made good on these bootleg licenses? Why? The people had a receipt from a legal dealer of the software. That "contract" between you and microsoft is what you paid for. Microsoft will stand behind that contract (through the vendor).
I know this lession in the morality of how you buy software isn't going to change the buying habits of most of you. But what you do is wrong, most often illegal, and hurts the industry just a little each time you do it. It's a "death by a thousand cuts". But it's killing the industry none the less. The growth of Linux is the obvious proof. Millions of people feel that XP Pro is too expensive. But rather than steal a copy, they find an alternative. For you $50, you can get a copy of SUSE or RedHat in many retail stores. It comes with a manual, and a place to get updates and help with installing it. If your old pc with Windows 95 still works, you can download copies of hundreds of Linux distributions for free. Burn a copy to cd and build that new UberPC you want.
UberPC by ricbrink
by R. Proffitt
- 11/5/04 11:25 AM
In reply to: Re: OEM software for sale online, is this legal? by ricbrink
I gotta get me one of those... O'yeah! I do have one. I'd got Suse 9.1 on a P4 2.0 GHz 512M RAM and more box. It's very nice and stable.
Bob
Re: OEM software for sale online, is this legal?
by KEITH-1 - 11/6/04 9:00 AM In reply to: Re: OEM software for sale online, is this legal? by ricbrinkBoy, thats got to be the biggest load of rubbish I've ever read.
Welcome to the FREE MARKET. When you pay full purchase price for somthing you own it. You don't own the copywright or patent just the one copy.
If you want to introduce a system like you have described then you will have to convince the govt to enact a licencing law (you can't just wright your own)until then your stuck with the current system.
Older PCs in the closet?
by S Barringer - 1/13/05 9:41 PM In reply to: Re: OEM software for sale online, is this legal? by ricbrinkFor those of you who have perfectly functioning PCs that you put in the closet (retired) because MS OS's require more than the old PC can handle (RAM, harddrive size, etc), you can save yourself the expense of having to buy a PC that can handle the bloated MS systems by getting a Linux distro that will run perfectly on older hardware, and without a doubt be a more stable OS. (Goodbye
blue-screen of death.) (Goodbye to incessant reboots.)
A large segment of the Internet runs on UNIX AND Linux OS's. That should tell you something.
Hurting the industry
by miketerri - 6/11/06 3:37 PM In reply to: Re: OEM software for sale online, is this legal? by ricbrinkWe are talking about massive distribution for a product that costs pennies to make and sells for 200.00 a shot, and, for all the hoopla about greater security, really seems to have been instigated in order for Microsoft to guarantee that every single computer ever built must incorporate a brand new 200.00 purchase. If I want to upgrade my motherboard, I would have to pay Microsoft yet another $200.00 as well! So much for that aspect of my economy. I'll stick with my old system all the longer because of that.
And we are being forced to use this product because certain other applications are phasing out Win98. It's not that I have an actual need for win Xp . The need is being manifested by ''the industry''.
Considering the massive massive massive distribution, we are talking about, it's hard to buy that people that have to struggle to pay for ordinary living expences are ''hurting the technology industry'' business if they don't forgo the essentials of life for a week or two in order to pay 200.00 for an unwanted system that is being forced upon them.
Considering the massiveness of the distribution and the small cost of production, it's hard to belive that Microsoft couldn't make a profit selling the product for a price that is comprable for the cost of a music cd.
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