Low income users (pensioners) - how do you cope with cost of XP?

[Paul Johnson]

You've had a lifetime to save your money. But no, you threw it away,
probably on booze and loose women. Now you expect a break?

Another reason not to buy into the whole proprietary software world if you
can avoid it: Rabid backers of failed software design models insisting the
world that disagrees with them is morally corrupt.

 

[Paul Johnson]

http://wiki.ursine.ca/Top_posting

Won't the price of Windows XP fall significant over the next
6 / 12 months?

True, but what difference is $60 instead of $120 going to make when your
budget is $0?

 

[Paul Johnson]

Anytime you ask someone to be responsible for their own self, you take
heat from those that feel we owe others.

I think a more constructive answer that would have prevented you from having
to make the assumption that he was just being selfish and didn't want to
pay for Windows but had to have Windows, would have been to consider that
Windows isn't the only answer to any problem in general, and is probably
not the right answer given the OP's criteria in this case.

 

[Paul Johnson]

I tried using Open Suse linux 10.1 for personal work. It is a great
system and takes me back to my working days when I used HPUX and AIX but
will not run applications that only run under Windows. Of course I could
use VMWare and have a virual machine but that would still need XP
installed as a guest system.

I think you have the right idea thinking to emulate what you need for a
couple Windows-only binaries. Some things I would consider as well:

1) Do you really need Brand X program, or do you just need a specific
application?[1] Generally speaking, you can find the same application
through different program titles in Linux.

2) If you really do need a specific Windows program, is it so intrinsically
tied into the environment that you can't just run it in Wine[2] or
Cedega[3]? Is there a Linux version on the original installation media[4]
that you perhaps overlooked?




[1] There seems to be some confusion about what an application is among less
experienced users... it's not a particular software title, but rather a
software category. Microsoft Word is not an application, word processing
is not a program. Word Processing would be the application that the
program Microsoft Word handles best.

[2] http://www.winehq.com/

[3] http://www.transgaming.com/

[4] Vendors of cross-platform titles usually develop on Linux first, then
port to Windows or other platforms as needed. Reason being that it's
easier to develop on Linux and port to Windows instead of developing
natively on Windows, especially if you need any version of the project to
run someplace other than Windows anyway. Atari is a good example of this:
Everything they've put out from UT2004 on for the PC was dev'd on Linux and
ported to whatever other platforms they support.

 

[Paul Johnson]

Yeah, M$ needs to allow for low-income subsidies in the purchase price.

Why? It would be better if they didn't strongarm OEMs so badly that you
have to shop around to find a computer with no OS or a non-Windows OS
pre-installed. If Microsoft competed in a truly open market, this would be
a nonissue.

Can't even get catalogs from stores anymore unless online.

As long as the catalog checks out at http://validator.w3.org/ and passes, it
doesn't matter what browser or OS you use, it'll work and it'll look good
doing it. Except IE, but that's because microsoft is still fighting the
browser war they lost a decade ago (I say lost because nobody uses MSHTML
and expects it to be viewable these days).

 

[itnute]

Hello Mr. Johnson: I agree with much of what you say, being as I am
probably in your group. I direct my comments to everyone. I made three
installment payments to purchase this system with Windows XP Pro preloaded,
from my neighborhood computer shop($399.+. It was necessary to keep
computing, since the W98se system crashed(again). I trust that the shop
would not jeopardize their business by selling me a nonvalid OS. Although
it is an older Compaq computer, it is configured to run XP Pro(with
limitations, of course). I am not a gamer or power user, so it works for me.
I am having trouble with the 2000 versions of the programs loaded also, but
will solve that problem later. Right now I just want my OS recognized by
Microsoft as valid. I call this system my "Saturday night special", because
of its 'bareboneness'. Am waiting for Microsoft's reply to my submitted
request for validation help. I appreciate your comments---though some will
not.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

[Leythos]

Hello Mr. Johnson: I agree with much of what you say, being as I am
probably in your group. I direct my comments to everyone. I made three
installment payments to purchase this system with Windows XP Pro preloaded,
from my neighborhood computer shop($399.+. It was necessary to keep
computing, since the W98se system crashed(again). I trust that the shop
would not jeopardize their business by selling me a nonvalid OS. Although
it is an older Compaq computer, it is configured to run XP Pro(with
limitations, of course). I am not a gamer or power user, so it works for me.
I am having trouble with the 2000 versions of the programs loaded also, but
will solve that problem later. Right now I just want my OS recognized by
Microsoft as valid. I call this system my "Saturday night special", because
of its 'bareboneness'. Am waiting for Microsoft's reply to my submitted
request for validation help. I appreciate your comments---though some will
not.

If XP is valid, it should have validated online without any problem. If
the computer was bought "as-is" and the vendor won't fix/refund your
money, then you bought a "as-is" computer with a pirated copy of Xp on
it.

Why not just call MS to phone activate and see if they will activate it?

 

[itnute]

Well now, looks like these thoughts are still around(if; should have;
without any problems; just call; and see if. I didn't find any answers that
seem extra-special. Thank you for your comments anyhow.
====================================================================================

 

[Andrew Murray]

The OP stated he needs the networking capabilities of XP Pro.....

 

[Gerry Cornell]

Andrew

He was also pleading poverty! More emerged later in the thread!


--

Regards.

Gerry
~~~~
FCA
Stourport, England
Enquire, plan and execute
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

[Bob I]

Just how hard is it to access the Dell site? Sheesh!

 

[Paul Johnson]

Just how hard is it to access the Dell site? Sheesh!

Try quoting properly. I have no idea what paragraph you are referring to.
http://wiki.ursine.ca/Top_posting

 

[Bob I]

And since you chopped everything off with your silly quote, I guess
you'll never know!

 

[Daave]

[top-posting eliminated for logical flow]

Just how hard is it to access the Dell site? Sheesh!

Seems like a non sequitur to me, Bob.

 

[Gerry Cornell]

Isn't persistent Off topic posting in breach of Usenet Etiquete?


--

Hope this helps.

Gerry
~~~~
FCA
Stourport, England
Enquire, plan and execute
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[top-posting eliminated for logical flow]

Just how hard is it to access the Dell site? Sheesh!

Seems like a non sequitur to me, Bob.

 

[Daave]

Yes, I believe it is.

Isn't persistent Off topic posting in breach of Usenet Etiquete?

[top-posting eliminated for logical flow]

Paul Johnson wrote:

Cymbal Man Freq. wrote:


Yeah, M$ needs to allow for low-income subsidies in the purchase
price.


Why? It would be better if they didn't strongarm OEMs so badly
that
you have to shop around to find a computer with no OS or a
non-Windows OS pre-installed. If Microsoft competed in a truly
open
market, this would be a nonissue.


Can't even get catalogs from stores anymore unless online.


As long as the catalog checks out at http://validator.w3.org/ and
passes, it doesn't matter what browser or OS you use, it'll work
and
it'll look good doing it. Except IE, but that's because microsoft
is still fighting the browser war they lost a decade ago (I say
lost
because nobody uses MSHTML and expects it to be viewable these
days).

Just how hard is it to access the Dell site? Sheesh!

Seems like a non sequitur to me, Bob.

 

[Paul Johnson]

And since you chopped everything off with your silly quote, I guess
you'll never know!

Oh, I get it now, you're some kind of newbie. You're supposed to trim
quotes to just the material you're replying to, and intersperse your quote
in the trimmed material after what you're responding to. This lets people
quickly skim through and keep with the flow of the conversation even if
they receive posts out of order or didn't get or read all the previous
posts.

So show some basic consideration for your fellow netizen and check out
http://learn.to/quote

 

[Eric]

Try quoting properly. I have no idea what paragraph you are referring to.
http://wiki.ursine.ca/Top_posting

What he was referring to... I think Dell does offer barebones (no OS) PCs.
I know a lot of internet sites do, though actual stores you walk into
usually have a Windows OS intalled.

 

[Toni Cascarino]

What he was referring to... I think Dell does offer barebones (no OS) PCs.
I know a lot of internet sites do, though actual stores you walk into
usually have a Windows OS intalled.

NOT in the UK! DELL don't supply bare bone systems to anyone in the UK
- not even to corporates who have VLK OS. To make things worse, if you
want to reconfigure these PCs/Laptops, you have to manually wipe the HD
so that you can reload the OS from network image files or for that
matter using SYSprep - a pain in the ****.

Novatech does supply barebone systems without the OS:

http://www.novatech.co.uk/novatech/pcranges.html

Toni

 

[Jupiter Jones [MVP]]

Toni;
Volume License customers still need an OS with the computer.
The Volume License in only an upgrade from another qualifying OS.
So if Volume License customers purchase bare bones computers and install
their Volume License, they may be violating their agreement without a
qualifying OS.