Beware of fake XP

  • Thread starter Thread starter Johnny
  • Start date Start date
J

Johnny

I bought 5 windows XP Pro last month at $50 each in front
of a STAPLES store at 125th Street in Harlem, NY. I
believed it was a very good deal. After building 5 PCs for
my personal business and installed XP I realized that they
were illegal because I couldn't register them. I entered
their codes or serial numbers in a search engine and found
them online. I was so shocked... I bought them because the
software came in a package sealed like the real thing with
manual and everything. It looked real. If you are reading
this, be aware and don't buy anything if it is not on a
shelf of a computer store. I lost $250 because it was in
front of a store. I thought it was legit.
 
Reporting Piracy in the U.S.
http://www.microsoft.com/piracy/reporting/piracy_in_us.asp

--
Carey Frisch
Microsoft MVP
Windows XP - Shell/User

Be Smart! Protect your PC!
http://www.microsoft.com/security/protect/

-----------------------------------------------------------------------


|I bought 5 windows XP Pro last month at $50 each in front
| of a STAPLES store at 125th Street in Harlem, NY. I
| believed it was a very good deal. After building 5 PCs for
| my personal business and installed XP I realized that they
| were illegal because I couldn't register them. I entered
| their codes or serial numbers in a search engine and found
| them online. I was so shocked... I bought them because the
| software came in a package sealed like the real thing with
| manual and everything. It looked real. If you are reading
| this, be aware and don't buy anything if it is not on a
| shelf of a computer store. I lost $250 because it was in
| front of a store. I thought it was legit.
 
What did staples say? What does your receipt say on it? If it says
staples. Take staples to small claims court remember to include the
court cost. (The staples store still could may be libel for allowing
an this operation to go on in front on the store).

For disclaimer purpose I am not a lawyer.

Now I can finally say this .
Microsoft need to put something like a sticker that says this is a
legal version of xp and also state what type of version it is. If it
comes preinstalled. A removable sticker on the outside of the box.
 
I an urban location like that the "sale" may have been on a public sidewalk
and the store may not have been in the position to do anything but call the
overworked local police department. We don't have any Staples stores where I
live, but I have never seen the competeing office supply chains Office Max
and Office Depot ring up sales outside their doors. In the suburban
environment here the store or a shopping center landloard own the sidewalk
and a dozens of yards wide parking lot that can be readily controled by
store personel or private security gaurds.

It's been quite a while, but the last time I bought a Microsoft OS the
package had a difficult to duplicate hologram on the outside of the box.
When I bought Windows 95 with a computer the hologram was on the cover of a
shrink wrapped getting started manual (admitedly THIN) with the product key.
This Windows XP computer came with a hologram product key sticker on top of
the computer case. Aparently the intention is that OEMs are to buy the
quantity of stickers from Mirosoft to correspond the the number of systems
they sell containing the OS. the Windows 98 upgrade CD has a hologram
pressed into the CD around the center hole too.
 
Johnny said:
I bought 5 windows XP Pro last month at $50 each in front
of a STAPLES store at 125th Street in Harlem, NY. I
Click to expand...

"In front" of a Staples store? What does that mean? If
someone operated on you "in front" of a hospital, would that
make him a surgeon?
believed it was a very good deal. After building 5 PCs for
Click to expand...

Anything that sounds too good to be true is.
 
Reporting Piracy in the U.S.
That won't get his money back.

I got to thinking.

Could he have legal version of xp pro, but those keys got leaked out
on the web?

How could he have a pirated version since it was sealed?
Click to expand...

Haven't you ever seen those little machines that shrink wrap
plastic around boxes? It ain't rocket science.
 
I bought 5 windows XP Pro last month at $50 each in front
of a STAPLES store at 125th Street in Harlem, NY. I
believed it was a very good deal. After building 5 PCs for
my personal business and installed XP I realized that they
were illegal because I couldn't register them. I entered
their codes or serial numbers in a search engine and found
them online. I was so shocked... I bought them because the
software came in a package sealed like the real thing with
manual and everything. It looked real. If you are reading
this, be aware and don't buy anything if it is not on a
shelf of a computer store. I lost $250 because it was in
front of a store. I thought it was legit.
Click to expand...

The good news is, you can still use your copies of Windows XP.
Just search on-line until you discover the many simple ways to
defeat the evils of Product Activation, and your illegitimate
copies of Windows XP will never learn of their bastard origins.
 
Johnny said:
I bought 5 windows XP Pro last month at $50 each in front
of a STAPLES store at 125th Street in Harlem, NY. I
believed it was a very good deal. After building 5 PCs for
my personal business and installed XP I realized that they
were illegal because I couldn't register them. I entered
their codes or serial numbers in a search engine and found
them online. I was so shocked... I bought them because the
software came in a package sealed like the real thing with
manual and everything. It looked real. If you are reading
this, be aware and don't buy anything if it is not on a
shelf of a computer store. I lost $250 because it was in
front of a store. I thought it was legit.
Click to expand...


Part of me wants to be kind.

But the larger part wants to ask, "Why didn't you just go into the store and
ask if the guy selling out front was doing it on behalf of the store or
without their knowledge?" Sixty seconds of trouble would have saved you
$250. Not a hard choice to make there, I don't make $15,000/hour for my
time - if you do, then I can see why you just bought them outright..

Again, part of me feels your pain. You saw what you thought was a deal, but
somewhere, in the back of your head, I have to think a voice was saying
"This is too good to be true!" or "What if this is a rip-off?" or something
similar AS you forked over the money.

I hope you paid cash.. Otherwise - who knows what else you opened yourself
for. They might have your credit card number now.. Or if you wrote them a
check.. And they got your address and possibly drivers license
information.. This could get interesting.
 
-----Original Message-----
I bought 5 windows XP Pro last month at $50 each in front
of a STAPLES store at 125th Street in Harlem, NY. I
believed it was a very good deal. After building 5 PCs for
my personal business and installed XP I realized that they
were illegal because I couldn't register them. I entered
their codes or serial numbers in a search engine and found
them online. I was so shocked... I bought them because the
software came in a package sealed like the real thing with
manual and everything. It looked real. If you are reading
this, be aware and don't buy anything if it is not on a
shelf of a computer store. I lost $250 because it was in
front of a store. I thought it was legit.
.
Click to expand...

Was that your first trip to the city, honey?
 
I wonder if this goes on in the UK. I have not come accross it yet, but it
could be possible I think. It seems that the safest option is to buy from a
OEM
 
Hi

I haven't seen it happen outside of any UK shops, but some boot sale
purchases have been at bit 'dubious'.

--

Will Denny
MS-MVP Windows - Shell/User
Please reply to the News Groups


| I wonder if this goes on in the UK. I have not come accross it yet, but
it
| could be possible I think. It seems that the safest option is to buy from
a
| OEM
|
|
 
Johnny said:
shelf of a computer store. I lost $250 because it was in
front of a store. I thought it was legit.
Click to expand...

Why did you think it was legit? Do you often spend good money with guys
in vans in parking lots?
 
Al said:
Haven't you ever seen those little machines that shrink wrap
plastic around boxes? It ain't rocket science.
Click to expand...

Egghead used to re-shrink software that was returned with their machine
in the back. Folks used to get a lot of boot sector viruses that way.
Hmmm, I wonder where Egghead Software is today.
 
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