The DMCA makes breaking software security coding a crime.
Unlocking your DVD or the BIOS lock on OEM is probably a
violation.
message | Greetings --
|
| Not doing anything illegal? Perhaps, perhaps not; no
court has
| yet ruled on this specific matter, other than to verify
that
| shrink-wrapped EULAs (such as the one to which you agreed
to be bound
| and are now trying violate) are valid and enforceable.
|
| Circuit Judge EASTERBROOK for the United States Court of
Appeals For
| the Seventh Circuit wrote:
|
| "Shrinkwrap licenses are enforceable unless their terms
are
| objectionable on grounds applicable to contracts in
general (for
| example, if they violate a rule of positive law, or if
they are
| unconscionable)." -
|
http://www.law.emory.edu/7circuit/june96/96-1139.html
|
| First of all, you have an OEM license for WinXP Home.
An OEM
| version must be sold with a piece of hardware (normally a
motherboard
| or hard rive, if not an entire PC) and is _permanently_
bound to the
| first PC on which it's installed. An OEM license, once
installed, is
| not legally transferable to another computer under _any_
| circumstances. You can remove or replace it, if you like,
but you
| cannot ever reuse it on a different computer.
|
| Additionally, If you use an Upgrade version of WinXP
Pro, the
| license for WinXP Home will be subsumed (became an
integral part of)
| by the WinXP Pro Upgrade license. Basically, you have no
license to
| use the Upgrade version without there also being an
earlier qualifying
| license _permanently_ in place.
|
| As it has *always* been with *all* Microsoft operating
systems,
| it's necessary (to be in compliance with both the EULA, if
not
| technically) to purchase one WinXP license for each
computer on which
| it is installed. The only way in which WinXP licensing
differs from
| that of earlier versions of Windows is that Microsoft has
finally
| added a copy protection and anti-theft mechanism, Product
Activation,
| to prevent (or at least make more difficult) multiple
installations
| using a single license
|
|
| Bruce Chambers
| --
| Help us help you:
|
|
|
| You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever
count on
| having both at once. -- RAH
|
| | >I have a Gateway computer that I upgarded from XP Home to
| > XP PRO with the idea I could use the XP Home CD to
| > upgrade my 98 computer. It didn't work and I later found
| > out that the Home OS was "BIOS Locked" so it could only
| > be use on the Gateway computer. I now have XP Home
| > software I can't use. Does anyone have any ideas on how
I
| > can use my Gateway XP Home OS software. I'm not doing
| > anything illegal, I just wanted to move it to another
| > computer and then reactivate. THanks - Myron
|
|
