Wat update - yes/no?

Lordbob75 said:

Kari said:

Brutal? I tried to stay as civilized and polite I could, considering how passionate I hate everything related to piracy.
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EDIT: @Lord of the Bobs, thanks.

Kari, I agree with all your statements (though I can't say I hate pirates like you do).

In this case, it was not the pirating that bothered me (or made me laugh), it was the guys ignorance and/or arrogance.
I have no idea how he can be THAT ignorant.

I did find it amusing how he managed to ignore ALL the evidence presented to him; that takes work.

In my opinion, they were here for nothing more than a good Troll.
And they did very well too, had us all worked up.

~Lordbob

Very important correction: I do not hate anybody, expect my second wife! I hope I'm right saying I have never said I hate pirates. If I've said so, it's wrong and not true; sometimes I say things I do not mean (I blame the distillers of Talisker and Laphroiag!)

I would like to use this opportunity to make a statement:

[STATEMENT]
I do not hate you, pirate! I hate piracy and things related to it. You are not a thing, you are a human with other ideals as I do.

By clicking the Submit Reply button I hearby declare the above mentioned is my true meaning, as I know it. Nothing less, nothing more.
[/STATEMENT]

Kari

Kari said:

Very important correction: I do not hate anybody, expect my second wife! I hope I'm right saying I have never said I hate pirates. If I've said so, it's wrong and not true; sometimes I say things I do not mean (I blame the distillers of Talisker and Laphroiag!)

My mistake.

That is what I meant.

~Lordbob

Kari said:

Anyway, I can see no valid reason to fight WAT; as long as it stays voluntary to install it, every user can and should do as they want to, install or not. When it's forced by Microsoft, the users who do not want it should IMO change to another OS. Free world, free choice.

Very subjective opinion, but I also think the main reason this debate is so heated, not only here but all around the InterWebs, is the fear. It looks like for once the crackers are late, they do not know how and when they are able to crack this.

Some of the members here who do not like the WAT are most definitely not pirates. They simply do not want their computers phoning home. They have nothing to hide; they simply resent an outsider controlling their computer. I fall in to this category.

I have nothing on automatic update. I manually update my anti-virus/anti-malware programs, my firewall as well as my O/S. I pick and choose which Windows updates I download and install.

That said, I installed WAT and let it do its thing. Now I am experimenting with it.

When MS came out with WGA for XP, I had some problems with it. I had to re-validate by phone three different times and my copy of XP Pro was legitimate. I also had a couple of problems with XP updates hosing my system - and it was the updates. Also when WGA was first introduced, MS was collecting a lot more information than they said they were. Therefore, I learned to be very cautious with updates and phoning home.

Unlike Darryl, I do not trust Microsoft, Adobe, Apple, General Motors, Toyota, etc; but not because they are inherently evil. It is because they are made up of people and people are fallible and the corporate agenda may not match my agenda. I do not distrust them either. I simply want to make up my own mind about how I operate my computer and to control what comes in and goes out of it.

The only entity I really and completely distrust is government - but that's another subject!

Kari-

There could be a good argument made that you can build a decent "work at home box" using Neweeg parts for 'bout $300.00. (Intel Pentium E5200 Wolfdale 2.5GHz, 2 Gig Ram, 250Gig Hardrive, DVD burner, etc.). Then add a $100.00+ for the OS and it seems to me that 25% of the total system cost being the OS seems pretty steep.

Maybe a little more reasonable pricing from MS would go a long way in preventing piracy. Although if the OS was $10.00, there would still be folks trying to steal it just because they can. I'm not trying to justify piracy because of retail pricing, nor do I believe that MS should be a non-profit organization. Just thinking that a little more fairness in pricing would go a long way in controlling the problem.

Carl, when saying I can see no valid reason to fight WAT, I do not mean those who fight back are all automatically pirates. I just mean that when it comes to either install it or crack it, calling home four times a year is IMO not reason enough to use a crack to disable it.

That day is, luckily it seems, not yet here. I believe we are going to see this update forced to our computers by Microsoft and when -if- this day comes, the fear for these calls home is not a valid reason to use cracks.

I can understand your point. I've read a lot of your posts, enough to have an opinion of you as an honest man and I think one reason you have already installed it although you recent the principle is that you, too, think this update is going to be forced to us sooner or later, so you decided to deal with it. Get it done, rather than even consider the other means to avoid it.



Kari

Kari said:

Carl, when saying I can see no valid reason to fight WAT, I do not mean those who fight back are all automatically pirates. I just mean that when it comes to either install it or crack it, calling home four times a year is IMO not reason enough to use a crack to disable it.

Kari, I agree completely. Unlike WGA which tried to phone home every time I booted up, WAT is quarterly. I blocked WGA with my firewall and let it phone home only a couple of times a year.

MS appears to be very forthright about WAT - unlike thier approach to WGA. That is why I specualte that this volutary thing is test of consumer reaction.

That day is, luckily it seems, not yet here. I believe we are going to see this update forced to our computers by Microsoft and when -if- this day comes, the fear for these calls home is not a valid reason to use cracks.

I feel sure that day will come with SP1. I know that I can block the current version now in several ways if I choose to do so. My firewall is definitely set ask me to let WAT access the internet. Thus it will be my choice.

I can understand your point. I've read a lot of your posts, enough to have an opinion of you as an honest man and I think one reason you have already installed it although you recent the principle is that you, too, think this update is going to be forced to us sooner or later, so you decided to deal with it. Get it done, rather than even consider the other means to avoid it.

Thank you and you are right on target. I decided to get with the program now rather than fight it. I figured it would be a lot easier and quicker to validate now if something went wrong while only a small number of folks are affected rather than wait until WAT is worldwide. Fortunately I had no problem whatsoever.



Kari