BROADWELL E is Around the Corner and I am Concerned

I had been waiting for Skylake-E until this nonsense erupted. Since I won't be able to fully utilize Win 7 with anything newer than Skylake, I'm now trying to find an X99 board (Asus X99-E WS/USB 3.1) but the thing has been in extremely short supply.

Hiyya Jeannie well I am trying out 10 again without any email stuff or suchlike for starters and already I have given up on the GUI as it is so convoluted and am now running the GUI with Classic Shell in a 7 style - so much easier to navigate/ A doing this because it seems inevitable that 10 will take over one way or another and this might e a way that you could use the Skylake with 10

"I had been waiting for Skylake-E until this nonsense erupted. Since I won't be able to fully utilize Win 7 with anything newer than Skylake, I'm now trying to find an X99 board (Asus X99-E WS/USB 3.1) but the thing has been in extremely short supply."


The board is still around but getting it at a good price can be tricky. This is about the best price I can find but I'm in Canada so it's not worth the trouble for me.

ASUS X99-E WS/USB 3.1 Motherboard X99-E WS/USB 3.1 B&H Photo


I've been buying legitimate Windows 7 keys while they can still be found. You can get them at a good price now. I don't mind burning an ISO to disc and Microsoft still provides the download link on their web site. Just about all the family here has Windows 7 ultimate or Pro here now. After this it will likely be learning Linux for me as I won't be moving on to Windows 10. I can't imagine why anyone would after reading the Windows 10 EULA. Those who have Windows 10 should take the time to read those 200 and then some pages. Briefly stated, Microsoft reserves the right to turn the infamous Microsoft Keylogger back on any time they please. Microsoft reserves the right to remove any programs, software, applications, etc. they deem unneccessary from your PC. Microsoft reserves the right to turn on any connected camera that has been shut off and run it. Essentially after reading the EULA it comes down to this: Microsoft gives you a "free" license to let them use the PC which you agreed to give them by paying them (one way or another) to own it.

And it's starting to look like Intel applauds them for it.

SCANNERMAN777 said:

"I had been waiting for Skylake-E until this nonsense erupted. Since I won't be able to fully utilize Win 7 with anything newer than Skylake, I'm now trying to find an X99 board (Asus X99-E WS/USB 3.1) but the thing has been in extremely short supply."


The board is still around but getting it at a good price can be tricky. This is about the best price I can find but I'm in Canada so it's not worth the trouble for me.

ASUS X99-E WS/USB 3.1 Motherboard X99-E WS/USB 3.1 B&H Photo


I've been buying legitimate Windows 7 keys while they can still be found. You can get them at a good price now. I don't mind burning an ISO to disc and Microsoft still provides the download link on their web site. Just about all the family here has Windows 7 ultimate or Pro here now. After this it will likely be learning Linux for me as I won't be moving on to Windows 10. I can't imagine why anyone would after reading the Windows 10 EULA. Those who have Windows 10 should take the time to read those 200 and then some pages. Briefly stated, Microsoft reserves the right to turn the infamous Microsoft Keylogger back on any time they please. Microsoft reserves the right to remove any programs, software, applications, etc. they deem unneccessary from your PC. Microsoft reserves the right to turn on any connected camera that has been shut off and run it. Essentially after reading the EULA it comes down to this: Microsoft gives you a "free" license to let them use the PC which you agreed to give them by paying them (one way or another) to own it.

And it's starting to look like Intel applauds them for it.

I would watch out for B&H Photo. I've read some online reviews about them and they are rather flakey.

Laith said:

While we are on the talk about Windows 7 license keys i'll recommend a site that can be useful and MONEY-SAVING for alot of people. The reason why i capitalized the MONEY-SAVING is because it is THAT cheap. One Windows 7 Professional license key costs 24USD! They don't only have Professional, they have Ultimate, Home Premium and Home Basic. Depending on the edition you like you will either pay more or less. The most expensive one they have right now is Ultimate which costs 34USD. Anyways, lets get straight into the point, the website. The website is called Kinguin and can be found here. Just search for Windows 7 and all the available keys will be listed. They don't only offer Windows 7 keys, they also offer Windows 8, 8.1 and 10 for those who are interested. I can confirm that this site is real. I've bought from Kinguin before and they are legit. One neat little thing is their Protection thingy for a few extra dollars, in case the key is invaild or you didn't get your key you can use the protection to get a new one.

Sounds too good to be true—suspiciously so, especially the protection thingy.

Licence keys are perfectly acceptable and legal and are endorsed by Microsoft if sold by a licenced distributor. I won't vouch for the link townsbg offered but I know my source is legit and I have solid inside information about them. China will be your best source for legitmate keys and these will work without issue. These are keyed to the full versions and are not OEM keys. They work with the genuine Microsoft download ISO from Microsoft. That "security" thingy has me concerned as well. Sounds like a key gen. Most key gens also include hacking tools. Plus that seems a little too cheap to be on the level.

Jeanie I understand your concern but I know people who have purchased from B&H without issue. Besides, if I did have an issue with a brand new mobo I wouldn't be calling the retailer -- I'd go straight to the source. Generally ASUS is pretty good about such things. If B&H were in Canada I'd likely purchase from them based on what others have told me about them. Mind you, I'm an Asus fan boy so I'm probably a little biased in that respect. I'm still looking for a good Canadian deal and when I find one I'll share. Don't give up! :) Remember, COMPUTEX is just around the corner!

SCANNERMAN777 said:

...Jeanie I understand your concern but I know people who have purchased from B&H without issue. Besides, if I did have an issue with a brand new mobo I wouldn't be calling the retailer -- I'd go straight to the source. Generally ASUS is pretty good about such things. If B&H were in Canada I'd likely purchase from them based on what others have told me about them. Mind you, I'm an Asus fan boy so I'm probably a little biased in that respect. I'm still looking for a good Canadian deal and when I find one I'll share. Don't give up! :) Remember, COMPUTEX is just around the corner!

If you read the reviews on Asus products on Newegg and other retailers' websites, you would see that Asus doesn't have the best track record when it comes to customer support. I have yet to get a straight answer from Asus about if and when the X99-E WS/USB 3.1 will be available and why so few are being made.

Just because you have know some people who didn't have any trouble with B&H Photo doesn't mean the place is reputable. Most damaging is this report from Consumer affairs. The company has recently been sued for labor discrimination by the Government:

America?s Largest Indie Photo Store, B&H, Sued for Segregated Bathrooms - The Daily Beast (read the entire article; it gets interesting toward the end)

B&H Photo sued by Labor Department for discrimination - CNN.com

Also, the company is currently estimating the board will be available May 2nd. No other retailers that bother to estimate its availability place it that early; it's more like near the end of May. In the past, availability estimates by B&H were early by several weeks.

In short, I don't trust this jerk company any further than I can spit upwind in a gale.

I'm confused what bathrooms have to do with (X99-E )motherboards made by any company.

Layback Bear said:

I'm confused what bathrooms have to do with (X99-E )motherboards made by any company.

Obviously, you didn't read all of the second article, as I suggested. There is more to it than just bathrooms, such as forcing employees to work in unsafe conditions, such as during a fire (then, when finally allowing them to leave, forcing them to undergo a metal detection test that delayed their evacuation). A company that has such low regard for its employees is not likely to care any more for its customers, as demonstrated in the first article I linked, which contained reports of used and open box merchandise being sold as new, products being damaged due to poor packaging, lack of response from B&H to problems, etc.