Windows Activation Technologies Update for Windows 7

omegatron said:

Tews said:

smsff7 said:

The sad part is anti piracy protection hurts the legit users more then the pirates they wanted to stop

Would you please explain how??

How is when you buy a copy of windows at your local best buy, install it, a few weeks later install wga, have it tell you your copy isn't legal, and get on the phone for an hour with a holier-then-thou microsoft-can-do-no-wrong if-we-detected-you-as-illegal-then-you-are! b*tch! for over an hour...

That was the last time I install microsoft's anti-piracy technology!

To add, I did hear that they improved their customer support since back then...

Only a couple of months ago -

New scanner found a trojan that MS essentials didn't find.
Scrapped Hard disk > new XP install, reactivation.

Still didn't get rid of it and eventually found where it was still hidden, new XP install, tried reactivation.
Demanded I ring MSOFT.

Get thru to MS call centre -
without any pleasantries, jumped-up call centre monkey demands that I tell him how many PC's I have downloaded XP onto!
(They can see straightaway from the activation codes, the motherboard and other parts MATCH ie the same PC)

Fekkin Fuming that something I purchased in 2001, COSTS me more fekkin money just to get working, then an employee/Rep of M-Soft accuses me of wrong doing.

He would have gotten an earfull with a bucket load of swearwords if I hadn't wanted the new serial activation No's quickly.

I'm thinking that if you're spending that much time worrying about the update, then someting may be fishy...

I'm just saying

At any rate, your get out of jail free card?

I’d like to stress that the Update is voluntary, which means that you can choose not to install it when you see it appear on Windows Update.

Windows Activation Technologies Update for Windows 7 - Genuine Windows Blog - The Windows Blog

I think its geared more to wards people that are wondering if they got what they paid for versus someone who is trying to cheat windows activation. Somebody that bought a PC with windows already installed can run it and find out if that version of windows was hacked and not legal. Making it optional and uninstallable is a good move on Microsoft's part. If you do think you got a false positive you just uninstall it and you are back in business. Back in business was probably a poor choice of words when talking about software piracy but you know what I mean.:)

Now that I think about it, just because you can uninstall the "detector" doesn't mean it undo's what it has done, right? i.e. watermarks and wallpaper

Tews said:

thanks for the link Colonel, but that was four years ago and we are talking about WAT (Windows Activation Technology)....

Yeah I know how old it is, but omegatron was talking about WGA, which was FUBAR for a lot of people. Wonder what's lurking in the shadows for legit users this time around. Maybe nothing, who knows.

MS did give the reason for this over on Mr./Mrs. Fried's blog:

Williams said Microsoft has put much of its focused on informing customers that may have been duped into buying a PC with non-genuine software.
"We are pretty realistic," Williams said. "People who are actively pirating will try to find ways to continue to pirate."

Would have been more accurate to say "will" instead of "will try", but I think they're taking the best approach.

I'll install it. See what happens. Even though I've payed over US $500 for Win 7 Ultimate.