Convincing a father to allow his son to subscribe..

[YozMan]

Me too

I'll admit, I'm also going into senior year of high school,

I too want to go into computer science (I think).

I also want to get W7 Ultimate "just to have everything"

and when I found out about technet, I was all gung ho, "I've got to get it, it'll save me a bundle!!!!"

So I know where your coming from.

But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that in the end I didn't really need a technet subscription because as stated above, technet is really only for someone who needs it for evaluation, if you're going to use as a free license in the end you'll not be able to get that "bang for the buck" because it's really much cheaper to either pirate it (though not as safe) or to buy an upgrade from newegg (which is probably what I would've done if my laptop hadn't died). Because technet is offering so much more than just W7 and charges accordingly, and everything else (besides for W7) you can get with www.dreamspark.com (though you need a .edu email) which is what I did.

Also you say "-He knows I'm into computers and he knows that I'm currently interested in programming(C#)." not to sound disrespectful but you make it sound like a 'passing fancy'.

I was interested in basic, perl, java, visual basic, perl, java, and html (in that order with both perl and java twice). I finally, after four years of playing that game, learnt java and html. but I still don't know java well enough to write any serious programs...

The point is that you have to prove to him that you really are into this stuff if he doesn't believe that you're giving your 110% he'll just think it's another phase, and won't let you waste ~$300.

 

[SquonkSC]

Parenting

You have misunderstood the OEM licensing. In a nutshell, once you activate an OEM copy of Windows on a computer, it's tied to that computer forever.

I have been going through this thread and noticed the excellent and educational advises
given to Codfish by all of you.

After all the negative rants I came across yesterday, it's refreshing to see people committed to advise Codfish's in his dilemma.
Sevenforum's is definitely one of the most descent forums I came across.

Particularly pparks1's elaborate and honest posts were a joy to read. +rep


There are two things I would like to add to the discussion:

The first thing is about parenting and money.

Every parent has his or her own set of rules and values and it is hard, if not impossible to argue about it.

I am not sure about Codfish's father's motivation, but I am sure he will have a perfectly good reason.
We only heard Codfish's side of the story.

The only thing I could criticize about it, is that it's better practice to let your children know the reason why.
(means less resistance)

I taught my children, now both 24 yrs and 28 yrs old, that as long as they are under my care,
they will have to abide to a set of rules and values, just like in the outside world.

My rules were not harsh or rigid in any way, but if they broke them on purpose,
they would have to face the consequences. Just like in the real world.

Until my kids were 18, they had to consult me when they wanted to spend a large amount of their savings.
That was to protect them against hasty and/or foolish spending, which they would regret later.
Not to have some sort of power over them.
(let's not forget that until they are 18, the parents are responsible and liable for their actions)

Based upon my own oppinion (i can't speak for others) I would advise Codfish to ask his father to motivate his decision in more detail.

And to respect his father's decision, even if it's not what he wants to hear.

I would also advise in the future to not discuss a matter between him and his father in a open forum.
In this case he is in good company, but the internet is mostly not the safest place for privacy sensitive matters.
(Anyone can stumble upon this thread in Google, including his father)

Besides, his father is not here to defend his motivations, and he shouldn't have to, to strangers.

I see a lot of parents that couldn't care less about what their kids get into.

His father obviously cares.




The second thing is a license matter.
OEM tied to the computer forever is not accurate.
Last year I bought a Vista Ultimate OEM copy at my local store for only € 99,-
instead of the retail price of € 199,-

I installed and activated it on my laptop, but that thing died a few months later.
I called Microsoft activation service, got a nice lady, told her I wanted to activate my copy on my HTPC .
She didn't ask any questions and in 10 minutes I had my copy activated on my HTPC.
Now, I don't know if that was just my way with women ( ), or standard policy of MS.
Just wanted you all to know what happened.

Greetz


.

 

[Muad Dib]

Of course they continue to function and remain activated....but the fact remains that I believe you are in violation of the end-user license agreement for both MSDN and TechNet to continue "evaluating" products for which you "used" to have a subscription to that has lapsed. I know, I know...playing by the rules does suck. Hence the reason that I do love Linux and concept of free and open software so much. No amount of counter arguments has ever swayed my opinion...as I don't think you can fairly compare products unless you are in full compliance with the licensing restrictions and paid the assoiciated costs.

I am sure MS is aware that many Technet Subscribers continue evaluating a number of their selected products long after the originating TN subscription expires. It does not dampen MS's exuberance when selling the 1st year for $350. I would speculate that word of mouth advertising for the products and subsequent upgrade sales balance the scales of cost/benefit/risk analysis to MS.

There is something slightly disingenuous about chastising the purchasers of a Technet license for taking advantage of it while "loving Linux and the concept of free and open software" on a Windows 7 forum.... I can't quite put my finger on it.... hmmmm.

Anyway, I am glad MS is a for profit enterprise with a product(s) that they have a vested interest in maintaining. Prices could always be cheaper for home users/enthusiasts with multiple computers and needs ...... maybe a sales/marketing venue like Technet?

 

[swarfega]

To put a spanner in the works, you dont really need Ultimate so that will save you some money. You need to ask yourself what function of each edition youd likely use or not use and then get the edition based on needs rather than because its just ultimate and has everything.

 

[pparks1]

There is something slightly disingenuous about chastising the purchasers of a Technet license for taking advantage of it while "loving Linux and the concept of free and open software" on a Windows 7 forum.... I can't quite put my finger on it.... hmmmm.

Let me further explain. I'm sure that Microsoft does indeed love to sell these "technet" subscriptions. For them, it is a source of revenue from those who otherwise likely wouldn't have paid them anything and instead just pirated a copy of the OS.

The reason that I made the comments that I did was that I work for a software company and have my entire professional life. Abiding by and following the license agreements is thus very important for me. And as many people have discovered, when you have multiple computers at home...the cost of "properly" licensing Windows can get quite pricey. It's expensive sometimes to the point, where people consider buying other things like "technet" which are even more expensive with the hopes of getting away with installing it and using it in more places than the licensing program allows. If people however buy Technet to "evaluate", learn and discover functionality within said products, but don't use it in production areas...than i have absolutely no qualms with them doing so. But again, Microsoft does not sell Technet subscriptions as a method of allowing the purchaser to install an unlimited number of OS's and applications across all of their own computers and family member computers and friends computers.

For the above reasoning, I enjoy and support the open source movement and Linux in particular. There is tons of exploration available within these areas and far less restrictive licensing agreements that you have to abide by. In fact, the source code is provided, you can change the functionality of the app to suit your needs and can even provide your changes and redistribute them to others if they have a need for similar functionality. There is no need for an "evaluation" copy of most of these applications as they are provided "fully functional" and with no cost by design. And we are talking about significant applications here which are heavily used in the real world (apache, bind, sendmail, mysql, perl, dhcp).

So, I meant nothing negative with my comments. I'm a full supporter of Microsoft Windows and Microsoft applications. But for me, if you are going to use, support, and endorse the products...you have to abide by the licensing agreements, restrictions and costs associated with those applications.

Anyway, I am glad MS is a for profit enterprise with a product(s) that they have a vested interest in maintaining. Prices could always be cheaper for home users/enthusiasts with multiple computers and needs ...... maybe a sales/marketing venue like Technet?

I too am glad about "for profit" software companies as they have provided my livlihood over the past 12+ years. And I'm happy to see Microsoft venturing into options like the "Family Pack" which does provide licensing at a reduced cost for a number of computers. I just really wish they could find a way to substantially reduce the cost of Windows (say to $49.99) and focus revenue efforts to other products (servers, sharepoint, IIS, Office, etc). But on the flip-side...for as much time and use that people get out of their computers...the costs associated with the licensing for Windows is often pretty reasonable in the end.

 

[Antman]

It is freaky, to a degree - how the questions presented here were answered so long ago.

Honor thy father and thy mother.

Thou shalt not steal.

Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's software.

 

[Tews]

It is freaky, to a degree - how the questions presented here were answered so long ago.

Honor thy father and thy mother.

Thou shalt not steal.

Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's software.

+1 .. Short, Sweet and to the point! +rep

 

[Joan Archer]

according to this....
https://om.one.microsoft.com/OPA/htmlpages/TC/TC-en-us.htm
which is the agreemnent...
and i quote...

Did you read the quote that darkassain gave you Codfish with regards you having to be 18 for it, you told us you were only 16 so in my opinion that would mean you cannot apply or use it.