Microsoft's Velvet Glove
Microsoft recently announced its latest ploy to extort more money from the public and further strengthen their software monopoly: they want to make you pay for a legal copy of Windows before you get any OS add-on features or updates. To make matters worse, they are even extending this restriction to security updates, potentially placing millions of software pirates and their families at risk. At least that's the way that some people see it.
Starting February 7th, Microsoft will add support for twenty new language versions of XP for their opt-in Windows Genuine Advantage program. Users of Norwegian, Czech and Simplified Chinese language versions of Windows will be required to verify the authenticity of their copy of Windows. By the second half of 2005, all users will be required to participate in the Windows Genuine Advantage program to download anything from the Microsoft Download Center or Windows Update.
But to avoid risks of leaving systems unpatched and vulnerable, Microsoft will still allow anyone to keep their copy of Windows updated through the Automatic Updates feature.
