Mailinglist Archive: opensuse (3378 mails)

[hwm@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]

Jon Biddell wrote:

>
> We had a software audit by M$ recently, where they sent a team from one of
> the big accounting firms to do the dirtywork.
>
> Now, my PC has a BIOS powerup password, as it's been tampered with by the
> desktop dweebs before (I manage the network - over 50 servers - on my OWN
> !!), so I wasn't worried about them getting into it.
>
> When they arrived, I just sat back and watched the fun - three
> "technicians" couldn't get the machine to power up, let alone boot....  The
> Director glowered at me, then winked....
>
> They then asked me for the password (they were sitting at my machine when I
> got to work, so no way was I co-operating !!), which I refused, on the
> grounds of "commercial confidentiality of the data on the PC". They then
> explained what they were going to do, and how the program worked. They
> REFUSED to allow me to scan their disks for viruses.
>
> I presented them with an agreement that they all were to sign, indicating
> that they would be responsible for any damage or misuse of the data on my
> computer, and that they were "technically competant to conduct this audit",
> which they refused to sign.
>
> After about 1/2 hour of this, the MD came down and "explained" that I was
> to allow this or I would be sacked.
>
> So I unlocked the machine, and lo, it booted into SuSE 7.3....  They
> DEMANDED that it be booted into Windows, which I refused as I didn't run it
> at the time (I run certain non-Linux apps under VMWARE)... They threatened
> that I HAD to have a Windows licence on the PC, as it is an IBM - at which
> point I powered off the machine and politely told them to piss off.
>
> So much for Microsoft's "honesty".

-----------
Well done. Did this surprise you?? After all 'Relax it is only MS'

These accountants appear to have some problems with logic ('I HAD to
have a Windows licence on the PC, as it is an IBM'). If IBM on the basis
of a
contract, sell their machines with a MS OS they will
certainly have charged you for the licence fee and are under obligation
to pay this to MS.

I do not understand what you have to do with it. The purchase of an IBM
machines warrants that the OS was legally obtained. It would be
different if you had a 'no name' computer and used an illegal copy of a
MS OS.

They have to prove that you use an illegal copy of a MS OS. If you do
not have a MS OS at all, how can you open it. You cannot show it  you do
not have
it.