Copy? Right...

[Adrian Wong]

Originally Posted by DarkUltra

OOhhh.. I wish more people where idealistic. Online Activation and checking is a world I don't wanto live in. Recently Lost Planet for PC forced you to be online if you wanted to play single player. It was fixed in a later patch.

I think Microsoft began all this with their WPA, and as people don't have much of a choice to Microsofts monopoly, there were not much of an outrage or customer loss.

Also why didnt the author mention DRM? DRM, fritz-chip, TCPA, this thing can lock down the PC good, and Microsoft is on a good way with Vista and it's protected kernel.

Well, even Microsoft gave everyone a way out. For example, even if your operating system isn't verified, you can still download updates. It's just that it has to be done automatically... and you have to live with the message that your operating system might not be legit.

Still, they do not prevent you from using the operating system. In that sense, Microsoft is using far more common sense than these game developers.

With that said, I still think Microsoft should save all those millions of dollars spent on "preventing" piracy (which will NEVER work) and make their software more affordable for less affluent countries.

As for DRM, etc... they were never the point of this article. This article is mainly about copy protection in games, especially the recent debacle involving BioShock.

[DarkUltra]

Originally Posted by Adrian Wong

Still, they do not prevent you from using the operating system. In that sense, Microsoft is using far more common sense than these game developers.

As for DRM, etc... they were never the point of this article. This article is mainly about copy protection in games, especially the recent debacle involving BioShock.

I agree, be "fair" to the customers, and customers will be fair to you, remember i could play C&C original with my friends and only one of us needed a CD in the drive. Total Annihilation also was like that I belive.

But Microsoft actually prevents you from using Windows Vista if you don't activate. You can log in but only to buy it over the Internet.

Secondsly DRM has everything to do with this, if they can do Online Activation and rootkits like StarForce, I'm afraid they would use DRM in the end too.

BTW whats with the constantly updating ads? Kinda annoying.

puh, sorry for hars sounding post, im not good at this

[Adrian Wong]

Originally Posted by DarkUltra

I agree, be "fair" to the customers, and customers will be fair to you, remember i could play C&C original with my friends and only one of us needed a CD in the drive. Total Annihilation also was like that I belive.

But Microsoft actually prevents you from using Windows Vista if you don't activate. You can log in but only to buy it over the Internet.

Secondsly DRM has everything to do with this, if they can do Online Activation and rootkits like StarForce, I'm afraid they would use DRM in the end too.

BTW whats with the constantly updating ads? Kinda annoying.

puh, sorry for hars sounding post, im not good at this

Oh, yeah, that is what happens if you do not register after the 30-day trial. At least there is a reasonably long trial period.

It's certainly not the ideal solution, I agree. The WGA method is truly a bane of those who either do not have an Internet connection, or change hardware frequently (like hardware reviewers!!!).

The biggest reason why piracy is such a big problem in poorer countries is really all about the price. If software is priced as a percentage of the average wage in a country, it would sell far better than if it was sold at a fixed price. Would you buy a copy of Windows Vista if it was going to cost you 2-3 months of your pay?

OT : That's because we are rotating the ads about every 30 seconds. We used to use fixed ads but we have been losing money for the last year or so. We are trying to see if this helps us get back into the black without resorting to more ads, or worse - pop ads. Sorry, but there's really no such thing as a free lunch.

[The_YongGrand]

Originally Posted by Adrian Wong

Oh, yeah, that is what happens if you do not register after the 30-day trial. At least there is a reasonably long trial period.

It's certainly not the ideal solution, I agree. The WGA method is truly a bane of those who either do not have an Internet connection, or change hardware frequently (like hardware reviewers!!!).

The biggest reason why piracy is such a big problem in poorer countries is really all about the price. If software is priced as a percentage of the average wage in a country, it would sell far better than if it was sold at a fixed price. Would you buy a copy of Windows Vista if it was going to cost you 2-3 months of your pay?

OT : That's because we are rotating the ads about every 30 seconds. We used to use fixed ads but we have been losing money for the last year or so. We are trying to see if this helps us get back into the black without resorting to more ads, or worse - pop ads. Sorry, but there's really no such thing as a free lunch.

Fortunately Steam allows offline LAN play, but you cannot login the Steam account simutaneously on both or more computers.

At least it's better than Bioshock strange protection system.