All Things Microsoft > Microsoft Software
Distrust tax
Aloone_Jonez:
I agree with what you're saying in principle: no one should have to pay for an operating system they're not going to use.
However, computers have always shipped with an OS pre-installed, being able to choose is a relatively new thing. Historically the OS was installed on ROM so the user couldn't modify it or install a new OS, it's only since hard drives became people have people had that luxury.
If you feel that strongly about wanting to buy a PC without Windows installed then why don't you just build your own?
The advantage of building your own Linux PC is you can choose hardware that will give you the best performance under Linux.
_ZeroBeta:
Apart from video games and the security software on some of my USB keys, there's no reason for me to actually have Windows installed (one of my hard drive's partitions has a paid version of Linux installed in it). The only way you could escape this tax is to take the shipped copy of Windows back for a refund. But if you're an inexperienced user who requires Windows for your software, say, games, MS Office and what have you, where does that leave you?
Aloone_Jonez:
MS Office can be easily replaced with OpenOffice.org.
I'm not sure if you can take just Windows back for a refund. I think that you either get refunded for the whole PC or keep it.
It's like saying "I bought my PC and am happy with everything apart from the monitor, can I please have a refund for the monitor and nothing else?"
_ZeroBeta:
I thought it was possible to do this if you refused to accept the EULA, at least, if it has not actually been installed for you before buying the system. OpenOffice may be a good alternative (and I use it on a regular basis), but a lot of students and businesses still rely on Microsoft Office for their day-to-day needs.
I can see your point, but I always thought that you could just take the shipped copy of Windows back if you didn't want to use it. I guess it varies between retailers.
Calum:
no, it's a terms and conditions thing, not a retailer thing. in principle, you can get a refund directly from microsoft, however they will try everything to delay this and put you off in practice, or so i have heard in previous years on this board from other users.
re: being unwittingly forced to pay for an O/S, the O/S is not equivalent to a hardware part, you might need to update the O/S many times over the lifetime of the computer (or you may want to). Software is not tangible, it is intellectual goods, unlike any hardware component.
re: building your own PC, that was fine back in the days when this was actually cheaper, but now it isn't. It's more expensive and it's more hassle. Plus, the door's closed for this when it comes to laptops. Still, i suppose the "don't like it? do it yourself!" argument is what i had started to get at, but i generally think it should be made easier, ie: give the customer what they actually want, not what they have been told they want. I mean this isn't a new issue. Since i have been using computers in my own home (about ten years) the preinstalled O/S ripoff has been totally normal. Hard drives in computers was a new thing in the early-mid nineties, it's fifteen years later now, and that's being charitable. The only reason more O/S choice isn't the norm is that the majority of home computer owners (ie: they are admins who think of themselves as users, if that) are perfectly willing to take whatever they're given (the latest MS bloatware at high cost) and the rest of us have to deal with the fallout.
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