Stocker

My friend with somewhat less-stringent moral standards than mine gave me his old computer he couldn't fix (bad power supply). I fixed it up and I was happily rocking a serious hardware upgrade with Windows 7, and then fast forward many months to the other day, it pops up not genuine. He forced a Dell license on an NVidia mobo. I STILL say Linux is not ready for prime time, so I'm gonna sell some junk from the garage on eBay and come up with a from-MS legit copy of Windows.



Only problem: I'll probably have to nuke & pave to get whatever he did off the hard drive. Boo.



Oh well.



Sure I could rip activation right out of the OS, but then that's pIracy! . . . I have a licensed copy of frikken PHOTOSHOP and NOBODY does that. Maybe I'm the odd man out, but that's what I do when I want to use somebody else's IP. Freeware or pay.

majik

krazytib

Drop down to XP and activate away. They don't block XP keys any more. I have used the same key on multiple machines when I couldn't find the original key that was used previously.



Have you called the Microsoft activation 800 number yet so you can tell them your dell's mobo fried so you replaced it with a different one? That method usually works when I call.



I actually called them today on a 2003 server that I just converted to a VM and wouldn't activate on the original key anymore. All they asked for was the activation key code off the screen and without any questions the lady gave me the code to activate the server. Usually I have to explain my hardware change.



Maybe they are just strict on 2008/7 OS's at the moment.

DTN

I don't know what you mean by "not ready for prime time"... Have you tried Ubuntu lately at all? Between Windows and Ubuntu, Ubuntu wins hands down as far as interface and modern concepts.



Stocker, if you have an Android, then you'll be familiar with what I'm talking about... App Drawer, Dock, Multiple Desktops, App search.. They're also saying that Ubuntu 11.04's Unity interface is even nicer looking then Mac OS-X.. Now I don't know about that, but it's nice. On top of all of that, Ubuntu 11.10 is supposed to run Android apps natively.



Ubuntu has been more stable and reliable then Windows for 10 years. Ubuntu has focused on making the interface usable for the average guy. Ubuntu 11.04 comes with Libre Office(new name for Open Office) and Firefox, integrated Facebook/twitter/AIM/MSN/ICQ/....younameit... what more do you need? They're doing a great job and I'd say they can cool off for a bit and let Windows and OS-X catch up.



So yeah.. Just copy your C:\Users\stocker\ folder to your new Ubuntu /user/stocker/ and rock it. It's faster, newer, more modern and easier then Windows once you get it set up.

DTN

A couple of more things....



Ubuntu supports touch screen and multi-touch gestures which are planned for release on Mac OSX Lion and Windows 8.

Ubuntu has had it's app store (debian package repository) running for years, well before the iOS/Mac App Store, or the intel App Up.



Ubuntu is actually leading the way as far as usability goes. I really don't understand what you mean by prime time.

187sks

You can generally contact M$ and pay them for a license to replace your non-genuine license.

Stocker

^ already.



DTN, Linux is betamax right now. Technically superior (even unquestionably so) but if I have to tell my wife over the phone how to get the kids' games to work I might just off myself.



It has to play cheezy windows kids games

It has to play any movie I slap in the DVD drive (currently using VLC player)

It has to find my hardware without trouble and do plug&play on whatever I stick in a USB slot

Extra fun: the wife like her some itunes



Convince me.

DTN

haha stocker, it sounds like you're just listing features of Ubuntu...



Actually, most of the games on Ubuntu are educational. You can go into the Ubuntu Software Center and click games to download a plethora of "cheesy kids games". There's a ton of them and they're free.



VLC player is actually designed on Linux and has a Windows port. You'd still use VLC Player.



Linux (the layer which runs under Ubuntu) in general supports most hardware. I have not come across anything that had 0 support. It may require a bit of setup for a few special devices which are not fully plug-n-play... Like I had to set up and define the buttons on my remote control for it to work properly to control my media center.... USB memory sticks, DVD drives, all common hardware is plug-n-play.



You can use different types of music software under Ubuntu to sync a iPod or iPhone... Depending on the version, it may require you to copy and paste a few lines into a terminal like this... https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Po...Devices/iPhone iTunes is a software suite. It's a massively bloated piece of software which slows down any computer it touches, even when it's not running. When I had an iPhone, I would use it only to upgrade my firmware... rarely. You won't find iTunes on Linux. There's several smaller programs which perform all the same functions except updating firmware from Apple.

187sks

Stocker, I suggest you install Virtualbox and install Ubuntu in a Virtual Machine to just play with it. Then you can convince yourself.

Stocker

eh, sounds like work. Still I spend just over a day at the shop to earn the money a license for Windows costs. How much work is the computer worth to me? Hmm... That might be the most convincing argument.



I was referring specifically to the cheezy games they already have/like. I've got XP licenses falling out my pockets. Maybe a virtual machine to run XP for the games that need it? If I can set up a single shortcut so it loads whatever interface is necessary THEN the kids games that would be perfect.