Vista's Fine Print Raises Red Flags

http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/archives/005104.php
http://www.michaelgeist.ca/content/view/1640/159/

By Passing PatchGuard on Windows x64 (read conclusion)
Security vendor circumvents Windows Vista's Patchguard
Its all about the money (must read coverage and links)
Subverting PatchGuard Version 2

and the ubiquitously linked article (and ongoing updates) that seriously stoked the fires of controversy
A Cost Analysis of Windows Vista Content Protection

 

Re: Windows Vista goes gold, to be available Jan 30th, 2007

MS revised that and have now relaxed all that stuff about backups and letting the user replace their hardware. i think i heard that on one of leo laporte's podcasts

 

Re: Whoo Hooo!!! Vista Rocks!!!!

note this post was relocated here, since it contains slightly different info from the first post I'll leave it intact. And was an answer to:

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
strangely the EULA does say its their determination what you can and can't run, aps that attempt to circumvent their interpretation of the EULA can be disabled or removed by them, this is likely the legal groundwork to safeguard the DRM scheme and locking PatchGuard (64bit) a further means to avoid circumvention.

its justified as "security" but has a nice set of ulterior motives


http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/archives/005104.php
http://www.michaelgeist.ca/content/view/1640/159/

Its all about the money

.
only firms with a relationship to Microsoft are getting real access to kernel level drivers
not true of malware authors, cracking PatchGuard is harder not impossible and there is alot of money to be made, however doing it illegally to develop security applications isnt going to fly. Its an artificial choke point for licensing much like the one introduced in Game Explorer

http://www.cs.auckland.ac.nz/~pgut001/pubs/vista_cost.html > see note K

there is security that will run, if it was developed by a big enough player that was able to leverage Microsoft for the API's or is in bed with them. Or simply isnt hooking into the OS deep enough to avoid subversion.

between WGA and Windows Defender, it will exceed the abilities of the majority of the public to workaround the onerous (and possibly illegal) restrictions in the EULA

my opinion is of course in my sig, but more to the point is that Micosoft is actually far more vulnerable than most suspect, after 5 years and 6 billions dollars they have alot riding on this, but adoption for most people entails a completely new system, the DRM restrictions choke everyone, compatibility issues are rife and IBM, HP and Intel are pushing in both the EU courts as well as for a unified Linux platform.

If a user friendly option was available on new OEM systems without the DRM, theyd really be in for a fight.

 

Of course, it will be raped in a month or two , if not already...
Otherwise, it's your computer and theirs

 

Re: Windows Vista goes gold, to be available Jan 30th, 2007

I assume that they have not removed the capability of doing so or even recording

 

Windows expert Scot Finnie, Computerworld's online editorial director, has switched to a Mac:

'It's not that I don't like Vista. It's that I've lost faith in Microsoft to deal in an evenhanded way with end users and corporate buyers of its software.'

http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9009961

 

Hello Pinga,

Good article, wasn't aware of it - so much to read and so little time

I've sensed this MS attitude for a while now and have the same feelings as the author. I also detect a general lack of enthusiasm from a lot of reviewers once you get past the "wow look at the graphics" kid stuff.

I timed a high end dual core/dual HD Laptop purchase at the beginning of January so as not to get Vista pre installed but wanted to dual boot it with XP MCE.

Have been runninng Vista now for about a month and tough to get under the hood and constantly circumventing the MS "we know better" stuff.

Hope I get to like it better than I do, but if not, it didn't cost me anything.