Retail Copies of Office 2013 Are Tied To a Single Computer Forever

http://yro.slashdot.org/story/13/02...ce-2013-are-tied-to-a-single-computer-forever

one more sign that Microsoft is on the way down?

 

A much more expensive proposition indeed.... That ensures that if you're an Office purchaser, you'll be buying another copy every time your laptop or desktop with a 3 or 4 year life dies... I'm not liking much of anything MS is doing these days... it's all very disappointing, having been a solid MS supporter all these years up to now...

 

Glad I bought Office 2010.

 

I completely agree, recent decisions MS made has left me a very disappointed consumer.

To be quite honest, I think everything went downhill when Bill Gates retired (My Opinion)

 

Sticking to Office 2010 too. Microsoft have 5-6 years or so to stop trying to push me onto Office 365, LibreOffice has 5-6 or so to stop sucking. I'll review my options then.

 

I'm sure it does, and it's a legitimate worry. However, it's, for a lack of a better way to put it, these "iron-fist"-types of methods that had a hand in music DRM being thrown in the trash and, at times, one reason used to pirate or defend pirating to begin with. There has been movement away from the balancing act of protecting your property and your customers, to protecting your property at all costs with many vendors. It's not good business and provides ample opportunity for competition to come along and take your customers away.

 

Exactly. When it comes to games with crippled installs, you get a better experience from an unrestricted pirate copy.

The only thing that will happen here is a hacked copy will appear that allows you to use it on as many PCs as much as you want and it will encourage piracy.

 

Paying customers are always the ones that gets screwed with Microsoft. Stop encouraging piracy Microsoft

 

You think this will stop pirates?

As usual, MS, taking advantage of her dominant position, abuses her legal customers, finding a way that will milk them much better.

Oh, i hope i will live to see the day that MS becomes the next Enron.

 

From the oringally linked page:

Now that sucks.

 

That sounds really bad.

 

thank you for bringing this to my attention. i have informed my bosses. we will most likely only supply version 2010 to our corporate clients unless they specifically request version 2013.

 

Heh, Microsoft haters don't even try to hide it. Not like DRM is absolutely everywhere, but let's call out Microsoft!

As bad as this action that Microsoft is doing is, it's hilarious how you guys can tunnel vision onto something!

 

Microsoft deserves some "punches" now and then. lol

Otherwise they get too slack.

 

I have office 2007. I was thinking of upgrading to 2013. Now I think it is not wise decision financially.

 

Yeah, it's called honesty. Rare to find in both haters and fanboys.

DRM is everywhere, this doesn't mean one is happy about it. Even more, where it is in a field, where there is dominance of the market (few alternatives) and high prices. You can't put at the same level a small company that is struggling for survival amongst dozens of competitors and relying on 30$ per sale to stay afloat and MS, can you...

Let me guess, you have the impression you are objective, don't you...

 

Nope, not at all. I believe this will cause an eventual backfire from the customers who spent $400 on Microsoft Office only to find out that they can't use it after their laptop dies.

 

I won't buy software (OS, Office, anything!) that doesn't allow me to install it again on a new system if the old system dies! - And I hope that a court stops those criminal methods somehow, wouldn't be the first time IIRC. - But if not .. badbye Microsoft!

The biggest enemy of MS is not Apple. - It's the shouting animal called Ballmer! "Developers, developers, developers!" - He is more than ready for institutionalization if you ask me, symptoms are clear, just watch youtube!

 

But don't expect Ballmer to resign anytime soon, he is surely very different from the Pope. lol

Also: There has been a list of potential successors to Ballmer as Microsoft CEO, however all have departed the company: Jim Allchin. Brad Silverberg. Paul Maritz. Nathan Myhrvold. Greg Maffei. Pete Higgins. Jeff Raikes. J Allard. Robbie Bach. Bill Veghte. Ray Ozzie. Bob Muglia. Steve Sinofsky.

Source of that info: Game of thrones: The men who would be Ballmer

Anyways, I wouldn't call Ballmer crazy. As some put it, "his energetic and exuberant persona is meant to motivate employees and partners".

 

The bad thing with Microsoft is that it sets "new standards" when it comes to "DRM". Activations for example became widespread and with limited number, after XP did it. Smaller vendors, not irrationally, thought "if Microsoft does it, why shouldn't i do it, after all, i am weaker financially than Microsoft".

Unfortunately, contrary to other software, that one can avoid, Microsoft's products more often than not, at some point become "unavoidable". There is one occasion that i will probably won't avoid it either (sigh), because it doesn't depend on me. But there is no way i m gonna pay the high fees MS wants, for a software that if tomorrows my motherboard is fried due to a PSU failure or a power surge during a thunderstorm, has its license invalidated. And i m not paying for time limited subscription either. Fortunately, in my university, professors use Office mostly from 2000 to 2007. I 'd better start looking at my options sooner rather than later.

The most preoccupying thing, is that this "type" of DRM, could become widespread to other vendors, exactly in the wave of "MS did it, people are familiar with it now, let's all do it".

 

This absolutely encourages piracy - for legit purchasers.

I do this often already. For example I have legit licenses for my Windows on my computers. But I use activators so I do not have to deal with MS each time I restore a snapshot, or reinstall the OS. I'd be insane not to.

I have some games that are 'device specific', meaning if I install it on my PC I cannot use it on my laptop. My solution is to download the torrent one, and use that - after I paid legit for it. There is always a workaround, and companies are punishing legit customers by doing this.

 

I really miss one name here in that list which would have comforted me with a glimmer of hope. -> Brutus.

Really? I know I wouldn't feel motivated?! Maybe You bet I'd crap my pants if this crazy ogre would be dancing around me. But I definitely wouldn't be motivated. - Except for giving notice of course, yes. - And then there is your list of names ... makes all sense to me?

 

Hilarious answer, thanks for the laughs.

 

VLK version do not suffer from this restriction.