Microsoft Sued For Not Giving Windows Refunds

By DustinPosted on

Microsoft is getting sued, again, for not being nice and giving refunds to those who purchased a PC that came with Windows and they didn’t want it. As far as I know, Microsoft didn’t sell the PC in the first place, didn’t force the OEM to include Windows, and didn’t force the end user to buy the PC with Windows included.

If I buy a Blu-ray player that comes with a couple Blu-rays in a package deal, and don’t want the movies, can I sue the movie studio for not refunding me the money on the package I bought from the store?

Let’s see how long it takes before this is laughed out of court. I meant dismissed.

Furthermore, the group says consumers who buy computers with OEM copies of Windows installed have more difficulties in getting a refund than those who purchased a retail copy of the OS. The lawsuit notes that users who buy and install the OS itself, but that don’t agree to the EULA, are entitled to a return from the place where they bought it. OEM buyers, however, are at the whim of their system seller or installer for a refund, which has historically proven to be a difficult process, it says.

Microsoft Welcomes Jailbreak

By DustinPosted on

Microsoft has given GeoHot, a notorious hardware hacker that has hacked the Playstation 3, permission and a Windows Phone 7 to go ahead and try to jailbreak the phone without any legal repercussions. This is good news towards enabling hobbyists to do what they do best. I  have seen some major innovations come from the hobby scene, which rivals anything that has come from the larger companies. Take XBMC for example. People wanted media center capabilities in their Xbox, and it happened. Several years later, the Xbox 360 was introduced with the functionality.

Microsoft has been responding well to hackers recently, initially they wanted to press charges against the Kinect hackers but quickly changed their minds. They are now supporting Windows Phone 7 hackers as well, maybe they have finally decided that it may be more beneficial to everyone to help foster innovation in their devices rather than fight it.

Windows 8 January 2013?

By DustinPosted on

So called “trusted” Russian leaker, WZOR, has said that Microsoft has an internal document that Windows 8 is to be released January 7th, 2013 with betas released before then. I’d definitely take this with a grain of salt, as the “trusted” source has been wrong before.

    • Windows 7 and Server 2008 Service Pack 2 has been worked on since the fall of 2010, and is expected to touch down if all goes well sometime in mid-2012.
    • In March, Windows 8 M3 development will commence.
    • Following M3, work on the first Windows 8 beta will begin; according to WZOR, Microsoft will release two public beta milestone builds in Windows 8′s development.
    • After the second beta, the RC will be worked on then released.
    • Approximately three months after the RC, Windows 8 will reach RTM.
    • And of course, following RTM, it will hit the store shelves and reach the general availability (GA) phase of development, which WZOR states will happen on Monday, January 7th, 2013.

Gaming News

By DustinPosted on

After 14 years in development and pushbacks, Duke Nukem Forever has been promised to be released May 3rd of this year. Whether or not this is going to happen or not is still up in the air. With so many promises of being released and then nothing, I’m not getting my hopes up. I was excited a decade ago, not too sure about it anymore.

Bethesda has announced the new game engine for it’s upcoming Elder Scrolls V game, Skyrim. With beautiful screenshots, and usual amazing gameplay, I’m looking forward to this game. I can’t wait to see what else this game engine can pump out.

Change Processor Name in System Properties

By DustinPosted on

Using a registry hack, you can change the name of your CPU to what you desire? Want the latest and greatest, or at least bragging rights to claim so? Check this out.

CPUName

Open Regedit, navigate to HKEY_Local_Machine > Hardware > Description > System >Central Processor. If you have multiple cores, you will need to choose 0. You can modify the “Processor Name” string to the name you choose.

CPUNameReg

Microsoft Finds Culprit in WP7 Data Issue

By DustinPosted on

Microsoft has found the culprit in the Windows Phone 7 issue of the mysterious data transfer happening without the users knowledge. Turns out, it was a third party application doing all the transfer. Of course, all fingers were pointed at Microsoft for the fault of the problem.

We have determined that a third-party solution commonly accessed from Windows Phones is configured in a manner that potentially causes larger than expected data downloads. We are in contact with the third party to assist them in making the necessary fixes, and are also pursuing potential workarounds to address the configuration issue in case those are needed. At this point in our investigation, we believe this is responsible for most of the reported incidents.

Microsoft Executive Creates Cologne

By DustinPosted on

A Microsoft VP of Sales has decided to broaden his scope of sales. He has created a perfume and cologne that smells like money. While this may be cool to some people, I certainly wouldn’t want to attract the gold digger types out there. At least musicians can come out with something useful: liquor (Cabo Wabo, among many others).

Patrick McCarthy, a vice president of sales at Microsoft, took a break from his day job to create His Money Cologne and Her Money Eau de Parfum, a line of his-and-hers fragrances that are designed to make the wearer smell like a million bucks — or more, depending on how much you put on.

Xbox 360 Update Locks Out Pirates

By DustinPosted on

Microsoft quietly let out an update today to fix a problem that they created in a November update: the ability to Boot to disc. In the process, they also have disabled the ability to play pirated copies of some games. While I don’t approve of piracy, the ability to backup your bought software has always been an issue.

The update is mandatory and Xbox 360 owners will be prompted to update the next time they sign-in to Xbox LIVE. Microsoft has also blocked some popular flashed firmware disc drive modifications with the update. Pirates typically flash their DVD drives with modified firmware to bypass Microsoft’s game security checks.”Anti-piracy 2.5″ is the software giant’s latest attempt to thwart console pirates. According to nearly 200 posts on a popular Xbox 360 moding forum, pirates are having a number of issues loading games after the mandatory update.

Ballmer Says Xbox Isn’t A Gaming Machine

By DustinPosted on

Steve Ballmer says that the Xbox isn’t a gaming machine… Seriously? True, you can do so much with an Xbox: Netflix, Hulu, Facebook, chat and tons more. However, I look at it first and foremost a gaming machine. I really can’t imagine someone buying an Xbox 360 just for the media aspect. The PS3 used to be the best, lowest cost Blu-ray player out there, which made it something more and gave reason to buy it for something other than gaming, but not the Xbox. Sorry, Steve. It’s a gaming machine.

Q: You sold 8 million Kinects over the holidays, more than you expected. What differentiates it from other gaming consoles on the market?

A: Xbox isn’t a gaming console. Xbox is a family entertainment center. It’s a place to socialize. It’s a place to watch TV. We have Hulu coming. It’s the only system where you are the controller. Your voice, your gestures, your body.