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SP3 Licensing Controversy is No Controversy | |
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| Time: 13:45 EST/18:45 GMT | News Source: WinInformant | Posted By: Julien Jay | ||
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An uninformed complaint about the End User License Agreement (EULA) for Windows 2000 SP3 is making the rounds this week, spreading some mistruths about information Microsoft is allegedly collecting after you install the patch. According to the complaint, the SP3 EULA gives Microsoft the right to collect your OS version number and Product Identification number, Internet Explorer version number, version numbers of other software, and the Plug and Play ID numbers of hardware devices. This, the complaint says, is sneaky, underhanded, and any number of other adjectives you'd care to add to the list. The truth, as ever, is far less fascinating. First, this information is passed to Windows Update so that the service can provide the correct product updates for your individual system. But the EULA clearly states that this information is not saved, or passed along to Microsoft. It's just collected for an obvious (and desirable) reason. "Windows Update does not collect your name, address, e-mail address, or any other form of personally identifiable information," the EULA reads. "The configuration information collected is used only for the period of time that you are visiting the site, and is not saved." |
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Read Only Comments Return to News |
Displaying Comments 1 through 7 of 7 |
This is an archived static copy of ActiveWin.com. |
| #1 By 2332 (165.247.7.23) at Sunday, August 04, 2002 03:16:42 PM |
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Anybody wanna take any bets on whether or not Slashdot actually posts this follow up article?
I don't think I can remember Slashdot EVER posting anything that contradicted an anti-Microsoft article they had previously posted. After all, Slashdot is about Microsoft MISinformation, not information. They have an agenda to push, and journalistic integrity is not in their lexicon. |
| #2 By 2332 (165.247.10.121) at Sunday, August 04, 2002 05:12:22 PM |
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#2 - This forum may be more pro-Microsoft than anit-Microsoft, but the site is not. ActiveWin posts the good and the bad, and we comment on it.
Slashdot posts only the bad (as far as MS is concered), and the forums there then follow up with more MS bashing. Personally, I'm happy to defend what I believe in, and am equally happy to change my opinion if you provide me with evidence to the contrary. ActiveWin provides me with both sides (for the most part), Slashdot does not. That's the difference. |
| #3 By 2332 (165.247.10.121) at Sunday, August 04, 2002 06:38:42 PM |
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#9 - Well, rarely a day goes by when there isn't an anti-Microsoft post there.
It is also the number one place where "techies" get their information. In other words, Slashdot is to tech-news what Rush Limbaugh is to political news. Both are irresponsible, often knowingly deceive their audiences, and are almost never checked. I even invented a game where you go to any random Slashdot news post (no matter the subject), go to the forum for that post, and search for something about Microsoft. 9 times out of 10, as long as you flatten the posts (so you see most of them), you will get a hit, which equals a point. You use the ratio of searches over points to figure out who wins the game. You must search at least 10 articles. The lower your score, the better. It's a lot of fun... oh, and be sure to search for Microsoft derivatives, like "MS", or "M$", or "MicroSloth" or "Micro$oft", etc. Have fun kids! |
| #4 By 135 (208.50.201.48) at Sunday, August 04, 2002 06:40:31 PM |
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mrhicks - Explain to me why I should care? Why should I care that Microsoft finds out the version of Windows Media Player on my machine when I request patches?
Can I get my car fixed at the dealership without them knowing what kind of car I have? You should me an auto mechanic who can do that and I'll buy you lunch. It seems to me before getting your undies all in a bunch you should first sit down and understand exactly what your position is. The truth doesn't lie in the middle if you are wrong, which is usually the case with slashdot. This type of system is in place for other software packages. Provide a list. I know with RedHat I had to subscribe to their service, which is far more intrusive than what Microsoft does. |
| #5 By 931 (24.98.84.138) at Sunday, August 04, 2002 08:14:53 PM |
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Ok yup I buy that explaination.. However I dont by that they are not saving any information at all. I'll almost gurantee they are saving.. at least temporarly for statistical purposes your ip or installation key (maybe actually just your productid..) date, and what was updated.
The'd actually have to at least save this for reporting \ usage anyasys reason if maybe only on a month to month basis.. as you are correct the data base would get quire large..but then again.. christ it's microsoft...what's the big deal about another 10gig database.. I'm sure it's not taking stock of anything personal.. but I sure as hell bed it's being used behind the scene for statistcal reasons.. ie.. quick quickly they could determin how many people have installed the os with the same key etc... or how many people run a particulare part id. ie.. they could see that there are 900,000 msdn versions of server out there updating and that there are only 100,000 msdn members.. etc..etc.. course it's not anything they already could not figure out.. but it would produce alot more acurate data. Just think.. at a minimum there gonna need to know howmany people are using the dam thing. |
| #6 By 135 (208.50.201.48) at Sunday, August 04, 2002 09:34:18 PM |
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Knighthawk - "However I dont by that they are not saving any information at all. I'll almost gurantee they are saving.. at least temporarly for statistical purposes your ip or installation key (maybe actually just your productid..) date, and what was updated. "
Ok. But my question is still... Why should I care? "but I sure as hell bed it's being used behind the scene for statistcal reasons" Well that's certainly no reason to care. |
| #7 By 2 (12.226.195.102) at Sunday, August 04, 2002 11:37:27 PM |
| Thanks for the comment RMD. :-) |
