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Saint Bill Gates has vowed to bannish spam! |
gelfen
Joined: Nov 22, 2003
Posts: > 500
From: Melbourne, Australia
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Cycovision
Joined: Nov 30, 2003
Posts: > 500
From: England
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I got to get me one of those keyboards 
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Cycovision
Joined: Nov 30, 2003
Posts: > 500
From: England
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Sorry to resurrect this totally garbage thread, but today there was good news for anyone who, like myself, has a deep pathalogical loathing of Bill Gates and his s****y company:
"Microsoft has been fined a record £331million by the European Commission.
The cash penalty was accompanied by orders to dismantle Microsoft's sales monopoly by no longer pre-installing the firm's Media Player with its Windows operating system.
The company was accused of breaching EU competition rules by "bundling'' its own software and other services with its Windows system.
That has made it difficult for other software manufacturers to compete - particularly as Microsoft has withheld the technical codes that allow Windows-based personal computers to work better with servers.
Microsoft said the information is its intellectual property and that offering a complete package is part of its commercial strategy.
The strategy has worked well - more than 90 per cent of personal computers worldwide run on Microsoft software.
Today's ruling in Brussels followed a four-year investigation led by Competition Commissioner Mario Monti, who said: "It is essential to have a precedent which will establish clear principles for the future conduct of a company with such a strong, dominant position.''
But the real battle has only just begun: Microsoft is appealing against the fine to the European Court of Justice and a final verdict could take five years.
Meanwhile, Microsoft will be seeking suspension of the Commission's order to start selling within 90 days a version of Windows without Media Player and to make available within 120 days the information other companies need to produce compatible rival server products.
Microsoft founder Bill Gates is furious that the EU is interfering when the firm is already subject to antitrust laws in America.
But Mr Monti said the company's commercial methods affect millions of European customers and must comply with European Union laws.
With a healthy bank balance estimated at nearly £40billion, Microsoft will not be troubled by the size of the fine, even if it is the biggest ever sought by the Commission against any company.
But the knock-on effect of changing the way Microsoft markets its products in Europe could be huge."
Yaaaahhooooo!! Suck on that, Billy Boy
Trouble is, it now looks like we're gonna get realplayer installed on our PC's against our will instead of windows media player  I think realplayer is probably the worst media player on earth.
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Vlammetje
Joined: Mar 01, 2003
Posts: > 500
From: Den Haag
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real player is the devil's spawn  and I'd rather not have ANY media player installed if realplayer is the only other alternative
still... good on the EU
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mixin
Joined: Jan 26, 2002
Posts: > 500
From: Notts, UK
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prefer not to use either 
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Jim
Joined: Jan 20, 2002
Posts: > 500
From: Belgium
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This is ridiculous, I agree about the part of "bundling" but the European Commision could simply ask to make a sort of option to install WMP or not during the OS install and not asking to make a new whole package of XP. How they gonna call it now ... Windows XP Lite ... give me a break.
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Cycovision
Joined: Nov 30, 2003
Posts: > 500
From: England
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@Jim
Very good point. I always thought that Microsoft were guilty of much worse monopolising crimes than simply bundling it's media player with windows, but maybe this at least marks the first step towards dismantaling Bill's thoroughly sickening empire. What amuses me is that windows media player is actually not that bad a program. From what I can gather though, WMP will still be included as an optional installation component upon installing windows.
@vlam
I agree entirely, realplayer is b****y awful. According to ZDnet, realplayer look likely to be the first to 'compete' for the free media player spot. I just hope that winamp gets a look in first!
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Vlammetje
Joined: Mar 01, 2003
Posts: > 500
From: Den Haag
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Gawd yes.... please please please winamp!! 
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cyanx7
Joined: Jan 02, 2003
Posts: 228
From: Porto, Portugal
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uuh... i love it when u express yourself like that, scorchy! 
The garbage man is happy as a young maiden losing virginity...  I GOTTA GARBAGE THREAD WITH MY NAME ON IT! YEAH!  Shithappens just became my blood brother and Bjerkebanen my blood sister...  |
Vlammetje
Joined: Mar 01, 2003
Posts: > 500
From: Den Haag
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gawd yes please please please cyanx?  (that just sounds all wrong )
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cyanx7
Joined: Jan 02, 2003
Posts: 228
From: Porto, Portugal
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oh, scorchy!...
The garbage man is happy as a young maiden losing virginity... I GOTTA GARBAGE THREAD WITH MY NAME ON IT! YEAH! Shithappens just became my blood brother and Bjerkebanen my blood sister... |
Cycovision
Joined: Nov 30, 2003
Posts: > 500
From: England
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Yeah, I wish my missus would get that excited about winamp. She certainly never does about me
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Vlammetje
Joined: Mar 01, 2003
Posts: > 500
From: Den Haag
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cyanx7
Joined: Jan 02, 2003
Posts: 228
From: Porto, Portugal
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that was something else, mr. vision!
The garbage man is happy as a young maiden losing virginity... I GOTTA GARBAGE THREAD WITH MY NAME ON IT! YEAH! Shithappens just became my blood brother and Bjerkebanen my blood sister... |
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Posted: 2004-01-29 07:51
ink p800:: 
urple t630:: 
