A while ago, I was told what the money used to buy windows was going towards but since my memory is like a stick of 8megs I've forgetten where it goes. From what I remember, it went (or some of it did) towards MS efforts to make all software close source (or something of the sort)...

I'm obviously wrong, I'd appreciate links to news or articles discussing the matter.




PS: I was trying to convince someone not to install windows XP on there pc and /was/ going to mention that but not without knowing wtf I'm talking about.



vexer

Some of it goes a hell of a lot of places. Where does your money go, just one place, or does it go like water through your fingers in a thousand different places?


It goes for R&D, it goes for FUD, it goes for marketing, it goes as payroll for the thousands of employees(yeah, what kind of unemployment numbers would come about from the destruction of MS that some people seem to want so badly?). It goes to kickbacks, it goes to groceries, and utilities...basically where every other companie's income goes.

I am sticking with Linux to avoid being treated like a criminal from someone who acts like a criminal when he sells me a defective product.

So you've never had a problem with your car or house? Never had any problems with refrigerators, your heating or cooling systems, your roof leaking.....

When I have my roof done, they sell me a leakproof product. It does what it says it will do. If it doesn't, they fix it for free, I am not told to pay for an upgrade to a better roof! I am not told that I can't sell my roof with my house or that since my certificate of roofing is missing, my roof has to torn off.

they also dont tell you you can only use it on one roof like windows! lol

?? I think what he was getting at is simply because for some reason people expect every OS that comes out to be bug free and that paying for something that has bugs is wrong all while failing to realize everything can have a problem. As for licensing each to their own. IMO there is not right or wrong licenses. They are the invention of those who own it to protect what they spent o working on it. If they wanta closed source one fine if they want open source thats fine too whatever it the owner wants. If you don't like it you don't buy it.

Bingo.

what the owner wants!!!

i might be wrong but didnt Bill Gates steel the code for windows in the first place!

might be wrong though

As far as I know he sold IBM a product he didn't own yet(dos), he stole concepts from Apple(who actually stole them from someone else IIRC), and he takes ideas from products that he likes and adds them to his own suite of products, or outright buys the other product's developers. In other words, he participates in every slightly immoral action that every other business owner does. As would I. I would sure as hell try to be the biggest and best company I could, anything less is not putting forth your best effort. You wanna bitch, bitch at every other company that does the same thing, don't be choosy. That's hypocritical. Hate ALL big business, or don't hate any.

i didnt say i was been bitchy i was just saying that i heard that bill gates stoll the code from another developer who had stopped developing it because it was flawed but bill still took it and got a patent on it befor the rightfull owner got the chance

thats what i heard as i say i could be wrong as it was i year or 2 ago when i heard it

Look, I don't mean to be down on you, but people fail to realize ALL the ramifications to things in the world. Everyone wants microsoft to go under, but they don't realize how many thousands of people that would affect. They complain about unfair business practices, not realizing that there are VERY few companies who don't do things the same way. Re: Microsoft, I don't really care, I'm not a fan, I'm not an enemy. It's just a tool I use. It's business. Bashing, either side, is just plain childish. Learn from them, become stronger, but never dismiss them. We NEED a microsoft, we NEED a linux, We even need a SCO. They all serve their purpose. And like him or hate him, people are going to look back on the 20th century and ONE name will stand the test of time. Bill "harvard drop out" Gates. He did more to propel the computer age than anyone else. He may be uncool, and obviously a dork....but we all owe him something.

i know what you meen as much as i dont like bill gates or his business stratagies you have got to admit they are good wether we like it or not

but can anybody conferm wether what i said is true or just a load of BS it would be good to know

I don't know about windows but I do know the early history of MS.

Computer Giant IBM started development on a Desktop Small home Computer otherwise known as the "PC". Sales were expected to be low. Due to legal limitations placed upon IBM because the government broke up their monopoly they were not allowed to sell software with their hardware so IBM searched out for the creator of CPM basically what DOS is. They found Bill Gates and Bill gates told the IBM representatives to see Gary Kildall (the creator of CP/M) He made them wait for two hours while his wife entertained them because he hated IBM so much he ignored them they finally left and went back to Bill and asked him to develop a similar OS to CP/M so he hired some Indian kid to reverse engineer it for $80,000 and then because IBM could not sell software they bought it on a per license basis from Microsoft and began production of the first PC's there was such a demand for them that IBM was caught unprepared they sold out in their first few weeks of sales and had to rush to produce more. So MS had the rights to the OS and IBM was paying royalties basically to Bill. The rest is history. Windows was as far as I know developed internally though over the years took elements from other programs but then everything does that I mean OpenOffice is like a spitting image of Office 97 so I mean yeah there is the history of MS.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft

In my opinion The owner of the software was given a fair chance he blew it off and Bill Gates got the rights

thanks for that its helped clear a few things up in my mind even if it hasnt anybody els