I have no problems with M$ licenses anymore because I personally build and upgrade my own desktop.

If I ever buy a desktop, I'll buy it from system76 and replace the pre-install ubuntu with either arch, slackware or freebsd.

Lucky for you. Here there is no System76 to buy laptops from. And when eventually a Windows-free notebook slips to the stock then the marketers warn you that this computer won't work without them installing "operating system" (they dont say which, it is expected to be obvious) for additional cost. Those netbooks usually are a bit cheaper though (esp. after being in stock for a while)

Windows cost on a PC when you subtract what the anti-virus company and other bloatware subsidize amounts to around 0$.

Installing Linux on a Windows PC or a "blank" PC is just as simple.

So why would PC manufacturers bother to ship PCs without Windows???

We'll have to agree to disagree on removing discounts then. ;)

As for the '$80', maybe, but unless the manufacturers are getting huge discounts then 16pides post couldnt possibly be true.

Heard that before, and I dont believe its true with no evidence. If you have any evidence to support that idea, I'm all ears.

I personally think that is just an internet meme that has never had any hard evidence, or even much in the way of 'soft' evidence. The idea doesnt make sense when you consider that people have got refunds for windows as well.

Just to share my experience, I bought an Acer Aspire One (A150L) in 2009 (I think).
That time was available this version with Linpus Linux Lite (which was erased the very next day ;) ) and another version with Windows XP Home which was 60 euros MORE expensive.
Perhaps this is all about off the record aggreements between M$ and manufacturers, about supporting hardware etc. But that's just my personal guessing.

AFAIK Acer does. In these cases, it loads LINPUS.

OK

I just build my own Desktops/Servers. If I need a Laptop, I take over the wife's and buy her a new one. (Still haven't converted her over yet.) That way I'm not out a license fee, but I still have that sick feeling of supporting MicroS$%@.

You are. You pay for Windows license to run Windows on that computer. The OEM licence says that you cant move the Windows to another computer. So when you take her old one, you throw away $89 Windows licence and buy $89 new one included in the cost of new computer, instead of moving the existing one

Even in this case, it would be better to buy a computer without OS + buy once a Windows retail copy that you are allowed to move to another computer (and by the way supporting the manufacturers and resellers of computers without Windows installed)

I know that sometimes OEM's will get a little bit here and there from manufacturers paying them to install trail versions of software, but thats usually just big OEM's the size of Dell and it never amounted to anywhere the cost of a windows license.

I have 4 laptops with OEM XP licenses on the bottom, my netbook and my wife's have xp running (dual boot on mine but never use it). My Latitude d620 and c400 both have XP licenses and I've managed to find 4 different Dell OEM instal CD's and not one of the 4 will accept any of the two keys on the bottoms of the two Dell laptops so I couldn't even reinstall windows if I wanted to on them.
I've seen the same issue recovering a crashed server, restore from backup and reboot and it complains its not activated. Thats one reason I run Linux, my software doesn't need activation and licenses to run.