s64421@zeus.usq.EDU.AU (house ron) (06/28/91)
Dear Bill Gates, I am writing this open letter to you in this forum because I feel the issue should be open to all who wish to comment. Let's pose a hypothetical situation: I have just bought a 2nd hand PC. It is a 'no-name' el cheapo, and I got it from a bloke whose honesty I wouldn't vouch for. It is loaded with DOS. Being an honest chap, I immediately reformat the disk to eliminate the bootleg DOS, & I pop round to my local computer store to pay my cold hard cash for a legit. copy. No Dice. I can get the upgrade, but that looks for an existing DOS & refuses to install. The bloke at the store tells me that YOU Mr Gates forbid him from selling me a bona fide full copy of DOS. YOU won't sell it to me either. I have two options: (a) Chuck away my computer. (b) Pirate a DOS from somewhere. Which do you suggest? -- Regards, Ron House. (s64421@zeus.usq.edu.au) (By post: Info Tech, U.C.S.Q. Toowoomba. Australia. 4350)
bobmon@iuvax.cs.indiana.edu (RAMontante) (06/30/91)
s64421@zeus.usq.EDU.AU (house ron) <s64421.678111933@zeus> : | | I have just bought a 2nd hand PC. It is a 'no-name' el cheapo, and I | got it from a bloke whose honesty I wouldn't vouch for. It is loaded | with DOS. Another common scenario: I purchase a case, a power supply, a motherboard, a disk controller, a disk (...a display card, a monitor, a keyboard...). How is this machine ever to get an initial legal copy of MS-DOS on it?
draper@buster.cps.msu.edu (Patrick J Draper) (06/30/91)
In article <1991Jun29.121501.12819@news.cs.indiana.edu> bobmon@iuvax.cs.indiana.edu (RAMontante) writes: >Another common scenario: I purchase a case, a power supply, a motherboard, >a disk controller, a disk (...a display card, a monitor, a keyboard...). > >How is this machine ever to get an initial legal copy of MS-DOS on it? I had the same problem. My solution was to scan the Computer Shopper until I found some place in Washington that sold it to me. They had it listed in a teeny tiny ad in the back for $85. I suspected that it was a bootleg copy sold without Microsoft's permission, but hey - I did my best to get a legit copy of DOS. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Patrick Draper "College is supposed to prepare you for the future, cps.msu.edu but all my future's behind me." draper@cps.msu.edu -- My GrandPa, age 85, Fall 1990 graduate of Western Michigan University ------------------------------------------------------------------------
gtoal@tardis.computer-science.edinburgh.ac.uk (06/30/91)
In article <1991Jun29.121501.12819@news.cs.indiana.edu> bobmon@iuvax.cs.indiana.edu (RAMontante) writes:
:s64421@zeus.usq.EDU.AU (house ron) <s64421.678111933@zeus> :
:|
:| I have just bought a 2nd hand PC. It is a 'no-name' el cheapo, and I
:| got it from a bloke whose honesty I wouldn't vouch for. It is loaded
:| with DOS.
:
:Another common scenario: I purchase a case, a power supply, a motherboard,
:a disk controller, a disk (...a display card, a monitor, a keyboard...).
:
:How is this machine ever to get an initial legal copy of MS-DOS on it?
Easy - don't buy Microsoft. Try Digital Research instead.