Original Genuine Windoze XP Pro for £37

[Tsung]

As reported on the register you can get windoze xp PRO for £37.

http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/4/23205.html

Its the "Student and Teacher License" version, which is excatly the same as the normal PRO version. Here is the link to action.com * who sell it.

http://www3.action.com/microsoft/cgi-bin/index.x6

Thats £37.67p :D

Just thought I'd bring it to all ur attentions, as I know there are a lot of students who use this messageboard.

* Disclaimer.. I am no way connected to action.com and have never bought from them before in my life.

[Dwarf_Pr0n]

Dabs.com, Amazon.co.uk, Jungle.co.uk also sell the teacher/student versions.
I think you can even buy them from Microsoft directly.

[KermitTheFrag]

they arent any good if you're not a student/teacher. they are empty media pakcs. you have to send them proof and they mail you the media.

[Jazza]

Kermit,

Read the article, it doesn't work like that any more :)

Originally posted by KermitTheFrag
they arent any good if you're not a student/teacher. they are empty media pakcs. you have to send them proof and they mail you the media.

[KermitTheFrag]

I stand corrected...

/me buggers off to dabs.com ... :D

[Sainteh]

if ur at skool all u gotta du is ask ur comp sci teacher to order you a copy and they will du for the student price... thats all i'm duing :D

[Nukes]

It's much better than the way they used to do it.

[Tsung]

yeah ur rite nukes, anyone can get it now :)

[Nukes]

It is simply less ****ing about for us. whether or not we are students it is still hard to obtain the heads signature on stuff like this.

[zhardoum]

AGHH!!

I hust tried to buy it, what a S-O-B!

Cant buy from action as I dont live in the Uk, dabs have a huge warning and then only offer an upgrade to WinME or 2k

Dixons dont have it

jungle dont have it

Simply computers dont have it

Amazon dont have it

Here I am sat with credit card and salivating like mad, and can I find anywhere online that stocks it and will sell it to me, can i buggery!!.


Anyway, I rang my father, who offered to buy it for me as a Xmas present, and use the grandkids details if they get funny.!

Top one, he rang back to say it was ordered, due to xmas may be here in 2 weeks or so, but what the hell

Top ONE!!

and my father went on to say they didnt ask wether it was for a student, didnt mention anything at all, apart from is the delivery address home or business, which in my dads case weas home address..

Absolutely brilliant, be with my folks tues or weds next week, with me ten days later :(

[Tsung]

zhardoum, thats a beer you owe me then? :D

[zhardoum]

Reckon it is m8, next time your in Ibiza look me up :) :) :)

or whenever I make it to an MPUK event next, I am hoping to make at least 1 event a year now, funds and time allowing..

[Idylla]

I'm quite interested in purchasing WindowsXP, however if i do purchase it, i dont want to install it. Well at least not the CD that microsoft give me. I'd much rather install a cracked copy with activation removed for my personal use on my machine. Because i dont turst microsoft in the slightest and upgrade my pc FAR too often. Now if i do this where does it leave me legally, i mean, on the desk infront of me i will have a ful copy of WindowsXP Pro, yet my copy on my pc will be cracked (but still using my Product Key)...

Is this Legal?

Can it be done?

Dunno myself, i can't see anything wrong with it tbh.

Thoughts?

DtK

[wishy]

I'm not convinced. TBH, i've never cracked a copy of winxp, they've all always been the corp edition. Is there even a crack?

[Idylla]

when using the word "Crack" i'm referring to:

If i took the image of the xp cd, and created a corporate version using corp files and then reburnt it. (goodbye activation and all other microsoft call home signs)...

Or would this then be a different product as such...


gah ...

surely its gotta be better than having no copies of any license at all

[wishy]

Well i somehow doubt that you'll get marched to fort richmont (MS HQ) for execution for software piracy for it.

[Nukes]

there is a file that allows you to choose whether when you install it will ask you what sort of key you will use, OEM Retail or Corp. then you can get a corp key easily and just stick the Retail sticker on just so it doesn't look dodgy. that shouldn't be illegal as you have still purchased a licence for the OS. It probally will be though.

[WhiteKnight]

Can i just point out that, although the XP Student edition comes with the CD and gubbins.. You arent legally entitled to use it until you register it as a student, and even then its only for a year or 2..

If you go and buy this, and FAST just happened to knock on your door (very unlikley, but this is hypothetical) then you would get done for using ilegal software.

You might as well just pir8 it in the first place and save the £40 quid.

I`m not advocating piracy, i`m pointing out the flaw in this plan.


EDIT: Also, if you get a copy, you could get the Corporate one without the product activation crap as DTK said, and save your self some hassle too.

[Tsung]

Thanks Whiteknight, maybe I didnt make it THAT clear in the original post. Yes its the students edition, and thus so you have to be a student/teacher to legally buy/use it.

Upon saying that, how would FAST check to see if you were a student at the time of your purchase?. If I bought it now, and finished college in summer, would I be using illegal software after summer?

If I go on a training course for a week, at the end I get a regonised qualification, can I purchase the software whilst on the course?, what if I buy it, but dont recieve it until after the course, am I then breaking the law installing it ??

Tis a legal minefield, one I dont think FAST would be too happy treading.

Obviously, If I buy 10 copies and installed them at work, for work use, then I'd be blatently ignoring the licence agreement.

As for only being able to use it for a year or two, does that really matter?. MS are going to release a new OS in a couple of years, you'll end up buying that one.

Also year or two might not be true, if you have a child who has just started school (they qualify). They will be students for the next 10 years. My friend is a teacher, he qualifies, he could be a teacher for the next 20 years.

I know a lot of students who cannot afford the full asking price of XP. Even the update price (£150+ for xp pro) is very expensive. Micro$oft arnt shouting about this offer, there will be a lot of students who have already purchased XP.

Btw, if you purchase XP PRO (upgrade or full, not student) before 31/01/2002 you can get a £50 rebate from microsoft. Check out microsoft uk website for details. (again something else they dont shout about!).

Oh, heck, here is the direct link for the £50 cashback offer..
http://www.microsoft.com/UK/windowsxp/pro/howtobuy/offer.htm

[WhiteKnight]

1) I think (dont quote me) you are only legally entitled to use the student license all the time you are a student.

I.e. end of exams or course = end of license.


2) I think you have to renew the license every year or two to stay legal (assuming you are still using the same software). So your kid who might be in education for 10 years, would have to re-apply for a license every 1 or 2.. but i think this is just a new piece of paper and is free...


3) I dont think you are allowed to upgrade from a student copy, due to the fact that it is a restricted use license, so you would have to buy a copy of Win XP 2003 (or whatever), all-be-it the student version, to remain legal.


Like you say tho, its a legal minefield. In the real world, you`ll never get checked unless you are a company, or selling the Student licenses to normal punters.

Home users could quite happily buy this and get a nice shiny original cd and manual, and be content with the fact they have short changed the richest man on the planet. :D

[zhardoum]

As far as I can tell, and having sent an email to the regsiter to check, the Student Version is EXACTLY the same as the full upgrade version except the CD itself has student stamped all over it.

Once the product is registered that is, it is unlocked, it isnt time restricted nor locking in any other way.

In other words, once you have it and loaded it and gone through product activation, thats it.

As to the legality we could argue that for years.

In January Microsoft are changing this again, in a sense its a limited offer, buy now or miss out.

The hardest part was getting the CD and the activation key, now that for a short while the cd is available without needing MS blessing, grab it whilst you can.

The Product is the same exactly as the one costing over £100 more, its just for students only.

[WhiteKnight]

Yes, exactly..

When i said I think you have to renew the license every year or two to stay legal I meant that the paper expires, not that the software stops working.

I`m not saying its a different OS, or different software on the CD.
I`m just saying the licensing says you cant do it.

And if you do, you are being ilegal.


So if you are gonna be ilegal, you may as well get the pirate version and save yourself £40.

Its a bit like Linux.. If you buy the RedHat distribution from the shop for £40, you get nothing that you couldnt download off the web except a nice box, a manual, and a CD.

Except the Redhat CD would be legal. :D

[zhardoum]

Agh, but then with a pirate copy there is no guarantee it will work, or that the thing wont lock up after 3 weeks, at least £40 is better than nothing to MS, and give you the user a little safety net.

Who knows may even get MS to lower their prices in future, if 100,000 people bought XP student edition in a week, I am sure eyebrows would be raised, hopefully some good may even come because of it!.

It may sound like the stupid comment of the year award, but I'd rather have a half legal copy of something than a completely illegal something, especially when the difference between being non legal and 100% is £40 or £170+

I can afford £40, £170 is another matter.

[WhiteKnight]

This is true.

But a corporate version would most likely (in my experience) come from a mate, of a mate, of a mate who works at <insert large corporate with select licensing agrreement here>. It is therefore from a fairly reliable original, as opposed to the dowloaded ones that could contain many virii, and bugs, and errors.

I suppose it all depends on where you draw the line..

I think i`ll draw mine here :D

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[D2M]

I *found* a corporate version of XP Pro, and installed it on my laptop. It's worked fine for the last few months.

/me sticks two fingers up at Microsoft - FU for even asking for £40 u American Neo-Nazi scummers!