Because geek is cool and clever

Hasta la Vista? February 23, 2007

I was somewhat amused to read comments made by Microsoft top boss, Steve Ballmer, about the initial sales – or lack of them – of Windows Vista.

Ballmer has had to admit that the initial sales predictions for Vista were ‘overly optimistic’. But does he offer any candid or insightful suggestions as to why the sales are so flat? Is it the relatively low-key launch of Vista? Perhaps is that when people see what Vista has to offer, they realise they are happy with their Windows XP set-up? Could it be that Linux is becoming a real and viable alternative to Windows? Perhaps the ludicrously high price – anything from £150 for the most basic upgrade to £370 for Vista Ultimate – might be putting us off taking the plunge?

No, none of these things are contributing to the low sales of Vista. The real problem, according to Mr. Ballmer, is with the age-old enemy of pirates, specifically those residing in India, China and Russia.

What’s particularly puzzling about this statement is that it seems to directly contradict Ballmer’s other claim that Vista is impossible to pirate.

The real reason behind Microsoft crowing about piracy is that it plans to step up Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA), the software that checks the validity of your copy of Windows. WGA is controversial and a bane to many because it can bring up false alerts, stating ‘You may be the victim of software counterfeiting’ when you’re clearly not.

Microsoft needs to realise that even if someone in China installs a pirated version of their software, it doesn’t necessarily relate to a lost sale.