[Infowarrior] - Windows adds 'maybe pirate' category

[Richard Forno]

Windows adds 'maybe pirate' category

By Ina Fried
http://news.com.com/Windows+adds+maybe+pirate+category/2100-7355_3-6162734.h
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Story last modified Wed Feb 28 04:58:57 PST 2007


Until recently, Microsoft's antipiracy technology was pretty decisive:
either your copy of Windows was genuine or it wasn't.

With a software update this week, however, Microsoft has added a new "Yellow
state" for times when it just can't tell whether a copy is legitimate.
According to Microsoft, the new indeterminate reading can occur, for
example, when a local error or network error prevents the validation check
from being completed.

The message is part of a controversial add-on to Windows XP, known as
Windows Genuine Advantage Notification, which tells users whether Microsoft
believes their copy of Windows to be legitimate. Validation is required for
most Windows XP downloads, though users can still get automatic security
updates. With Windows Vista, some features won't work at all unless a
machine is validated as genuine.

For machines that get the new "maybe pirate" reading, a window pops up that
says "unable to complete genuine Windows validation." Encountering the new
reading does not limit a user's ability to download additional software, as
is the case when a computer fails validation.

A user can "click to see more details and address the problem, ignore the
messages, or suppress them altogether," Microsoft said in a statement.

Microsoft said it hoped the new state would lead to better experiences for
customers. "If a system or network error prevents an accurate status check,
Microsoft wants customers to know that and have the option to fix the
problem," Microsoft said. "We have seen many instances where the failure to
complete validation is masking other system problems that users should
attend to.

The change was noted earlier by technology site