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Few Takers For Microsoft's Settlement Cash 276

Posted by timothy from the there-would-be-these-hoops-see-to-jump-through dept.
Makarand writes "According to this article on SiliconValley.com very few claims have been received to claim money from a Microsoft antitrust settlement in California. Only about 4% of the estimated 14 million eligible California consumers have bothered to file a claim till now. The deadline for filing claims is officially April 28 but is likely to be pushed back into May or June. Either, consumers have found the claims process too confusing, time-consuming and discouraging to keep them from making a claim or they are waiting till the last minute to file(like taxes). According to the settlement one-third of the unclaimed money will be kept by Microsoft and the rest will be given to Californian schools."
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Few Takers For Microsoft's Settlement Cash More

Few Takers For Microsoft's Settlement Cash

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  • An easier way? (Score:4, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @09:33AM (#8928025)
    Weren't these guys [com.com] going to make it easier?
    • I think Microsoft got a court ruling that the way the users 'signed' the form on the lindows (now, Linspire?) web page wasn't legally binding (even though MS used it themselves) (sorry about the sig formatting - scratches head)

    • Re:An easier way? (Score:5, Informative)

      by StumpMan ( 176725 ) on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @10:33AM (#8928690)
      I receieved a settlement letter regarding the case with North Carolina.

      Basically, I had to take a day off work, go to the Courthouse in Raleigh, fill out several forms, and then wait about 6 months for a check for 10 dollars.

      Parking all day downtown will cost about 10 dollars, so I didn't see this as 'useful'.

      So I am not going to bother with all that nonsense.

      Any wonder why I run Linux now? Any takers? Anyone?

  • Lindows (Score:3, Insightful)

    by DaHat ( 247651 ) on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @09:34AM (#8928033)
    What's the point of filing a claim when we can't do so easily on the web to receive a free Lindows PC?

    • Re:Lindows (Score:2, Interesting)

      by TooLazyToLogon ( 248807 )
      I filed through Lindows, but a judge through it out. I'm refiling and when I get my vouchers, I'm sending them to LIndows. Just my way of helping Microsoft to help the Linux community.

    • Re:Lindows (Score:3, Insightful)

      by CriX ( 628429 )
      I might point out that Linux exists today in its current state because of its fan base.

      I just installed Linux (Mandrake 10.0) for the first time in my life last night. I can't believe I got all 2 gigs of this powerful/stable operating system for free! I'm totally humbled by the drive of the open source community.

  • Conspiracy 2.0 (Score:5, Funny)

    by Thunderstruck ( 210399 ) on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @09:34AM (#8928038)
    Or perhaps these folks are refraining because the fine print of the license for XP includes the following:

    "User agrees to indemnify Microsoft against any and all abuse of the legal system and will in no case whatsoever assist any governmnent, foreign or domestic, in levying sanctions against Microsoft."

    (I don't run it, but it wouldn't surprise me to see this in there.)

  • It is -such- a lie... (Score:5, Informative)

    by torpor ( 458 ) <ibisum AT gmail DOT com> on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @09:35AM (#8928043) Homepage Journal
    ... to say that "the rest of the 'money' will go to California schools".

    What will go to "California Schools" is 'boxes of Microsoft product', valued at the $-value for the settlement, by a team of accountants, lawyers, and auditors.

    This settlement is a sham. It is nothing but an easy seeding program for Microsoft market-share harvests in the 6-month to 1-year time frame, among a vulnerable and naive market (education), and Microsoft know it.

    • Re:It is -such- a lie... (Score:5, Informative)

      by swillden ( 191260 ) * <shawn-ds@willden.org> on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @10:27AM (#8928620) Journal

      What will go to "California Schools" is 'boxes of Microsoft product', valued at the $-value for the settlement, by a team of accountants, lawyers, and auditors.

      Mostly.

      The way the settlement is structured, 2/3 of the settlement not taken by consumers will go to California schools with lower-income student populations. The other third of the unredeemed cash MS just gets to keep. Of the 2/3 that goes to the schools, 50% is in the form of "General Purpose" vouchers, which can be spent by the schools on any computer hardware or non-custom software (including Microsoft software, at the school's discretion) and supporting I/T services. The other 50% will be in the form of "Software Vouchers", which can only be spent on MS software.

      So, if the schools really want to use the cash to buy non-MS stuff, they can. But the deal is set up so that they can maximize their benefit by buying MS. Obviously, if they choose to buy no MS stuff at all, they only get the spend 50% of the money. They're unlikely to choose to buy both MS and non-MS, because that means having two or more different kinds of systems to support and manage. The slickest part of it is the fact that they can use "Software Vouchers" to pay for any MS software bundled with PC hardware. So if they buy an $800 PC that includes a copy of Windows XP, they only have to spend $501 of their general-purpose money; the remainder is the retail price of XP and can be paid for with software vouchers.

      Even free software can't compete with that, because XP is only $50 or so of the $800 computer price. So to buy a Linux PC, the school woule have to spend $750 of their vouchers. The same situation applies to Apple hardware... even if Apple decides to sell them the hardware for rock-bottom prices and gives the software to them for free, schools will get less for their money for not going MS.

      So, at the end of it all, this $1.1B settlement is probably going to cost MS less than $300M in cash, *and* allow them to pump a lot of MS software into the schools.

    • If you look at Microsoft's market strategy over the last couple of decades, you really have to admire the genius that they have for forward thinking.

      By giving free software to school districts, they're just bringing up the next generation of MS junkies. Brilliant. They do similar things all the time.

  • Why claim Microsoft's money? (Score:5, Funny)

    by Jugalator ( 259273 ) on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @09:36AM (#8928060) Journal
    Everyone knows that silly Monopoly money isn't real!

  • I agree (Score:2, Interesting)

    by patrick.whitlock ( 708318 )
    i think that Bill Gates deserves every penny he's made over the years. but still even if the people don't claim their money 2/3 still go to the school system. better spent there i guess. does anybody happen to know how much money microsoft had donated to various schools over the years? im just curious

  • Logically... (Score:5, Funny)

    by JC-Coynel ( 250322 ) on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @09:38AM (#8928083) Journal
    Well I guess the process is too long, to heavy and they have no guarantee to get anything in the end.

    I guess that's why those people don't apply security patches either!

    --JC

  • There are three reasons (Score:5, Insightful)

    by medication ( 91890 ) on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @09:41AM (#8928128) Journal
    First would be ignorance. I would imagine that a majority of the people who qualify for this settlement do not know about it and it's not as if Microsoft is going to go out of its way to inform them.
    Second would be reality. To claim your settlement money you must produce your "Product Key number or Product ID number". Mind you these are your keys/ids from February 18, 1995 thru December 15, 2001. I don't know about you but those keys are long gone for me.
    Third is human behavior. Corporations have known for a very long time that rebates are a fantastic sales tool precisely because many people do not follow through and claim them. I have a strong suspicion that the same principal is at work here - be it laziness or something else.

    • More than that (Score:5, Insightful)

      by poptones ( 653660 ) on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @09:50AM (#8928215) Journal
      I actually have many of those PID numbers still here on my shelf from when we were filling the office with emachines picked up from officemax. And I filled out the lindows claim form just to check out lindows (couldn't get it installed on ANY of my computers but that's another story) but why would I waste time filling out this "rebate coupon" form? I have to download the damn pdf, print it, spend my time filling it out, stamping it, then waiting for the return of... a discount coupon for more Microsoft crap?

      Yeah... sssuuuuure.... I'm gonna do that right now!

      • a little OT, Were you trying to install Lindows on the eMachines computers mentioned above? If so i would recommend Fedora, which has worked beautifully on both my new eMachines computer (T2200se) and old one (533id2), although the 533id2 was heavily altered, a ton more RAM as well as a better sound card (The crystal audio integrated card sucked under windows, never tried it in linux).
      • They're on my shelf right next to my 10Mbps ethernet card, my NES, and my 2400 baud modem.

        And my gf said I should throw that stuff out! HAHAHAHA I'm getting free software now, wench! HAHAHAHAHAHA

        ...No, wait! Don't leave baby...but...but I...okay, you're right, I have plenty of software...yes ma'am, I'll throw it all away....
    • I don't know about you but those keys are long gone for me.

      I still remember mine! You can use them too if you like!

      111-1111111
      123-1234567
      1234-1234567

    • Re:There are three reasons (Score:5, Insightful)

      by Smallpond ( 221300 ) on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @10:01AM (#8928325) Homepage Journal
      Also, if you follow the link to webform.microsoftcalsettlement.com, you have to fill out a form to get the claim form. Then wait for the form. Then fill out the claim form and send it in. Then wait for the settlement.

      Note the privacy notice on the webpage. There isn't one. Who are these people? It doesn't say. What are they doing with the information they collect? What are the chances of getting a software audit if you fill out a claim form?

      Tinfoil hats available in aisle 3.
    • Fourth was a gross exageration of the amount of 'victims' by the plantiffs.

      Please, you may not like Microsoft, but you can't tell me you like phony horse-shit taxpayer dollar gobbling class action nonsense, do you?

      This isn't about helping Free software or punishing a bad corporation, this is some greedy lawyers using broken court system to extract revenue.
      • While it's possible that the plaintiff exaggerated, there are several reasons why money has gone unclaimed. The big one is simply this:

        It's a lot of trouble for not a lot of return. Microsoft technically owes me for a copy of Windows 2000 I purchased while in California. But since that's all I bought from Microsoft, it's hard to justify it as worth the trouble.

        A colleague of mine is head of IT for company and is owed far more than myself. Even he's too lazy to deal with getting a few bucks off of somethin

    • Re:There are three reasons (Score:5, Informative)

      by dixie_flatline_000 ( 770403 ) on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @10:20AM (#8928540)
      Have you seen the claim form? My brother-in-law was mailed one because he actually registered a copy of Windows while he was living in California. It assigns a certain voucher value to each Microsoft product (something like Windows - $16, Office - $26, DOS - $13, I don't remember the exact values), and you can claim up to $100 worth of vouchers without any proof (i.e., product ID's or license keys). Then, if you have license keys, you can list those on the form and claim vouchers for those too.

      Also, the vouchers you get are not for Microsoft products -- they're for any PC hardware or software. So once you get the vouchers, you can, for instance, buy a PC (for more than the total amount of the vouchers), then send the vouchers back to the claims adminstrator along with receipt and proof of purchase for the PC. Then they send you a check for the amount of the vouchers. (You can also use it for hardware/software you already bought, within a certain timeframe.)

      It's a pain in the ass, of course, but you can actually get a fair amount of money back from them. Especially if, hypothetically, you claim a fictional combination of products which comes to exactly $100 (and don't need proof of purchase), then claim whatever additional products you can dig up license keys for (as long as you've got the CDs in their original cases or envelopes sitting around the house somewhere in boxes -- the CD cases usually have the license key on them.) If one were to do that, one might wind up getting $200-300 back from them.
      1. Ignorance - I got some unsolicited bulk email from some company claiming to represent the interests of the Microsoft rebate class and saying that you could get a rebate from Bill Gates by filling in a form with lots of personal information and sending it to _them_. Yeah, right. Assuming that they *are* the correct company, they haven't given me a reason to trust them with that information, and they're encouraging other people to get in the habit of responding to other usually-fraudulent phishing spam.
      2. Re

    • Don't be fooled. Filing is very easy! (Score:5, Informative)

      by BrerBear ( 8338 ) * on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @10:48AM (#8928847)
      Wow, It's not that hard to file. I got maybe 4 forms sent to me already in the mail. I thought the deadline was long ago (mid-March), but it seems to have been extended to April 28.

      As long as you are filing for less than $100 reimbursement, you do not need to provide any product keys or proof. You just have to provide a list of what you bought, and most consumers will easily fall within the $100 limit and qualify for the standard (easy) form.

      In other words, fill out a form saying "I bought Windows 98 on or about this date" and you get a voucher.

      That's it. No proof necessary if your filing is under $100 and fewer than 5 products purchased. So get your forms, because time is running out! Go to the web site and request a standard claim form now.
    • Not true. You do not need your product key number unless you're claiming more than X refunds, and I forget what X is...5?

  • Really? (Score:5, Insightful)

    by blcamp ( 211756 ) on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @09:47AM (#8928185) Homepage

    consumers have found the claims process too confusing, time-consuming and discouraging to keep them from making a claim

    Well, DUH!

    Does anyone really think Redmond is just going to happily dispose of their $$$ and make it easy to do so at the same time?

    They didn't get to where they are now through stupidity.

    • Re:Really? (Score:5, Funny)

      by JaredOfEuropa ( 526365 ) on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @10:26AM (#8928613) Journal
      Does anyone really think Redmond is just going to happily dispose of their $$$ and make it easy to do so at the same time?
      Que Clippy: "It looks like you are trying to file a claim against Microsoft. Would you like to
      - Call a service rep to help you fill out your claim form 26B/6? (0.99c / minute)
      - Have your legs broken by Steve Balmer?
      - Have your claim paid out in Windows ME licenses at their retail dollar value?
      - All of the above?
    • They didn't get to where they are now through stupidity.

      Now, they got to where they are now largely because IBM didn't require an "exclusive" on MS-DOS when it put it on the first PC-XTs. Whether this was because Microsoft was "smart" or just "lucky" is open to debate.

      Luck, augmented by a hefty disregard for antitrust legislation, is what put Microsoft where it is today. It certainly wasn't by providing the features that end users wanted or by developing a bulletproof operating system.

      Let's take one c

  • Microsoft is a public company (Score:5, Interesting)

    by skidoo2 ( 650483 ) on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @09:48AM (#8928191)
    Microsoft is a public company. With millions of shareholders. That is, millions of owners. You want to own a piece of it yourself, and have voting rights regarding the company's future? Go buy a block of stock.

    I know I'll probably get modded down and get all kinds of bad karma for this, but I hate to see /. dominated by so much misplaced anger.

    Microsoft is not just Gates and Balmer. It is a voice for a large number of people. It's this voice that gives Microsoft the power it has.

    • Microsoft is not just Gates and Balmer

      No, it's a corporation that was found guilty in court. This isn't tinfoil-hatters whinging about ev1l M$ - it's slashdotter's complaining that a court settlement has been side-stepped.

    • I just had to (Score:3, Funny)

      by mericet ( 550554 )
      1) buy M$ stock
      2) post a /. comment suggesting others do the same
      3) profit
    • It's unrealistic because the vast majority of MS stockholders ARE MS stockholders because it's a money machine. They don't really care what MS does as long as the machine keeps printing money. It's also unrealistic because the amount of stock necessary to actually change anything amounts to tens of billions of dollars, and "we" will never accumulate that kind of capital.

      It's also been demonstrated to be ineffective, even if you hold millions of shares -- many major institutional shareholders (CALPERS, to

  • Or maybe... (Score:5, Insightful)

    by RupertJ ( 520598 ) on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @09:56AM (#8928263)
    Maybe people value their time more than vouchers? Seriously, how many mothers and fathers are going to take an hour out of a busy day (that they could be spending with their kids) to fill in paperwork to get some rebate on software if they decide to upgrade their system in the future?

    Fact is most families don't care if their box isn't secure, patched or running the latest media player 9.03848.8464a - They'll use it once or twice a week to mail grandma.

    Sorry Slashdotters, but people who upgrade enough to care about some freebie settlement vouchers ARE that current 14% of settlement takers.

  • Silly Me! (Score:2, Funny)

    by malia8888 ( 646496 )
    From the article Critics have charged that the claims process -- agreed to by a court -- is confusing and time-consuming, discouraging participation.

    Confusing? discouraging? time-consuming? Oh, this refers to the claims process. I thought they were talking about Windows OS's. Silly me!

  • Well, if they'd open it up to other states (ahem, PA), I'd be happy to claim some money. :)
  • California sues "for the people," but then the people don't file for the money. Perhaps that means that the people didn't care/don't care or didn't/don't feel like they were ripped off and thus don't see a need to file. Either way, it's kind of odd, since money is money....I'd want mine.
    • Either way, it's kind of odd, since money is money....I'd want mine.

      Is money still money when it's vouchers you have to buy more stuff to get? From the site: "People and businesses that are covered by the settlement can get vouchers that may be redeemed for cash after buying eligible computer products."

    • Indeed, just taking it as cash and putting it into something like public schools, or a property/income tax break would make more sense to me.

      I don't really know many people that would object to a tax break.

  • I was eligible and didn't file - here's why (Score:4, Interesting)

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @10:05AM (#8928373)
    I don't believe class-action lawsuits truly benefit anyone except the lawyers, who are the only ones that will receive any useful prize from the settlement. So let them get their money from Microsoft without my help, and if California schools get my $3.77, or whatever paltry fractional amount would have been sent, great, at least the money is being re-pooled into a useful amount again.

  • anybody gotta UPC?? (Score:3, Interesting)

    by malus ( 6786 ) on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @10:07AM (#8928390) Journal
    i'm in line for a refund on the MS products i purchased between the dates specified, but i can't seem to find UPCs from 1995(!)

    give me a break. this settlement isn't getting responses, because people don't keep receipts for software for 10 bloody years.

    MS gets away with it, again.

  • Like those rebates (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Smidge204 ( 605297 ) on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @10:13AM (#8928454) Journal
    It's almost like those rebate programs:

    1) Overprice your product and offer a rebate

    2) Bank on the fact that only a small percentage of customers actually mail in for the rebate, and do so correctly.

    3) Profit

    So MS's business model is looking more and more like:

    1) Do whatever you want and let others/the government file antitrust suits.

    2) Settle suits knowing almost nothing will be done to enforce/cash in on them

    3) Profit

    If Dubya wants to convince the public that the US economy is getting better, he should just designate litigation settlement income as a business sector instead of trying to classify burger flippers as "manufacturing jobs".
    =Smidge=

    • It's almost like those rebate programs:

      1) Overprice your product and offer a rebate
      2) Bank on the fact that only a small percentage of customers actually mail in for the rebate, and do so correctly.
      3) Profit

      Where is the missing

      #) ???

      step?

  • Apologies (Score:2, Interesting)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Even though I would like to see M$ft hurt in the purse, I am one of those who has NOT yet filed. I made 3 or 4 attempts to consolodate my 'evidence' of purchases, but at the expected payout rate, I realized long ago it was going to be way more cost effective (for me) to just return the pre-filled certificates. I know they do not reflect my actual purchases, and I am SURE I have more of the little holograms about than M$ft would EVER know about. It is simply a case where the Lawyers have made the hoops to

  • Figures. (Score:4, Interesting)

    by dj245 ( 732906 ) on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @10:14AM (#8928467) Homepage
    Few people ever recieve any sort of voucher or mail-in rebate from companies. I actually did get a rebate check for Flight Simulator 2000. The process was overly complex and long, leading to many people not bothering. It asked for receipts and bar codes some people might not have, or want to give up. You had to send in the original receipts, not a copy. The check had an expiry date, and there was such a small time allowance, that by the time I got it it had already expired.

    Companies bet on very few, if any, people actually getting money out of these things. I wouldn't be surprised if the beancounters calculated it out in advance to be 5% or so. There are so many hoops to jump through, and they are so high, that few people get through the maze of red tape. Why would any company make it easy for someone to suck "free money" in the form of a rebate or voucher away from them? Best to make it as complex and as hopelessly complex as possible.

    Normally I shun litigation as a solution to problems, but I think this area is a place where we could use some regulation. Things are so bad with rebates now that I wouldn't be surprised if cans of Tuna had rebates on them in the future, but cost $5 with $4 rebate. I know this is a little offtopic and Microsoft's situation is a little different, but their method of doling out their required settlement should be decided by someone with more common sense, not someone who wants to save the company the most money. I wouldn't be surprised if Microsoft actually pays out less than 5% of what they actually owe the people.

  • I for one dont want the rebate. (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Kenja ( 541830 ) on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @10:18AM (#8928518)
    I didn't bother to fill out the form they sent me because I don't agree with the settlement and in fact think that it sets a very bad precedence. I purchased Microsoft software because it performed a task or service that I was willing to pay for. At no point was I tricked or forced to buy the stuff. I agreed to the price when I paid for it, so I think it would be wrong for me to change my mind years after the fact. I paid more for Autodesk, Novell and Sun software but you don't see anyone demanding rebates from them. This whole thing just struck me as a bunch of greedy layers and consumers who saw an opportunity to get something for nothing.
    • Did you consider the fact that:

      1. Microsoft have lied about how well their products perform relative to the competition in order to gain more customers and artificially inflate the value of their products,
      2. Microsoft have deliberately engaged in tactics to make it impractical for people to use competitive products, thus reducing your choice in the market place, and
      3. Microsoft use illegal practices to artifically maintain a virtual monopoly on certain types of software (by leveraging OS dominance in order

  • It is possible... (Score:2, Insightful)

    by megaversal ( 229407 )
    It's possible that people feel that if they're lazy, the money will just go to the schools anyway, so why bother?

    Personally, I work for a California school system, and I figure if I don't claim it, I'll end up seeing (most of) it when it comes back to us and I can purchase needed supplies (and yes, you'll just have to deal with the fact that in general, schools are now primarily Windows-based, and more likely than not, we're going to pick up a few Windows licenses with that money).

  • Another option (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Zebra_X ( 13249 ) on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @10:26AM (#8928608)
    Seems everyone is saying that it's too time consuming or confusing - but maybe, just maybe, no one really cares.
  • California Schools all ready get free copies of Windows 2000 for donated computer equipemnt. As long as the equipment is less than a Pentium III and better than a Pentium 1. (Which is a fine computer for learning how to type on.)

    They also get deep discounts for Microsoft products. That's why none of the schools were elegible for this refund. They pay (approx) $45 for a full version of Microsoft Office 2003 Pro. And $52 for a full copy of Windows XP...

    What more can Microsoft do for the schools, that isn't
    • They pay (approx) $45 for a full version of Microsoft Office 2003 Pro. And $52 for a full copy of Windows XP... Linux is free, OpenOffice.org is free, Mozilla is free....

      Microsoft's school marketing program is about as altruistic as Phillip Morris putting low cost cigarette vending machines in high schools.

      It's demoralizing to see Microsoft drag out every anti-trust case, and when they're finally found guilty, and all appeals are eventually exhausted, weasel and squirm their way into a "settlement" th

  • Or they are not in agreement (Score:3, Insightful)

    by unixfan ( 571579 ) on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @10:55AM (#8928919) Homepage
    We got it here in Florida too, and I did not accept the money as I don't want to agree not to sue MS.
    One of the stipulations accepting the money is not to sue MS.
    Besides the pultry few dollars are not worth the hassle. The latter no doubt lies behind what is going on in California. The state settled, not it's constituants.
  • It's because to get the claim, you must have your windows 95 or 98 sales receipt, and cd key. It doesn't apply to windows XP. Who in the heck still has a sales receipt for windows 95?

    Scott
  • That's the problem. Spam filters. They get all these e-mails from the courts claiming easy money for free, and it's all filtered out.

  • Damned MS Conspiracy... (Score:3, Funny)

    by pigeon768 ( 589860 ) on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @11:21AM (#8929222)
    Of course, the claims form is "best viewed" in Adobe Acrobat 6.0.

    Which doesn't run on linux. Which means I'll have to go out, buy Windows and download Adobe Acrobat 6.0.

    Bastards! They got me everwhere I turn!

    • Which doesn't run on linux. Which means I'll have to go out, buy Windows and download Adobe Acrobat 6.0.

      Umm, doesn't Adobe release a version of the free Adobe Reader software for Linux? Failing that (and I just found it on their website with about 15 seconds of effort) couldn't you view it in Google with the PDF->HTML converter?

  • I'm still waiting (Score:2, Informative)

    by gphinch ( 722686 )
    I filed my claim in December and have yet to receive anything.

  • I've Given Up On A Legal Solution To This Monopoly (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Long-EZ ( 755920 ) on Wednesday April 21, 2004 @11:36AM (#8929414)
    I've given up on any legal solution. I suggest that any of us who don't like Microsoft products or marketing tactics spend a little more time converting users. Slashdot readers are routinely consulted by friends and relatives when buying or maintaining a PC. You know, 'cause we're geeks. My stock answer is now, "If you're surfing the net, sending email and word processing, let me introduce you to Linux."

    The Mac is a good option too. I pointed my brother in that direction several years ago and he hasn't needed any support from me since then.

    For anyone willing to change, and it's not that hard, they get the free hardware and software support they are accustomed to getting from me. But I'm not wasting any more time removing worms, reinstalling Windows every year when registry rot requires it, or cleaning up spyware. After a short period, I'm saving time, and so is the user.

    For now, I'm not trying to convert people who still need a lot of Windows-specific apps. They're phase II. But for most people, I'm now happy recommending Linux, and it's sufficiently mature that most people are happy using it. We've reached that important knee of the curve.

    Most naive users are surprised that they no longer have daily crashes, Outlook worms, etc. And they like the price, too. I think most non-geeks would be demanding a nice GUI Linux, but they simply didn't know that option existed.

    Microsoft is huge, mostly because in the DOS days PHBs made the purchasing decisions, and we know how technically astute they can be. The Microsoft monopoly is a market based problem, and there is a market based solution. If you don't like it, don't support it. Change the PC marketplace, one PC at a time.

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