Will Microsoft sell me installation disks for my OEM version?

  • Thread starter Thread starter PTravel
  • Start date Start date
Beck said:
This method of installing Vista by companies has been going on a long
time. I am sure if it were illegal, other lawyers would have spotted it by
now.
Click to expand...

It's not a question of whether the method of installing Vista is illegal,
but whether marketing a product as, "coming with Vista" (or whatever it was
that Sony said) is misleading and, therefore, illegal.
 
D. Spencer Hines said:
Good Advice!

That hidden partition is going to take how much wasted space on the HDD --
for Vista Ultimate?...
Click to expand...

On my machine close to 7 gig. I can't figure out anyway to unlock the
partition without doing a complete re-install.
Space that could otherwise be used for data.

One needs to take that into account when buying a HDD.
Click to expand...

Yes, another surprise that Sony didn't disclose pre-purchase. I bought my
laptop with a 100 gig drive, based on my usage requirements for my previous
machine as well as the amount of space that Vista needs. If I knew that 7
gig would be sacrificed in this fashion, I'd have bought a 120 gig machine.
 
Dave B. said:
See my reply to PTravel. Slipstreaming is not possible for you as you
don't have install media, and there is nothing to slipstream even if you
did.
Click to expand...

I hate to say it, but I wonder if I should just buy a "pirate" Vista DVD? I
have a legitimate key, of course, that entitles me to use the software under
license from Microsoft -- I would never install pirated software for the
purpose of stealing license rights from Microsoft.
 
Yeah, but you know how lawyers are...
Sorry PTravel, couldn't resist, not a shot at you personally :)

--
 
I don't see how it could be, if it says it comes with Vista and Vista is
installed on it, how is that misleading? It doesn't state that it comes with
a Vista CD or media, so I don't see how it is misleading unless the
purchaser is making an assumption or thinks that it "should" be included.


--
 
Well, there are plenty of places to download the Vista ISO, or even if you
made a copy of a friends Vista CD, if you use the product key Sony provided
you have a valid installation, that is what I would do in your case.

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Reading all the replies to this post, I find Scott's reply the most
beneficial. In part he said:

Buy a copy of Acronis True Image Home v10 ($29.99 @ Newegg.com).

Uninstall all the crap you don't want.

Install Acronis.

Burn a disk image to DVD.

Even with a Vista disk, it's the best way to go.


Once you have your computer set up "just like you want it", burn the DVD
image. This will allow you to reinstall all your software, drivers, etc.
exactly as it was the day you burned the DVD... You can also burn DVD
periodically as your data changes to keep the image "up to date". This
actually serves two purposes, one to allow a complete restore of your total
system, and two, you have a backup process to protect your data....

NOTE: Sony also includes in it restore process on the hard drive, all of
the drivers, software, etc. that are needed to allow your computer to
operate... You will loose those if you use a "retail" version of Vista, thus
causing you more grief, having to find and install them after installing
Vista"retail" version from the disk you hope to find......

I have made "images" of my hard drive for years, and the image can be
restored without issue, and I don't have to spend hours upon hours loading
software, drivers, etc....

I hope you find a resolve to your frustration, just wanted to give you a
little more info to add to your decision making process... The more knowledge
we have the better decisions we can make.....

Good luck
 
Yes... Makes Sense -- 120 GB drive vice 100 GB.

I'll bet the Vista ULTIMATE hidden partition takes up more than 7 GB.

What do you do if your HDD crashes and you lose everything, including the
hidden partition?...

Go begging to Sony?...

Or buy another Vista Business at full price?

Dell gave me XP Pro SP2 discs with this machine -- but I've been led to
understand they have stopped doing that.

We have all of this heartburn and PITA because of software thieves and
pirates who didn't follow the previous simpler rules and a wacko Supreme
Court that socked it to Microsoft, just because they were better at what
they did than anyone else.

The Honest Suffer.

DSH
 
I also noted that you have VISTA BUSINESS installed... within this software
there is a "Complete PC Backup and Restore" feature (which I use) that will
allow you to make a complete backup of your entire hard drive to either DVD
or another hard drive (internal or external). You then can "restore" your
complete system as needed. This may be your best solution.

NOTE: I have used this feature to both backup my hard drive and to restore
it, and it worked great. Once I got the system "just like I wanted it", I
did a Complete PC Backup to another hard drive, thus giving me the security
of a complete copy of my system and data, and giving me a way to restore my
complete hard drive, software, etc. in one action.....

Good luck
 
Your Product Key may or may not work with the CD.
It depends a lot on how Sony made their CDs.
It also depends on how the OEM Product Keys work with an OEM CD from other
than Sony.
So far, there is little data with vista and many make assumptions based on
Windows XP.
Personally I hate assumptions.

Also using some of the less than legitimate workarounds may cause problems
so they are not recommended.
 
Dave B. said:
Yeah, but you know how lawyers are...
Sorry PTravel, couldn't resist, not a shot at you personally :)
Click to expand...

No problem. Unfortunately, I do know how lawyers are. ;)
 
Dave B. said:
I don't see how it could be, if it says it comes with Vista and Vista is
installed on it, how is that misleading? It doesn't state that it comes
with a Vista CD or media, so I don't see how it is misleading unless the
purchaser is making an assumption or thinks that it "should" be included.
Click to expand...

As I said, I need to look carefully at what Sony Style said. However, the
touchstone for evaluating advertising claims is always the expectation of
the "reasonable consumer." As a consumer who has (1) bought laptops from
Sony before, (2) was aware that OEM versions of the product are provided on
disk, and (3) knows computer OSs well enough to know that there are times
when it is necessary to repair the OS (or components of it) from the
original installation disks (and, of course, Microsoft builds that
capability in), my expectation was that I would receive installation disks,
and I think that expectation was reasonable.

If Sony's literature clearly indicates that installation disks are not
provided than I (and other reasonable consumers) would be SOL. If, however,
it doesn't, then I think Sony has a problem. The question is, if so, how
much of my time, energy and money do I want to resolving it? If, in fact,
Sony's marketing is misleading, it might be interesting simply to sue in
small claims court for the cost of a new copy of Vista Business -- quick,
cheap and painless and nothing to lose but a small filing fee and an
afternoon off work.
 
Dave B. said:
Well, there are plenty of places to download the Vista ISO, or even if you
made a copy of a friends Vista CD, if you use the product key Sony
provided you have a valid installation, that is what I would do in your
case.
Click to expand...

More and more, I think that sounds like a good solution. It's a darn shame
that neither Microsoft nor Sony are willing to provide an appropriate
vehicle for solving this issue. I know, for reading the various forums,
that I'm not the only one who feels burned by this. Microsoft has a
legitimate interest in stopping piracy of its software. Taking the approach
that the only way I can get install disks for my fully-legal, genuine and
authorized OS is to resort to the pirates is certainly not going their
cause.
 
NOTE: Sony also includes in it restore process on the hard drive, all of
the drivers, software, etc. that are needed to allow your computer to
operate... You will loose those if you use a "retail" version of Vista,
thus
causing you more grief, having to find and install them after installing
Vista"retail" version from the disk you hope to find......
Click to expand...

That's a very good point. Sony posts some of the drivers on its website.
However, that's all the more reason to allow a "repair existing
installation" option from install disks. Microsoft did this with XP and, I
assume, did it with Vista as well.

I have made "images" of my hard drive for years, and the image can be
restored without issue, and I don't have to spend hours upon hours loading
software, drivers, etc....
Click to expand...

It looks like this is a habit I will have to pick up.

I hope you find a resolve to your frustration, just wanted to give you a
little more info to add to your decision making process... The more
knowledge
we have the better decisions we can make.....

Good luck
Click to expand...

Thanks. I appreciate it.
 
DevilsPGD said:
In message <#[email protected]> "PTravel"


Spending above the cost of buying an OEM license on litigation would
probably prove you really are a lawyer to anyone in this newsgroup who
doubts it.
Click to expand...

There are two ways to approach something like this. A small claims suit for
the cost of a new copy of Vista Business takes no time and costs about $100
or so. Then, there is always that old standby -- the class action suit.
Those are particularly appealing to lawyers, because, usually, the lawyers
are the only ones to come out ahead.

Please note: I am not saying that Sony has violated any law or should be
sued on a class-action basis. As I said, I need to take a long, hard look
at the material Sony provided pre-purchase. They may have been clear about
what came with the laptop and I may have simply been sloppy in reading it.

 
D. Spencer Hines said:
Yes... Makes Sense -- 120 GB drive vice 100 GB.

I'll bet the Vista ULTIMATE hidden partition takes up more than 7 GB.
Click to expand...

That's what Drive Management reports.
What do you do if your HDD crashes and you lose everything, including the
hidden partition?...

Go begging to Sony?...
Click to expand...

Yup. When I called Sony to try to get restore disks, I asked this very
question. The answer was, essentially, "Call us if that happens."
Or buy another Vista Business at full price?
Click to expand...

As another poster noted, that won't have the Sony-specific drivers that my
laptop needs (though some, possibly all, are available for download on
Sony's website).
Dell gave me XP Pro SP2 discs with this machine -- but I've been led to
understand they have stopped doing that.

We have all of this heartburn and PITA because of software thieves and
pirates who didn't follow the previous simpler rules and a wacko Supreme
Court that socked it to Microsoft, just because they were better at what
they did than anyone else.
Click to expand...

That's not why Microsoft was sued, nor did the Supreme Court sock it to
Microsoft. Given that this is a Microsoft news server, this isn't really
the place to discuss how Microsoft achieved its near-monopolist status,
though I will say that it has nothing to do with bundling Internet Explorer
with the OS. I have, however, litigated that particular issue and, though
confidentiality precludes my discussing any aspect of the case, I will say
that the Justice Department could have done a far better job.

As for the pirates, I will say this: one of my clients is a pretty
significant computer game developer. They estimate that as much as 80% of
their product in China is counterfeit. Nonetheless, they still make money
from that market. They did so by adopting a business model that isn't
dependent on primary sale of original product. If they can do it, I'm sure
that a company as creative and technologically adept as Microsoft can do the
same.
 
PTravel said:
That's what Drive Management reports.
Click to expand...

But you are running Vista BUSINESS, RIGHT?

Ultimate will probably consume more disc space.
Yup. When I called Sony to try to get restore disks, I asked this very
question. The answer was, essentially, "Call us if that happens."
Click to expand...

UNSAT.

They don't want to let you Game The System by asking "What If" Questions and
getting answers.
As another poster noted, that won't have the Sony-specific drivers that my
laptop needs (though some, possibly all, are available for download on
Sony's website).


That's not why Microsoft was sued, nor did the Supreme Court sock it to
Microsoft.
Click to expand...

Nonsense! Of course it's the Reason.
Given that this is a Microsoft news server, this isn't really
the place to discuss how Microsoft achieved its near-monopolist status,
though I will say that it has nothing to do with bundling Internet
Explorer with the OS. I have, however, litigated that particular issue
and, though confidentiality precludes my discussing any aspect of the
case, I will say that the Justice Department could have done a far better
job.
Click to expand...

If you litigated it you have NO RIGHT to talk about it here. So you should
just decline to express any opinion at all and just say NO COMMENT from the
get go.
As for the pirates, I will say this: one of my clients is a pretty
significant computer game developer. They estimate that as much as 80% of
their product in China is counterfeit. Nonetheless, they still make money
from that market. They did so by adopting a business model that isn't
dependent on primary sale of original product. If they can do it, I'm
sure that a company as creative and technologically adept as Microsoft can
do the same.
Click to expand...

NO SALE.

NO American Corporation should have to compete in World Markets based on
that sort of cunniculan-pygan reasoning for a business model.

And the lawyers feast on the weak, the lame and the roadkill. <g>

DSH
 
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