Microsoft Entering Agreements with Laptop Makers to Block Linux

[cornemuse]

If it wasn't for Microsoft, we'd all be using either a proprietary IBM platform or something from Apple. Wintel did a lot more for the computer industry than you and many others give credit for...

If it wasn't for the competition, we'd be at what, ms dos version 25.0?, , , ,

-c-

 

[lorraine walsh]

What's strange about this story is that the same laptop sold in Germany does not have the problem. The users there report that it does have the BIOS setting to switch it to AHCI and to make Linux and the normal Windows ISO (as opposed to the special Lenovo Windows image) work without problem. People are then speculating that there's something going on about EU laws vs. US laws, like this being forbidden in some place but not the other?

 

[Prima.Vera]

If it wasn't for the competition, we'd be at what, ms dos version 25.0?, , , ,

-c-

Neh. We would all be using some kind of Unix/Linux based OSes, probably we would have like 10 distributions to choose from, and we would have had forums dedicated entirely on what is the best OS for gaming, what is the best OS for office work, etc, etc.
And OpenGL would have been the defaulto for everything. Probably...

What's strange about this story is that the same laptop sold in Germany does not have the problem. The users there report that it does have the BIOS setting to switch it to AHCI and to make Linux and the normal Windows ISO (as opposed to the special Lenovo Windows image) work without problem. People are then speculating that there's something going on about EU laws vs. US laws, like this being forbidden in some place but not the other?

Could be something like the stupid shitters from Sony are doing, locking the language selection to JP only on all their devices sold in Japan, for example.