Best (cheapest?) XP Pro purchase?

Best (cheapest?) XP Pro purchase?

I'm replacing a 3year-old PC. I could install the XP Pro that came with the old one, but I really would like a new copy (probably want to keep the old PC, although I may burn it down and put Fedora or Ubuntu on it).

I see all kinds of prices on XP Pro. There's a place called cdsfu.com that's claiming to sell it for $55, which is (a) very attractive and (b) suspiciously low.

On the other end of the price range, amazon.com wants $225 for it, which is totally absurd. I can buy it at the only computer store withing a hundred miles for $155, and the PC builders want that same price to install it. I see a few others around $140, but that still strikes me as being kind of high.

Anyone know a reliable seller with a low price? (OR a better way?)

 

Ya, newegg is one of the ones I've seen ~$140... I'm thinking that's about as good as can be found, but (quoting Joaquin Andujar) youneverknow. It's just aggravating the M$ doesn't seem to have learned anything from the Vista disaster... I've the feeling that Win 7 (or whatever they decide to call it) will require still more resources, be yet less compatible, and XP will still be around and as pricey...

Thanks!

 

But, what you see on newegg.com for ~$140 is an OEM version, and the specifications say this:

Use of this OEM System Builder Channel software is subject to the terms of the Microsoft OEM System Builder License. This software is intended for pre-installation on a new personal computer for resale. This OEM System Builder Channel software requires the assembler to provide end user support for the Windows software and cannot be transferred to another computer once it is installed."

And, in this same vein, the OS that came pre-installed on your old computer is surely an OEM version and transfer to another computer is not allowed per license agreement.

I guess the final decision on whether to buy an OEM or retail version is up to you, but, at the very least, you need to accept that an OEM version is not transferrable to another computer.

 

I'm not sure what you're getting at, here.

Why do I - or anyone else, for that matter - "need to accept that..." at all? For example, many publishers make blanket statements about it being illegal to reproduce any part of their work in any form, when they know full well that there are perfectly legal ways and means that do not violate their copyrights. Their statements not only are not true, they almost certainly are intentionally lying when they make them. Why do they do it? Because it works at least some part of the time.

Are you saying you think it's illegal, or unethical, for one to purchase an OEM software package and install it on a new computer? Or... what?

 

The OEM version is not legally transferrable from one computer to another. So, if you want a Windows CD that you can install on one computer and then later remove it from that computer and install it on some other computer, you can't legally do that. And, Microsoft can detect some situations via the registration/authentication procedure for Windows.

Edit: There are other differences, such as warranty coverage. See http://compreviews.about.com/od/general/a/OEM.htm
Another reference: Windows XP: OEM verses Retail XP Home.

 

On what?

 

I think we can agree to disagree. You obviously believe that whatever M$ claims is automagically "true" - and that's fine with me.

But, I don't believe it. I not only don't believe it, I am pretty damn sure that - like nearly every other issue at law - it's certainly arguable, on several points.

I think it ill behooves you to parrot the M$ party line as though it were established fact, endorsed by the infallible Pope. You can say that M$ claims thus, and we should all be aware of it, but you should refrain from stating it as some sort of "truth".

What if your computer "breaks"? If you fix it, is it "another" computer? AFAIK the identification (as far as XP is concerned) is the hdd's vol id/sn, but it could as well be the cpu s/n or the bios s/n or similar id for any other part. I know for a fact that if you format the hdd (and thereby change the vol id) or if you have to replace the hdd, and reinstall your oem XP, you're going to have to jump through a hoop or two to get re-validated with M$ - it's happened to me, and I'm sure hundreds if not thousands of others - I've had to talk to Rajneesh in Mumbai a few times (both formatting and hdd replacements caused by failure or just by need for more space), and when I explained that the hdd was formatted or replaced, he had no problem with it.

So, at what point does it become "another" computer? New cpu? New m/b? New p/s? New cd/dvd? All of them simultaneously? What if you buy a new motherboard, cpu, memory, dvd, and hdd and install them in your old case - is that "another" computer?

The only part of the oem vs retail license that makes sense is that M$ won't provide tech support for oem, the dealer who sold you the computer does. And obviously if you don't buy "another" computer from him, he shouldn't be under any obligation to support you.

I'm not sure what "warranty" issues there may be - I can't think of any "warranty repairs" on M$ software I've ever seen.