Windows Genuine Advantage Notification
Windows Update and Automatic Updates would install an update called Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) Notification in Windows XP based systems.
After this WGA update, the next time you try to login to Windows, and if you happen to be running a non-genuine version of Windows you'd be greeted with this screen:
WGA Notification at logon
A notification Area balloon will remind you every so often to get a Genuine Copy of Windows, like this:
WGA notification balloon
It doesn't stop there. You'll also see a banner locked onto the desktop until you decide to get a genuine copy.
WGA desktop banner
This sure is a good way to irritate and even embarrass users who have installed pirated Windows XP on their computers.
From the first time users get this notification, they have 14 days to comply. After 14 days they will not be able to download software upgrades such as IE7 and Windows Defender. Critical security updates will still be available like it is now.
Microsoft hopes that by notifying users that they are not eligible for all Windows upgrades, it will drive more users to purchase a legal copy of Windows, and also report the counterfeit dealers that sold them their copy. In some cases Microsoft will give a free license to users who are victims of a high quality counterfeiting.
More on this on Microsoft Website.
After this WGA update, the next time you try to login to Windows, and if you happen to be running a non-genuine version of Windows you'd be greeted with this screen:
WGA Notification at logon
A notification Area balloon will remind you every so often to get a Genuine Copy of Windows, like this:
WGA notification balloon
It doesn't stop there. You'll also see a banner locked onto the desktop until you decide to get a genuine copy.
WGA desktop banner
This sure is a good way to irritate and even embarrass users who have installed pirated Windows XP on their computers.
From the first time users get this notification, they have 14 days to comply. After 14 days they will not be able to download software upgrades such as IE7 and Windows Defender. Critical security updates will still be available like it is now.
Microsoft hopes that by notifying users that they are not eligible for all Windows upgrades, it will drive more users to purchase a legal copy of Windows, and also report the counterfeit dealers that sold them their copy. In some cases Microsoft will give a free license to users who are victims of a high quality counterfeiting.
More on this on Microsoft Website.
posted by Hethu Nanayakkara @ 10:09 AM
2 Comments:
At Jun 27, 2006 9:10:00 PM,
Irfan said…
Hey! Came across ur blog by accident. Your blog is pretty informative. Your previous post about the new Windows UI's was pretty good. I was going to download Messenger live, but after seeing ur screenshots, I've decided against it. I think MSN messenger 7.5 is quite nice looking, and the new changes make it look horrid. Given that a chat engine is software based on entertainment, image can be a very real deciding factor. I think the new UI changes r uncalled for, and are also not as user friendly as the previous menus; which most of us r accustomed to. Although, I do think that given time, we would get used to them, and the fact that Microsoft is as ubiquitous as McDonald's in the US, other software companies would adopt the new menus, eventually. Unless, the changes really are messed up, and Open Office becomes the new standard.
At Aug 23, 2006 8:54:00 AM,
Asela said…
But U know for a poor ppl like me this will help.. ;-)
http://www.tweakness.net/showfiles.php?fid=1472
Post a Comment
<< Home