the "Nagulator"... MS's new pirated winXP nag popup

[Mug Funky]

http://star-techcentral.com/tech/story.asp?file=/2006/4/25/prodit/14029720&sec=prodit

looks like if you run windows update with an unregistered windows, you'll be getting random popups and a nag box when you log in. hehehe.

i do appreciate that they're not simply nuking the OS or pwning people who pirate... in fact i think people will still be able to update. think what'd happen if the MAFIAA (hehe) had this opportunity.

[edit]

however, it's possible that even if you bought your copy, it could be invalid (like the computer store did the dirty, or their supplier gave them counterfeits). so it'll be interesting to see over the next few weeks just how many machines get this popup :)

i'm sure a l33t hax patch will be available soon to remove it, too. but i wonder how difficult it'd be?

[communist]

i'm sure a l33t hax patch will be available soon to remove it, too. but i wonder how difficult it'd be?
Hehe I read that yesterday aswell and they actually had instructions on how to remove it in the KB article - which were pulled just minutes later after I saw it on slashdot.

Maybe its still possible to remove them but atleast the instructions on how to do it are gone... something along the add and remove way.

/EDiT
If for some reasons you need to remove those nag screens
Instead, go ahead and boot into a command line and delete WgaTray.exe and the dll file out of windows/system32 and that will take care of it. I also searched the windows directory for any mention of this "Wga" crap and deleted those too.

[shevegen]

Haha!
The Nagging Factor is also used in supermarkets where young kids nag at their parents to buy something they want (i.e. because they think they must have it due to prior advertisement)

The American Way of Life is extremely hilarious, looks its the de facto corporate way of life (standard) and having "proper customers/citizens" ;)

Anyway, I find this typical MS too. Claim to be against something, but in fact not minding if people are using that, and offering ways to work around it. Really a funny philosophy moreso since the legally paying customers get an OS where they NEED TO update regularly because there are basic design flaws in it. (What I critisize here is not that there are bugs, but the design choices. As a de facto monopoly its really annoying to see you cant - or dont want to - offer a secure OS, and are adamant against other choices like using firefox instead of IE to name just one example.)

[Mug Funky]

well, MS's recent behaviour hasn't been all that bad lately to be honest. they could be doing much more nasty things and be able to justify it.

of course it's a wise choice not to annoy your pirate customers too much (look how easy it is to remove compared to, say, certain Sony related concoctions) - they are a large chunk of the windows userbase, and keeping the pirate copies working (albeit more vulnerable to attack than genuine copies) maintains MS's market share.

[laserfan]

...it's possible that even if you bought your copy, it could be invalid (like the computer store did the dirty, or their supplier gave them counterfeits).This is, of course, what this is about i.e. why MS developed WGA in the first place. Counterfeiting is a real problem for them, and the system alerts customers that they may have been duped by their supplier(s), who are saving lots of $$ by copying MS software, denying MS their fair compensation in the process.

It's more than legitimate, it's wise on their part to alert customers to possible illegal activity in the supply chain.

As for individuals who have managed to get-around these protections for their home PCs, well, they are going to continue to figure-out how to do it, and while that may irritate MS to know that this goes on, these are not the people that they are trying to shut-down with WGA.

[Doobie]

Many users of illegal copies don't know their copies are illegal.

[Latexxx]

Many users of illegal copies don't know their copies are illegal.
And that is exactly why Microsoft is doing those popups. People who know how avoid those nags also know that they are running pirated software.

[Mug Funky]

moreover, it's actually optional to install the update - it's clearly labelled in the windows update dooby on the system tray, and there's even a passage of text to explain exactly what it does. so you can choose not to install it if your updates are set to manual download. that's quite nice actually :)

[Chainmax]

People have been able to se windows update un pirated copies of XP for ages, it only requires to type a simple javascript command in the adress bar before choosing the installation type.

[foxyshadis]

They fixed that some time back. Now you either have to get into the old v4 site or open the online catalog and pick your updates manually. (What doesn't come from auto updates.) It's been a while since I used a pirated windows, though, so I don't know what's the latest and greatest hacks.

[Latexxx]

They fixed that some time back. Now you either have to get into the old v4 site or open the online catalog and pick your updates manually. (What doesn't come from auto updates.) It's been a while since I used a pirated windows, though, so I don't know what's the latest and greatest hacks.

No, they didn't fix the javascript trick. They only made it impossible to block the wga component using ie's security settings.

[DarkNite]

WGA does not alter your ability to use Automatic Updates, or Microsoft Update.

Edit: I know this to be true because 1 of our 3 software scenario testing boxes will no longer validate (even though all that's changed is it's network location, still has all warranty seals intact and no record of chasis intrusion), but has no trouble updating itself as long as it's through one of the available automatic routines. This excludes optional updates and software requiring validation prior to download/install though. It's a good thing integrated images are easy to make, or more people might be upset over their "advantage".

[Atamido]

Buy a Dell. Every Dell computer has a CD Key for Windows XP Home and Windows XP Professional burned into the BIOS. If you had a Dell install CD, you don't even have to enter the key as it gets it from the BIOS automatically.

And when I say every DELL, I mean EVERY. For giggles I used the Dell Windows XP Pro CD on a new $6000 Dell PowerEdge 2850 server and it got the CD key automatically from the BIOS. :)

[4Dude]

I wonder if someones version IS NOT LEGIT,if M$ has it contact them somehow..........

[Isochroma]

Luckily, the "Nagulator" is an optional install. Just uncheck it, then check "hide this update".

[4Dude]

Hehehe,didnt know that........ (I wonder how many ppl know this)