[X4U] Implications of Boot Camp

[Stroller]

CONTINUED...

On 6 Apr 2006, at 13:32, Jim Robertson wrote:
> I'm adding up the cost of all this, and I've discovered just how  
> expensive a
> new, shrink wrapped copy of XP Pro really is (over $300). It's not an
> inexpensive proposition...

I would consider that fairly cheap for a retail copy of XP Pro, for  
which I'd expect to pay £250 or £300 in the UK. However OEM-licensed  
copies of XP Home are around £50 in the UK, & XP Pro perhaps £100.  
These do not come in a glossy box and the license key comes on a  
sticker (which Microsoft would like you to attach to the side of the  
PC) but are readily available. Microsoft would like you to believe  
that OEM copies of XP are licensed only for the PC with which they  
were originally sold (defined as the original motherboard), but (in  
the EU, at least) a court of law will not uphold that position.

> ... and that alone may invalidate the notion of people
> "trying it" to see if they prefer the Mac OS. ... but then I need
> to spend another $300 or more to get XP Pro. I don't think there  
> will be
> many "lookers" taking that leap.

I think you're being naive about the number of people who already  
have a copy of Windows XP lying around, or don't mind pirating it.  
We're starting to see PCs regularly at the local dump which were  
originally sold with XP installed and which consequently still have  
the license sticker attached (typically such a PC might have  
originally been sold with a 1.5ghz Pentium 4 processor, and will have  
had most of the components ripped out of it, perhaps only leaving the  
shell which is valuable ONLY for the license sticker). If you have an  
OEM CD of Windows XP you can quite legitimately use this license key  
with Windows on your Mac.

> It sounds as though the requirements are pretty stringent for the  
> Windows OS
> installation. I though perhaps I could use the XP Pro I received  
> with VPC.
> Apparently not.

That would depend if the license key would work with a regular  
Windows XP Professional CD. I see no reason why it shouldn't, but of  
course obtaining a copy of the right CD might be troublesome (I'm  
assuming that VPC did not supply a bootable CD). You say "apparently  
not" but I prefer to ignore the small print in the license agreement  
- it cannot be used to deny you rights that have already been granted  
by law, such as (in the EU) the right to install one copy of the  
software on any computer you wish and the right to uninstall it &  
transfer that license to another computer.

> I have a copy of XP Home edition that's not in use, but I
> don't think I'd be able to install an "upgrade" copy of XP Pro and  
> verify my
> "upgrade" on what would look to the installer like a naked drive  
> just by
> inserting the XP Home Edition (as one can do with MS Office  
> installations).

No, you surely wouldn't. But there's no clear indication in your post  
that you need the Professional edition of XP over the Home edition.  
The advantages of Professional are chiefly limited to networks with a  
domain controller and even on those Home can authenticate to connect  
to network shares.

Stroller.