New Computer Time!

[t.s]

I ordered mine by catalog in a computer shop on Koh Samui

there were about 10 different configurations from 25 to 45 thousand baht approximately

so you can choose from the models

the card reader is actually a small unit on the front panel with 4 slots for different card types of which there is such a long list

I don't think the supplier will give a discount for canceling mouse, kb or modem (modem is btw very basic - no voice functions) - i suppose worth a thousend baht altogether

however there is an option to choose a monitor - smaller or bigger, widescreen or not

but the default 19" is quite sexy, our office girl loves it ))

Thanks for that anthos, I'll keep looking

i would say order a really well speccd dell online. It will perform out of the box, it wont have hardware compatibility issues, it will ship with genuine xp and it will be warrantied. no fuss no muss. my days of buying Panthip <deleted> are well over. But then i would never buy a dektop for home again.

but for 20k you will end up with a cobbled together panthip special.

[Nikkijah]

I ordered mine by catalog in a computer shop on Koh Samui

there were about 10 different configurations from 25 to 45 thousand baht approximately

so you can choose from the models

the card reader is actually a small unit on the front panel with 4 slots for different card types of which there is such a long list

I don't think the supplier will give a discount for canceling mouse, kb or modem (modem is btw very basic - no voice functions) - i suppose worth a thousend baht altogether

however there is an option to choose a monitor - smaller or bigger, widescreen or not

but the default 19" is quite sexy, our office girl loves it ))

Thanks for that anthos, I'll keep looking

i would say order a really well speccd dell online. It will perform out of the box, it wont have hardware compatibility issues, it will ship with genuine xp and it will be warrantied. no fuss no muss. my days of buying Panthip <deleted> are well over. But then i would never buy a dektop for home again.

but for 20k you will end up with a cobbled together panthip special.

Have you got details of Dell Thailand online? I can only find Dell Premier and I can't log into it

[Nikkijah]

I ordered mine by catalog in a computer shop on Koh Samui

there were about 10 different configurations from 25 to 45 thousand baht approximately

so you can choose from the models

the card reader is actually a small unit on the front panel with 4 slots for different card types of which there is such a long list

I don't think the supplier will give a discount for canceling mouse, kb or modem (modem is btw very basic - no voice functions) - i suppose worth a thousend baht altogether

however there is an option to choose a monitor - smaller or bigger, widescreen or not

but the default 19" is quite sexy, our office girl loves it ))

Thanks for that anthos, I'll keep looking

i would say order a really well speccd dell online. It will perform out of the box, it wont have hardware compatibility issues, it will ship with genuine xp and it will be warrantied. no fuss no muss. my days of buying Panthip <deleted> are well over. But then i would never buy a dektop for home again.

but for 20k you will end up with a cobbled together panthip special.

Have you got details of Dell Thailand online? I can only find Dell Premier and I can't log into it

This is all I get: link

[Nikkijah]

I ordered mine by catalog in a computer shop on Koh Samui

there were about 10 different configurations from 25 to 45 thousand baht approximately

so you can choose from the models

the card reader is actually a small unit on the front panel with 4 slots for different card types of which there is such a long list

I don't think the supplier will give a discount for canceling mouse, kb or modem (modem is btw very basic - no voice functions) - i suppose worth a thousend baht altogether

however there is an option to choose a monitor - smaller or bigger, widescreen or not

but the default 19" is quite sexy, our office girl loves it ))

Thanks for that anthos, I'll keep looking

i would say order a really well speccd dell online. It will perform out of the box, it wont have hardware compatibility issues, it will ship with genuine xp and it will be warrantied. no fuss no muss. my days of buying Panthip <deleted> are well over. But then i would never buy a dektop for home again.

but for 20k you will end up with a cobbled together panthip special.

Have you got details of Dell Thailand online? I can only find Dell Premier and I can't log into it

This is all I get: link

This is bullsh1t, I've trawled through tv and found another thread suggesting using Malaysia's Dell site for orders but I am only able to buy a complete system, I've already found the LCD I want and I've already found the keyboard I want, I've also already got a very nice mouse so how can I get ONLY a bleedin' tower???

Somebody guide me please

[CBinParadise]

Unfortunately, no-one has mentioned the most important consideration of all:

What version of Windows will you run? XP Pro is probably the best choice, but you may have trouble finding a retail CD or DVD. Do NOT accept an OEM CD. In any case, Microsoft is trying to terminate support for XP --- but I don't think the market will let them do that.

Do not run Vista if you can possibly avoid it. The reasons are complex, one little known gotcha is that installing Vista invalidates any existing XP key on the machine --- so reformat your drive and make sure you have A full (not upgrade) Vista DVD if you decide to go with Vista.

I have attached a file that will begin to explain why Vista should be avoided.

VistaOSProblems.rtf

[Nikkijah]

I'll take that into consideration CBinParadise, I don't suppose you fancy copying and pasting some of the info from your link do you? Looks a bit dodge if you ask me...

Anyhow, I contacted Dell what a laugh, I sent them a basic specification list along with my contact details and this is the response I received this morning:

Jiraporn,

Please help to assist to customer.

Thanks.

Regards,

Sanchai W

Not sure what this means, perhaps Sanchai was trying to pretend I was a Thai??

Perhaps I was simply copied in on this internal memo

I'm not feeling totally confident

Edited May 21, 2007 by Nikkijah

[CBinParadise]

I'll take that into consideration CBinParadise, I don't suppose you fancy copying and pasting some of the info from your link do you? Looks a bit dodge if you ask me...

Anyhow, I contacted Dell what a laugh, I sent them a basic specification list along with my contact details and this is the response I received this morning:

Jiraporn,

Please help to assist to customer.

Thanks.

Regards,

Sanchai W

Not sure what this means, perhaps Sanchai was trying to pretend I was a Thai??

Perhaps I was simply copied in on this internal memo

I'm not feeling totally confident

Nikkijah:

I'm not at all surprised that Dell tech support was no help.

I went back and read your original requirements. The last thing you need is yet more conflicting advice.

So here is what I would buy if I were in your shoes:

I prefer a custom-built system to one of the major OEMs (Dell, Gateway, Toshiba, etc). PROVIDED you find an outfit in Thailand that knows what is doing. IT on the top floor just sells OEM systems -- I wouldn't go there.

The main reasons for going custom built are:

1. You can use a retail version of Windows --- which means you can get support directly from MSFT, instead of from Dell, etc.

2. You will not have to clean the mountaains of crapware that Dell etc put on all new systems.

3. You will not automatically acquire Norton or MacAfee --- both of which tend to make your system LESS stable because of the vile way they hook themselves in. AVG Antivirus is a much better choice.

If you do go custom-built, insist on real Intel processor(s) AND CHIPSETS. AMD makes fine hardware, but AMD processors are often incorrectly matched with the chipsets that drive the bus, handle PCI, etc. See

http://www.cpuplanet.com/features/article.php/1490831 for more info on this. In fact Intel processors are often matched to wrong Intel chipsets especially by low-end OEMs like Dell Gateway etc.

Read the URL and insist on compatible chipsets, whatever you buy.

If you get that far, reply to this post and we'll take the next steps --- I'm out of time now.

CB

[MaiChai]

Here is 2 pence worth: It all comes down to the motherboard you use. My tip is to do some research on the Internet for motherboards, decide which one you want, and then go and ask someone to build a system for you using the mobo.

If you are not technically savvy then you have a couple of choices: buy something like a Dell/Compaq or buy one of the pre-assembled packages that various component shops have (normally they choose components that work well together that will not result in returning uphappy customers!; time is money in Thailand too).

As always; shopper be aware. Spend time doing research, compare prices, etc.

Pantip is not as cheap as it used to be; must be the rents? I now prefer to go to Zeers up the Rangsit. Also much bigger than Pantip. There are also other IT malls; someone mentioned Fortune (not very good in my opinion). There is another half way up Ladprao which I have not tried (anyone any experience?), the IT mall at Bang Kapi is not bad and prices are very cheap (lots of poor students live round this area), IT Square at Lak See seems quite good for networking (like ADSL routers, etc). So there are alternatives to Pantip.

[Nikkijah]

Thanks for the responses, now I want to ask you something:

WHAT WOULD YOU BUY WITH B20,000?

I only need the tower.

[CBinParadise]

I looked around, and could not find anything better than the system you found in another thread:

Aspire L310-PS01L(not include Monitor)

* Intel®Pentium® 4 processor 651 (3.4Ghz/2MB L2Cache/FSB800)

* Intel 946GZ + CH7 chipset

* Intel Graphics Media Accelerator (GMA)

* 512MB DDR-II (expandable up to 2.0 GB)

* 160GB HDD SATA up to 400GB (7200rpm)

* SuperMulti Plus , 5-in-1 Media Readers

* Integrated Gigabit Ethernet 10/100/1000 (LAN Built-in)

* Embedded high-definition audio with 7.1 - channel audio support and Coxial S/PDIF output

* Hi-Speed USB Ports (ver 2.0)

* Acer USB Multimedia Keyboard & USB Optical Mouse

* Linux Program console mode

* 3 Years Warranty (1 Year for monitor and VGA card)

At http://www.acer.co.th/product/aspire/L310/index_p.htm

I would probably upgrade to 1gig RAM. THe system above does not appear to come with Windows pre-installed --- that's a good thing. Either run RETAIL Win XP Pro or Ubuntu Linux. In eiither case you'll need to make sure you have drivers for all the hardware.

[CBinParadise]

the fan whines badly and it hangs a lot, even doing simple tasks, I've reformatted several times with no improvements on performance each time, secondly, the screen on my laptop is slowly giving up on me too, it occasionally has pink streaks through it and I have to close and then open the lid to get the streaks to go away... Thirdly, the thing is so bloody noisy! I want something I can hide under my desk and even if it does make a noise I won't be able to hear it. The hard drive on my laptop is only 40gb and I'm currently using my ipod as an external drive, the laptop in turn doesn't like the ipod so it sometimes just doesn't recognise it! Hence needing a lot more storage space.

I'm sure there are other things wrong with it but I try not to think too much about it, my partner has been bugging me for ages to get a bigger screen as her eyes are all funny...

Nikkijah

OK, those are definitely bad signs, and probably not worth fixing. I don't know how noisy the Acer is --- but generally higher airflow is a good thing.

If you use your Ipod as an extrnal, to what do you backup? I recommend an external USB drive; they are not expensive.

As for difficulty seeing the screen, you should know about some things:

- The difference between screen resolution and pixels per inch --- you can google for these terms

- Try right clicking on your windows desktop, select Properties, then Settings, then choose a LOWER resolution than you are currently using. Eg if you are currently using 1024x960 try 960x780. That will make everything on your screen bigger.

- Start -> Help and Support -> Accessibility ->

Features for the visually impaired -> Magnifier

Good luck ... I'm heading out of town and won't be available to follow up ... sorry ... CB

[naka]

Cmon Nikkijah.

This has been going on for 7 weeks.

The technology has already changed since your first post

Naka.

[Nikkijah]

Cmon Nikkijah.

This has been going on for 7 weeks.

The technology has already changed since your first post

Naka.

Lucky I've got people like CB giving me up to date guidance then

I've had to delay my return to Thailand so there has been nothing I can do here from Spain, I'll be back in just over a week so then I'll go out looking and reporting what I find

Nikkijah

[mac.wheeler]

I've seen a couple of posts to this thread that spec a PC that uses an on-board GPU, usually one of the Intel GMA models.

Please note that currently very few if any on-board VGA solutions will support aero in vista, this is not because the GPU cannot handle it, but because the BIOS will not let you assign the 256Mb of system RAM to the GPU that is required to run aero.

To the original poster, you might consider one of the SFF barebones offerings from Biostar or Shuttle (although Shuttle tend to run a bit warm, not sure they would handle the heat in Thailand too well). Just plug in a CPU, PCI-E GPU, RAM and a HDD, anybody with a single screwdriver can manage it, job done.

An even funkier route to take would be to use one of the Sliverstone SUGO evolution cases, it's a real case making out it's a SFF, very cool, I just bought one myself to re-house one of my PC's before I ship it over to Thailand and so far it's been superb.

Edited May 22, 2007 by mac.wheeler

[Nikkijah]

An even funkier route to take would be to use one of the Sliverstone SUGO evolution cases, it's a real case making out it's a SFF, very cool, I just bought one myself to re-house one of my PC's before I ship it over to Thailand and so far it's been superb.

I like the look of this case but I'm not keen on having my ports at the front of my machine(that's if I'm going to have my case on the TOP of my desk) - I'm quite a neat person and all I want to see on my desk(PC related) is my monitor, mouse & keyboard

Other problems are sourcing this kind of case in Thailand or the extra expense of shipping it, plus the risk of import tax

[Nikkijah]

I looked around, and could not find anything better than the system you found in another thread:

Aspire L310-PS01L(not include Monitor)

* Intel®Pentium® 4 processor 651 (3.4Ghz/2MB L2Cache/FSB800)

* Intel 946GZ + CH7 chipset

* Intel Graphics Media Accelerator (GMA)

* 512MB DDR-II (expandable up to 2.0 GB)

* 160GB HDD SATA up to 400GB (7200rpm)

* SuperMulti Plus , 5-in-1 Media Readers

* Integrated Gigabit Ethernet 10/100/1000 (LAN Built-in)

* Embedded high-definition audio with 7.1 - channel audio support and Coxial S/PDIF output

* Hi-Speed USB Ports (ver 2.0)

* Acer USB Multimedia Keyboard & USB Optical Mouse

* Linux Program console mode

* 3 Years Warranty (1 Year for monitor and VGA card)

At http://www.acer.co.th/product/aspire/L310/index_p.htm

I would probably upgrade to 1gig RAM. THe system above does not appear to come with Windows pre-installed --- that's a good thing. Either run RETAIL Win XP Pro or Ubuntu Linux. In eiither case you'll need to make sure you have drivers for all the hardware.

Thanks for the input CB, I think I would definitely have to upgrade the RAM as I've read that Vista(my OS of choice ) uses 500mb alone!

[mac.wheeler]

An even funkier route to take would be to use one of the Sliverstone SUGO evolution cases, it's a real case making out it's a SFF, very cool, I just bought one myself to re-house one of my PC's before I ship it over to Thailand and so far it's been superb.

I like the look of this case but I'm not keen on having my ports at the front of my machine(that's if I'm going to have my case on the TOP of my desk) - I'm quite a neat person and all I want to see on my desk(PC related) is my monitor, mouse & keyboard

Other problems are sourcing this kind of case in Thailand or the extra expense of shipping it, plus the risk of import tax

The ports at the front are extras, it has the same port setup at the back as normal, just gives you some on the front so you can hotplug stuff easier. Nice if you use things like a USB connected digital camera or a pen drive. Or even just to plug in headphones.

Maybe Silverstone have a distributer in Thailand? They are one of the large case manufacturers so maybe they do.

[Nikkijah]

An even funkier route to take would be to use one of the Sliverstone SUGO evolution cases, it's a real case making out it's a SFF, very cool, I just bought one myself to re-house one of my PC's before I ship it over to Thailand and so far it's been superb.

I like the look of this case but I'm not keen on having my ports at the front of my machine(that's if I'm going to have my case on the TOP of my desk) - I'm quite a neat person and all I want to see on my desk(PC related) is my monitor, mouse & keyboard

Other problems are sourcing this kind of case in Thailand or the extra expense of shipping it, plus the risk of import tax

The ports at the front are extras, it has the same port setup at the back as normal, just gives you some on the front so you can hotplug stuff easier. Nice if you use things like a USB connected digital camera or a pen drive. Or even just to plug in headphones.

Maybe Silverstone have a distributer in Thailand? They are one of the large case manufacturers so maybe they do.

I'll check it out, thanks for your time

[CBinParadise]

I looked around, and could not find anything better than the system you found in another thread:

Aspire L310-PS01L(not include Monitor)

* Intel®Pentium® 4 processor 651 (3.4Ghz/2MB L2Cache/FSB800)

* Intel 946GZ + CH7 chipset

* Intel Graphics Media Accelerator (GMA)

* 512MB DDR-II (expandable up to 2.0 GB)

* 160GB HDD SATA up to 400GB (7200rpm)

* SuperMulti Plus , 5-in-1 Media Readers

* Integrated Gigabit Ethernet 10/100/1000 (LAN Built-in)

* Embedded high-definition audio with 7.1 - channel audio support and Coxial S/PDIF output

* Hi-Speed USB Ports (ver 2.0)

* Acer USB Multimedia Keyboard & USB Optical Mouse

* Linux Program console mode

* 3 Years Warranty (1 Year for monitor and VGA card)

At http://www.acer.co.th/product/aspire/L310/index_p.htm

I would probably upgrade to 1gig RAM. THe system above does not appear to come with Windows pre-installed --- that's a good thing. Either run RETAIL Win XP Pro or Ubuntu Linux. In eiither case you'll need to make sure you have drivers for all the hardware.

Thanks for the input CB, I think I would definitely have to upgrade the RAM as I've read that Vista(my OS of choice ) uses 500mb alone!

You do not want to run Vista. Trust me on this. Read the article I first posted. Everybody who buys Vista hurts all other computer users -- because of the DRM in Vista. It raises the costs of ALL components of ALL PCs. That might be OK if users benefited --- but DRM benefits only MSFT, RIAA, MPAA and their ilk. Be an informed consumer.

[cdnvic]

Thanks for the input CB, I think I would definitely have to upgrade the RAM as I've read that Vista(my OS of choice ) uses 500mb alone!

You'll find that Vista runs very smooth on 1.5+gb of ram. It handles the extra memory much more efficiently than XP did, and the complaints of UAC and DRM being a huge problem just haven't appeared. You won't be disappointed with it, I can assure you that.

DRM is dying on it's own, so don't worry about playing politics, take the OS that's going to work best for you. For me, I'm more than happy with it. Beats XP hands down.

[mac.wheeler]

Thanks for the input CB, I think I would definitely have to upgrade the RAM as I've read that Vista(my OS of choice ) uses 500mb alone!

You'll find that Vista runs very smooth on 1.5+gb of ram. It handles the extra memory much more efficiently than XP did, and the complaints of UAC and DRM being a huge problem just haven't appeared. You won't be disappointed with it, I can assure you that.

DRM is dying on it's own, so don't worry about playing politics, take the OS that's going to work best for you. For me, I'm more than happy with it. Beats XP hands down.

I agree with cdvnic on this, advising people not to use vista is bad practice, it will be the OS of the future whether we like it or not. Oddly enough it's windows 2000 that will force it down our throats. A huge chunk of the corporate world is still using win2k as it's desktop OS, many did large roll outs to replace win98 several years back as 98 was about to go into extended support mode. XP was not seen, at the time, as a sufficiently mature OS for large scale corporate use (wrongly so it turned out). Many large corporations invested in what was by this time a fairly old OS seeing this as the lesser of two evils.

Of course, the real world showed us that XP would become a huge success and within a very short period become mature enough to be used in a corporate environment.

But the circle has come around again, win2k goes into extended support in 2010 I believe, which sounds a long way off, but in large corps it takes several years to organise an OS roll out project, MS themselves advise that any large business still running win2k need to start a replacement project right now to make sure they are not left in the cold.

So here's the kicker, last time around the big boys opted for a slightly older OS to replace 98 instead of using XP, this was a mistake, had they rolled out XP they would have had a few more years mileage. So this time around which do you think they will switch to? XP or vista? My money is on vista, and so is Microsoft's.

Love it or hate it, vista is here to stay, better get used to it, personally I dislike it, but I just have to learn to live with it.

[tigerbeer]

Thanks for the input CB, I think I would definitely have to upgrade the RAM as I've read that Vista(my OS of choice ) uses 500mb alone!

You'll find that Vista runs very smooth on 1.5+gb of ram. It handles the extra memory much more efficiently than XP did, and the complaints of UAC and DRM being a huge problem just haven't appeared. You won't be disappointed with it, I can assure you that.

DRM is dying on it's own, so don't worry about playing politics, take the OS that's going to work best for you. For me, I'm more than happy with it. Beats XP hands down.

hi been pondering about this for a while. how is vista really better than xp? better memory management? and what is DRM? sorry about my ignorance but just curious. i am a happy xp user though and just waiting for prices of vista to drop a bit. if possible or for vista to be a really fool proof stable system.

also if someone can clarify how good an intel dual core 925 is?

[mac.wheeler]

hi been pondering about this for a while. how is vista really better than xp? better memory management? and what is DRM? sorry about my ignorance but just curious. i am a happy xp user though and just waiting for prices of vista to drop a bit. if possible or for vista to be a really fool proof stable system.

also if someone can clarify how good an intel dual core 925 is?

I could give you the MS spin about more secure, proper 64Bit support, better memory management, better driver integration and all that stuff that the average user doesn't give a darn about.

If you are not running aero (the funky interface theme) then you won't notice much difference, you will think of it as XP with a slightly different look and a few things moved about, but it will be very familiar once you find what you are looking for, many things have not changed at all.

But if you run aero, well even I have to say it looks stunning, it actually makes things fun.

The 925 D is a decent CPU, I have a 930 which just has slightly more cache I believe and it performs really well, if you can get a 925 cheap it's a good buy.

[Nikkijah]

Thanks for the input CB, I think I would definitely have to upgrade the RAM as I've read that Vista(my OS of choice ) uses 500mb alone!

You'll find that Vista runs very smooth on 1.5+gb of ram. It handles the extra memory much more efficiently than XP did, and the complaints of UAC and DRM being a huge problem just haven't appeared. You won't be disappointed with it, I can assure you that.

DRM is dying on it's own, so don't worry about playing politics, take the OS that's going to work best for you. For me, I'm more than happy with it. Beats XP hands down.

hi been pondering about this for a while. how is vista really better than xp? better memory management? and what is DRM? sorry about my ignorance but just curious. i am a happy xp user though and just waiting for prices of vista to drop a bit. if possible or for vista to be a really fool proof stable system.

also if someone can clarify how good an intel dual core 925 is?

DRM means Digital Rights Management.

Does anybody think the price of Vista is going to drop? right up until recently XP was the same price as when it was first released(from what I saw anyway) so I'm not sure the price of Vista will come down, I've seen it for around £75, is it available any cheaper than this anywhere?

[cdnvic]

Search back through the Jan-Feb topics in this forum and you'll find posts about where to obtain OEM versions for less than the retail box versions. These however, are unsupported.

[mac.wheeler]

Search back through the Jan-Feb topics in this forum and you'll find posts about where to obtain OEM versions for less than the retail box versions. These however, are unsupported.

Unsupported as in you can't call M$ on the phone and get help, in every other way they are identical to a retail version.

So how many of us have ever called M$ on the phone for help?

OEM is the way to go to save money, usually you can only buy an OEM copy if you are buying components, so people usually buy a cheap HDD and an OEM OS CD to get around that.

[Nikkijah]

Search back through the Jan-Feb topics in this forum and you'll find posts about where to obtain OEM versions for less than the retail box versions. These however, are unsupported.

Unsupported as in you can't call M$ on the phone and get help, in every other way they are identical to a retail version.

So how many of us have ever called M$ on the phone for help?

OEM is the way to go to save money, usually you can only buy an OEM copy if you are buying components, so people usually buy a cheap HDD and an OEM OS CD to get around that.

I've never called MS & I don't know anybody who has either, so the only real difference is the support, not the authenticity right?

[cdnvic]

Last time I talked to MS on a non-validation issue I believe I was having trouble getting Windows 3.0 to boot.

And yes, authenticity is not normally an issue, but this is Asia so refer to that Cleanshop link I sent you.

Edited May 22, 2007 by cdnvic

[Nikkijah]

Last time I talked to MS on a non-validation issue I believe I was having trouble getting Windows 3.0 to boot.

And yes, authenticity is not normally an issue, but this is Asia so refer to that Cleanshop link I sent you.

Here's the link: MS clean shop listings

only problem is, there's no addresses so I might have to call each one until I find one near me..

Helpful link nonetheless

Edited May 22, 2007 by Nikkijah

[mac.wheeler]

Search back through the Jan-Feb topics in this forum and you'll find posts about where to obtain OEM versions for less than the retail box versions. These however, are unsupported.

Unsupported as in you can't call M$ on the phone and get help, in every other way they are identical to a retail version.

So how many of us have ever called M$ on the phone for help?

OEM is the way to go to save money, usually you can only buy an OEM copy if you are buying components, so people usually buy a cheap HDD and an OEM OS CD to get around that.

I've never called MS & I don't know anybody who has either, so the only real difference is the support, not the authenticity right?

100% correct, OEM versions of windows are completely legitimate IF PURCHASED CORRECTLY, they are not supposed to be sold over the counter, they are for shipping with new PC's. The work around I mentioned above of buying a piece of hardware has been used for over a decade but it's still a work around, there is always the (slim) possibility that M$ will do something about it, but imagine how hard it would be?

On a side note, you have to laugh at Microsoft sometimes. There have been many attempts at 'cracking' vista and they all failed.

So some bright spark decided to realease a Dell OEM install CD to the public, pre-activated, only downside is it has the Dell logo in the control panel (big deal).

So now M$ must be banging their heads against the wall, so clever stopping people using fake licence keys to activate vista, yet a simple CD image just steps around the problem.

So what do they do now? Every Dell PC has the same activation code, how can they tell which ones are real and which ones are pirate copies? I'm sure it is possible and will happen but oh boy what a headache for the boys at Redmond.