Crackdown On Unlicensed Software Intensified

[tmark]

Has anyone tried to buy a computer that hasn't got illegal software loaded on it, in Thailand? It is near impossible.

Uh, never happened to me, but then again I buy parts into a full computer...never some crappy shops 'package'.

Yeah .. that was fun for me too many moons ago .. back in the 80's .. but what about laptops? Bit of a useless expensive hassle knocking one of those together from spare parts. 

I'm really only guessing here .. but I think a fair percentage of farangs in Thailand have got laptops/netbooks etc. At least the sensible ones have .. never know when we will have to pack the bags.

[tropo]

I wonder if gov't offices have licensed software.

No, many of them don't. Hypocrites....

and you know this for sure?

[basjke]

They do seem to be serious about it. Better nip down and get Windows 7 while you can (1-300 baht now, rising to 4300 soon)

And where is it that you can get windows 7 legal for 1-300 baht?

[tropo]

nobody will check police stations or immigration offices to see if they all bought their license...

what do they expect, that a thai, averaging 6000 baht salary per month will spend a whole month on windows xp for home use ?

These are government departments. No individual staff member will be paying for the operating system of a work computer...obviously!

[surangw]

"The objective is probably to reduce use of bootleg software by large companies"

the real incentive is the rewards from the software companies when they get to bust ( and sue successfully) any large org using copies of their software ( you want to wager the police are getting the reward money?)

[tropo]

Has anyone tried to buy a computer that hasn't got illegal software loaded on it, in Thailand? It is near impossible.

Rubbish ..... unless you're talking about second hand jobs.

Most of the computers you buy here come clean with no operating system at all. It's up to the buyer to decide what to put onto it, and of course most buyers here settle for a pirate version of Windows at the advice of the dealers.

I wish they did come with some good value genuine OEM's installed. People think they are getting bargains here, but if you consider you're not getting the genuine operating system as part of the package, the deals stink in comparison with back home prices.

[tropo]

They do seem to be serious about it. Better nip down and get Windows 7 while you can (1-300 baht now, rising to 4300 soon)

And where is it that you can get windows 7 legal for 1-300 baht?

I'm in. I'll pop down there to buy Windows 7 genuine for 1,300 baht. Where do I go?

The full Windows 7 Ultimate retails for about $320 in the US, and the home basic edition for $200.

[tmark]

1.nobody will check police stations or immigration offices to see if they all bought their license...

2.what do they expect, that a thai, averaging 6000 baht salary per month will spend a whole month on windows xp for home use ?

These are government departments. No individual staff member will be paying for the operating system of a work computer...obviously!

You "obviously" missed the the last part of the sentence .. "for home use" .. he's talking about two separate scenarios here.

Not Govt. Staff members paying for the Govt's software.

Anyway .. Govt. Staff get a bit more than 6000 Baht a month. He's talking about the poor downtrodden masses.

[tmark]

Has anyone tried to buy a computer that hasn't got illegal software loaded on it, in Thailand? It is near impossible.

Rubbish ..... unless you're talking about second hand jobs.

Most of the computers you buy here come clean with no operating system at all. It's up to the buyer to decide what to put onto it, and of course most buyers here settle for a pirate version of Windows at the advice of the dealers.

I wish they did come with some good value genuine OEM's installed. People think they are getting bargains here, but if you consider you're not getting the genuine operating system as part of the package, the deals stink in comparison with back home prices.

"near impossible" ..... "Most of the computers you buy here" ...

Now I fully appreciate the old saying " 90% of statistics are made up"

Like I said earlier .. TukCom, Pattaya .. was full of new machines with 100% "Boxed OEM's" included. These are the "Only to be supplied with a new computer system" ones.

I actually bought a WinXP Home OEM for 3000 Baht a couple of months ago. At the same place ... so I guess they get those from the guys who want a cheaper price and opt for the 150 baht copy.

Last week when I bought a new netbook .. I got another WinXP Home OEM .. now I have 2. Who wants to buy one ... nah .. costs too much.

[Bearnagh]

Has anyone tried to buy a computer that hasn't got illegal software loaded on it, in Thailand? It is near impossible.

Rubbish ..... unless you're talking about second hand jobs.

Sorry you're quite wrong. Many new PCs are pre-loaded with pirated softwares.... even from 'reputable' dealerships. I tend to agree with Tmark... it's near impossible to source machines with 100% legal and licenced softwares.

[tmark]

Has anyone tried to buy a computer that hasn't got illegal software loaded on it, in Thailand? It is near impossible.

Rubbish ..... unless you're talking about second hand jobs.

Sorry you're quite wrong. Many new PCs are pre-loaded with pirated softwares.... even from 'reputable' dealerships.I tend to agree with Tmark... it's near impossible to source machines with 100% legal and licenced softwares.

Arai Nah !! ??? Has anyone here got their head screwed on right tonight? Now I'm being credited with posts from 

"'Paul123456"

.... and this bit .. "Sorry you're quite wrong. Many new PCs are pre-loaded with pirated softwares"

I already conceded that .. now I will say it one last time .. it is not "near impossible" .. it's quite easy. Now tell me I'm wrong again. 

[TAWP]

I don't understand you people, why would it be hard to tell them to not pre-fill your computer with pirated software that they also charge you for? Open your mouth.

Or don't buy package-computers at supermarkets. There are a 100 stores at Pantip that both have parts and pre-assembled machines, clean.

[Bearnagh]

Has anyone tried to buy a computer that hasn't got illegal software loaded on it, in Thailand? It is near impossible.

Rubbish ..... unless you're talking about second hand jobs.

Sorry you're quite wrong. Many new PCs are pre-loaded with pirated softwares.... even from 'reputable' dealerships. I tend to agree with Tmark... it's near impossible to source machines with 100% legal and licenced softwares.

Arai Nah !! ??? Has anyone here got their head screwed on right tonight? Now I'm being credited with posts from

"'Paul123456"

.... and this bit .. "Sorry you're quite wrong. Many new PCs are pre-loaded with pirated softwares"

I already conceded that .. now I will say it one last time .. it is not "near impossible" .. it's quite easy. Now tell me I'm wrong again.

OK - come down from your soap-box and just share with us all where we can go to buy these PCs with 110% certainty of no illegal software... that would be a much more useful posting indeed!

[huma79]

Sorry you're quite wrong. Many new PCs are pre-loaded with pirated softwares.... even from 'reputable' dealerships. I tend to agree with Tmark... it's near impossible to source machines with 100% legal and licenced softwares.

Most reputable dealers will put a licensed version on the computers, and if you're not sure, just ask. If they lie to you, contact Microsoft and they'll send you a free licensed version for reporting that dealer. Again, this is assuming they are a 'reputable' dealer, not some no-name shop in Pantip.

"

Q:

What is the genuine Windows offer?

A:

The Microsoft genuine Windows offer is designed to help customers who unknowingly purchased counterfeit versions of Windows XP by offering those who qualify a complimentary copy or electronic license key for a genuine copy of Windows XP.

"

http://www.microsoft.com/genuine/downloads...2f974f#ID0EBIAC

[RigPig]

Has anyone tried to buy a computer that hasn't got illegal software loaded on it, in Thailand? It is near impossible.

Rubbish ..... unless you're talking about second hand jobs.

Most of the computers you buy here come clean with no operating system at all. It's up to the buyer to decide what to put onto it, and of course most buyers here settle for a pirate version of Windows at the advice of the dealers.

I wish they did come with some good value genuine OEM's installed. People think they are getting bargains here, but if you consider you're not getting the genuine operating system as part of the package, the deals stink in comparison with back home prices.

"near impossible" ..... "Most of the computers you buy here" ...

Now I fully appreciate the old saying " 90% of statistics are made up"

Like I said earlier .. TukCom, Pattaya .. was full of new machines with 100% "Boxed OEM's" included. These are the "Only to be supplied with a new computer system" ones.

I actually bought a WinXP Home OEM for 3000 Baht a couple of months ago. At the same place ... so I guess they get those from the guys who want a cheaper price and opt for the 150 baht copy.

Last week when I bought a new netbook .. I got another WinXP Home OEM .. now I have 2. Who wants to buy one ... nah .. costs too much.

Hmmm...if you didn't buy it with your computer you are running (technically) pirated software OEM stands for Original Equipment Manufacturer. A long time a go just after Bill conned IBM into buying an operating system he didn't own (smart business or a form of theft?). I was selling computers and as was common in those days the manufacturer went bust. The problem was I didn't get MS-Dos with the machine which was fortunately delivered. I rang Microsoft to purchase a copy and was told "I would have to sell the machine to another manufacturer and buy it back of them to get a copy". Hmmm OEM and licensing. Even if your computer dies and you have original disks and you transfer the OS to another computer (after all you own it right?). It is unlicensed. So go spend your $350 US for Windows, your $400 US for Office, your $700 US for Photo Shop and don't forget Nortons whatever that's worth these days!!!

The reality is if it wasn't so expensive no one would pirate it. He didn't get to be the most wealthy man in the world for nothing (and I sort of admire him for pulling it off) but it sure isn't because his software is tops.

The scary thing is the new British destroyers are going to be running on it what happens when they get the blue screen of death and have to reboot. Sorry we can't fix it we don't have the source code it's proprietary.

Maybe an obscure point to make but maybe a few of you will get the point. What did MS actually write for themselves? What did he "steal" from other people and now they persecute us for "stealing" from them.

[MegaMik]

At: "But do know one thing, the software stolen around the world aren't just from Microsoft and other big companies."

Well if Mr. Somchai with 8000 Baht salary has software for 200.000 Baht on his computer than he hasn't stolen anything. He would never have enough money to buy the original and no one is missing anything.

"stolen" means that you take something from some one who than don't have it anymore. In this case it is just an unlizenced copy.

Different case is the cracked autocad in factories.

My work, or anyone's else, can in fact be stolen even if it's digital.

The licens only allows people to use the software, people and companies only own the media they are distributed on and the right to use the software.

I am NOT defending Microsoft or any other company, just stating my view on intellectual property.

Even if I sit behind a computer doing nothing but fixing bytes together so people/companies will benefit from it/have fun or whatever reason behind a computer program, I spend time and money in my efforts to do so.

I wonder, would you consider not paying the plumber for his work in your house even if he didn't use any hardware to fix your problem, only amounts of time?

Personally I really like Open Source software.

We all need competition to become better and to keep the standards up high.

Most of you who complain about Microsoft have a valid reason for doing so but it was you and me who made them big in the first place.

The highest cost to make software is not only to make it into a full fledge program, the support costs are equal to the cost of producing it and yes, Microsoft have cut out support so you will have to pay for direct support but not for the updates and new functionality that comes along with fixes.

We can complain about bugs to the end of time but its getting easier for a developer to track down bugs with newer technology and tools aiding us.

To say a bug will never occure is pure utopia though as most bugs are business logic related.

Edited November 10, 2009 by MegaMik

[MegaMik]

The scary thing is the new British destroyers are going to be running on it what happens when they get the blue screen of death and have to reboot. Sorry we can't fix it we don't have the source code it's proprietary.

Hopefully they will use newer Windows OS, not XP or older.

I have Vista and have gotten one blue screen in 2 years and that was because of faulty hardware, my graphic cards memory gave up.

I use my computer 8-16 hours a day with all sorts of software running daily + I try to make serious bugs to see what happens in worst case scenarios.

Even if I flood my computers memory, with older programming tools, I have never managed to make a blue screen in Vista, easy though in XP.

[RigPig]

The scary thing is the new British destroyers are going to be running on it what happens when they get the blue screen of death and have to reboot. Sorry we can't fix it we don't have the source code it's proprietary.

Hopefully they will use newer Windows OS, not XP or older.

I have Vista and have gotten one blue screen in 2 years and that was because of faulty hardware, my graphic cards memory gave up.

I use my computer 8-16 hours a day with all sorts of software running daily + I try to make serious bugs to see what happens in worst case scenarios.

Even if I flood my computers memory, with older programming tools, I have never managed to make a blue screen in Vista, easy though in XP.

2000 I believe scary huh? Something to do with yep you guessed it licensing! The third party writing the actual software or something. I read this a while ago so memories a bit shaky.

[LazarusLong]

In internet shop now they do not let me download a moviefile that is on a free website because they said is illegal... What is the joke ? i'm Italian and our national TV leave in podcast all movies they made the day after of the official transmission and i can't take it ?

Like this now is better to do not have a computer anymore , is much more dangerous to use a computer then a gun in thailand.

A quick question... What about tourist who come here with their own computers ?

Since software piracy is a crime almost everywhere you are theoretically in danger. Practically I would think you only run a risk if you have bragged about those "cheap copies" to your bedwarmer and didn't treat her well :-).

You could run into a situation where Thai police might ask you to prove that your software is genuine (such as when using in an internet cafe).

A few friendly words, a glimpse on the license number and, most important, 200 to 500 Baht tea money should resolve all issues.

You should be aware that a lot of laptops have been conficated by US CBP even from business travellers and sometimes returned only after 6 weeks to 9 months, so play it safe, do a total encryption of your harddisk and make sure you have recent backups ;-)

[tropo]

Has anyone tried to buy a computer that hasn't got illegal software loaded on it, in Thailand? It is near impossible.

Rubbish ..... unless you're talking about second hand jobs.

Most of the computers you buy here come clean with no operating system at all. It's up to the buyer to decide what to put onto it, and of course most buyers here settle for a pirate version of Windows at the advice of the dealers.

I wish they did come with some good value genuine OEM's installed. People think they are getting bargains here, but if you consider you're not getting the genuine operating system as part of the package, the deals stink in comparison with back home prices.

"near impossible" ..... "Most of the computers you buy here" ...

Now I fully appreciate the old saying " 90% of statistics are made up"

Like I said earlier .. TukCom, Pattaya .. was full of new machines with 100% "Boxed OEM's" included. These are the "Only to be supplied with a new computer system" ones.

I actually bought a WinXP Home OEM for 3000 Baht a couple of months ago. At the same place ... so I guess they get those from the guys who want a cheaper price and opt for the 150 baht copy.

Last week when I bought a new netbook .. I got another WinXP Home OEM .. now I have 2. Who wants to buy one ... nah .. costs too much.

I bought a new laptop from Carrefour last week. NONE of the new systems come with "boxed OEM's". The salesmen talk customers who normally don't have a clue into installing pirate Windows and ask what operating system you would like. It's easy to tell if they come with an operating system as that is always indicated by a microsoft sticker on top and an a licence code underneath. This is a little on-the-side business for these nerds, because they tell the customers not to activate automatic windows updates and suggest they come back periodically for updates that they will install.

The salesman installed a bum version of Vista Ultimate on my computer and after I complained he replaced it with an unactivated copy of Windows 7 Ultimate. I could have easily done it myself, but I gave him 1000 baht to save my time. He even failed to install the drivers for my video card. I recommend people to stay away from the greasy computer nerds at Carrefour. They really p***d me off and I regret dealing with them. They are a bunch of liars who will say anything to get the sale.

Just a side note for anyone who is thinking about purchasing a new Compaq Presario. There is NO way to turn off the touch pad as in the older models. This is a real annoyance because the touchpad is positioned differently than in earlier models and really gets in the way when you want to type if you're a touch typist who rests palms on laptop surface. You have been warned! They are really cutting corners with the new models to make them cheap.

Edited November 10, 2009 by tropo

[brucegoniners]

So can somebody tell me, can you still get bootleg software at Pantip and bootleg dvd's at Pantip and MBK? That's a big industry in Thailand.

[tropo]

Arai Nah !! ??? Has anyone here got their head screwed on right tonight? Now I'm being credited with posts from

"'Paul123456"

.... and this bit .. "Sorry you're quite wrong. Many new PCs are pre-loaded with pirated softwares"

I already conceded that .. now I will say it one last time .. it is not "near impossible" .. it's quite easy. Now tell me I'm wrong again.

OK - come down from your soap-box and just share with us all where we can go to buy these PCs with 110% certainty of no illegal software... that would be a much more useful posting indeed!

What's the big deal? We all know that all the software is pirated on most of the computers you buy here. If you're not given an OEM sticker and Windows product key or a boxed original operating system disc it's extremely obvious to all but the most uninformed computer user that you're running a non-genuine operating system.

All you do is ask the salesman to format the disk and buy a genuine operating system. If you buy a genuine operating system I'm sure the salesman will load it for you if you wish. It's not rocket science. If you don't want to clean install you can genuinize a non-genuine Windows operating system by purchasing the genuine disk and entering the Windows product key without uninstalling it.

All the other crap that the guys load is usually just rubbish anyway. I usually uninstall most of it when I get the system home. Sometimes I have to ask computer repairers NOT to install anything on my computer. I've had a system back from repair on various occasions with new software installed that I didn't ask for that they had installed as a favour. LOL, once they even installed a full Windows Office pack which I didn't want on this particular older, slower computer.

[tropo]

1.nobody will check police stations or immigration offices to see if they all bought their license...

2.what do they expect, that a thai, averaging 6000 baht salary per month will spend a whole month on windows xp for home use ?

These are government departments. No individual staff member will be paying for the operating system of a work computer...obviously!

You "obviously" missed the the last part of the sentence .. "for home use" .. he's talking about two separate scenarios here.

Not Govt. Staff members paying for the Govt's software.

Anyway .. Govt. Staff get a bit more than 6000 Baht a month. He's talking about the poor downtrodden masses.

It's all nonsense anyway. A Thai that can afford a new computer is not broke on 6000 baht a month. If they can afford a new computer they can afford an operating system. Perhaps not the new Windows 7 Ultimate, but Windows XP Home Edition is good enough for the average Thai computer user. I'm using Windows XP right now and I'm more than satisfied.

If the computer industry clamped down on the loading of pirate operating systems on new computers, manufacturers would have to start offering new computers with genuine operating systems loaded at a competitve price. In the end we'd be getting new computers with genuine operating systems for about the same price as people are paying for unloaded systems (loaded with free junk). It's the computer manufacturers who are winning and relying on the fact that most people will just load free junk on their systems without considering the value of a genuine operating system.

[spongeman]

They only thing not copied in Thailand is Humans.

But they are working on it.

[loong]

It's all nonsense anyway. A Thai that can afford a new computer is not broke on 6000 baht a month. If they can afford a new computer they can afford an operating system. Perhaps not the new Windows 7 Ultimate, but Windows XP Home Edition is good enough for the average Thai computer user. I'm using Windows XP right now and I'm more than satisfied.

If the computer industry clamped down on the loading of pirate operating systems on new computers, manufacturers would have to start offering new computers with genuine operating systems loaded at a competitve price. In the end we'd be getting new computers with genuine operating systems for about the same price as people are paying for unloaded systems (loaded with free junk). It's the computer manufacturers who are winning and relying on the fact that most people will just load free junk on their systems without considering the value of a genuine operating system.

Just a few years ago, an average computer set up was about 20,000 Baht. Now you get a much more powerful system for half that, so even with a genuine operating system, still good value.

When you buy a computer in the UK, it is almost always (or at least used to be) sold with a legal OS, yet computers in the UK used to be cheaper than here in Thailand sold without a legal OS.

I agree with you that if legal versions of Windows were more the norm, the price would come down when part of a package.

[tracer]

A couple of posts in this thread and a few in the "other" one about this being a plot to attack Foreign business's in Thailand.

For the life of me I can't see ANY mention of that in the press copy. I thought they were just targeting private business and schools .. and hypocritically closing a blind eye to Government departments, police stations and schools.

Someone show me a quote about Foreign Business being a specific target.

... and for God's sake .. why doesn't the Nation or some other media have the balls to ask WHY Government departments and schools are not being raided. Don't tell me about it's pointless as the Government would be paying with one hand and receiving with the other .. forget the fines. Just force them to use legit software. I'd like to ask the powers that be "Why are you so hypocritical?"

Wishful thinking ... TIT

Well another question is that if one has 2 kids in a university and supposedly they can buy the student edition for 1500 baht how does one order it if the Uni doesn't.... I do not mind buying 2 copies for my kids as 1500 baht is reasonable. IS there any place where one can order and whats necessary to provide the proof that they are students...

I just keep my 'xp' though (g) as I absolutely refuse NOT being able to upgrade... Reinstall may be best but I only do that when I have to like the last 3 months when 2 of my drives bit the dust.... While I had partial backups if one has a big drive, where do you put the backup... (I know, get 2 drives but even that doesn't always help as in my case the second drive went straight after the first!)

[tracer]

I think the raids should be targeted at those computer shops that "repairs" your computer, only to find out that your legal OS has been replaced with a pirated one. There has been no recourse for this theft and should be. Target the big Thai companies, sure, but what does the average schmoe out there do when their legal system has been hijacked? Let it rain, but let it rain on all parties involved. Rain is not selective about who gets wet and who doesn't.

I NEVER put the sticker on the computer-case, I prefer to have that stuff in a safe. The one who invented that rule for the sticker needs his head examined. And even then you can get stuck as some windows directly from a Thai importer some years ago started to give a black background and a quick check showed that some repair-place had cloned another windows as they couldn't get in the safe as I was in hospital(g). Whatever, then you find out that about the only way to repair it is reinstall with original disk

and serial number from DOS in repair mode and make sure to keep operating system intact. If that also doesn't work its better the

windows gets installed fresh after rescuing the data...

Next fun had been as I complained to MS about the 5 disks not recognized as real. I was told 3 numbers had a problem, 2 were ok (happened to be the systems with the last problems. )I just reinstalled but systems worked.

Whatever you do, never clone the disks as you should see what has problems when you reinstall and where. Reinstalling a clone is the solution for the engineer needing to install many systems per day...

[steffi]

It will be interesting to see how long it takes before they start looking thru people's laptops upon arrival requiring proof of legitimate licenses on all software found on the laptops.

Edited November 11, 2009 by steffi

[NamSod]

With many IT aware people running small internet cafes starting to switch over to Unbuntu, when the schools follow suit to keep up with their kids the country will find that the free OS revolution has taken place and there will be little for the police to do but address real crime.

Perish the thought.

I'm really sorry to ask , but WHAT is "Unbuntu"

Ubuntu is one of the fastest growing linux-based free operating systems. You can install it for free or copy it free to a CD and boot your PC from the CD.

[khaowong1]

I wonder if gov't offices have licensed software.

I would hazard a guess, that no they don't use licensed software. I mean really, even if it was illegelly manufactored here in Thailand, that would make it a genuine Thai product, right? So why wouldn't they use genuine Thai products.