MS (Non-)Access and (Doesn't) Works

I recently deleted my Windows partition... blew it clean off the platters. Then, I decided to put it back on, and let it share space with Red Hat Linux. Now, however, I find myself desiring to install Micro$oft Word again so I don't have to drop to Linux and StarOffice whenever I want to create Word files (yea.. way to go Micro$oft.. that's the way to keep people using your product).

However, the installation asks me for a CD key. I checked everything, everywhere, including the dog and the kitchen sink, but there is no CD key to be found except on the ugly sticker glued to the case of my PC. This CD-key is apparently not it, as it works only in the Windows installation.

So, my questions would be:
1. What is the logic of distributing a Word re-install disk w/o the key to allow the installation?
2. How does this protect Micro$oft from piracy, if the only way I could install the Word copy I purchased would be to get a pirated key?
3. What is the logic behind not allowing Word to be re-installed, thus FORCING me to use StarOffice 5.2 to create .doc files?

Maybe I just don't have a marketing mind or something (at least, I hope this is the case), but what the hell were the Redmonites thinking when they did this? My girlfriend has the same problem (with Word, not thinking... she's actually very intelligent, honor society and all).

Another amusing point: Why are Microsoft Access 97 and 2000 databases incompatible? Why are Access databases incompatible with MicroSoft Works (ironic given the app's name).

Forget the Meaning of Life (which is a stupid philosophy about a cottage and something about being kind), I want to know the meaning of microsoft!

There are versions of both star office and open office, it's immature little brother, that run on win32. Have you tried those?

On the other questions/musings. . . I use win32 only when I have to.

Access 2000 uses the jet4.0 engine and 97 uses the jet3.5 engine. I guess that the tweaks and speed improvements that MS did must have involved throwing the Jet engine out of the window and recreating it. At least you can do a one-way change from 97 to 2000. Just wait for the next reincarnation, word on the grapevine is that JET is long in the tooth and they're going to use something entirely different. So possibly no compatability may be the case.

Why would you want to make works compatable, that would mean that people would buy the cheap option and never want to update...$

Don't know if this will work, but go to:

http://www.eldar.cz/wisdom/download.htm

and look for the keygens. They're supposed to generate valid installation keys. Can't say whether this will be virus free etc, or that it's legal.

Well... I kept Windows ME around so that I could do some light windows programming (they use VB6 at work sometimes, ugh) and play games. I just thought it would be nice if I hade Word available in case I was already running Windows and needed to type a document up. But, congratulations Micro$oft... in your infinite wisdom you've FORCED me to use StarOffice to do Word work

Binky, as for the keygens... that was my point exactly.. I'd have to go out and STEAL a key to use a product I PAID for. That seems like a logical way to prevent piracy to me!

Yeah, I know. This is cemented further by MS's attitude. If you ask for the key then they'll want to know where you purchased the product so that the vendor can be checked out, and also any would be pirate. It's all a waste of time if you ask me, I'll be getting Star Office on my PC as soon as my girlfriend finishes her dissertation and Office isn't critical anymore.

It's what you get with MS I'm afraid, I lost the Win98 sleeve that had the key on... it was much easier to get a copied version than to go through the effort of getting a key from MS. It's crap really, their stating that piracy is costing them a fortune. Maybe it is, but it's not harming them.

Imagine working in an environment when the major thing you deal with is licenses. You sell nothing but a right to use a product twice, what does that mean... 20p production allows for anywhere from £70 upwards of profit. It is the corporations needing these licenses that make MS the big money. What does the individual user cost to someone like MS? Not £70, because that user would use a free OS/office app if everything was watertight. It actually costs them nothing because if everything was watertight they wouldn't sell the product. So effectively they are not losing out because of piracy, they wouldn't have sold software before and they don't now. In fact, as the record companies have finally realised, after jumping on the 'mp3s will ruin us' bandwagon, piracy is a good thing. People use the software then find they have to update, so go and buy the upgrade. Okay, so it's not £350 worth of software they've bought but using the something gained philosophy (see earlier) they now have made some money out of piracy. What the pirate software ammounts to is a free demo of something you never get a free demo of, no piracy no demo, no sales... MS has to realise this.

I may have lost it a bit somewhere in all of that... sorry.

Not sure I understand, why was it critical to begin with? SO 5.2 does .doc files. Or, did you need one of those off-the-wall 'features' that noone uses causing Word's price to skyrocket?


Well then, you caught the spirit of my original post

Oh, and your "bing" is a "ding" and I could've sworn the machine was a machine that went "ping" not "bing"... but I could be wrong.