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Microsoft Raids in Kerala = Harthal Across Kerala |
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agnisharman 
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Simply Malayalee Joined: 01 - September - 2007 Location: Chennai Online Status: Online Posts: 1661 |
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 Topic: Microsoft Raids in Kerala = Harthal Across KeralaPosted: 25 - December - 2007 at 16:06 |
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I read this news from Kritika Sharma and was shocked how people want to blame Microsoft for punishing those stealing a product of Microsoft. Justification from Suresh sounds really stupid. He sounds like a small time thief who would justify saying "Its not that I want to steal things, but the people who wants to buy stuff from me wants only stolen items." Waiting for the DOG to bite and not tell your kids about the consequences of stoning a full grown dog, is highly stupid. Microsoft allowed piracy in the past to establish their products and now slowly is telling people, "okay guys honeymoon period is over, now start paying for the hardwork we had put in for years now" Microsoft is already doing a lot of awareness online and offline about piracy and its consequences. Its the people who were IGNORANT and the dealers who encouraged it. The two days HARTHAL will not make a hole in the Microsoft's pocket at all. Instead it will result in some dealers loosing some business because of in-efficient leader's foolish decisions. I strongly believe, only a discussion across table to start off will bring things to acceptable levels on both sides. Raids may not be a solution to piracy, it is definitely a good start towards it. -agnisharman Microsoft Raids Retaliated With Hartal In Kerala All IT dealers have announced 2 day hartal (strike) beginning from 24 Dec. 07 against the raids conducted by Microsoft in Trichur and Trivandrum district. Microsoft conducted these raids without prior notice to the dealers. In these raids one dealer (Prasad) was allegedly arrested and against six others cases were lodged.
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mat001
Senior Member 
Joined: 27 - December - 2007 Online Status: Offline Posts: 102 |
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Posted: 15 - January - 2008 at 00:57 |
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Actually there is another element to this. In Europe and many other places there were accused of many unfair practices and they have paid a lot of money. If you are aware they have done many unfair practices in the bundling of their products that are against the rules and they have caused others tons of money to right their mistakes. In short - giving these entities a legal clout - given that they have themselves circumvented legality many many times in US , Europe and many other places is not right and is making life burdonsome for others.
Then comes with these payments is there a guarantee that the product works the way it is advertised or is it going to come with a series of patches that you would have to add for the rest of your life ? Then comes the holes in the software that are being exploited by the virus chaps !!!
In short - I am totally against giving software - read vapour ware - a level of copy right protection given that it does not fix issues but creates more issues.
I think like in Europe - some kind of class action suit must be taken against these entities.
Maybe the world should opt for a free OS and the problems will go away !!!
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mat001
Senior Member
Joined: 27 - December - 2007 Online Status: Offline Posts: 102 |
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Posted: 17 - January - 2008 at 05:15 |
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To take this arguement one step further - I am totally against the concept of copyright for software - at some level it is nonsense.
Most IT chaps will tell you - at the onstart the system is not visible to the eye - it does not do what we want it to do - it is beaten and moulded into a working form with all its faults by a poor and unfortunate set of systems chaps. The chaps that are selling it promise all kinds of stuff only to collect the commissions and disappear never to be seen again. We the poor IT chaps are left being hammered by the users for something that we did not even have a part in buying.
The home user feels a small dose of this when they buy the home OS. WHen was the last time that one of these things worked consistently from day to day - like a phone or a car or a wheel or a nut or bolt ?
Then comes the known bugs in a software - this is like 20% of the unknown mess that comes to haunt us - and the clowns who sell the stuff have no idea what is happening. I had a very expensive system once where the OS fellow blamed the app software - the software chap blamed the programmer ( customiser ) - and then everyone ganged together to blame the users ( flaky specifications ) and all this was run by an IT Director who was not even an IT chap - he was a financial clown.
In this situation - why give this mess a legitimacy by giving copy right protection. It is like copywriting my cigarette smoke pattern as it is exhaled - and in this software mess - they have made an art out of copywriting - all are parasites - feeding on a hapless people !!!!
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agnisharman
Admin Group
Simply Malayalee Joined: 01 - September - 2007 Location: Chennai Online Status: Online Posts: 1661 |
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Posted: 17 - January - 2008 at 05:52 |
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Hey Mathayee
You are very specific to a cutomized or third party software.
I am sticking to Microsoft, who knows what they are making and have spend a whole lot of money into research and development of the same.
They definelty know the spec, No-Non-IT guys on top, No-one sells it and disappears.
The sales guys who sell MS-Softwares dont even have to boast or lie about it. Everyone knows it, those who appreciate the idea and hardwork put in by Microsoft guys will buy it without a bargain.
Please do not compare Microsoft with a street-side software vendor.
If you enjoy using MS word, IE, XP, MS-office, MSpMoney etc... you better pay for it.
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mat001
Senior Member
Joined: 27 - December - 2007 Online Status: Offline Posts: 102 |
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Posted: 18 - January - 2008 at 03:27 |
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Actually I am not against a cost for software. What I am against is the concept of copyright for something that always has bugs and does not conform to the specifications.
The organisation you mentioned is an interesting one. It has been caught out in many places for anti competitive practices. They use systems of this nature to keep the user captive - in fact there was a major settlement in Europe. In China - they are moving out of these software monopolistic practices. In fact bundling software in an inextricable manner is one of the main reasons we have to use their mess for everything. Actually have you looked to see if there are options ? Can we consider options ?
Look at the iPhone - it has an interesting arrangement where they tie up with service provider and locks up the phone. This is against the anti monopolistic practices - in short there must be competition. Copyright stops people from getting full value of the product - in some places unlocking the product ( your product ) is against copy right laws.
I am of the opinion that stuff like Copyright must be carefully used for definate products - cannot be used for vapourware . The harm is that it stops development and people even thinking of doing anything. If beds are copyrighted for sleeping to a point where people cannot sit on it without breaking the law - something is wrong.
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mat001
Senior Member
Joined: 27 - December - 2007 Online Status: Offline Posts: 102 |
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Posted: 20 - January - 2008 at 03:37 |
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I guess the lack of a response from the pro Copyright parties indicates that the concept of copyright has reached proportions where it must be curtailed.
Maybe the parties setting up the Hartal ( or whatever ) is on the right track -
It would be interesting to consider why we are letting these large groups bring their concept of copyright ( to our detriment ) into our shores !!!
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agnisharman
Admin Group
Simply Malayalee Joined: 01 - September - 2007 Location: Chennai Online Status: Online Posts: 1661 |
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Posted: 19 - April - 2008 at 17:39 |
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Open Letter To MammoottyFrom FOSS Community India(Redirected from Open Letter To Mammooty)
Open Letter to Mammootty to Reconsider Promotion of Microsoft and their Proprietary Softwares We request all of you to blog on this and add your link to Protest Blog posts page. A malayalam version of this letter is available here . Please help to complete this Translation മമ്മൂട്ടിയ്ക്കൊരു തുറന്ന കത്തു് Microsoft will be signing up Malayalam movie star Mammootty as one of the brand ambassadors for the Computer Literacy programme that is to be organized soon in Kerala, a Southern Indian State well known for its pro-free software policies. This is an open letter by Free Software Activists, Supporters and Users of Kerala to Mammootty. Open Letter to Mamootty from Free Software CommunityDear Bharat Mammootty, This letter is to express our deepest disappointment in your involvement with Microsoft to launch their e-literacy program in Kerala and is based on the belief that you have high social convictions and commitment to the people of Kerala. Kerala's civil society had in the past been delighted by your decision to dissociate with the coco cola advertisement project as a response to the resource exploitation and pollution caused by the corporate body. However, people of Kerala will be bewildered to see that you are lending your name and fame to support a devastatingly nefarious techno-monopolistic campaign unleashed by Microsoft in our state. We feel your move is both ill-advised and harmful. Being the Director of a major media initiative (Kairali TV, Malayalam Communications Limited) that claims to be people-oriented both in terms of its initial resource mobilization tactics as well as its professed commitment to people's causes, it is embarrassing to see that such concerns are completely sidelined in favor of a hideous agenda of a major US based multi-national IT giant, despised even in US for its monopolistic tendencies. In fact there are records of this company using underhanded tactics to enforce its views on an organization like ISO which maintains international standards for public benefit. We are assuming that you were not given enough information about the IT Scenario we live in. Software is a tool and a means with which we can achieve a lot of things. In this respect, it is similar to infrastructure like roads and rails. Using Microsoft software is akin to using a road built by a private agency who levies a charge for its use. Any further development of that road and the terms of usage of that road will be subject to the whims of that private agency alone, however insane it may be. Free Software is like an alternate road , with equal or better quality. It is community owned - public property. What modifications have to be done, and where it has to be done is driven by public need and is not influenced by a private party. When we use Microsoft's products, which do not give the 4 essential freedoms in Computing (Right to study, Right to copy, Right to modify and Right to Redistribute software), we are becoming helpless creatures. Non-free softwares like Windows are designed to keep users helpless and prohibit cooperation. On the other hand , Free software believes in sharing and cooperation. For your kind attention, Microsoft, the company with which you plan to sign the contract, has a track record of being fined($1.35 billion) for Antitrust Charges in European Union for not complying with EU standards and trying to avoid giving essential information required for interoperability to others by asking for a huge price. As the report says, "Microsoft was the first company in 50 years of EU competition policy that the commission has had to fine for failure to comply with an antitrust decision," The Hindu February 28, 2008. The Kerala state IT policy says motto of Akshaya project is ‘making technology and e-government services accessible to common man’. For making technology and e-governance accessible to common man without vendor lock-in, Free Software (Swathanthra Software) is the only solution available. On IANS Report you are saying "your mission is to help make all sections of the society IT literate". We understand and appreciate your genuine spirit. But selecting Microsoft as an accomplice would be a wrong choice. Making people literate benefits the society as a whole. Proprietary software rejects their thirst for knowledge: it says, “The knowledge you want is a secret — learning is forbidden!” Free software encourages everyone to learn. The free software community rejects the 'priesthood of technology', which keeps the general public ignorant of how technology works. The people and Government of Kerala understood it and has already introduced it in our schools and government institutions. So we request you to stand for free software and essential freedoms in computing to fulfill your mission. Since you have on several occasions expressed your support to the causes upheld by left forces in the country, we hope that it will not be news to you that CPI(M) and other progressive forces in the country have been ardent supporters of free software and as a matter of principle, detest Microsoft's monopoly built through treacherous market machinations that even the developed countries find unbearable. It is high time that you understood the implications and ramifications of your support for Microsoft. It seriously undermines your role as a socially committed artist, progressive media leader and sympathizer of leftist politics. We hope that being a thinking man, you will realize the error in endorsing proprietary software and will persist in your mission of bringing about IT to the common man via free software and open standards. As a great man who has enriched the culture of Kerala and India, please do set an example by using and promoting free software. We as a body that strives to support free standards and free society through free software, request you to reconsider your decision and be a proponent of free software to achieve your mission to help make all sections of the society IT literate. Let us build your dream together with free software. A group of free software activists, supporters and users who believe in freedom, free society and free expression of ideas. Endorsed byOrganisations
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agnisharman
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Simply Malayalee Joined: 01 - September - 2007 Location: Chennai Online Status: Online Posts: 1661 |
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Posted: 24 - April - 2008 at 04:55 |
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Microsoft India, which had patched up with channel partners in Kerala earlier is said to have extended an unsigned peace pact, to work with channels in the state. Microsoft key officials met representatives of All Kerala Computer Manufacturers and Dealers Association (AKCMADA), the Computers Dealers Association of Thiruvananthapuram (CDAT) and Malabar IT Dealers Association met and discussed the progress of an understanding which was reached during their previous discussion. A meeting was conducted on April 21-22 to discuss the stalemate. A few dealers in the state were raided earlier last year, and it has been reported that a couple of the partners had filed counter suits against Microsoft. Some of the associations conducted a dharna against the raids. Various associations in the state had raised some of the issues faced by channels and several rounds of discussions took place between MS officials and the members of associations. At the end of the meeting an understanding was reached that Microsoft will work with channels closely and the channels will cooperate with Microsoft to grow their business. Channel associations agreed at the end of that meeting to start working with Microsoft closely to increase the MS business out of the state, on the condition that Microsoft will stop harassing the dealer community. There was also an understanding that Microsoft and channels will review the progress of the "new understanding" on a later date, and the meeting at the beginning of this week was the first of such confidence building measures. "We are not making any unnecessary demands with Microsoft such as lowering the rate of software. The problem of piracy is not channel or panel created. If there are a few bucks to be made, every partner will be eager to make it. However, problem of piracy lies with the users, and their demands for pirated software along with the machines," explained P K Harikrishnan, President, AKCMADA. The Microsoft team was not available for comments, but a source from Microsoft said "Microsoft is equally eager to do business with channel partners. We want an amicable relationship, but we are faced with no choice if partners continue selling pirated software despite knowing that it is illegal. We want to work with channels to help them sell more genuine software and are doing everything possible to educate customers." It is understood that Microsoft sales team will now diffuse the tension by helping to close the legal cases (with some fines) against most of the partners who have been raided on a commitment that they will start selling genuine software and work with Microsoft closely. "Microsoft India has agreed that they will not use raid as a weapon to intimidate the channels partners, and try working with them in educating both partners as well as users. It must either educate or instill fear in the users who are using pirated software, and this will create a push for their products, and will help dealers sell better," said Harikrishnan.
Microsoft Corporation (I) Pvt. Ltd. |
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vineeth
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Joined: 19 - March - 2008 Location: Chennai Online Status: Offline Posts: 2 |
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Posted: 15 - June - 2008 at 06:38 |
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Bill gates is retiring in 2years from now and Microsoft has released this video to honour him
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Vineeth
Chennai |
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agnisharman
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Simply Malayalee Joined: 01 - September - 2007 Location: Chennai Online Status: Online Posts: 1661 |
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Posted: 24 - June - 2008 at 11:25 |
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The Kerala High Court said that government should take stern action so that the public will have the confidence to go to streets and open shops without fear on hartal days. Government should give protection to the life and property of the people. In an oral observation, a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice H L Dattu and Justice A K Basheer expressed displeasure at the attitude of the government in not giving “due regard” to the court orders. |
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