Windows 7 is awesome

Or at least it would be if I could actually get hold of it.

I always used being a student as an excuse for pirating goods and now that I actually have money I’ve decided to act above the law and buy computer software. I bought Snow Leopard when it came out a few months ago and now that Windows 7 is out I thought I’d pick up a copy. Incredible Connection were having a special on for a desktop PC and I went and bought one (disclaimer it wasn’t actually for me but for a family friend I occasionally help with when it comes to their computers) and was happy as it “qualified for a Windows 7 upgrade”. Now I assumed they’d just throw in a copy of the software considering it had been out for about four days when I got the PC. How wrong could I be!

You see, you need to connect to the Internet (problematic if you don’t have the net) and send in the details of the PC to Microsoft who will then send you a copy of Windows 7 in “7-10 working days”. The problem here is that it’s pointless to start using the PC as Windows 7 doesn’t allow you to do an upgrade and will require you to re-install your programs when you finally do go the Windows 7 route. To add insult to injury they want me to pay them $50 for the pleasure of shipping me the disc. Yes, that’s right: Microsoft want me to pay for the shipping. I phoned up Acer and they wouldn’t give me a copy as they don’t ship it. So basically I have to pay close on four hundred rand on top of the money I spent on the PC because Microsoft doesn’t understand that they have a local office and I need to get it from overseas.

So here’s my theory: for four hundred rand I can buy close on eight gigs of ADSL data. With that eight gigs I can download both the 32 and 64 bit versions of Windows 7 and install them on any PC I want. You see, when it comes down to the economics, piracy is actually the better option here. Best of all, I can download that file over two evenings and have it before “7-10 working days”. Considering I’ve paid Microsoft already, I feel nothing against doing this. Making me pay extra for shipping is rubbish, there is no way in hell a DVD costs $50 to send. Send a whole bunch to your local offices and they can send it in the local post for a few dollars.

I’m going to call Micrsoft’s local office tomorrow and see if they can help me out. Failing that, it’s time to start up that copy of uTorrent.

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