Aero To Be Unavailable To Pirates

Found on Slashdot on Wednesday, 12 April 2006
Browse Software

"Users thinking of pirating the next version of Windows may have a surprise in store: no Aero for you. The upcoming Microsoft OS will run a check to ensure the copy was legally purchased. If it comes up short, the shiniest part of the OS will not be available." From the article: "At first an optional program, the piracy check eventually became mandatory for many types of Windows XP downloads, but was not required to run any aspect of the operating system itself. Microsoft has identified reducing piracy as a key way for the company to grow its sales of Windows, which is already used on more than 90 percent of personal computers. But it's not just pirates who will be blocked from Windows' fanciest graphics. The Aero display also won't be available to those who buy Windows Vista Basic, the low-end consumer version of the operating system."

I would have to pirate Vista to avoid Aero? Well, if MS insists on that... On the other hand, I doubt this new check will stop pirates; there'll be too many working on a "fix" for that.