Originally Posted by PTravel

/RANT on

I'm writing this after spending 1 hour and 40 minutes on the phone with Microsoft's various Indian telephone support people.

Last night I installed a gigabit NIC (network interface card) on my desktop computer which is running a fully legal bought-at-Best-Buy-in-the-box genuine copy of XP Pro. When I tried to boot the machine tonight, before logon I got a window that said that my computer configuration changed and I had to reactivate Windows. It also said that, if I didn't, Windows would stop working in 3 days. It then opened an activation window, I clicked on "Activate over Internet," it churned away and, after a minute or two, said, "Cannot connect. Try again later."

It then continued to boot into Windows and a little icon blinked on the System Tray indicating, "Activate Windows." When I clicked on it, it opened an Explorer window to a webpage that lectured me on the evils of counterfeit software and offered me the opportunity to "make my copy of Windows legitimate" for $149.

"...?," I thought.

Careful examination of the insulting and extortionate webpage revealed a link to "Activation information." This took me to another page instructing me to running the "Activate Windows" wizard under System Tools in the Accessories folder.

"Fine," I thought.

I opened Programs, Accessories, System Tools and discovered . . . THERE WAS NO "ACTIVATE WINDOWS" WIZARD.

After some more clicking around, I found a phone number for Windows Technical Support. This is where the real fun began.

First rep: "Thank you for calling Microsoft. My name is #$%^&. May I have your name please?"
Me: "No, you may not. My legal copy of Windows, which has run fine for 4 years, now tells me it must re-activate and the provided procedure doesn't work."
First rep: "No problem. I'll transfer you to Activation. Thank you for calling Microsoft"

After a few minutes, I get connected to a robot (a real one, not flesh and blood like the later robots I spoke with) that tells me . . . run the "Activate Windows" wizard under System Tools in the Accessories folder.

I hang up and call back.

Second rep: "Thank you for calling Microsoft. My name is #$%^&. May I have your name please?"
Me: "No, you may not. My legal copy of Windows, which has run fine for 4 years, now tells me it must re-activate and the provided procedure doesn't work. I want to speak to a supervisor, a real human being, and not be connected to another robot."
Second rep: "No problem. I'll connect you. Thank you for calling Microsoft."

After a few seconds, a supervisor comes on and I explain the situation. Again. The supervisor said, "No problem. I'll transfer you to activation. Thank you for calling Microsoft."

After a few minutes, I'm transferred to a poor connection answered by a man with a strong Indian accent.

"Oh boy," I think. "The Indian Help Desk."

Help Desk person: "May I have your case number?"
Me: "I don't have a case number. My legal copy of Windows, which has run fine for 4 years, now tells me it must re-activate and the provided procedure doesn't work."
Help Desk person: "You must have a case number. I'll transfer you to customer service."
Me: "Customer service just transferred me to you."
Help Desk person: "No problem. I'll open a case for you. May I have your first, middle and last name?
Me: "No, you may not."
Help Desk person: "But I can't open a case without your full name."
Me: "Okay, listen carefully. I own a legal, genuine copy of Microsoft Windows. It stopped working because of something that Microsoft put in the software. I'm calling from California, where I'm a lawyer. California has an implied warranty of merchantability and an implied warranty of fitness for a particular purpose. Microsoft is in breach of these warranties, as well as the express warranty for the software that it sold me. Microsoft's obligations under the various warranties are not conditioned on my providing any personal information, nor do I intend to do so. Is that understood?"
Help Desk person: "Yes, sir. I understand. May I have your phone number?"
Me: "I just told you. I'm not giving you any personal information."
Help Desk person: "You will not be giving me your phone number?"
Me: "No."
Help Desk person: "In that case, may I have your first, middle and last name."
Me: "Get me a supervisor."
Help Desk person: "But sir, I cannot open a case number without your full name."
Me: "Okay. Either get me a supervisor or, Monday morning, I'm going to sue Microsoft in small claims court. Your choice."
Help Desk person: "Please hold sir, and I will get you a supervisor."

For the next hour or so, I was transferred from person to person, going through essentially the same routine until, finally, I was transferred to someone at "Product Activation" (also an Indian support office, but a very helpful person who didn't read from a script, actually new what he was talking about, and was sympathetic to the runaround I had been given) who gave me the secret code to run the Activation Wizard, at which point he was able to do a telephone re-activation and get my copy of Windows working again. While we were waiting for my computer to re-boot, I asked him why, after four years, Windows decided it needed to reactivate. He told me that a "signficant hardware change" could trigger it. I asked him whether installing a new NIC was considered a "significant hardware change." He told me that it was! I thanked him, hung up, logged onto FT and wrote this post so that I could ask this question:

Why shouldn't I file a class action suit against Microsoft for fraud, breach of warranty and breach of license?

I am beyond furious that (1) it took me more than an hour and a half to re-activate software that I am legally licensed to have and use, and (2) Microsoft demands personal information to which it has absolutely no legal entitlement before it will remove the virus (which is how I characterize this "feature") that interferes with my legal use of the product under the license.

/RANT off

How many of you have gone through this idiocy?