The best defense for software piracy is making software affordable to people. Believe me, if the price of software is reasonable, people would rather have their own copy of the software than bootlegging a copy from their friends and family. Not only they get a reliable CD source, but also software updates and technical support. It comes down to market price. It is especially problematic in the Asia Pacific Region were software piracy is rampant. More than half of the computers were illegal copies last year. If the price of software is adjusted to a country’s spending power, you can keep software piracy on a manageable level. The law of demand and supply still applies.
Archives for May 2006
Is Vonage Worth A Look?
I have been thinking about switching telephone service to Vonage. They offer unlimited phone calls to anywhere in the continental United States for just $25 a month. The only requirement is you will need a high-speed internet service at your home which most people do since all calls are placed through on the internet. You get voicemail, 3-way calling, call forwarding, 911 as well as transfer your existing number. So, are they worth a look? Vonage has been bleeding red since 2001 and there are showing no signs of turning the company around. Vonage faces stiff competition from eBay’s Skype and Google. In addition, it also competes with telephone and cable television giants. The company’s fate may lie on a likely buyout or takeover. So, is it worth switching?
Is Your PC Vista Ready?
Microsoft Corporation just released the hardware requirements for its next operating system called Vista which is scheduled to be released in January 2007. Microsoft has two requirements: a low-end system termed a Vista Capable PC and a high-end system termed a Vista Premium Ready System.
Vista Capable PC
At least 800 MHz
512MB of system memory
Graphics processor that is DirectX 9 capable
Vista Premium Ready PC
1 GHz 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor
1GB of system memory
128MB of graphics memory
40GB of hard drive capacity with 15GB free space
DVD-ROM drive,
Audio output capabilities
Internet access