A cost analysis of Vista content protection

Posted Dec 25, 2006 0:57 UTC (Mon) by grouch (guest, #27289) [Link]

It would also need a big red sign next to it telling users not to press it until they had selected "shut down" from the Start Menu

What's a "Start Menu" and what does it have to do with turning a computer off?

(which, by the way, they wouldn't read); alternatively, it couldn't actually shut the computer down immediately, at which point we're back to today's status quo. What you say is true, *if* all computer users were computer-savvy, which is obviously not the case. Most people won't understand without a lot of explaining that their important document didn't actually go to disk as soon as they hit "save", and most people won't really care, either.

There are people who will use a fork to try to remove a screw and end up with a ruined fork and a ruined screw. Maybe there should be some mandated design guide for forks to make them not fit screw heads.

Now, that being said, I do feel a bit skittish about Microsoft's potential control over hardware design, but this particular example isn't terribly insidious.

Where do you get this "potential" qualifier? The potential was fulfilled more than 10 years ago. MS Vista is simply extending the remote control.