Perhaps in a desperate attempt to stop piracy Microsoft has responded to the recent cracks in Windows Vista. Essentially they are telling users to wait before they pirate the operating system.
Microsoft is happy that customers are eager to begin using Windows Vista; however, the copies available for download are not final code and users should avoid unauthorised copies which could be incomplete or tampered.
I fail to see how they are claiming that is unfinished code. The torrents are all RTM releases. By definition, RTM is released to the manufacturer. It’s the same thing as “going gold” or final release.
Microsoft said these copies are almost useless and will expire. This is because the hack that is used allows you to use pre-release keys which will expire in upcoming months.
There is essentially no way to stop pirates, but Microsoft is putting forth a lot of effort to keep it to a minimum in its upcoming operating system. Without a key, you will be prompted for keys and in a sense annoy you into buying the operating system. If you don’t enter a key within 30 days Microsoft will go into limited functionality mode. Basically, you can browse the web for an hour then the system logs you out. If you use a stolen key, you won’t be able to get updates thanks to our friend WGA.