Windows 7 will ship without IE in europe

[cleverlymadeup]

I have no problems with EU getting pissed at Microsoft bundling IE with Windows. I do have problems when the EU suggests that Microsoft must be forced to include the competition into their OS. It would be like forcing Coca-Cola to put Pepsi ads on their Coke cans.

If anything, it's the EU's suggestion that is anti-competition.

no that's a bad analogy and totally wrong, you really don't understand anticompetitiveness

You're free to uninstall it in 7. Or just install Linux.

That new Ubuntu release looks pretty slick. Just saying.

actually i've probly forgotten more about linux than you'll know, i've been running it for over 12 years

the thing you 2 don't understand is when they look at if someone has an unfair monopoly, they look at the COMMON person, not some techie or geek that has a clue. they look at joe sixpack and family. they ask the question "do they know there is an alternative" in EVERY antitrust case it has been a "NO"

now there are other factors to this as well, m$ also forced companies to NOT include other web browsers in their os install, they also charged all OEM's a premium whether or not they installed a m$ product and then undercutting everyone else for the cost of their operating system and then since they were losing to netscape they decided to tie ie with the os and they basically killed netscape there because most people had no clue there was a netscape because they didn't know much about computers

so to use the coke-pepsi analogy, and correctly this time, this is like having to pay coke a $1 tax every time you want to drink any type of cola no matter what and coke is $1 cheaper than every other, would the vast majority of people actually drink pepsi anymore if they had to pay $1 more per can for a pepsi? no they wouldn't, some people would but the vast majority wouldn't pay the extra $1

 

[Skeleon]

As far as I know, only a few (or less) countries in Europe are socialist. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Right. Only states with high democratic standards are allowed to enter, which is why Turkey is still in EU-limbo.

Well, it is a bit inconvenient.
But honestly, it was the right thing to do.

 

[Arcticflame]

I thought the point was that you could still install IE, but it was an additional extra that could be downloaded through the update center, rather than a core system file?

 

[McMo0^]

So as little as the fact that IE won't be the Browser by default bothers me, how are we going to get on the net to download a new browser such as Firefox or opera without it? Does this mean i'm going to have to guard my firefox install file with my life from now on?

I fail to see how this is important to marketing seeing as no-one will pay for a browser when theres plenty of high quality free ones... unless of course they'll all start charging... oh crap

actually, this development is a very important one in the browser industry, IE was monopolizing internet browsing, which is why europe said it cant be part of the package. This gives new computer users that normally woudlnt DL a browser a reason to go searching, making stuff like firefox, opera, chrome more appealing.

also there are plenty of ways to get a broser, DL from a comp on your portable harddrive (be it a thumbstick, ipod, anything) and transfer it, or do commandline and DL straight to your computer that way.

Oh yeah i get all of that. I remember back in the in the day when it was netscape or ie, and why would anyone pay for netscape, it was the same thing but wasn't part of the os.

My main point is that at some point someone will buy windows 7 and have probably never had an OS before. If it comes without a browser, then how get to look at the at the internet and therefore download any browser?

I completly agree with the decision, but doesn't it essentially cut you off from the internet if you have no browser at all. I'm pretty sure if i removed IE as well as firefox from my pc completely i'd have no way of getting to websites except via another computer. Does this mean that we'll end up having to buy browsers again so we can have them on disk?

 

[SquirrelPants]

Man, I've got NO problems with Internet Explorer. It's a web browser. I like Firefox BETTER, sure, but why hate it like everyone does?

As long as the person can install IE on their own, and uninstall it, it doesn't matter, right? If they want it, they got it. If they don't want it, uninstall it after downloading something else. No real issue here, y'know? =P

actually the American government found them guilty of the exact same thing but once Bush got into power any effective and good punishments were stoppped

as for me, i think i'm going to order the euro edition and have it shipped over here cause i don't want internet explorer at all

You're free to uninstall it in 7. Or just install Linux.

That new Ubuntu release looks pretty slick. Just saying.

It IS pretty slick. =D

 

[z121231211]

I thought the problem was that Windows needed Internet Explorer to work. Therefore you were unable to uninstall it.

 

[Altorin]

not NEEDING IE on your system is a good thing. Being able to install Firefox (via a burnt reformat package disc) would be much favorable then having to even muck around in IE at all, or needing to install its latest version to get other features of my operating system to run properly.

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

I do have problems when the EU suggests that Microsoft must be forced to include the competition into their OS. It would be like forcing Coca-Cola to put Pepsi ads on their Coke cans.

I'd quite happily agree to that.

Anyway IE is just the number one tool for downloading Firefox atm. IE has security problems, memory problems, caching problems etc. etc. etc. It's just an ugly memory whore.

 

[Cowabungaa]

I thought the problem was that Windows needed Internet Explorer to work. Therefore you were unable to uninstall it.

If that's true, that would explain the EU's reaction.

Anyway, it's an odd rule. Afterall, you can't download a new browser now, and if you lack a flash drive you're basically screwed. If they would just force Microsoft to make IE uninstallable (if the quote above is true), it would do the trick as well I guess.

 

[PoweD]

i uninstalled IE7 so i don't care much
Also this is the cause of Opera lawsuit:
You may have heard it in the news recently, Microsoft is currently the target of an antitrust lawsuit by the EU for bundling its Internet Explorer web browser as the default browser in Windows. That's right, they're being sued for including their own browser in their own operating system.

Who is behind all of this? Opera Software, makers of the Opera web browser. In December of 2007, Opera pushed the EU to open a case against Microsoft as Opera believed it to be anti-competitive for Microsoft to include its own browser as the default browser within their own OS.

For some unknown reason, instead of combating the lawsuit, Microsoft decided to settle, and on Thursday announced that they would no longer include Internet Explorer in versions of Windows 7 (Microsoft's next operating system) sold in Europe, and would leave it up to OEM builders to decide which browser to install.

Well, things took a turn for the worse today when Opera made a statement saying this was not enough, and have now pushed the EU to pursue with the antitrust case. Opera believes the only reasonable solution is for Microsoft to include a "ballot screen" for users to select which browser to use.

Source:http://www.jcxp.net/news.php?newsid=2801