WTF?!?! I hate Microsoft!!!

[ColoJohnBoy]

Has this happened to anybody else?

My roommate and I share a cable internet connection over an AirPort network She owns an iBook, I a PowerBook. We both own our own separate, individual copies of Office v.X Academic.

A couple weeks ago, I did a clean install of Jaguar after running an early build of Panther for awhile. I reinstalled all my software, including my copy of Office. Tonight, when I started Word, it told me that "This installation of Office is more than the alotted....." blah blah blah. Basically, it told me I was running my roommate's copy of Office!!! Aaaaaagh! I've tried reinstalling, reinstalling with AirPort turned off, re-registering, and nothing works! If AirPort is on, and we try to run any Office apps at the same time, the last one to start his up doesn't get to use it!!!

I sent M$ an e-mail describing the situation, but I'll probably just get some smart-assed lecture about piracy in response. Does anybody have experience with a thing like this??? It's driving me crazy!!

 

[TEG]

I have had a similar experience with Adobe Products, but only with AirPort. My solution was to go to "hacking" websites and find the information to remove the snoopers, usually in a directory called 'net' or 'web'. That usually works.

BTW: It was PageMaker 7.0, and it involved 2 Macs and a PC.


TEG

 

[ColoJohnBoy]

Thanks, TEG, I'll give that a shot.

 

[Viv]

In OS X go to the sharing control and turn on the firewall.

Office uses standard TCP/IP ports to snoop the network so if you turn on the firewall (off by default) it will stop this little problem.

Works with other software too!

 

[ColoJohnBoy]

If I turn on the firewall, but leave personal file sharing enabled, will Word still be able to track my roomie's copy? It sounds like a great idea, but I'd rather find another way if it's going to interfere with file sharing.

 

[Mblazened]

this sort of thing is why we shouldn't feel bad about piracy. Why should we adhere to "fair use," if the software companies and labels dont?

 

[reflex]

Originally posted by Mblazened
this sort of thing is why we shouldn't feel bad about piracy. Why should we adhere to "fair use," if the software companies and labels dont?

Sure, whatever you do don't feel bad about piracy. It's not like that sort of measure is triggered by the huge amount of piracy or anything.

 

[ColoJohnBoy]

LOL - I understand the whole piracy thing. People shouldn't do it, but companies shouldn't be so militantly enforcing it. This whole thing with Word is just a minor annoyance. An extremely nice woman from Microsoft responded to my e-mail, sending me a little program called Office Killer X - it erased all the files with the Product ID and user information contained in them, and allowed me to reenter my information and CD Key.

 

[Viv]

Originally posted by ColoJohnBoy
If I turn on the firewall, but leave personal file sharing enabled, will Word still be able to track my roomie's copy? It sounds like a great idea, but I'd rather find another way if it's going to interfere with file sharing.

No, the firewall works on a list of ports so personal filesharing can be enabled (tick the box but it can still block Office (port 2222).

This seems to have started a piracy debate as well, my point is that all these applications pollute the local network with crap packets of data, in the case of office (see MS tech note) it polluted the internet as well (license check went across routers).

Turning on the firewall and blocking this type of rubbish is just plain good housekeeping.

 

[tomf87]

Originally posted by Viv
No, the firewall works on a list of ports so personal filesharing can be enabled (tick the box but it can still block Office (port 2222).

This seems to have started a piracy debate as well, my point is that all these applications pollute the local network with crap packets of data, in the case of office (see MS tech note) it polluted the internet as well (license check went across routers).

Turning on the firewall and blocking this type of rubbish is just plain good housekeeping.

The firewall only blocks inbound ports, so the traffic will still be generated on the network. That data will just not enter another person's machine.

I wonder what daemon could be running to be checking licenses...