"The hardest thing about replacing Windows 7 with Linux is getting the damn sticker off," Tim from OpenBytes wrote (credit: OpenBytes)

Summary: Portugal is the latest country where an unwanted Vista 7 licence is reported to have been refunded

Microsoft is losing control of its monopoly position and out of misery it is using attack vectors like fake companies (e.g. patent trolls and EU-based complainers) whole sole purpose is to harm Microsoft competitors. Microsoft sees the need for such abusive tactics because it is losing to Google in government, for example, amid a move to Fog Computing (many of the servers powering this are also IBM mainframes running GNU/Linux). Microsoft is not just totally losing control in the back room however. That's just an area where GNU/Linux has enjoyed spectacular (yet immeasurable) growth for well over a decade.

On the desktop too GNU/Linux is gaining. Last night we shared some encouraging statistics from W3schools and given that Chrome OS is coming to shops, there is reason to expect greater adoption of GNU/Linux (albeit with Android-esque lock-down).

A few weeks ago we wrote about a Vista 7 refund given in Brazil and in the UK too it appears to be possible [1, 2] although my co-host Tim says it requires the buyer to go through a long and cumbersome process. Well, following the success story from Brazil (which put Techrights in the news) someone in Portugal has just managed to also get a Vista 7 refund, thus setting a precedence. The person writes:

No dia 8 de Setembro dirigi-me a um espaço comercial da zona da grande Lisboa e adquiri um ASUS 1005PX, após ter feito uma pesquisa e recebido algumas pistas de amigos, porque considerei ser uma máquina "decente"(*) no que toca à relação preço/qualidade. Apercebi-me de imediato da falta de informação dos trabalhadores dessa loja sobre a forma da compra que estava a fazer (substituir o sistema operativo previamente instalado) mas também fiquei satisfeito por ter sido encorajado a fazê-lo por um deles, optando pelo Ubuntu 10.04 LTS, não tendo sequer visto o arranque "à la" W7!

Or in English (automatic translation):

On September 8 I went to a commercial area of the greater Lisbon area and purchased an ASUS 1005PX, after doing a survey and received some leads from friends, because I considered it a machine "decent" (*) when it comes to value for money. I noticed immediately the lack of information from that store employees on how the purchase was doing that (replacing the previously installed operating system) but I was pleased to have been encouraged to do so by one of them opting for Ubuntu 10.04 LTS, not having even seen the start-up "à la" W7!

Can any of our readers from Portugal or Brazil offer a better, more accurate translation? The conclusion is translated as follows:

You can buy a machine without Windows in exchange for some patience to face the assembled system. I fought for the recovery of money (a little) that was payable but not the value at the beginning. It was painful to watch the way these matters are dealt with in a time and MANAGING EXCELLENCE IN CUSTOMER nothing more than Paragon. Over the messages and responses noted the differing views of which are little abonatórios services to ASUS. Later I learned that I can not make a memory expansion to 2GB because I lose the warranty ... Only in 2 years! The audio system does not allow me to connect earphones or external speakers because the friendly manual says that this device input / output is managed by Cabinet Software (MS). Conclusion: I really like the ASUS hardware (got a VW222S monitor, a laptop and now A6JC 1005PX) but I fear I will not buy anything else to this brand after living the violence.

That's why we need to ensure GNU/Linux preinstalls are the standard, hopefully imposed to some degree by EU Commission intervention (to counter Microsoft's market distortion). ⬆