Buying Windows XP

Mutant_Fruit

Shock and horror, i can hear half of you shuddering at the thought, buying windows XP.

Anyway, the reason for this is i was thinking of starting a small home "business". I.e., i buy cheap computer parts, stick em together and build customised computers for people for a helluva lot cheaper than dell (and of course giving them a 1 year warrenty with it).

Unfortunately i'd have no OS to install (legally) on it, so wheres the cheapest place to get it. I have an uncle who runs a computer repair company down in Cork, but i don;t want to hassle him unless he could get it cheaper. Would it be a lot cheaper to get it through him?

And i have a few offers to buy computers off me (from people i know). I'll see how that works out before i order 100 copies of XP though.

Capt'n Midnight

How about sticking linux on the PC's ?

You could sign up to the OEM thingy from microsoft - but don't forget that Dell will always get it a lot cheaper than you will ever get it for.

You could also stick on a few gnu apps - value added as it were - and ready to go.

LegacyUser

id guess that moms buyin pc's for their kids would stick to big brand names like dell and the like and the ppl who'd buy from someone like yourrself would be fairly IT literate and would install their own cracked copy of xp like the rest of us, u might be better off sellin with blank hd's , cheaper for you and cheaper for the buyer, just a thought

bizmark

boys got a point their

Mutant_Fruit

good point banana. I was just wondering if it could be gotten cheaply for this purpose.

As for linux, i know NOTHING about it, literally. And the last thing i want to get a call about is some kid asking why XXX won't work on "windows". The last thing i want to do is sell a computer i can't troubleshoot.

kmb

Hi,the cheapest you will get it is a trade company in dublin for €71+vat.Your uncle could get it through his business or if you set up yourself.....

(Whats your uncles company called i may know him?)

Mutant_Fruit

For all the hassle, 71+vat isn't that much different to the 100eur the OEM version costs in komplett.ie

Just one question, why does the oem version cost about35% of the price of the retail version? Whats the difference?

I presume the OEM version (100eur) contains no manuals and suchlike, whilest the retail version (260eur) comes with everything. So it would be ok to get the OEM version? Or does it have a nasty surprise when you open the box.

Creamy Goodness

oem has no manuals/boxes etc etc. and also you can't go to microsoft for support on a oem product you got to go to your computer manufacturer who installs it on your machine eg dell hp.

Capt'n Midnight

And just how much support do microsoft give when you buy the retail box ?

IIRC for NT4 server it was still $150 non-refundable per incident. (if they couldn't fix you got a credit)

AFAIK none of the support is done by microsoft - it's all outsourced to the highest bidder (~ tightest margins)

Mutant_Fruit

how many people refer to the windows manual when they have problems?

How many people has the manual ever helped?

bizmark

just get oem's theirs notting wrong with them + their cheaper for you and the person buying a pc from u

160 euro differnce for a box and worthless manule isnt worth it

Caliden

if you've got some IT knowledge then forget the manuals.
i dont have one and i do not have a great deal of windows knowledge.
if i have a problem i use here or google to sort it.
i wasnt given the choice of a manual anyway so didnt matter

LFCFan

what's the story with that OEM software site that's doing the Spam rounds these days selling XP Pro OEM for $50 and the likes of Dreamweaver for $50 also? Are they legit? I know OEM is a lot cheaper than retail but not that much cheaper. Anyone in here bought from them?

Mutant_Fruit

looks like we just caught another victim in the nick of time...

Anything , i repeatanything that comes around in a spam letter is always too good to be true. They are always hoax's. Trust me, don't be like those idiots who send of a down payment of 1000's to put a downpayment on a money transfer. (i'm sure you heard that story).

My point is, don't buy it.

LFCFan

I know all about Spam artists but this site does actually send the goods. All I'm wondering is, how can they sell at such a low OEM price? Anyway, Credit Card fraud is a lot harder now 'cause if you buy something over the internet and you don't get what you paid for then your CC company will block the payment and investigate. It has worked for me in the past. These people also use a third party to take payment, only Mastercard though!

Mutant_Fruit

give us a link. If its legal, then there's nothing to worry about. If its not, we'll (hopefully) spot it.

LFCFan

http://cdforcheap.biz/

bizmark

50 dollors for Win xp pro! .......that has to be a bit dodgy

LFCFan

Originally posted by bizmark
50 dollors for Win xp pro! .......that has to be a bit dodgy

That's what I thought but I've been informed that they do send you an OEM copy with a legitimate Product Key. Was gonna chance it myself but they only accept Mastercard. I was just wondering if there is any chance that OEM titles could be gotten cheap by them, buying in bulk. What do the likes of Dell get charged for their OEM copies of OS software?

Cuauhtemoc

Windows Server 2003 Enterprise for $150. Damn thats cheap.
I thought oem had to ship with hardware or something??
They also ship from eastern europe, might have something to do with the price??

LFCFan

Originally posted by Cuauhtemoc
I thought oem had to ship with hardware or something??
They also ship from eastern europe, might have something to do with the price??

It is a requirment that OEM software sells with hardware but at some stage it has to be bought without hardware so the hardware sellers can add it. I never thought of the Eastern Europe connection. Could have a lot to do with the cheapness. Guess it could be the same as with CDWow in that they can source the software very cheaply in Eastern Europe. Wonder if it's a bid on the dodgy side then or is it legal to do that? What countries in Eastern Europe are they sourced 'cause if they are one of the new EU countries it would become very legal wouldn't you think?

Cuauhtemoc

a quick search brings up a few other forums which suggest they're selling pirate software. Nothing definite tho.

This sounds a bit dodge..off their website.

This software is recognized as a backup software

Capt'n Midnight

Originally posted by Cuauhtemoc
Windows Server 2003 Enterprise for $150. Damn thats cheap.
I thought oem had to ship with hardware or something??
They also ship from eastern europe, might have something to do with the price??

Wounldn't supprise me if the shipped from Diego Garcia.

## WARNING ##
Best MOLP C price is about €2,500
The client licences are €15 each

### WARNING ###

Windows Server 2003 Enterprise $150
Retail price: $3999.00
Our low Price: $150.00
You Save: $3859.00

So they admit on their homepage that they are selling something for 3.75% of it's normal price

Note that we are not selling any trial, incomplete or academic version of software – it is original and fully functional.

:rolleyes: