Filed under: Security, Utilities, Windows, Microsoft, Commercial
Microsoft announces OneCare official release
After months of beta-testing, Microsoft has announced the official release of Windows Live OneCare, its Windows security and maintenance suite. OneCare includes anti-virus software, firewall, a backup utility, and spyware protection via Windows Defender, plus disk defragmentation, cleanup, and Windows Update features. OneCare is now available through the Windows Live web site and will cost you $49 per

So, just how good at time waster games are you? Think you've got the stuff? Well, The World's Hardest Game 2.0 doesn't think you do.
Yes, amazingly, it's possible to have a sequel to a game called "The World's Hardest Game". It doesn't seem logically possible, since if the first one was actually the world's hardest, how could another one come along and share the moniker? It made me doubt the name in the first place. That is, until I tried the game.
The mechanics of the game are very simple. You are a small red square, ...

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Dave said 2:27PM on 5-31-2006
I'm sure you meant $49 per YEAR for up to three PCs.
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Diddle said 2:47PM on 5-31-2006
I can do all that for FREE!
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Andrew said 2:57PM on 5-31-2006
"Now available free to new beta testers in the United States, at http://ideas.live.com, Microsoft® Windows OneCare Live will be available in June from retailers and via the Web for an annual subscription of $49.95 MSRP for up to three personal computers."
From the M$ live site, that is the annual price.
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james 42 said 8:39PM on 5-31-2006
If the browser is an integral part of the OS, then shouldn't this stuff be as well?
And as Diddle points, we are already doing this for free (even with some stuff from MS), so what is the advantage of paying?
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Claudiu Spulber said 7:47AM on 6-02-2006
Yeah, unfortunatelly they finally got it live.
"If the browser is an integral part of the OS, then shouldn't this stuff be as well?"
No because it would mean unfair competition. All the antivirus/firewall/spyware/backup products manufacturers will not be able to compete with a pack that's included by default in the Operating System. Just like the browser thing.
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Fabulo said 5:37PM on 6-02-2006
Cars manufacturers have an incentive to sell you a car that won't fall apart after 6 days of use, even if they sell you all the repairs you need from their dealer network, because after all, you can shy away from that particular manufacturer that wronged you and buy from a competitor.
Microsoft doesn't really have an incentive to give you a safe and secure OS because they also want to sell you the $50/year subscription to make the OS safe and secure. And it's not like there are competitors ready to sell you another OS compatible with the software that you already own.
This is helped by the fact that end users do not own any software, they buy a revokable license to use (with limitations) a company's software. And this software does not even come with any warranty of fitness or liability. mmm... the software industry has it really good.
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