I could do 9 and 10, I will have to go without updating for 11 and 12. 

Next comes thirteen with a plague for each of the previous versions except XP and 7. Why? Because they worked and the plagues only work on what doesn't work because what doesn't work will be vulnerable to the plagues and....

Here's how it will really be used:

"Hello User Bill--welcome back. Activating your system now". 

" User Bill, I see you haven't renewed your hourly licensing fee for the current operating system--would you like to pay that that now?".

"Card detected in user pocket...user bank account debited..you may now resume computing for one hour.  Enjoy!"

"Hello Bill.  I hope you are enjoying your current computing experience.  Your semi-annual hardware lease is due.  Do you wish to pay it now so your hardware remains accessible?".

"Greetings Bill, you have won your 100th official pvp tourney for Crysis XII!  Would you like to purchase additional play sessions for your game license period?".

"Good evening Bill.  I see you on my webcam...hiding behind a plant will not prevent recognition of your biometric signature on file.  I note you recently reset your system clock in order to illegally continue operating the OS and hardware of this system.  You activity was noted via webcam, touch screen fingerprint recognition and breathing pattern analysis.  Please purchase a forgiveness voucher now in order to prevent FBI/Interpol notification.".

"Thank you Bill...enjoy your user experience and remember, your hard drive storage lease expires in one day!".

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I'm not a friend of Bill.

I'm guessing you live somewhere in the Russian Federation and this seems normal to you.

Here's the problem--the companies still own the services.  This isn't a free-flow/barter system of world peace and joy, this is the "haves" wringing every penny (or ruble) they can get out of every pocket.

Of course it's a corporate marketer's dream to own the needs of every human on the planet.   It's not a good thing.

I have no problem paying a premium for quality, I have a problem when corporations invent a "need" (the corporately owned and regulated cloud) and then insure that all new hardware and software can only be found on it.

You hug that ugly sister all you want.

I'm mailing your, "I trust big corporations to do what's best for me" bumper sticker to you now.

Izvini to my Rooski droogs out there

Pun Intended?

No, that is not a good analogy.  Neither of us are saying "hold back technology".  We are asking why we have to get the light bulbs from the Electric Company!  Why can't we get them from our store so we can choose the wattage and color?

^ ok. The way I took what you were writing was that. If you mean 'free to pick and choose' a la Uvah, I agree.

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Agreed. This is my last wall of text.  The cloud as a concept and service is a wonderful idea--but...

My response (somewhat tongue in cheek if you missed it) was to point that it comes down to "believing everything business does is good" or realizing that while everything is possible it isn't all good.

I own my own business and am a fan of responsible capitalism...meaning, the business owners understand that with their freedom to gain wealth they have a moral obligation to act  responsibly towards society--not just shareholders. I live in the States so I can only speak from that perspective but the dodges used to justify greedy business practice quite often revolve around the concept that "our shareholders are society--therefore, whatever we do that benefits us is best for society".

There is already a US parallel for the trends in computing and it also involves mass media--television and radio.  It was determined some time ago in the courts here that "the airwaves" belong to the American people.  In order to insure equal access, anyone was allowed to apply for a license.  What happened quickly is the license fees and legal efforts needed to secure them rose to astronomical levels.  Now it is absurd to open a local radio station with less than $2.5 million USD...yet all it takes a $2500 transmitter and $2500 antennae setup to establish a countywide one.  It doesn't matter of course because all of the radio frequencies are purchased by radio corporate conglomerates.  The only way to get one is to have an existing station and barter/trade for one somewhere or else wait for another low power AM station to die.

Television?  Even harder and far more expensive.  You'll need a couple of million annually just to tread water and stay in  business and it's even harder to get a channel.

So right now we are in the midst for a battle here over "who really owns the internet" and it has fallen closer and closer towards "the ones who can buy it".  Cloud computing was a dead idea (though actually a very good one) for a long time and it wasn't until large cable and telco companies started buying huge assets for net traffic that it suddenly took off.

Of course we want to own the only waterhole in town--then we can charge by the spoonful (instead of a monthly small water bill) when we pipe it to your house. 

I am fine with digital sales and service--it is the future,  I'm not fine with a laissez-faire attitude toward what much business is maneuvering to get--which is the right to charge you for every thing you do.  I read a lot and over the past few years, many of the Fortune 500 business plans for media are so incredibly gouging that my jaw has literally dropped.

A good example is cable services in the US which have more than tripled in price in many areas over the last ten years.

So if I manage to get ownership of the net, then I can stop making products you buy (and need) and then I can simply make you pay me every time you use them.  This is more than "how much will my cable bill be?", this is"Will I actually be able to control and own my computer and the business I run on it?".

Sorry for the hijack Doc.  To me this is  a truly, "clear and present danger" and if people don't communicate to each other and government on it then it's simply going to happen (though Europe, ironically, seems to be ahead of us in establishing net freedoms).  If you look back at my satirical "Bill" story above, every element of it has a real-life counterpart that already exists or has been proposed by a business.

Bow Wow! That is where this country is heading. Big business killed the mom and pop shops. Drove prices through the roof and now want even more. This is a terrible thing to say but..................I'll be glad when the proverbial camel's back breaks. This way maybe the little guys and the ones who are self employed and breaking their backs to survive will actually have a say because as it stands now a snowball in hell has a better chance.

Edit: If my money buys something and some dipshit tells me I don't own it...yeah right. I'll show 'em a two by four upside his head.

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