Crippled

[unixronin]

It has come to my attention that Microsoft requires that netbooks have no more than 1GB of RAM in order to qualify to run starter/netbook editions of Windows XP and Win7.

Some hardware manufacturers have always intentionally crippled low-end hardware models, and some software manufacturers have always intentionally crippled low-end versions of software.  But only Microsoft would require manufacturers to intentionally cripple their hardware in order to qualify to run a particular low-end version of software on it.

Comments

[ithildae]

One GB aught to be enough for anybody.

[merlinpendragon]

I can remember when Bill Gates was first getting started, he made a statement that has made me laugh ever since Microsoft gained controlling interest in Intell:

"640Kb of RAM ought to be enough for anybody."

Yeah, that has worked out SO WELL!

Six years later it wasn't enough. But then, he also said, "Spam will be a thing of the past in two years' time." BBC News, 24 Jan 2004.