Bootleg Photoshop

[AtYourService]

so my first windows7 problem came in and the customer and i decded that he probably failed when upgrading from vista to windows 7 , i told him he could try taking the computer back after i disabled some drivers or we could do a fresh install

so after backing up his data i do a clean install , he calls me back 2 days later comlaining that his photoshop cs3 is no longer installed. I told him I did see a zip folder with PhotoshopCS3+crack.zip but I couldn't install it because its not a legal copy.. so he says that the photoshop was his sons friends off a CD blah blah blah and I told him to have his son install it,, well i guess cs3 doesnt allow you to install on win7 because of the install checking to see the windows version , so now he calls back like 10 more times over the weekend to ask about getting cs3 on there , and now hes complaining that picasa is no longer installed, so i tell him to download that from google and install it, so he goes on a rant about that, then finally circles back to photoshop

i finally have enough and say look, go buy the CS4 cd and bring it in and ill install that.

good thing I have google voice for the office phone number so after monday im blocking his number

 

[callthatgirl]

You did the right thing, I do the same thing with clients who bootlegged. Sure, we have all done it from time to time, but when it comes to rebuilding a box and getting in working order, the software is not our problem or how they got it, installed it or who they stole it from.

I offer to help install though, as that is fine, get the licensed keys back and we're good to go!

 

[NickCat11]

It's pretty amazing he would make such a big stink about a bootleg version of PS knowing that you could easily report him for piracy if you wanted.

 

[Appleby]

Honestly Nick, I don't believe many people know or even begin to understand that downloading software, music, movies is illegal or even unethical. I have people come in my office who wouldn't pick a penny up off the ground because its not theirs but they have Limewire installed with 500 songs downloaded. Granted most people who pirate software with cracks know it's not right simply because they have to go to so much trouble to find the cracks etc. But it just amazes me when people ask me how they got 200 viruses and I tell them, "well it is likely because you have Limewire installed and you are downloading alot of music from the looks of it. Since downloading music like that is illegal, there isn't much you can do about it and you are taking the risk with every file you download." So many people look at me and say "huh??? That's not legal?? Why not? They are free! How can it be illegal?" They are serious too.

Oh and Google Voice is awesome. I had one really really creepy guy call one day and say some of the weirdest things anyone has ever said to me in my life. He had scheduled an appt. for the following day and thankfully he never showed. I was in my office armed and waiting on him with a buddy who's an ex-cop and another buddy who's ex-military. We were ready.hehe Thankfully he no showed and I set Google Voice to send his number straight to voicemail. I ended up getting a phone call from his number one day and it freaked me out. They left a message and it ended up that someone else had his number now. Pretty weird.

 

[topaz]

software keys

My engagement form states that software that does not have a disk and key will not be installed, and that windows coa must match the key in the PC. I check before installing.

PCs im selling get open office and vlc

Trading standards are very strict here

TigerTech

 

[Daifne]

My engagement form states that software that does not have a disk and key will not be installed, and that windows coa must match the key in the PC. I check before installing.
TigerTech

The COA often does not match the key in the registry. The big guys, like HP, Dell, etc. use their bulk key when they build their machines...

 

[Psychoticus]

so my first windows7 problem came in and the customer and i decded that he probably failed when upgrading from vista to windows 7 , i told him he could try taking the computer back after i disabled some drivers or we could do a fresh install

so after backing up his data i do a clean install , he calls me back 2 days later comlaining that his photoshop cs3 is no longer installed. I told him I did see a zip folder with PhotoshopCS3+crack.zip but I couldn't install it because its not a legal copy.. so he says that the photoshop was his sons friends off a CD blah blah blah and I told him to have his son install it,, well i guess cs3 doesnt allow you to install on win7 because of the install checking to see the windows version , so now he calls back like 10 more times over the weekend to ask about getting cs3 on there , and now hes complaining that picasa is no longer installed, so i tell him to download that from google and install it, so he goes on a rant about that, then finally circles back to photoshop

i finally have enough and say look, go buy the CS4 cd and bring it in and ill install that.

good thing I have google voice for the office phone number so after monday im blocking his number

It hink you could have handled this a bit better to say honestly, for example we had a customer with a situation almost identical to this, but what i did was inform them that the software was prated, that i had confirmed it with adobe and that if they wanted me to install it i provided quotes for cs3 and cs4, also if the had asked me to install picasa i would have done that for them as well. when i do a format i always take a look at all the programs i can and install as many of them on again as i can, and get the customer to provide keys and cd's where possible.

Bad reviews spread 10x faster than good ones (That's an actual stat)

 

[PCRepairWV]

If I have to Nuke and Pave I usually do the following after running DriverBackup or something similar so I don't have to hunt for 72345624 drivers to reinstall.

1) Insert USB key
2) Click Start > All Programs
3) hit print screen
4) open wordpad
5) ctrl+v
6) crtl+s
7) Save as <CUSTOMERNAME> on USB key

This ensures you know what was on the computer beforehand for the most part. Reinstall all software listed that you can possibly reinstall.

That's just part of what I do when I N&P, not the ONLY thing I do.

Also, maybe my morals aren't quite up to par, but I see nothing wrong with putting back on the same software that was on it before you repaired it. Bootleg or not, I've never done it simply because I don't want to take a chance on the legal repercussions, but I see nothing wrong with it. You aren't "giving" them anything they didn't already have pre-repair.

 

[Alan22]

It hink you could have handled this a bit better to say honestly, for example we had a customer with a situation almost identical to this, but what i did was inform them that the software was prated, that i had confirmed it with adobe and that if they wanted me to install it i provided quotes for cs3 and cs4, also if the had asked me to install picasa i would have done that for them as well. when i do a format i always take a look at all the programs i can and install as many of them on again as i can, and get the customer to provide keys and cd's where possible.

Bad reviews spread 10x faster than good ones (That's an actual stat)

Same here. Before a complete OS reinstall I take inventory of installed programs and ask the client if they have the media along with license keys. I explain that if they cannot produce it I cannot install it and it's possible they will lose some programs unless they are purchased.

 

[Xander]

My pickup sheet:

"When Housecalls reinstalls software, including WindowsTM, the customer takes responsibility for having an original, legal copy of that software.
" Housecalls will not be held responsible for the customer not having their own original versions of third party software (such as Adobe Illustrator, MS Office, etc) and, thus, cannot guarantee that any/all third party software will be reinstalled. Housecalls will be glad to reinstall 3rd party software if available but will not install licensed software if it was not on the system in the first place (translation: no pirated software)."