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I hate VPC...and CompUSA!!

Submitted by jamie37187 on September 7, 2005 - 2:04am. Other Computers

Didn't know where to put this, especially since this is in essence just a vent session...

Bought Virtual PC 7 over the weekend. Also bought Microsoft Office Pro--need Access 2003 for an online Database Management class, and was stuck with time constraints, so I was forced to go to CompUSA for the software. I know the return policy on software, but thought there would be no problems. My computer is very up to the challenge (12"Pbook 1.5ghz with 768mb RAM) so this seemed like the perfect solution to my "no PC in my house" issue. Boy, was I wrong! Even after the update to supposedly help VPC 7 run on Tiger, it still hung OS X twice. I have since had to reinstall VPC and Office four times.

This last time however VPC would not even install. AARGH! Now I am totally stuck with $800+ in totally useless software. CompUSA won't take it back except in exchange for the same software, so...I am totally screwed! I feel like balling up in the corner and crying all night. OK, not quite that, but...you get the idea At this point I would gladly buy a real PC from them if they would just give me store credit.I don't want anything else microsoft infesting my computer. Since installing VPC, Entourage has been acting up too! I can't open any e-mail with images. This is killing me! The kicker--now I can't do any of my homework!!

Anyway, a cautionary tale told far too often--beware VPC, as well as most things Microsoft. Don't be a dummy like me and waste $800.

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I think that VPC 7 requires a G5 processor . . .

Submitted by mutant_pie on September 7, 2005 - 4:38am.

Uhm . . . you can read the box for minimum system requirements, but the MacWarehouse catalog notes that VPC 7 requires a G5 processor. No Apple portables have a G5 processor.

Out of curiousity, was the version of Microsoft Office Pro for Mac or PC OS?

Mutant_Pie

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Way off

Submitted by reberto on September 7, 2005 - 5:27am.

Mutant_pie, you are WAY off. It only needs a 700 mhz G3. Not a G5, it just has SUPPORT for a G5. ( http://www.microsoft.com/products/info/product.aspx?view=22&pcid=51c3ec0f-d798-4d8d-bd61-71036bcfa8c6&type=req )

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VPC Performance

Submitted by iantm on September 7, 2005 - 2:20pm.

I had VPC 7 on my G4 1.5 15" for a while. I'd say the performance is passable at best. About equivelent to the performance you'll get from a comparably priced pc. Though, I have 1gb of RAM, and allocated 512 to the Virtual PC itself, which helped a lot.

Frankly, Virtual PC has a long way to go before it's really a viable alternative to using a PC, i.e. if you need to use PC apps full time. Though, that's not such a bad thing. OS/2 had a Windows compatibility environment, which resulted in developers making only a Windows release and never making an OS/2 release. Good going IBM. Sometimes being compatible with everything is NOT good.

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Re: I hate VPC...and CompUSA!!

Submitted by vantage point on September 7, 2005 - 5:57pm.
jamie37187 wrote:
Didn't know where to put this, especially since this is in essence just a vent session...

Bought Virtual PC 7 over the weekend. Also bought Microsoft Office Pro--need Access 2003 for an online Database Management class, and was stuck with time constraints, so I was forced to go to CompUSA for the software. I know the return policy on software, but thought there would be no problems. My computer is very up to the challenge (12"Pbook 1.5ghz with 768mb RAM) so this seemed like the perfect solution to my "no PC in my house" issue. Boy, was I wrong! Even after the update to supposedly help VPC 7 run on Tiger, it still hung OS X twice. I have since had to reinstall VPC and Office four times.

This last time however VPC would not even install. AARGH! Now I am totally stuck with $800+ in totally useless software. CompUSA won't take it back except in exchange for the same software, so...I am totally screwed! I feel like balling up in the corner and crying all night. OK, not quite that, but...you get the idea At this point I would gladly buy a real PC from them if they would just give me store credit.I don't want anything else microsoft infesting my computer. Since installing VPC, Entourage has been acting up too! I can't open any e-mail with images. This is killing me! The kicker--now I can't do any of my homework!!

Anyway, a cautionary tale told far too often--beware VPC, as well as most things Microsoft. Don't be a dummy like me and waste $800.

This is probably a silly thought, but have you considered contacting Microsoft? Believe it or not, Microsoft is really not the bast***d of a company that most people claim.

I'm sure that Microsoft will do something for you. I mean, if your Microsoft software genuinely does not perform as claimed, Microsoft sort of has an obligation to you. So, contact Microsoft.

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Vindication...sort of.

Submitted by jamie37187 on September 7, 2005 - 9:00pm.

OK ,so after an hour on the phone with a seller and three different managers, I managed to get CompUSA to exchange VPC 7 for something other than identical software. They would not budge on a straight refund, but atleast I didn't end up with another copy of VPC.

And Microsoft was a no go--they were my first stop after opening this topic. They wouldn't even talk to me because the software had not been registered yet--since I never got it installed properly in the first place. Didn't want to register the software if I was going to return it, so...Microsoft is not vindicated, but CompUSA is...sort of.

And Mutant_Pie, you are off on that one. This version of VPC is the first to be compatible with the G5, but is not exclusively for the G5.

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Re: Vindication...sort of.

Submitted by vantage point on September 7, 2005 - 10:23pm.
jamie37187 wrote:
OK ,so after an hour on the phone with a seller and three different managers, I managed to get CompUSA to exchange VPC 7 for something other than identical software. They would not budge on a straight refund, but atleast I didn't end up with another copy of VPC.

And Microsoft was a no go--they were my first stop after opening this topic. They wouldn't even talk to me because the software had not been registered yet--since I never got it installed properly in the first place. Didn't want to register the software if I was going to return it, so...Microsoft is not vindicated, but CompUSA is...sort of.

And Mutant_Pie, you are off on that one. This version of VPC is the first to be compatible with the G5, but is not exclusively for the G5.

Did you read the license agreement prior to contacting Microsoft? Usually there's something in there about a limited warranty that limits damages to the refund of the purchase price. If the product doesn't perform as it was advertised to perform, contact Microsoft and make it a warranty issue.

Microsoft has an obligation to ensure that their products will perform in a manner consistent with their claims. If they do not meet that obligation, they are obligated to, minimally, refund your money or provide a product that will perform in a manner consistent with their claims.

Don't let them give you the run around.

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Insult to injury

Submitted by jamie37187 on September 7, 2005 - 10:32pm.

Just to add...well, insult to injury...since "installing" VPC and Office Pro, and subsequently removing said software, I have experienced some heretofore non-existent problems: Entourage will not let me read any e-mail with images of any kind; no web browser will allow me to download programs, word docs, images, anything; Mail will not open; Safari crashes every few minutes(before and after the update); basically, my Pbook has started acting like a PC. I am doing a quick Archive and Install of Tiger to see if this helps. If not, I will backup and clean install. grrr....

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Microsoft Don't Like You removing ......

Submitted by merty on September 7, 2005 - 10:38pm.

Microsoft Don't like people removing their software from mac computers. let alone they don't like computers with windows ( 98 me 2000 xp) removing their web browser.

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Just a small suggestion,

Submitted by myststix on September 27, 2005 - 8:17am.

Do you NEED the latest version of MSAccess? I am running VPC 3.0 and it runs Office 2000 just fine on Win98se. Oh, and I have a G3-350 w/ 512MB. Beige DT. No problems.

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