JWG

Microsoft Online Store May Drive Another Nail in Retail Coffin

Eric S wrote: "You always have the option of copying the downloaded products to physical media if you want to have it available longer than the mainstream support lifetime."

Well... no, you probably won't ALWAYS have that option.

As soon as the ESD model is established and customers have no remaining alternatives, it is in the interests of vendors to take that option away, which they can easily do. Just make the installer a bootstrap program that interacts with their download server. This is already widely done, even where the software is free, for convenience' sake (java.sun.com for example). But then you can't re-install without their server, where they can establish their toll booth if desired.