Vista licensing also limits benchmarking

IDG News Service - License transfers aren't the only thing limited by Microsoft Corp.'s end user license agreement (EULA) for the Windows Vista operating system. The license also puts restrictions on how benchmarks of certain components of the operating system can be published -- and that's yet another issue that's raising eyebrows, since Microsoft still has not clarified how changes will specifically affect users.

According to the Vista EULA, because the operating system contains "one or more components" of the .Net Framework 3.0, users can conduct internal benchmarking of those components but can't disclose the results of those benchmarks -- or measurements to compare rival products -- unless they comply with conditions found at a Microsoft Web site.

Several attempts to reach that Web site to see what those conditions are for benchmarking were unsuccessful on Tuesday, since the page, for unknown reasons, could not be displayed in Internet Explorer 7.

Several published reports and open-source proponents have raised concerns about this terminology of the Vista license, claiming that it limits the Windows Vista benchmark results that can be published because of the inclusion of the .Net Framework. While benchmarking is still possible, Microsoft is in control of how that information is released, and the company can change the rules on the "conditions" Web site at any time. This could make it difficult for anyone to get a clear idea of how the operating system and certain components perform, critics say.

"To be in control of what is published seems to be the logical consequence of Microsoft's policy," said Joachim Jakobs, a representative for the Free Software Foundation Europe, via e-mail. He cites several instances in which this behavior around benchmarks is consistent with other efforts Microsoft has used to control the use of its software, such as the company's litigation against companies that it claims violate its patents, and the company's continuing antitrust tussle with the European Union.

Microsoft said Tuesday that on Thursday it will clarify issues raised by changes in Vista licensing -- including ones around benchmarking. User concerns over Vista licensing began several weeks ago when it was disclosed that, as part of the changes, Microsoft is limiting the number of machines to which users can transfer licenses to one.

The limitations on .Net Framework benchmarking are not new -- they have been around since Microsoft introduced the development framework. But benchmarking and other limitations in Windows Vista bring to light a larger issue about the operating system's licensing in general, said Michael Cherry, an analyst at Directions on Microsoft in Kirkwood, Washington.

"My bigger issue with the license in general is that it's just indecipherable," he said. "There are a lot of terms that are probably more important to me than benchmarking, but how do I find them among these obscure things that are unclear about what I can or cannot do?"