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Microsoft Operating Systems

Steve Ballmer Directing "House Party 7" 359

Posted by ScuttleMonkey from the microsoft-sponsored-debauchery dept.
theodp writes "What are you doing on Oct. 22? Microsoft is putting a Tupperware-style twist on the upcoming Windows 7 rollout, launching a new initiative to encourage thousands of employees, partners and technology enthusiasts to throw parties in their homes and communities to demonstrate and help spread the word about its new OS. People accepted as official launch party hosts will get their own copy of Windows 7 Ultimate Edition, and a chance to win a computer. Host spaces are very limited, so apply now, kids. Hey, what could possibly go wrong?"
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Steve Ballmer Directing "House Party 7" More

Steve Ballmer Directing "House Party 7"

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  • don't look down (Score:5, Funny)

    by Tablizer ( 95088 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:11PM (#29314247) Journal

    He'll be the chairman, correct?

    • Re:don't look down (Score:4, Insightful)

      by TheWanderingHermit ( 513872 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:39PM (#29314849)

      He'll be the chairman, correct?

      Nah, they're throwing parties, not chairs.

      I wonder, though. When I first read this, and the "grass roots" (okay, astroturf) focus, my first thought was, "They must be REALLY desperate to make this one work." It just smacks of fear of it not selling unless they can convince people to buy it and get a buzz going.

  • First (Score:5, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:11PM (#29314251)

    Theme is everyone wear Blue and pass out at a predetermined time

  • You have to be pretty nerdy (Score:5, Funny)

    by SBrach ( 1073190 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:11PM (#29314255)
    You have to be pretty nerdy to consider installing windows on 15-20 of your closest friends laptops a "party."

    • You have to be pretty nerdy to consider installing windows on 15-20 of your closest friends laptops a "party."

      More like pretty sadistic

      aka "good way to lose 15-20 friends"?

      • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

        by DoofusOfDeath ( 636671 )

        You have to be pretty nerdy to consider installing windows on 15-20 of your closest friends laptops a "party."

        More like pretty sadistic

        You see those as mutually exclusive? Sounds like someone doesn't read the Boston Phoenix classified ads.

    • Re: (Score:2, Informative)

      by TheBilgeRat ( 1629569 )
      Really? It would have to be an all weekend bender if it were Gentoo.

      \I'll bring the keg

      • Re:You have to be pretty nerdy (Score:4, Funny)

        by SBrach ( 1073190 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:36PM (#29314795)
        I would have a hard time getting drunk enough to install Gentoo if all you brought was a keg of beer. A keg of whiskey might do the trick. Of course we would run out before it was done compiling so maybe you should bring the keg of beer too, you know as a back-up.
        • Gentoo jokes are hardly funny anymore, since it seems most users have taken its issues to heart and moved on to Ubuntu. I tried to migrate my home "everything" server and gave up somewhere - gdm, lirc, imapd, exim, I don't remember, none of them worked the same. Due to different versions of things and distro-specific configuration, copying /etc/ files rarely works like one would hope. But don't get me wrong, a plain-vanilla fresh install of Ubuntu is incredibly simple, if you are reasonably lucky.

      • oblig [xkcd.com]

    • Comment removed based on user account deletion

      • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

        by supernova_hq ( 1014429 )
        Except that an ubuntu install takes 10 minutes, then you can frag each other in ioquake3 for the rest of the night. A windows install fest would be everyone bashing their heads against the desks searching for video card drivers :P

        HAHA linux finally has driver support high enough above windows to make jokes at windows! BWAHAHAHAHAAH!

        • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

          by jpmorgan ( 517966 )
          Unfortunately, when I tried out Windows 7 RC earlier this year it downloaded and installed the correct video drivers automatically. In fact, I don't think I had to manually install any drivers at all...

  • Party here! (Score:3, Informative)

    by NoYob ( 1630681 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:12PM (#29314283)
    There's a BIG PARTY at this address: 835 73rd Ave NE, Medina, WA 98039 [blogspot.com]

  • Hmm, an echo of the zune release? (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Anonymous Cowar ( 1608865 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:13PM (#29314299)
    Once upon a time when the zune was first coming out, there was a box put out in the courtyard of the microsoft grounds, or some other common area (i can't recall which) where employees could ditch their ipods in a show of solidarity. If I recall correctly, there were only like 2-3 ipods dropped off from the whole of microsoft. I wonder how many "House Party 7"'s there will be? Although the ipod thing wasn't backed up by a show of chair-based kinetic force.

    • Re: (Score:3, Funny)

      by TheRaven64 ( 641858 )
      The article is wrong. 7 does not refer to the version number of the Windows release, it refers to the total number pf people who are excited about a new MS OS release.

    • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

      by sanosuke001 ( 640243 )
      I'll admit; I applied. If they want to give me free stuff and a free copy of Win7 Ultimate, I'll invite some friends over and have a party.

      • Re:Hmm, an echo of the zune release? (Score:4, Insightful)

        by bigman2003 ( 671309 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @03:03PM (#29315283) Homepage

        I applied too.

        I have people over for BBQs, dinners, Rock Band, etc. anyway. If they want to give me Windows 7, and want me to have a computer sitting out at a party- then no problem. Yes, I will even use the decorations they send me- why not?

        This actually isn't a bad way to get people to see Windows 7. Heck, I even signed up for the Betty Crocker cookie party while I was at it. (Waitlist only) Sounds like fun to me.

        That's the point. The whole thing sounds like fun. So I tell my friends; "Hey, this is the geekiest thing ever...but come over for a Windows 7 party. I'll be cooking and we'll have margaritas." Microsoft gets a little more exposure, I get Windows 7, my friends get some food and drink. We all win.

    • Re: (Score:3, Funny)

      by David Gerard ( 12369 )
      An actual photo of the Zune HQ iPod amnesty bin [today.com]. Note that all the iPods are the same model, current at the time of the Zune release. No doubt pure coincidence.

  • House Party??? (Score:4, Funny)

    by orsty3001 ( 1377575 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:13PM (#29314303)
    Will Kid 'N Play be available for this event?

  • Maybe the question should be... (Score:5, Funny)

    by eviloverlordx ( 99809 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:13PM (#29314319)

    ...what could possibly go right? That would at least set the correct expectations.

  • Steve Ballmer Directing "House Party 7" (Score:2, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward

    "I just throw the chairs. Gravity does the directing."

  • Do we bring our own virii? (Score:5, Funny)

    by AnalPerfume ( 1356177 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:14PM (#29314337)
    Or are MS ensuring we get infected at the party?

  • Sure, why not? (Score:2, Interesting)

    by R2.0 ( 532027 )

    Just last night I saw a long commercial with 3 women sitting around a couch watching a birth control commercial and having an in depth discussion about birth control options. Of course, my wife says that's total bullshit and no one she knows does that, but hey - it's on TV so it must be true. So inviting my friends and neighbors to come over to my house, have some snacks, and watch how Win7 handles disk caching so much better will increase sales eleventy gajillion percent.

    • Re:Sure, why not? (Score:5, Funny)

      by CorporateSuit ( 1319461 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:21PM (#29314493)

      So inviting my friends and neighbors to come over to my house, have some snacks, and watch how Win7 handles disk caching so much better will increase sales eleventy gajillion percent.

      Unlikely. Your neighbors will probably ignore the Windows 7 and spend their time on the couch, having an in-depth discussion about birth control options.

    • "Mom, do you ever have that... 'not so fresh' feeling?"

    • Just last night I saw a long commercial with 3 women sitting around a couch watching a birth control commercial and having an in depth discussion about birth control options. Of course, my wife says that's total bullshit and no one she knows does that, but hey - it's on TV so it must be true.

      In what way is it not realistic? I know my wife does discuss birth control with her friends, and from hearing about it secondhand I pretty well know what guys I know have had vasectomies etc. Granted, you wouldn't h

  • Another Sequel? (Score:3, Funny)

    by cthulu_mt ( 1124113 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:15PM (#29314349)
    Are they taking Kid and Play out of cold storage?

  • Crash the party! in more ways than one (Score:5, Funny)

    by davidwr ( 791652 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:15PM (#29314367) Homepage Journal

    Crash (as in invade) your nearest party and pass out LiveCDs, plush Penguins, and for the health-conscious, Apples (the kind you eat).

    Take bets on how many times you can get the host's computer to crash (as in computing).

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by geekoid ( 135745 )

      Win 7? good luck getting that to crash.

      On the plus side, I can beat the shit out of anyone who comes to my house to disturb the party and not do any jail time.

      Seriously people, Linux is awesome, but pushing your way into places that are about windows is just annoying and makes the whiole linux crowd to idiots.

      Like the Linux guy who kept making comments and a Windows presentation. We aren't there to here your pitch, STFU.

  • Comptetition (Score:5, Funny)

    by joaommp ( 685612 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:15PM (#29314371) Homepage Journal

    With Linus it would be "Glaciar Party 2.6.31-rc8-git2"

  • Getting in (Score:5, Funny)

    by DoofusOfDeath ( 636671 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:15PM (#29314383)

    I think the hosts should charge their guests $100 to come in.

    Then just before serving drinks, the host springs a EULA that the guest needs to sign, or else he gets booted out the front door.

    If the party is on a Tuesday, then in the middle of their festivities they need to sit still for half and hour while ADP comes in and upgrades the security system.

    I just pity the poor guest who only paid the basic $100 to get in. The bathroom is only available to those who paid $299 to get in. Poor schmucks.

  • Finally I can join the ranks of my wife's Tupperware, Mary Kay, and Stamping Up crowd!

  • Its not a House Party... (Score:3, Funny)

    by Zantac69 ( 1331461 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:20PM (#29314469) Journal
    ...unless Kid 'n Play show up!

    Maybe we could get Steve Balmer and Bill Gates to reprise the roles - not sure who would look better with the fade though.

  • They still don't get it (Score:4, Insightful)

    by roc97007 ( 608802 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:22PM (#29314495) Journal

    Geeze, it's an OPERATING SYSTEM. A minor update on Vista. What does he think he's selling?

    I'm using the beta, (which is working rather well -- imagine my surprise) and it occurs to me that I'm being asked to pay $200 to $300 (depending on version) for what is essentially an improved TCP stack and a new bunch of drivers. Throw a party? I don't see why they even designed a new box.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Krneki ( 1192201 )
      You bought Vista?

      At least you learned from your mistake. :)

    • There is a lot new in Windows 7 (Score:5, Informative)

      by PhrostyMcByte ( 589271 ) <phrosty@gmail.com> on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:54PM (#29315135) Homepage
      Is Windows 7 revolutionary? No, not at all. But it has a lot more than TCP improvements. Off the top of my head:
      • Direct2D gives acceleration (via DX10 video cards) for 2D drawing and text rendering. Text rendering now supports more advanced OpenType stuff and implements vertical antialiasing for ClearType rendering, to further improve the quality of text.
      • GDI (what most desktop apps use) now uses Direct2D under the hood where possible, and has improved concurrency between processes.
      • User Mode Scheduling improves performance by vastly reducing the cost of context switching in highly-threaded apps.
      • The DWM's memory usage has been reduced by 40-50%, and has got some optimizations that should affect all apps including games.
      • Power management has been greatly improved, you should notice an increase in battery life on portables.
      • Native Wireless has been implemented with dual-band and some awesome fault-tolerant roaming support. Bluetooth 2.1 support is there too.
      • AVC/AAC support along with MP4/M4A/etc. has been included.
      • Some basic mouse gestures have been added which I've found incredibly useful, like dragging a window to the side of the screen to have it resize and take up that half of the screen. There has also been a big focus on making the OS work fantastic with touchscreens and multi-touch gestures.
      • The general feeling of responsiveness has been improved by performing work as late as possible (like starting some services on demand instead of on boot), giving visual feedback earlier, reducing stalls in the UI, etc. -- this doesn't actually make it run faster, but it makes it feel like it is, and that actually helps a lot when you're sitting in front of a PC all day.
      • Media Center is a lot better, and supports some new DRM crap (via BDA+) that should be enough for CableCard to finally let PC hardware be sold retail.

      • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

        by geekoid ( 135745 )

        All of which I would call SP3.

        This crap should ahve been in Vista, instead they sell us incomlpete stuff, then push the completed stuff into a 'new OS'; which isn't a new OS.

        This is what was supposed to be in Vista.

      • Re:There is a lot new in Windows 7 (Score:5, Insightful)

        by 0100010001010011 ( 652467 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @03:11PM (#29315439)

        So what Apple is charging $29.99 for in Snow Leopard (and people still complain it's a "Service Pack"), Windows users get to pay full price?

      • Re:There is a lot new in Windows 7 (Score:5, Interesting)

        by roc97007 ( 608802 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @03:14PM (#29315515) Journal

        I think the issue here is that I'm not getting Windows 7 so I can have a new operating system; I'm getting it to do a particular task. In this case, a home media center. What I've noticed:

        It has native support for SATA3. Disk operations, specifically file transfers, are MUCH faster. Big improvement over previous version.

        It recognized my HDTV card and supported it without me having to dink with it. Big improvement. Same with memory card multi-reader. Very nice.

        Network seems faster. I hope to do some more testing this weekend.

        Windows 7 supports my multi-core proc natively (no driver necessary) and seems to do a better job of task management. Big win here.

        However:

        Graphics on games fail in the same way -- Spore, for instance, tears and flickers as it did before. I didn't expect Windows 7's new graphics features to fix this, but was hoping.

        S/PDIF ceased working after installing Windows 7. It sees the device but no sound comes out. This is a bummer. I hope there is a fix for this.

        Media Center does not recognize video in mkv containers, even though media player will play them. Previous version would play them fine. Don't have a solution for this yet.

        Desktop improvements? Not interesting. Winders is an OS, not an application. When I get time, I will be turning off all the fancy-dancy eye candy. I want the CPU to work on my applications, now how they are presented.

        So, for me, Windows 7 gave me some very welcome compatibility with my existing hardware, (but not the video card, unfortunately) at the cost of a couple of hiccups. Generally positive, especially if I can fix the last remaining issues. But... $300? You're kidding, right? Throw a party? Gimme a break.

    • Re:They still don't get it (Score:4, Informative)

      by Achromatic1978 ( 916097 ) <robert.chromablue@net> on Friday September 04, 2009 @03:04PM (#29315305)
      a) $200-$300? The most expensive upgrade is $219. The Home Premium upgrade, which 95%+ (conservatively) of people will use would be a $119 upgrade. b) "what is essentially an improved TCP stack and a bunch of new drivers"? Yeah, I guess that's the main thing. It's not like extensive UI revision (I for one love the new taskbar), Aero Peek, new networking APIs, improved color depth support for HD video and digital cameras, virtual XP for compatibility, video support for remote desktop, multi-PC integrated libraries for media would have absolutely any interest to anyone, right?

      But no, you go ahead claiming that people will be paying $300 for an improved TCP stack, and get modded Insightful by the drones...

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by geekoid ( 135745 )

      You are correct, it should be SP3; however I signed up for the party, because I want a free copy(legit).
      I am also wondering how many of my friends would actually turn up.

  • does he mean the chairs should be plastic?

    • Better be. One lucky party will be crashed by Steve Ballmer, and you know what happens when HE sees a chair. The host or hostess would be well-advised to choose lightweight chairs. This will reduce the chance of back strain on His Steveness, and also reduce the risk of injury to your guests.

      Think "inflatable".

  • Somebody's trying to take a page from the Obama playbook.

  • Pirate Party (Score:5, Insightful)

    by natehoy ( 1608657 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:25PM (#29314573) Journal

    You know, it just occurred to me. Since so many LAN parties turn into Pirate Fests (dude!! you've got the latest (insert_game_or_movie_name_here), I suspect Microsoft is.. well... late to the party on this one.

    I'm sure there is, at this very moment, a solid handful of LAN parties where cracked Windows 7 installs are happening.

    And I'm sure the host of THOSE parties is receiving a full copy of Windows 7 Ultimate. OK, "full" except the install disc, and artwork, and a shiny hologram logo, and DRM...

    Still, kudos to Microsoft for being inventive in their marketing.

  • Party? (Score:2, Insightful)

    by RManning ( 544016 )
    As a geek, I'm probably more excited about an OS release then most (although I couldn't care less about Windows), but since when is an OS release a party-worthy occasion? I can see if I was on the development team, but for everyone else?

    • Re: (Score:2, Troll)

      by geekoid ( 135745 )

      Well, now there is a good definition between geek and a Nerd.
      As a Nerd, I signed up to host a party.

  • New ad (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Monkeedude1212 ( 1560403 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:28PM (#29314651) Journal

    Mac: I'm a Mac

    PC: And I'm a PC. Looks like I've got you beat this time. People all over America will be having a party for my new Operating System!

    Mac: Wow, Congrats. That's really exciting. So are people going to be exposed to your new product while having fun at the same time.

    PC: Well... Not really...

    Mac: No? What are you....

    PC: You see only the people who really care about Windows 7 will be hosting it... and they only get 1 CD to show all of their friends why they should buy Windows 7...

    Mac: Oh, well, whats wrong with that? Wouldn't that mean more people will be buying Windows 7?

    PC: The only friends Windows 7 enthusiasts have are other Windows 7 enthusiasts...

  • Steve Ballmer: "Who ate all the GOD DAMN SALSA!!!! I BOUGHT IT TO EAT SPECIFICALLY WITH MY LIME TOSITOS!!!!!" *throws chair across the room*

    filter error too many caps filter error too many caps filter error too many caps filter error too many caps

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by geekoid ( 135745 )

      I can't wait, I've got an excellent attorney... I'll sue for 5 free copies of every OS the will put out from not until the end of time.

      MUAhahahahha!

      what?

  • Pass (Score:3, Interesting)

    by emandres ( 857332 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:30PM (#29314685)
    I'll go ahead and pass on that golden opportunity. Because I'm a student, I have access to MSDN downloads, and was able to download the RTM of Windows 7 already. On first glance, it was a pretty slick change (especially the new dock-style task bar), but after running it for a week or so I realized that it's little more than Vista with a UI upgrade and a few more driver issues. Specifically, I kept having a problem where the background on my desktop would look funny (almost like a bad jpg of the background picture). So for the meantime I'm back with Vista, and don't plan on upgrading until SP1 comes out.

    • Re:Pass (Score:4, Insightful)

      by qubezz ( 520511 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:59PM (#29315219)

      I'll upgrade/downgrade when they have a version without the ridiculous dumbing down of the 'launch' menu and the windows explorer with no opt-out. I tried it and it is impossible, it takes a whole bunch more clicks on non-obvious buttons to get anywhere, and when you just want to see drives and directories, they have idiot icons. Every version of Windows since 95 has had more 'idiot' features to turn off. Even making XP useable is to turn off themes, classic start menu, classic folder view, unhide system folders and put it on detalied view, turn off simple file sharing, security center, firewall, redonkulous services for idiots (uPNP, system restore, firewall service, zero config wireless, web publishing, etc). Install tweakUI and disable animated doggy idiot search, change the IE cache to something less than 100gb, etc.Then the real hacking starts, turn off the 'zip for dummies', image shell extensions, etc. Then after several update reboot cycles, remove the crapware they install in Firefox without your consent. Vista took this to extremes with it's idiot's control panel and useless UI control - and with it's nanny need for signed drivers thanks to DRM, it is Windows ME for the 2000's. Just like Vista, you'll be buying it whether you like it or not though. So many paid-for Vista's have been immediately wiped, it's near criminal to have a monopoly forced it onto computers in the first place.

      Now they truly have made an OS for idiots, that only idiots can use.

  • Hm...I guess I must have missed House Party [imdb.com] 2-6.

  • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvsboPUjrGc

    YEAAHHH!!!!!

  • Musical chairs! (Score:2, Insightful)

    by mr_lizard13 ( 882373 )
    Duck when the music stops...

  • I'm going to throw a huge Windows 7 bash where we all get together, have a few beers and giggles and do all the neat stuff intelligent, fun-loving people like to do at parties. This one will be just a little different, though. We'll blog and take pictures and videos and upload the whole thing, just the way Microsoft and House Party want.

    The climax? Well, the climax will be something really, really special. In honour of Windows 7, we'll all gather 'round and cheer wildly while the Lady Elaine, our resi

  • We were doing parties like this for Linux back in 1995. Some were Slackware while others were Red Hat. Of course back then you needed a team of techs to do a proper install ;) Aw memories....

    In fact I need to go check on the progress of my Gentoo compile on that IBM XT we started around then. BRB

  • Shades of Windows 95? (Score:3, Insightful)

    by steveha ( 103154 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:55PM (#29315145) Homepage

    When Windows 95 was released, there really was a whole bunch of crazy hoopla. Stores were having midnight sales, where they would open at midnight just to sell Windows 95 as soon as they were legally permitted. People were standing in lines outside the stores. (Heck, I read in the newspaper that one guy stood in the line and bought Windows 95, without even owning a computer. He just wanted to join in the hoopla!)

    When I read this, my first thought was: they are trying to gin up the Windows 95 excitement again. And my second thought was: good luck with that. The world is a different place now; Windows 7 looks like a nice upgrade to Windows, but it's really hard to imagine people getting really excited about it. And many of the people who could potentially get excited by the improvements in Windows 7 have been running Mac OS X for years now. I predict the hoped-for tidal wave of excitement won't materialize.

    You know, though, I have friends who work at Microsoft. If they can get some free goodies by having a "Windows 7" party, and if they invite me, I'll go. Any excuse for a party with my friends is good enough for me. I'll still run Linux on most of my computers, just like I do now, but why wouldn't I go to a party? (In addition to the whole computer thing, we could watch movies! An obvious choice: Se7en [imdb.com].)

    steveha

  • If it's going to be that kind of a party... (Score:3, Insightful)

    by ragefan ( 267937 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @02:56PM (#29315175)

    Shit, if it's going to be that kind of a party...I'm gonna stick my dick in the mashed potatoes.

  • I'm sure that they saw Open source launch parties (Firefox comes to mind) and said: - Hey, we can do that! I like the idea!-. As Tony Soprano would do.
    I bet MS employees are "encouraged" to host or attend to these parties. And they better have a good time and have a smile on their faces the whole night! Inspectors might show up to check everything's in order.

  • Isn't this the way.... (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Ancient_Hacker ( 751168 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @03:41PM (#29315963)

    Isn't this the way the Roman Empire fell? Lots of partying while the barbarians were pounding on the gates. Gates?

  • Hooray... Microsoft Party... (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Greyfox ( 87712 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @04:11PM (#29316433) Homepage Journal
    Microsoft "spontaneous" events are usually pretty underwhelming. Sure Bill Gates could party like it was 1987 and had the mug shot to prove it, but... eeh... there never seemed to be any actual sign of human life in the giant corporate machine.

    The old OS/2 crowd was a different story -- they actually believed in what they were doing and had some minimal support from IBM. You very rarely ran into the tinfoil hat crowd that drove IBM's hands-off attitude and everyone was very lively. A few IBM employees actually got very involved, too. Those days are gone and the OS/2 guys have moved on, but I bet IBM could still outparty Microsoft any day of the week.

    And don't even get me started on Linux! Those guys used to have freaking BEER WALKS for God's sake! Sure the LUG meeting is usually a sausage farm but traveling to another country and walking from bar to bar drinking beer and talking about kernel internals? Plus I bet Linus could drink Bill Gates AND Lou Gerstner under the table!

  • throw a house party for Windows 7 and invite all of your friends.

    Then when they do use Windows 7 and it doesn't live up to the hype and won't run their old games and old software and is annoying with security features and crashes and blue screens of death.

    Why don't people throw Linux parties instead? Pass out free CDRs and DVDRs of popular Linux distros. At least that way you get a free operating system and don't have to pay anything for it.

  • The Catch (Score:5, Insightful)

    by mattOzan ( 165392 ) <vispuslo@ m a t t o zan.net> on Friday September 04, 2009 @05:47PM (#29317743) Journal
    Here's what you must sign away in order to apply to be a party host:

    In consideration of House Party, Inc. ("HPI") allowing me to host and/or attend a House Party Event on or about October 22 - 29th related to Microsoft ("Company"), including, without limitation, participating in "House Party Event" activities, such as product demonstrations and sampling, and educational and informational activities (collectively, the "Activities"), I hereby agree as follows:

    I am eighteen (18) years of age or older. I agree that as consideration for being permitted to host and/or participate in any of the Activities, I, on behalf of myself and my children and minors for whom I am a legal guardian, hereby grant HPI and its designees (including, without limitation, Company and its designees) and their respective affiliates, licensees, permitees, successors and assigns, and each of them, an unrestricted, absolute, universal, perpetual, irrevocable, non-royalty bearing, and transferable right and license (but not any obligation) to use, copy, transmit, distribute, display, modify, perform, present, publish, transform, create works and derivative works, and otherwise promote or utilize my name, image, likeness, voice, words and/or other personal attribute(s) or other personal information, and those of my children and minors for whom I am a legal guardian (collectively, âoePersonal Attributesâ), captured, photographed or otherwise recorded or memorialized in any manner by myself or any other person in connection with any of the Activities, in any medium or format whether now or hereafter existing (including, without limitation, print, direct mail, online, mobile or wireless communications, radio or television broadcast, telecast or photograph), for any purpose whatsoever (including, without limitation, in connection with the creation, advertising, sale and/or promotion of any products and/or services), and without any consideration or notice to or consent by me or any third party. I, on behalf of myself and my children and minors for whom I am a legal guardian, hereby forever and irrevocably waive any rights any of us may have in or to any of the foregoing, and I understand and agree that HPI and its designees (including, without limitation, Company and its designees) are the exclusive owners (to the extent the materials are created by or at the direction of each such party) of any and all right, title and interest, including copyright, in and to any materials of any kind or nature containing or developed from use of our respective Personal Attributes. Without limiting the foregoing, I understand and agree that such materials may be used in whole or in part, individually or in conjunction with other photographs or images, and neither I, my children nor minors for whom I am a legal guardian shall have any right of approval or notice, any claim to any compensation, or any claim arising out of the use, alteration, distortion or illusionary effect or use in any composite form of any of our respective Personal Attributes. I understand that the information I have given to HPI online (including, without limitation, in connection with the host and/or guest registration and RSVP process) may be used to provide me with additional information about Company. I also agree that House Party may use and share my personal information as described in the House Party Privacy policy located at http://houseparty.com/help/privacy [houseparty.com].

    I, on behalf of myself, my children and minors for whom I am a legal guardian, and anyone who obtains any rights from or through any of us, hereby forever and irrevocably release and discharge HPI and Company; their respective parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, partners, members, managers, agents, licensees, designees, insurers, personal and legal representatives, successors and assigns; House Party Event hosts; other participants in the Activities; and any director, officer, employee or agent of any of the foregoing (each considered one of the

  • Appropriate hosts? (Score:3, Insightful)

    by dontmakemethink ( 1186169 ) on Friday September 04, 2009 @09:21PM (#29319799)
    Since when are nerds good party hosts?! Most of my comp-jockey friends get so nervous making public speeches the end up sounding like Beavis on meth!

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