Family Guy to schill for Windows 7

[MadBurgerMaker]

Guys, what is the cheapest way to get a copy of Win 7?  Ideally I'd like 2, to install on my Mac (so as to be able to access all of my 10GB of RAM), and to do a fresh install on my laptop (can't find, or never received, the install copy).

Or, alternatively, once I install Win 7 on my Mac, could I take the XP install disk that I had previously used on the Mac, and then use it on the laptop?

You can get it through the MSDNAA thing, but that would require that you join ACM or IEEE and lie about currently being an undergrad or high school student.  It's only $19 (the cost of ACM membership for a year), and you get 7 Pro, along with whatever else you want off of MSDNAA. 

Edit: 

ACM: http://www.acm.org/
IEEE: http://www.ieee.org/portal/site
MSDNAA: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/academic/default.aspx

[Zanza]

What's the difference between a normal and an OEM version? Why can I even buy an OEM version at Amazon?

[Barrister]

Guys, what is the cheapest way to get a copy of Win 7?  Ideally I'd like 2, to install on my Mac (so as to be able to access all of my 10GB of RAM), and to do a fresh install on my laptop (can't find, or never received, the install copy).

Or, alternatively, once I install Win 7 on my Mac, could I take the XP install disk that I had previously used on the Mac, and then use it on the laptop?

You can get it through the MSDNAA thing, but that would require that you join ACM or IEEE and lie about currently being an undergrad or high school student.  It's only $19 (the cost of ACM membership for a year), and you get 7 Pro, along with whatever else you want off of MSDNAA. 

Edit: 

ACM: http://www.acm.org/
IEEE: http://www.ieee.org/portal/site
MSDNAA: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/academic/default.aspx

Interesting...

[MadBurgerMaker]

Interesting...

Just so you know, I haven't tried it just yet so I don't know what they do (if anything) to check your status as a student.

[DontSayBanana]

Just so you know, I haven't tried it just yet so I don't know what they do (if anything) to check your status as a student.

For student discounts, Microsoft asks for your student email to see if the domain is registered with a participating school, and then they send a confirmation email to that address, so it would take a bit more than just fibbing that you're at school to get a student discount.

[MadBurgerMaker]

For student discounts, Microsoft asks for your student email to see if the domain is registered with a participating school, and then they send a confirmation email to that address, so it would take a bit more than just fibbing that you're at school to get a student discount.

This goes through ACM or IEEE.  You give them your info, pay for the membership, etc, and use their access to MSDNAA.  You don't go directly through Microsoft. 

Edit: .ca is a Canadian right?  If so, someone noted in the thread I got this info from that instead of using their email address that ended in that, they just went with a gmail account. 

Both ACM and IEEE got rushed when this first came out, so keep that in mind too if you're not really a student.  They may have tightened up their standards from "lol thanks for the money, here's your access," to "We don't want to make Microsoft mad."

[Barrister]

Looks like download-only though.

[MadBurgerMaker]

Looks like download-only though.

Yeah, they're all .iso files you DL and burn. 

[derspiess]

FWIW, I did have one other issue after I upgraded to Win7.  Each time I booted up, my ethernet connection failed & I had to manually restart it.  A driver update fixed the issue (oddly enough, the latest driver caused the ethernet adapter to flake out on XP & Vista).

Still pretty impressed with how well the upgrade went.

[HisMajestyBOB]

There will be no commercial ad time, no network promotions, and no commercial breaks—just a 30-minute Windows 7 trailer that somehow attempts to blend the operating system with show content in the style of the old Texaco Star Theater..

Well thank god they're not interrupting a 30 minute commercial for commercial breaks. That'd just be silly.

[Barrister]

Microsoft has decided it's no longer interested in exclusively sponsoring Fox's upcoming Seth MacFarlane comedy special after the software giant's executives watched the show's taping on October 16. "We initially chose to participate in the Seth and Alex variety show based on the audience composition and creative humor of 'Family Guy,' but after reviewing an early version of the variety show it became clear that the content was not a fit with the Windows brand," a Microsoft spokesperson confirmed with Ars. "We continue to have a good partnership with Fox, Seth MacFarlane and Alex Borstein and are working with them in other areas. We continue to believe in the value of brand integrations and partnerships between brands, media companies and talent."

Fox still plans to move forward with another, yet-to-be-named sponsor, though it's unclear how this will work since the network has already taped the special before a live audience, complete with Windows 7-related humor in the style of the old Texaco Star Theater. According to Variety, which reported on the news first, the show had typical Family Guy jokes, "including riffs on deaf people, the Holocaust, feminine hygiene and incest" that apparently was a bit too much for Microsoft.

http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/news/2009/10/microsoft-bails-from-family-guy-windows-7-special.ars

What did you think they were going to get with Family Guy?

[MadBurgerMaker]

  

[Josquius]

Is this why Family Guy has such a short, stupidly scheduled series this year?

I await the leak if it shant air,