On 12/16/20 12:55 PM, Ljubomir Ljubojevic wrote: > Off-topic: > > On 12/16/20 4:11 PM, Lamar Owen wrote: >> 2.) The enthusiasts who were building their own machines from parts. >> That group is small, but they also tend to be very vocal; IT >> professionals often fall into this group, and MS wanted to keep them >> happy for all the reasons previously posted. > In less developed countries PC's are sold without any software, even > laptops. ... > Since it is illegal to install pirated software, PC resellers are not > allowed to preinstall pirated software, but no one can prevent them to > sell it without any OS/software on it, so 70-80% of PC's sold in Serbia > are sold without it. Similar is in many countries outside of "Western > countries". It is certainly different in different countries; I can only speak for what I see in my own area. I don't see a lot of new PCs sold without some license of some kind; Dell Precision workstations and PowerEdge servers are available with Linux preinstalled, and PowerEdge servers can be purchased without any OS. Most PC manufacturers here have deals with Microsoft to prevent them selling PCs without OS.