Can we truly prove MSIE sabotages downloads?

[Hans Reiser <reiser@ricochet.net>]

  May I ask that you attempt the download from two computers at the same time, one MSIE, one Netscape doing the downloading?
  
  Why do I ask this?  Because I have personally had troubles with Netscape's site without using MSIE, and if I had been using MSIE, I
  would have been really paranoid about it, because the errors were really weird.  Also, make sure it isn't a powersaving problem
  (powersaving when activated turns off serial ports (without noticing how busy they are) when you don't hit a key for X minutes, which
  can affect modems.)  If Netscape downloads but MSIE does not, while attempting both downloads simultaneously, then investigating more
  becomes of interest I think.
  
  Note that if this is truly provable in court, it becomes a very nicely literal restraint of trade, which makes it rhetorically
  attractive to me for use in indicating a pattern of conduct in my case even if the issue of standing prevents my collecting direct
  damages for it.
  
  Skeptical but wanting to know more,
  
  Hans
  
  Reminder:
  All persons with evidence of MS tying or restraint of trade are encouraged to send it to me for inclusion on
  http://www.idiom.com/~beverly/tying.html.
  
  Chuck Swiger wrote:
  
  >
  >
  > Topic No. 2
  >
  > Date: Wed, 3 Dec 1997 10:26:10 -0500
  > From: Chuck Swiger <cswiger@widomaker.com>
  > To: "'am-info@essential.org'" <am-info@essential.org>
  > Subject: A-M$: Recent Microsoft Behavior
  > Message-ID: <01BCFFD5.E4A3ACA0@SERV_BDC>
  >
  >         From:   MachCU@aol.com[SMTP:MachCU@aol.com]
  > >spoken of (Microsoft being the only browser which
  > >              consistently had problems downloading Netscape products from
  > >the Web when cookies or specific Javascripts were
  > >              involved, yet not at any other site), or had evidence to relate
  > >regarding previous rumors of Microsoft's IIS server giving
  > >              clear preference to its own MSIE browser over all others.
  >
  > Now this, I first thought, was just another case of people w/ lousy modems or bad
  > phone lines blaming the most visible scapegoat for their frustrations.  So, instead of
  > emotionally charged accusations (i.e., a 'witchhunt') I decided to try some
  > experiments, to collect some facts. I really beleive that the Holy Grail "Head of Gates on a
  > stick" award goes to the first person who can get evidence to actually prove to a judge and jury that
  > actual non-competitive practice is going on (like trying to kick your opponent in a foot
  > race).  So I'm trying to be 'scientific' and objective and so far have two results:
  > 1) Running MSIE 3.02 (msie302mnt.exe) on NT4SP3, on a LAN, connecting to Internet
  > thru 'WinGate' (wg2ntr.exe) also running on another NT4SP3, attempted D/L of Netscape
  > Navigator 4.04, stand alone, English, for Win95/NT - got about 1.2Mb and abruptly
  > lost the d/l box, file corrput.
  > 2) Ok, that proves nothing, I regularly have problems running a dos ftp getting FreeBSD
  > files from ftp.cdrom.com [connection closed]. So went home and installed the same
  > msie302mnt.exe on Win95, this time directly dialed into the same ISP w/ a local modem,
  > and it was worse: appears to have completely d/l the same Netscape 4.04 file, but at
  > the end got something like "unable to copy program xxxxxx", d/l failed.
  >
  > Now if someone can come up with a reverse engineered code fragment that can be
  > described like:
  >
  >         if ( website = "netscape" )
  >            and if ( user != "ms_employee" )
  >                 then call random_error();
  >
  > which can be independantly verified by recognized computer scientists, then we've got
  > something. Of course, it's not outside the bounds of conjecture to speculate that it's
  > the other partner, Netscape, that's casting aspersions and throwing the dance with their CGI scrip:
  >
  >         if ( browser = "msie" )
  >            then call random_error();
  >
  > --------------------------
  > "A witty saying proves nothing" - Voltair
  >
  > Chuck
  > cswiger@widomaker.com
  >
  
  
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