Starting next year, PC makers won't be shipping dual-boot Windows desktops, as a result of a change Microsoft is making in its OEM licensing terms.
Currently, some OEMs offer customers a choice of Windows versions—say, Windows 2000 Professional and Windows XP—and allow users to select one upon first booting their new machines. "Microsoft will no longer offer dual installation but will offer downgrade rights in Windows XP," confirmed a spokeswoman for the company's licensing division.
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