[makai]

Office 2003 Student and Teacher version allows installation on up to three computers in a home, providing the student/teacher doesn't use the software for commercial use. A divorced client of mine asked me a question about the legality of installing Office 2003 Student and Teachers version on one computer in his home, and on another computer in his ex-wife's home for their daughter to use. I thought about this and searched MS, and Google, but couldn't actually find any information on the topic. Actually, I didn't really know "how" to search for this, or what verbage to use in my search, so I didn't find anything. I was going to email MS, and probably still will, but thought I would create a post here also.

It seems to me that since his daughter spends ~50 percent of her time in his home, and ~50 percent in his ex-wife's home, and requires the use of Office at both places for school, then there shouldn't be a problem as the license is meant to be "helpful" to students.

Has anyone come across this before, or know the "legality" of it?

Thanks!

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i can't say for sure BUT.... the standard EULA for office states that you can install it on one desktop and one mobile computer...i'd imagine that this applies to the student teacher version as well....MS doesn't (in the eula at least) define what a mobile computer is specifically....so IN THEORY if the kids are strong enough to pick up and carry their computers from their mom's house to anywhere else...then it constitutes a mobile computer right?

the wording of the EULA is slightly ambiguous...but it does SOMEWHAT state that the users must live in your home...(and that the devices are there as well)....

1.1Installation and use. You may install a copy of the Software on three personal computers or other devices in your household for non-commercial use by people who reside in your household.

HOWEVER...off the cuff i would imagine that they wouldn't run into any licensing issues from this situation...it's highly unlikely that they'd get audited...and if they did i DOUBT the auditors would do anything in this situation..

if these assumptions aren't enough....you could call MS and ask?

[dsenette]

i can't say for sure BUT.... the standard EULA for office states that you can install it on one desktop and one mobile computer...i'd imagine that this applies to the student teacher version as well....MS doesn't (in the eula at least) define what a mobile computer is specifically....so IN THEORY if the kids are strong enough to pick up and carry their computers from their mom's house to anywhere else...then it constitutes a mobile computer right?

the wording of the EULA is slightly ambiguous...but it does SOMEWHAT state that the users must live in your home...(and that the devices are there as well)....

1.1Installation and use. You may install a copy of the Software on three personal computers or other devices in your household for non-commercial use by people who reside in your household.

HOWEVER...off the cuff i would imagine that they wouldn't run into any licensing issues from this situation...it's highly unlikely that they'd get audited...and if they did i DOUBT the auditors would do anything in this situation..

if these assumptions aren't enough....you could call MS and ask?

[makai]

Yah, I think I'll call MS... actually, I'll email them and hopefully get something in writing one way or the other. It would be interesting to hear what they decide. When you think about it, this isn't such an unsual scenario in this day and age of marriges that don't last. I mean there must be millions of families in this situation. I'll update this post with their decision.

[makai]

Update...

Well, can you believe it? MS won't answer my question without charging me! In any case, the user has decided to just install Office. I can't make the decision for him, and actually, I agree that MS would probably not mind it, given the situation. One thing he will do is install on the computer while it's at his home, activate it, then move the computer to his ex-wifes for his daughter to use. During the activation, this is legal... moving the computer, well, it's not in the EULA!

The EULA states ...
1.1 Installation and use. You may install a copy of the Software on three personal computers or other devices in your household for non-commercial use by people who reside in your household.

The software will be installed while the computer is in his household... and, his daughter does reside in his household... albiet only about ~50% of the time. The EULA does not state that the people using the computer must be using it in the household where the software was installed! Yah, I know... a little bit of "reading into it", but so be it for ambiguity!

[dsenette]

walking the tightrope of the EULA can be fun

[makai]

Agreed!

[wannabe1]

According the the information I've been able to find, so long as the program is registered to the student, it can be installed on any machine they use whether it's in their home, dorm room, or mother's/fathers's home. The only thing MS is going to really look at is how many times it's installed using the same license.

This information was gleaned from a professor here at MSU, not Microsoft, but he says he has never had a student challenged for what machine the software was installed on except when an attempt was made to install too many times with the same key.

[makai]

You know, I never even thought about a "dorm room". Well, I guess the client will pretty much be ok with everything!

Thanks guys!
makai

Edited by makai, 03 April 2009 - 04:53 AM.