Quoting:Last week, Microsoft sent certified letters to its OEM partners regarding Vista's anti-piracy technology -- or, more accurately, what happens if they dare ship a system with a "non-genuine" copy of Vista. (Thanks to two Cringesters, both sporting the initials D.S., for supplying me with copies of the letter.)

The answer: The system is crippled for 30 days, then hosed entirely until you pony up for a license. This is apparently what Microsoft means when it warns of a "diminished user experience." (To me, that's what you get when Windows works normally.)

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To be fair, I haven't heard a lot of whining about Vista's faulty WGA hosing people's systems. But that may be because Microsoft has been playing nice, trying to avoid more bad PR for its underwhelming new OS. The certified letter could be the first step in a get tough campaign. If so, we may be in for a long ugly summer.