Microsoft or Micro$oft as we all know them are always on the lookout for new ways to quickly make a few bucks. Their latest patent consists of trying to turn users into a constant stream of income by making them pay everytime they use a “Microsoft PC” with the cost being calculated based on the amount of performance you use and other factors with the only advantage being that the PC you’re getting is subsidized.

Claims (from the filed patent no 20080319910):

1. A method of operating a computer with scalable performance comprising:presenting a catalog of options related to scalable performance of the pay-per-use computer; presenting a price associated with each of the options; receiving a selection of an option from the catalog of options; calculating a total price of operation of the computer corresponding to the selection of the option; configuring the computer to operate in accordance with the selection of the option; andaccumulating charges for operation of the computer according to the total price.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein presenting the catalog comprises presenting a set of operating characteristics with a range of selectable performance settings for each element of the set of operating characteristics.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein presenting the catalog comprises presenting a preset package of scalable performance settings corresponding to a task or activity.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising downloading the catalog to a secure memory in the computer.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein accumulating charges for operation comprises accumulating charges at one of a fixed rate per time period, a one time charge, and a rate corresponding to use of a scalable performance resource in the computer.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein calculating a total price comprises: presenting a price associated with each respective element of a set of scalable performance settings; and adjusting the price associated with an element of the set of scalable performance levels when a setting is adjusted to a new performance level.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein calculating the total price of operation of the computer comprises calculating a total price of operation of the computer based on a current usage level without regard to the selection of an option from the catalog of options.

8. A computer adapted for monitored operation comprising:a user interface; a plurality of components, each of the plurality of components capable of operating over a range of performance levels and each of the plurality of components comprising a metering agent; and a security module coupled to the metering agent in each of the plurality of components, the security module comprising: a secure memory storing the range of performance levels for each of the plurality of components;  and a processor for supplying a data corresponding to the range of performance levels and a current performance level for each of the plurality of components, the data for display on the user interface responsive to a request to reprogram the current performance level for one or more of the plurality of components to a different performance level.

9. The computer of claim 8, wherein the security module further comprises a cryptographic unit for creating and verifying digital signatures corresponding to setting the current performance level.

10. The computer of claim 8, wherein each metering agent comprises a cryptographic function and at least a public key for verifying digital signatures corresponding to setting a current performance level in one or more of the plurality of components.

11. The computer of claim 8, wherein each of the plurality of components comprises a memory storing its respective range of performance capabilities.

12. The computer of claim 11, wherein each of the plurality of components further comprises a communication capability between the memory, the metering agent, and the security module.

13. The computer of claim 8, further comprising a value manager for calculating a value corresponding to each currently selected performance capability for each of the plurality of components.

14. The computer of claim 8, further comprising a balance manager that reports a current stored value for display on the user interface.

15. The computer of claim 8, wherein the secure memory further stores a pre-determined setting defining a combination of performance levels corresponding to a task.

16. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for implementing a method of receiving user input corresponding to selection of a performance level for an electronic device having a range of available performance levels, comprising: a storage module for storing a range of available performance levels for one or more components capable of operation over a range of performance levels; a display module for displaying the range of available performance levels for the one or more components; a user interface module for receiving a selection of a performance level for at least one of the one or more components; a management module for securely setting the performance level of the at least one of the one or more components; and a metering module for monitoring and reporting operation of the at least one of the one or more components.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 16, further comprising a balance module for deducting value from a local stored value account corresponding to a usage report from the metering module.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 16, further comprising a balance module for reporting a usage value to a remote reconciliation service, the usage value corresponding to a usage report from the metering module.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the storage module polls the one or more components to determine the range of performance levels.

20. The computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the storage module receives a message with the range of performance levels from a remote management service.

This sounds like a neo-communist system to me, maybe I should patent breathing? (Wait, I think that is called TAX?) On the flip side, reading through the whole patent, they keep on referring to secure memory, secure partitions, etc, M$ doesn’t have a very good track record with regards to security even though they deny it and even if they manage to secure it properly, how long will it last? XP was cracked within hours after being released. Vista claiming to be uncrackable was cracked even before it was officially released, not even speaking about the older versions of Windows and their bad track record of being plagued by nasty infections.

The US Patent Office rejected their patent saying it was too fuzzy and that the patent included technology that was already patented.

Not that it really affects me, I was actually hoping they’d get it, that would surely drive hordes of people away from Microsoft products which means more people migrating to Linux which in the long-term means bigger investments going into the open-source community.