WSJ.com - Microsoft to Pay $775 Million To Settle IBM Antitrust Claim: "Microsoft Corp. agreed to pay $775 million and provide software to International Business Machines Corp. to settle a long-running antitrust dispute between the giants." Sounds like a bargain for Microsoft to me. How do they get away with all these sub-billion settlements? Only Sun got close to $2 billion. And where's mine? Since I was one of those few Windows users who always PAID for my copy of Windows rather than stealing the latest version from work, I'd like, for starters, to have all (or much of) that money back. Then I'd like to get recovery costs for all the time that Windows lost data, and wasted valuable time for me. So far, only the people of California have won such reimbursements, and only after filling out onerous paperwork, and after that they get a hundred dollars or so. Hardly enough. If commercial operating systems provide all the risk reducing potential that Microsoft claims, then there must be a corresponding risk to the producer of that software for poor performance and shoddy workmanship. Thus far we have not seen that mechanism in action. ime to pay up. By zeroing out that hefty bank balance of theirs if necessary. many of us may choose to stay away from future Microsoft products due to past experiences. Those refunds we receive can be used to support companies that perform to our level of expectation. That's how the marketplace is SUPPOSED to work.