Software giant Microsoft Corp. might have showed some compassion this summer when it softened its demand that schools perform mandatory software audits. But in failing to reverse its stance that all school computers running Windows must be accompanied by original operating system (OS) licenses, the company still imposes an unfair hardship on disadvantaged schools, some school technology leaders say.

The controversy stems from complications encountered when schools accept donations of refurbished computers. Although businesses and other organizations are eager to unload free computers onto needy beneficiaries, Microsoft recommends that schools never accept such gifts unless the proper OS licenses are included in the deal.

In fact, the company's web site reads: "Microsoft recommends that educational institutions only accept computer donations that are accompanied by proper operating system documentation. If the donor cannot provide this documentation, it is recommended that you decline the donated PC(s)."

But that's not a fair request, said John Rowlands, director of information services for the Seattle Public Schools. Local businesses and other potential benefactors, he said, aren't always willing to spend the time or money it takes to dig through their files and produce original OS licenses to be included with the donations.

"A lot of businesses buy these computers by the hundreds, sometimes the thousands," he said. That's a lot of computers, but it's also a lot of paperwork.

Rowlands, who manages technology for 100 Seattle schools, said slimming budgets and growing technology needs have added greatly to the value of refurbished computers, especially where disadvantaged schools are concerned. According to him, machines considered outdated in the business world might completely revitalize a beleaguered school's computer lab.

"We have some schools with some very real needs," he said. "Yet, we have to work harder and harder to find the resources for those very schools."

Lou August, executive director of the Washington-based Wilderness Technology Alliance—an organization that specializes in placing refurbished computers in schools—argued that it shouldn't matter whether or not institutions can provide a piece of paper to prove a system's authenticity, because Microsoft already knows the OS is official.

In a letter he wrote to John Miller, head of software licensing for Microsoft, August urged Miller to reconsider the licensing policy. "For over a decade, every major computer manufacturer provided a legal Microsoft operating system license with their computers ...," he stated. "Thus, I felt that surely Microsoft would not deny the reloading of the original OS if a donor no longer had their paper license. After all, it had to be purchased with the original computer and could not legally be transferred. Requiring the repurchase of the OS because the certificate was lost is tantamount to Ford Motor Company issuing paper licenses for the use of tires on its cars; if the owner lost the paper license, new tires would have to be purchased."