please tell me that's not Bill Gates real signature. It looks like it was written by a fifth grader.

@robotprom: Would you be complaining if that signature was on a check made out to you by him? I know I wouldn't. See Bill, I appreciate you!!

Awwww...how sweet!

Question: Do you think a bank teller would believe you if you deposited or cashed a check written by Bill Gates?

Wow. Microsoft really stepped up to the plate for this one.
You should click the link to the article: they did a WONDERFUL sketch, and the danged thing is so covered in sigs from everyone that's important to the guy that you can barely see the white underneath.
The fact that Bill Gates signed it (even retired, he's insanely hard to get involved with things since his schedule's a bit hectic, I'd guess).
Wow.

Nice to see Microsoft make amends. They and Bungie both really shined this time.

I'm not knocking this guy, believe me... he was clearly wronged, he made an appropriate stink, and now he's been righted... big time.

But I can't help think about all the bigger issues that plague Microsoft customers. Like the three weeks I spent getting two simple programs I rely on regularly to work on Vista. Or the people who had to buy new printers because Vista doesn't work with their perfectly good printer. Or the countless people who have suffered downtime because their OS software mistakenly thought it was pirated and shut most of it's own features off. Thousands of people don't get any swag for equal or even greater suffering.

Sorry, again, I'm not knocking this guy at all. I just wish that MS would get their priorities in order.

Three weeks? Any non-evil company would've responded in two.

@humphrmi:

You bought Vista? You're a braver man than I.

There's no stinkin' way that's Bill Gates' signature. It's gotta be a joke by the game developers.

@WraithSama: Most people don't buy vista retail. A majority of the vista licenses are sold pre-installed on new machines.

If this guy's new 360 takes a dump in a few months, I am betting he WON'T send it back to MS for repairs at the risk of having another douchebag erase it or even even remove the shell and put it on another 360.

@SBR249: Yup, I got stuck with a new laptop - bought it for my wife but she tried Vista once and took my laptop and said I could have the nice new one.

PR stunt for lagging sales and crappy service much?

Re: Billy Gates...he's 3rd in the world behind Buffett and C-Los Slim (as he likes to be called). Just sayin...

@BrentNewland: For all practical purposes, they don't care. Nobody looks at checks in-depth anymore except in cases of fraud.

@InfiniTrent: No, I think it actually is his signature. Search Google for other "bill gates signatures" and you'll find that they all look basically the same.

@robotprom: My handwriting sucks, but I'm super-smart and I make lots of money. I don't mind the trade-off.

Hey, I think this is great. Sometimes is just enough to be grateful!

I filed a complaint against Microsoft with the BBB nearly a month ago that is still pending because Microsoft has not yet responded. The response I received from the BBB when I filed the complaint stated, "Due to the size of their business, Microsoft indicated it may take some time to research and respond to your complaint."

@consummate: Something tells me Microsoft does not rely on BBB endorsements.

@BrentNewland: Hells no!

I'm really hoping that little "Microsoft: Do not wash" buried amongst all the other signatures and artwork wasn't the only notice he gave to MS about not wanting them to wash the case.

@consummate: the BBB is so useless. what complaint did you have? after all this is consumerist..and you have teh intarwebs. EECB, etc. Don't rely on powerless third party to do something for ya :)

How about all those people who had to have their 360 repaired 3+ times? I know I didn't get Bill Gates' signature on my 4th 360.

That's his signature.

[nerdapproved.com]
[couponmeister.com]
[images.google.com]
Google image search is your friend.

@NeoteriX: No, he called ahead and included a letter saying that losing the signatures would be the worst thing possible. Blaming the victim fun was had by all.

@NeoteriX: that's the NEW case. the OLD case looked like this: [consumerist.com]

you can read the original article where it states that he called ahead, and enclosed a letter politely requesting that they return his original case and not smudge anything.

Im just amazed that someone would take the time to get a bunch of signatures that will never be worth a nickle in the first place. Now because Microsoft cleaned off the worthless signatures he actually has Bill Gate's signature which may actually be worth something 100 years from now. I highly doubt the signature from some guy who drew a map for Halo will EVER be worth something

@Gorky: They were worth it to HIM.

@Gorky: Just like anything else, signatures are worth what people think they're worth, depending on how much they want them, and how much they are willing to pay for them. Obviously, the map guy's signature was valuable to the XBox owner or he wouldn't bother to collect it.

Don't underestimate the spending power of gamer nerds.

Microsoft FTW

whens the last time that Megalomaniac Jobs give out his john footpenis?

Bill Gates? You know, the guy who works down in shipping.

Great PR stunt by microsoft to look like the good guys in the consumer's eyes

If you read the article, he got a new scribbled Xbox 360, a new faceplace on top of that, a boatload of games, some accessories...

...and a signed photograph of Bill Gates. DO NOT WANT!!!

That's sweet. :)

@humphrmi: ubuntu.com will fix all your vista issues.

@Do you think a bank teller would believe you if you deposited or cashed a check written by Bill Gates?

Sike, we don't check the signatures at all.

@Sathallrin: I would totally go to Linux if I wasn't obsessed with Call of Duty 4. Crappy gaming = no Linux, FTL.

@Sathallrin: Yeah, I have a couple of Ubuntu boxen already, along with RHEL and Solaris x86, but this one laptop is for running my financials with Quicken. And yes, I've already tried MoneyDance, jGnash, KMyMoney, and GnuCash and none of them offer all the features I need. We need a Quicken Killer in the free software world.

@robotprom: so does the handwriting of most men.

Wow, Microsoft just went up a notch in my book. Isn't much compared to the long list of previous evil doings.

looks like a new york city subway with a bunch of random tags.

nevertheless, that was a cool peace offering by Microsoft.

@consummate:

I've had similar exeperiences. I've had an open BBB case with Microsoft for going on 3 months now! The only reply that they sent to the BBB was fraudulant, stating that they had fixed the problem, which left me with only an option to send a rebuttal. It's a shame that they can not only lie directly to me, but also try and scam the BBB. The only reason that the guy mentioned in this story got such a nice package is that this story made the front page of so many websites. I can assure you that MS could care less otherwise.

@adamsummers: The BBB doesn't do/mean/have authority over anything or anyone. People should get over it.

you know... I'd sorta take it like an insult.
Stupid signatures for an awesome artwork erased? Sheesh.

@robotprom: It's Bill Gates, he can sign it however the hell he wants to. If I were BG I'd sign that whole console in crayon and stickers.

@Voyou_Charmant:

I figured it would be worth a shot, as the EECB method, as well as going through the usual channels didn't work. Believe me, I've learned that going through the BBB is indeed a waste of time.

Bill's authentic signature ? Hmm, I'd be more convinced if it had a Windows Genuine Advantage holo-sticker under it. ;-)