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This is a follow up on my article earlier this week about the picture hidden inside of the Microsoft Vista DVDs. As it turns out, the conspiracy theories are not quite what they’re cut out to be.

The Truth

The truth of the matter is that the pictures embedded in the Vista DVD are all a part of Microsoft’s complex anti-piracy push. Alongside the picture of the three men (who helped design the holograms) are pictures of art masterworks that have been etched into the DVDs in hopes that it will dissuade would be pirates from copying Vista DVDs.

From the Vista Blog,

The photo in question is only one of multiple images contained in the hologram design, all of whose inclusion serves to make it more difficult to replicate a Windows Vista DVD. The other images are of old master works of art that are in the public domain. These images are part of numerous other security measures that have been designed into our media, packaging and certificates of authenticity.

Web 2.0

Well, of course, this could be some well-timed corporate misdirection, but it likely is not. What would be interesting is if someone managed to put together a photo album of embedded Vista images. Any takers?

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