This is a classic… Scott McCausland who was jailed in 2006 for two copyright-related charges over the uploading of Star Wars: Episode III to the Internet has been told by his probation officer that he will need to install Windows on his PC if he wants to use it during his probation period.

Scot, a Linux user, was jailed for uploading a film on the EliteTorrents BitTorrent server, has reported on his blog that the terms of his sentence meant he would have to install Windows if he wanted to use a computer during his probation. “I had a meeting with my probation officer today, and he told me that he has to install monitoring software onto my PC,” wrote McCausland. “No big deal to me…that is part of my sentence.”

The problem is that “their software doesn’t support GNU/Linux (which is what I use),” said McCausland. “So, he told me that if I want to use a computer, I would have to use an OS that the software can be installed on. Which basically means: Microsoft and monitoring software or no computer. I use Ubuntu 7.04 now, and they are trying to force me to switch. First they give me two felonies, then they throw me in prison, and now this.”

You can read more here: http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6204348.html