I think everyone needs to calm down a little bit. Regardless of opinion, I think we can agree on the following:
- It is not clearly indicated that the Zune hardware requires the Zune software.
- Some, or even most, might assume this fact. But not everyone will.
- Most probably don't care, because most will buy the Zune to use it, and do what is necessary to use it. Same way they install malware because some website told them it was necessary. (Quicktime is a good example.)
- Being able to add music via other methods would be nice. (Drag and drop, WMP.)
There, I think that about covers everything, yes? To be honest, I actually installed the Zune software before I even had a Zune, because I thought it was that much better than any other music software I've used. I think the recent iTunes UI upgrades acknowledges this point.