Quoting extensively from internal Microsoft Corp. e-mails, plaintiffs' lawyers argued Friday that the company knowingly misled consumers by allowing PC makers to emblazon "Windows Vista Capable" stickers on PCs that could run only the most bare-bones version of the operating system.

The new documents are the latest development in a lawsuit filed against Microsoft last year, charging that the company deceived consumers into thinking that the PCs they were buying could run Vista's most highly promoted features, even when they couldn't. The slogan was part of a campaign by Microsoft to maintain sales of Windows XP computers during the 2006 holiday shopping season after Windows Vista was delayed.

Numerous internal e-mails that appeared to show that employees within Microsoft had misgivings about the "Windows Vista Capable" campaign. The documents are under seal pending a ruling by Judge hearing the case.

"Even a piece of junk will qualify" for the "Windows Vista Capable" designation, wrote one employee in an e-mail that the plaintiff's attorney Tilden read out loud.

Another employee, Mike Nash, currently a corporate vice president for Windows product management, wrote in an e-mail, "I PERSONALLY got burnt. ... Are we seeing this from a lot of customers? ... I now have a $2,100 e-mail machine."

Jim Allchin, then the co-president of Microsoft's Platforms and Services Division, wrote in another e-mail, "We really botched this. ... You guys have to do a better job with our customers."

Another e-mail chain presented in court showed that Wal-Mart was concerned about the impact the campaign could have, and Tilden hinted that other retailers had similar concerns.

Microsoft downplayed the significance of the e-mail exchanges. "The e-mails cited in today's hearing are isolated, and in many instances, outdated and really just snippets of a broad and thorough review that took place during the development of the Windows Vista Capable program," David Bowermaster, a Microsoft spokesman, said in a statement.

He added, "Throughout this review, Microsoft employees raised concerns and addressed issues with the aim of making this program better for our partners and more valuable for consumers. In the end, we believe we achieved both objectives."

The company's marketing campaign also used the term "premium ready" to indicate when a computer was able to run the most-advanced versions of Windows Vista.

Stephen Rummage, a lawyer with Davis Wright Tremaine who represented Microsoft, argued that the case did not merit class-action status, since each customer who bought a "Windows Vista Capable" computer had different information at the time of the purchase. For instance, a Microsoft Web site provided information about the various editions of Vista, while magazines, blogs and even some retailers also explained the distinctions.

"We know that there was a wealth of information available to the public," he said. "They have not presented the court with a single document showing what people were told."

Plaintiffs' attorney Jeffrey Thomas countered that it made sense for the case, which was filed by two plaintiffs, to proceed as a class action because all the individuals who bought "Windows Vista Capable" PCs were united in that "each person in our class did not get what they paid for."

U.S District Judge Marsha Penchman presiding over the hearing is due to give her decision in 10 days which will decide whether the suit deserves class-action status.

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