Windows XP Microsoft Office XP Microsoft Frontpage 2002 Microsoft Publisher 2002 Microsoft Project 2002 These were the products my company used on a regular basis. We had it installed on 26-30 machines and had each and every copy liscensed. Then the problem with the Activation Code (CL's Challenge code it sounds a lot like) started. Here is what happened when a machine was replaced. Installed Windows XP Go through Activation online Activation failed, call 1-800-xxx for Activation (CL I assume you will have an 800 support number?) Called 1-800-xxx and listened to an obnoxious computer as it descibes to me how to enter the number. Enter number Activation failed. Hold for Rep. Rep comes on (not always a long wait) Give code to Rep. Rep asks why this software is being reinstalled. Rep. makes comment about Activation scheme and how many times you have installed. Get Activation number from Rep. Hang up phone. Windows XP Installed, proceed to other Apps. All apps installed, all fail activation. Call Microsoft, speak to computer again and single Activation fails, speak to rep. Give rep number, get questioned, get number. Give rep other numbers for other products and go through the whole procedure to get all apps activated. Give computer to user. Umm, and that was for 1 single machine. All the while, the rep is calling me Mr. Roberts because I am on their files as the reqistered user for all the software. They have a complete ownership history at their fingertips, yet they still walk you through the whole thing. Now my company uses Windows XP only. And when we get a new machine, we have it preinstalled. We don't talk to Microsoft and we don't buy their products. Granted that is an extreme situation, but for a person who is willing to go through all that crap and now they have other software from other companies jumping on that awful copy protection scheme it is unreal. SO those who say this is not a big deal, you are wrong, it is a big deal because it is just not this one software, it is the acceptance of a flawed security system that instead of protecting the software makes users abandone software they have paid for. I hate that I feel guilty even challenging this scheme, because I am an honest user, but yet this whole thing makes me feel like I am doing something wrong. The more companies that adopt this method, the worse it will be. SO if you think that simply because CL is small and it only take x number of minutes then you are going to be suprised when every piece of software you own is like that and that x number of minutes equals 3 days of phone calls to various companies trying to activate something you legitimitly paid for. Meanwhile this same software will be passed out on P2P systems completely cracked and the downloader will be up and running in no time. That, my friends, is garbage. JDexter