A view from the inside: I used to work as a bench technician, and worked for several different shops, some larger than others. And yes, some techs have no problem whatsoever searching and duping customer hard drives. I've known a few techs who had systems setup specifically to ghost a customer's hard drive(s), then they'd access the setup at work from home via FTP or TELNET and port the files out. I myself have had files 'liberated' from my system, thanks to a faulty firewall setup. In fact, I've even seen a few on the P2P network...I've since beefed up security (I hope). The age of the 'always on' connection has, I believe, significantly contributed to the increase in software piracy. Finding a back door into someone's system is almost always possible, as long as that system is powered up and connected to the 'net. It's a problem that won't go away any time soon. I fully support the vendors in protecting their livelyhood (or supplemental income). And I greatly appreciate the vendors, like Nerd, Blackhearted, and others, who go the extra distance to make the purchase worth it. The emails I get for bonus items or free updates always make me feel that my money was well spent, and certainly ensures that I'll be back for more. Just my two bits worth, as a tech insider, a purchaser, a hacker victim, and perhaps someday, a vendor. CT