Attached Link: http://www.curiouslabs.com

Hello. I've read all of the posts about our forthcoming security measures and the pros and cons thereof. First of all, I completely understand the reactions of those who question the wisdom/motives of implementing some sort of software protection. At face value, security measures have the potential to make life miserable for those it was designed to protect. After all, a deadbolt will trap a family inside a burning home just as easily as it will keep a thief outside. Thankfully, those occasions are rare and there are ways to prevent them from happening. But the lock analogy is an excellent one. Let's talk about locks... What is the one thing we all do whenever we enter or leave our house, car, business, etc? What do we all do at work when we fire up our computers in the morning, leave for lunch, come back after a meeting, etc? That's right: We pause to arm or disarm security measures (such as locks or passwords). Every day, we subconsciously interact with security devices that exist to protect our hard earned assets. How many of you leave your front door unlocked and your TV in full view? Look at your keychain. I have access to my 4 vehicles, 3 houses (1 mine and 2 friends), my place of work, safe deposit box... Every day, I lug around about a half pound of metal and always check to make sure it is glued to me. As I type this, I am looking at a $200 plastic box containing hardware designed to keep intruders at bay. And, I posess several other pieces of machinery whose sole purpose is to blow holes of varying sizes in targets of varying descriptions. Am I some kind of nut case? That is both off topic and open to spirited debate, but stop and think: I am hardly unique. How many of you own keys, access cards, firewalls, passwords, PINs, firearms, Mace, baseball bats, etc? Why do we do this? Because there are those among us who have no problem helping themselves to what we honest folks have worked our tuchuses off to obtain. It is a truly sad fact that we are constantly on guard against the parasites of society. Very large portions of our society and economy are geared towards nothing but protecting ourselves against our peers. Look at Verisign, ADT, Schlage, Smith & Wesson... So who gets screwed? I submit that each and every one of us who has ever bought a lock or any device remotely associated with protection falls under the "legitimate but screwed" category. How many of us have left our homes unlocked, our doors wide open until the day our stereo and other possessions vanish before finally knuckling under and buying a locking doorknob? On the contrary, 99.999% of us probably buy the lock first, long before the RCA goes walkabout. In a perfect world, we should be able to open our doors and windows wide and proudly display our worldy goods for all to see, safe in the knowledge that our stuff, our precious stuff, will be there when we return. Sadly, as we know, that is not the case. Curious Labs falls under the first category. We went the perfect world route and released PPP sans protection. The rest, as they say, is history. We are now in the position of having been robbed almost blind and having to do something about it. If your houses were robbed, how many of you would go out the next morning and buy beefier deadbolts? I thought so. We are in the same boat, unfortunately. I need to digress to say that I am not trying to preach. I am simply drawing a logical comparison. We all act in a protective mode day in and day out, and security issues occupy a disproportionate amount of our time, energy, and money. It's a tragic commentary on the human animal and condition. It's also reality. What we have done with the Pro Pack Service Release is no different than installing a deadbolt on the front door. However, unlike a deadbolt that requires conscious effort to lock and unlock every time, our security measures require only one effort per machine under normal circumstances. Imagine a deadbolt that learns who you are and lets you pass without having to stop and open each time. Same thing, kind of. What happens when you upgrade? On the chance you need to re-register, go ahead and do it! Does the presence of a deadbolt on your front door make you less receptive to the many honest folks (from guests to the UPS man) who routinely arrive chez vous? No! Just because we have measures in place does NOT mean we are suddenly on a witch hunt! So you install the update and register. All we need is a unique code, either online or via email or phone. No Internet connection required. That's it. We give you a unique answer, and you're good to go. And, when you register, we get some information (which we keep confidential) to go along with the s/n. Need to reregister (say if you buy a new machine and reinstall)? No sweat! Simply let us know who you are and your serial number. We will 'match the name with the face', and you're up and running. For those who complain about an added measure or something on your drive: Think about every car, house, etc. you've ever gotten. What was the single pivotal moment? Getting the keys (security devices uniquely tailored to the specific item being protected)! Those locks remain a part of your house/car/etc. You have probably seen Kupa's posts about half of Pro Pack copies being illegitimate. Think about that. Given the $149 price, that means that every legitimate Pro Pack purchase equates to every legitimate user to essentially make a $75 donation to pay for the thieves. I am not saying Pro Pack would be $75 without piracy, but realize that the thieves are those causing your problems. Without thieves, why buy locks? They have made the problem so large that we must take steps to stay alive. Why? If CL goes out of business, who really gets it? You, the legitmate community who least deserves it, that's who! You would not let a thief waltz into your home. Why your computer? Anthony Hernandez Sr. Tech Writer Curious Labs