XP activation?

About 4 months ago I paid about $300 for the full version of XP home edition. Now, on Friday I bought a new computer onto which I have installed XP. So it is now on both computers. I rang microsoft and they said that I would have to remove it from one computer!!! What the hell?? What did I pay all that money for? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mad.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mad.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mad.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smoker5.gif
Any how, currently I keep being reminded on the new computer that I have 30-days to activate XP. My question is, if I activate it and keep it on both machines...what will happen?

What you paid for was 1 license of Windows XP. You don't have a license to run it on the other computer. You might speak with Microsoft about buying a second license without buying a second CD, second box, second set of manuals...sometimes they offer a discount. Microsoft needs a set up like Apple and OS X. You can buy 1 license for $99 or 5 (For 5 computers in the same home) for $199

If the new computer came with XP on it, then you have 2 licenses. If you installed it on the second machine, you are legally supposed to remove it from the first before installing it on the second. Saaby's correct. You paid for a license to use the software on one machine only when you bought the package.

Also, if you do a major hardware upgrade with XP, it'll think it's a totally new machine and you will need to re-activate it.

psst linux dont care! go to distrowatch and find a distro ya like. dont give billy no more money

And if you were completely unethical,

(CONTENT EDITED....suffice to say you could sell your soul to the devil, but is a microsoft product really worth it? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif )

Or so I've heard... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
And of course using one would be immoral to say the least.

Re: XP activation? *DELETED*

Post deleted by kakster

Try it and post the results.
If only one computer accesses the net it may be good /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
Of course the best is to contact someone that can send you the keygen. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
Or better yet go win 2k thru the same means of course /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
Tom

300 $ for XP HOME looks VERY expensive; I bet you could buy a PC AND XP HOME AND shipping for that kind of money.

Promoting piracy is something we can't and won't allow on CPF. The ramifications could be beyond what any of you can imagine. Go back to the original topic here and please stay away from promoting illegal activities. This is the only warning this thread will get.

Thank you, Sasha.

To answer your question....
The software will not let you activate it on both computers.
You will get an error that will direct you to call Microsoft.

I had this happen when my laptop died and I was trying to install Office on my new one.
10 minutes and one phone call later I was back in business.

Yikes! Don't shoot me! I was playing devil's advocate a bit, but I've edited my post to remove "questionable" content....

Sorry Sasha....

This is why I'm still, very happily, using Win 2K. I don't mind paying for my software but it galls me beyond tolerance to then have to literally beg permission to use it after I've paid for it.

I plan on using my legally licensed copy of Win 2k until the wheels fall off. By then I'm hoping that MS will have abandoned its insulting activation scheme (fat chance, I know) or Linux will have progressed a tad farther than when I last left it (Mandrake 8.0)

I use Win 2k also in situations where I will be re-installing often. It's certainly much easier to re-install than XP. And it seems to work just about the same as XP.

I don't blame Microsoft for the activation scheme though. It makes sense that they want to sell it, not give it away. I do wish they could come up with a better way to accomplish this.

MighiganMan, now I'm going to play devil's advocate. I'm not hijacking the thread, but what you describe above (Dislike product actvation, Linux not user friendly enough) is the exact reason I'm typing this from a computer that happen's to share it's name with a certain fruit.

Kumquat? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grinser2.gif

Dan

"Lemon" /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Orange?

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/poke2.gif

I agree (and also use Win2K extensively throughout my network) that Microsoft should NOT have to give away their software, but c'mon a phone call. Why not smoke signals. They should utilize some sort of physical copy protection scheme whereas you need the ORIGINAL CD for activation. I find it very inconvenient to make a phone call to a company which I believe is the weakest link. What if the telephone network is inundated at the time I need to perform an "upgrade" to my system. Although an unlikely scenario, I still like having the independence from "outside intervention" offered in Win2K in order to install and use it. I have all I need on CD, including the latest service packs in the event of a local communication failure witin our ISP. Just too many variables in the chain for me. I like to install offline and test before I place a machine "online".

Ed.