Microsoft adding Product Activation to Win2k!

[Lachoneus]

Microsoft Corp. this year will put a piracy lock on two of its download
Web sites, requiring all Windows XP and Windows 2000 users to validate
their copy of Windows as genuine before downloading software, the
company announced today.

....

The Windows Genuine Advantage checking mechanism is anonymous, according
to Microsoft. It includes an ActiveX control on the client side and the
Windows Product Activation service on the Microsoft side. A user has to
install the ActiveX control and enter the Windows product key, which on
new PCs bought with the operating system is typically found on a sticker
affixed to the PC.

http://tinyurl.com/4nbo7

 

[John John]

It's not Product Activation and its been on some MS download sites for a
few months now. If you try to download Unix Tools for Windows for
example you will have to validate before you can download. Once
validated you can download. It takes a few seconds to validate and once
you return to the site I believe it works somewhat like a cookie. If
you have a valid Windows License it's nothing to worry about, it takes
mere seconds to do. If you have a pirated Windows well that's another
story. I don't necessarily like it either but it doesn't concern me all
that much, I understand why MS is doing it. On the other hand I am
pretty fussy about my privacy and I feel that it does encroach a bit...
but that's the way it is in this day and age I suppose.

John

 

[George Hester]

And from what I understand it is not required to install to get to the d/l anyway. Of course that may change in the future also. It's an ActiveX which gets put in your Downloaded Program Files. Select that in C:\WINNT and you'll see it there