Happened again :)... Have to call Microsoft. Activation just sucks!

[0sit0]

So I buy a new hard drive and I was greeted by a very ugly window saying there was an error with my activation. First I restart the computer thinking it might go away and nothing. I decide to do a fresh install of Vista SP1 and now it is saying my key is being used. This happend a few months back after re-installing drivers. Windows Product Activation sucks! It wont stop pirates, it only affect us the genuine users! Like I said before... this is a genuine disadvantage. Why keep it? sigh... oh well!

ok just letting out some of my frustration :angry:

[tunafish]

it takes less than 5 mins to phone up ms and get an activation key

[0sit0]

actually i was on the phone for 15 mins :)... is not the phone call.. we just shouldnt have to do it at all!

[soldier1st]

genuine advantages needs to be destroyed as it does nothing.

[tunafish]

I had to activate my FSX over the phone. I thought it was quite quick and easy to do. Not as if you end up speaking to a human who might get something wrong etc

[Raa]

That's all well and good, but when you're legitimately affected because you're trying to upgrade your machine, tbh - "that sux ass". Pure and simple.

It should be stopping more pirates, not annoying legitimate customers :/

[KeeperOfThePizza]

genuine advantages needs to be destroyed as it does nothing.

x2 considering all my local friends have pirated copies.

That's all well and good, but when you're legitimately affected because you're trying to upgrade your machine, tbh - "that sux ass". Pure and simple.

It should be stopping more pirates, not annoying legitimate customers :/

Its meant to stop pirates. but will annoy legitimate customers, is what you mean.

dont get me wrong, i love microsoft.. but they need to go at a different approach to this.

[ckgni]

Something strange happens with Vista... A friend of mine upgraded his RAM and Vista asked for activation again. :o

It is normal to ask for activation after major hardware changes... but not for just upgrading your RAM!

[gigapixels Veteran]

I don't see why everybody complains. Call them up and get it taken care of. If you get so worked up over having to make a less than 15 minute call, you have more serious issues than just needing to activate Windows.

[0sit0]

I complain because I hate having to call them just because I added a new hard drive. I asked the woman why it happened she said it was because it was a way to protect customers ROFL, you know... the genuine advantage! Its all B.S!

[gigapixels Veteran]

Seriously though, it's 15 minutes or less... Big deal.

[0sit0]

seriously though... every time you add something or update your drivers!

btw i dont mind activating... but they should do something different that doesn't think my new hard drive or updated drivers its a totally new computer!

[gigapixels Veteran]

I've added a new HDD, added more RAM, totally swapped out my RAM, updated drivers plenty of times... I've never once had to re-activate besides when I swapped my motherboard.

[0sit0]

then lucky you? geez

[ViperAFK]

I update drivers fine, and have only added ram so far but haven't had to activate...

[ViperAFK]

I update drivers fine, and have only added ram so far but haven't had to activate...

[Darrian]

"Lucky" most people, I would think. I've only had to do it once, and that was because I'd activated too many times. I do agree, though, you shouldn't ever have to call somebody else to get your computer to work properly. And as far as genuine advantage goes... where is the advantage? As far as I can see, there isn't one. Just one more hassle for the legitimate customer that affects nobody else.

[Aahz]

What could frustrate people?

1. Activation which is so finicky to begin with.

2. Having to call India and bust out the ole Rosetta Stone to decipher their very broken English into proper letters and numbers.

3. Having to call at all when the process should be handled successfully via the internet.

4. The fact that illegally cracking Vista takes far less time than legitimately activating Vista. (not to mention constantly re-activating Vista)

:angry:

[gigapixels Veteran]

Granted, it could go smoother, but I've never had problems calling in, and I've never had problems understanding the people I've spoken to (and I'm normally extremely bad when it comes to understanding an accent).

I guess I just don't complain about much, and this certainly isn't one of the things I would complain about.

[Doli]

So you did a reinstall instead of calling in to activate Vista again. Wow I would have just called because it takes less time then reinstalling the OS and setting everything up again.

[JustGeorge]

Wouldn't it be nice if they implemented an activation scheme similar to Apple's iTunes? You could just deactivate your OS prior to re-installing it and reactivate it when you're back up. I think this wouldn't make people feel like they're being treated like criminals and put some control back in our hands.

[Tha Bloo Monkee]

I don't see why everybody complains. Call them up and get it taken care of. If you get so worked up over having to make a less than 15 minute call, you have more serious issues than just needing to activate Windows.

I understand why people complain completely. Sure, it's a "15 minute call", but it's a 15 minute call WE SHOULDN'T HAVE TO DO! We paid for our copies of Windows! Now why do we have to waste OUR time calling them! I've had to do it about twice now, when it worked fine before. It's just annoying.

And don't give me that "you have more serious issues thing"; it's a generic excuse people give when somebody doesn't agree with everyone else.

I guess I just don't complain about much, and this certainly isn't one of the things I would complain about.

Yes, we're all genuine complainers who just love to complain, and you're Mr Perfect.

I mean, I don't make a significant deal of it all, I just find it such an annoyance to have to call in for something that we PAID for (or came with our computer, which is still included in the costs).

[gigapixels Veteran]

I understand why people complain completely. Sure, it's a "15 minute call", but it's a 15 minute call WE SHOULDN'T HAVE TO DO! We paid for our copies of Windows! Now why do we have to waste OUR time calling them! I've had to do it about twice now, when it worked fine before. It's just annoying.

They're just trying to stop piracy, and they have every right to do so.

And don't give me that "you have more serious issues thing"; it's a generic excuse people give when somebody doesn't agree with everyone else.

I just don't get why there is a need to complain. Just deal with it and move on with your life, don't take the time to sit on a forum and cry because you had to make a phone call.

Yes, we're all genuine complainers who just love to complain, and you're Mr Perfect.

That was a bit out of line. I didn't say it as though I am superior, I'm just being truthful... I generally don't complain about much, if anything, so perhaps that's why I don't see the point of complaining about this.

[Tha Bloo Monkee]

Well you're sitting here crying on a forum because other people are crying, so you're not better :)

[gigapixels Veteran]

I'm not crying in the slightest, just trying to understand why people find it to be such a big deal.