now you must call MS to activate

skydiver wrote:
"As of February 28, Microsoft will disable Internet activation for all [OEM]
Windows XP product keys..."

http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1769531,00.asp

What does this mean? Well, activation used to be quick and automatic via an
internet connection for OEM Windows XP. Not any more. Now you'll have to
call MS on the telephone every time you reinstall your OEM Windows XP op
system. That includes Compaq's and HP's of course.


The best of luck to anyone who has to ring Microsoft for person to
person activation.

I was unlucky enough to have to do this today and it took one hour and
forty minutes of absolute frustration to achieve reactivation after a
re-install. I was transferred around from person to person, all of whom
bar one, seemed only interested in getting me off their phone and on to
someone else. My experience included two transfers to an Indian call
centre with the second "helper" saying that he would have to transfer me
back to their tech. dept. in Sydney - I am in Melbourne, Australia -
which resulted in me being connected to someone from a company which has
nothing to do with Microsoft. Eventually I insisted on talking to
someone further up the line. After several failed attempts to achieve
that I got onto a level two tech. who solved the problem & achieved
reactivation.

The whole sorry saga revolved around the fact that my situation - a
customers situation actually - did not fit their script and no-one knew
what to do if it was not on their "resource sheets" as they kept calling
them. I will not waste time detailing the problem but it was not all
that complicated - and it was a Microsoft idiosyncrasy - but only one
tech/helper could deal with it, my now good buddy (MNGB) Mark who sorted
it out by persisting with me and the problem, and finally we achieved
the result.

To think that it took 100 minutes was just appalling. I spoke to around
seven different people in various locations and whilst all of them were
polite, none of them except MNGB Mark tried hard enough to help. It is
not as though I am a novice at activating, I have done dozens and it is
fairly simple - but only if you fit the narrow "mould" Microsoft has for
this task.

I have drafted a letter to the powers that be in Microsoft Australia,
but expect it will fall on deaf eyes but I'll give it a go. In ending I
add that I am not a Microsoft "basher" but do not think that you should
have to put up with this.

--
Regards
Echy

Greetings from Melbourne, Australia
www.thatsmelbourne.com.au