I bought X-Plane 9, really liked it but one of the reasons I stopped using it is because of having to insert the DVD to play. I have a powerful small laptop and it doesn't have a DVD drive however it is not an issue for most games now. I load the game using either Steam or an external DVD drive but then the game runs fine without the DVD. To use X-Plane I have to take a separate DVD drive with me which kind of defeats the purpose of an ultra portable laptop. Digital download and some kind of on-line protection are the way forward and I would have thought that with a title as cutting edge as X-Plane 10 you would have looked at a more up to date way of running the simulation. The demo doesn't need a DVD to run and that must have some kind of built in piracy protection?

Does this bother you if you knew it is one way to fight piracy?

Use a virtual drive program and load the.exe file onto it and you won't need the DVD.

Nice.

Why would any company protect a demo? It's not like you can extract the full XP 10 from it, and I guess the 10 minute time limit is enough of a protection. Use a virtual drive program and load the .exe file onto it and you won't need the DVD drive.

Why would any company protect a demo? It's not like you can extract the full XP 10 from it, and I guess the 10 minute time limit is enough of a protection. Use a virtual drive program and load the .exe file onto it and you won't need the DVD drive.

I see why you have 20K messages ... message 15 and 19, in this thread, are the same message

Obviously you don't need to lock a demo but you get my point. Also the iPad version won't need a disk. Anyway thanks for the reply and seeing as you can use a virtual drive why not make it easier for customers and just use a product code like DCS A10c with a locked number of activations or some other protection system? I just think it is a lost opportunity and as Tom said above it is the way forward....

Use a virtual drive program and load the .exe file onto it and you won't need the DVD drive.

You do realise you've disproven your argument that it's a mean against piracy—for the third time, no less?

Of course it's a means against piracy and of course it is necessary, I did not argue against that but there are other, better, more up to date ways of providing this without having to keep the DVD inserted.

You do realise you've disproven your argument that it's a mean against piracy—for the third time, no less?

An honest person is going to have purchased the product anyway and the dishonest person is going to know about the work around already, long before they download. All this cand do is slow things down a bit not win the war again piracy like the US is going to undertake.

I see why you have 20K messages ... message 15 and 19, in this thread, are the same message

No, only part of it is the same, sorry.

All this cand do is slow things down a bit

Is that to say waste everyone's time?Worth a read: http://gamingbolt.co...t-in-more-sales

Is that to say waste everyone's time?Worth a read: http://gamingbolt.co...t-in-more-sales

I still dont get it ... the most we are inconvenience with DRM is to insert a dvd/cd ... guess none of the these guys bother by the dvd insert effort could have made it in the world just 50 short years ago.

An honest person is going to have purchased the product anyway and the dishonest person is going to know about the work around already, long before they download. All this cand do is slow things down a bit not win the war again piracy like the US is going to undertake.No, only part of it is the same, sorry.

The problem is this only slows things down, for the honest user, not the hacker!! There are other better less intrusive methods of security, but like you say, a good hacker can get around those too.

I remember when playing a PC game meant having 3 or more 5 14 floppies handy for when the game asked for them, so it could play a cut scene :-)I always purchase the software I want, but absolutely find ways around using the CD. I install the software and store the DVDCD. When a game can be bought digitally, I do that, but avoid anything with DRM that requires a connection. So yes, I dont play a lot of games anymore.And no, it isnt a problem to drop a disk in the drive to play a game, I just dont want to bother. I have 3D modeling/graphic software thats far more expensive than any game, and I dont need a disk for those. I guess im just spoiled, but I dont like dealing with disks beyond whats necessary to install something.

So today after all this my X-plane 9 Dvd craps out.

Does this bother you if you knew it is one way to fight piracy?

The problem with DRM schemes is that they don't stop piracy and only serve to inconvenience legitimate customers. Granted, a disc in the drive is one of the lightest weight DRM schemes on the market, but it's also one of the easiest to crack and therefore the least effective at preventing piracy, so may as well leave it off altogether and save your customers the hassle.