Here is the thing... I tested Project Magenta with a cracked copy off afriend of mine... Liked it and paid for it as I dont believe in usingsomething and not paying for it...Now I had some problems when I ran the legit copy so I contacted support.Enrico asked if I had used a cracked copy... I admitted that I did to testit. That was when Enrico sent this back:-==============================I am sorry, Mr. Hanton,this is not quite how it works with us. I will contact simMarket to refundyou."Evaluation" is not a good enough excuse for piracy, we have a fairly goodstanding with our software, many customers that can be asked about thesoftware and any issues that you may have with it can be discovered with theDemos.I simply don't tolerate the attitude and neither would you.CiaoEnrico==============================I didn't want a refund... I wanted to pay for a program that I had testedand liked. But unfortunately all my pleas fell on deaf ears as Enricorefused all my requests that we sort this out.So the moral of the story here is IF YOU WANT TO USE PROJECT MAGENTA STAYCLEAR OF THE CRACKED STUFF... Even if you INTEND to pay for it in future...becuase if Enrico has a sniff of you using pirate stuff he will refuse totalk to you any more.To say that this has left me depressed is an understatement. Basically itmeans that I'm left without a core component of my cockpit project because Iwont use the pirated stuff other than to check out the software to see if itis something I would buy. I only receive disability benefits so a largecost like Project Magenta should be testable outside of the "official"graphics demos that show it animated but not working connected to FlightSimulator. The ironic fact is that I paid for the software and then get itthrown back in my face when I admitted what I had done.There is no doubt about it, piracy is a crime... but it seem now that payingfor something is equally a crime if you have "touched the hot stuff"So I appeal to you other FS fans... I WANT to pay for this software but amnow prevented from doing so. Please try to make Enrico understand that noteveryone is wealthy and can afford to spend out on expensive softwarewithout trying it first. Even a 7 day licence would do (and is what I usedthe cracked copy for). I just don't see the harm as I paid for it after Itested it.The ironic thing is that the website says "Strictly no refunds will bepossible through any of our vendors or via PayPal. " yet when Enrico findsout i touched a cracked copy the first thing he does is refund me.

A valuable lesson learned, I'd say. Even with the faint whiff of miserable pleading(Benefits? And you're building a home cockpit?) I think your `punishment` utterly fits the `crime` and you have absolutely no grounds to complain. After all, all they've done is refused to sell you something. But look at what it cost you.A valuable lesson.Guess you'll be selling off your components cheap then?Allcott

do you, like, really, really need it? let it go. i've never even heard about this product until now and look, i love my fs9.:)why not... instead... rejoice in finding the righteous in niniveh, one who never listened to a downloaded song, never ran a shareware program nagging him to register, never even kept that extra dime a cashier gave to him in change. try to share in his happiness, for happy he is indeed, knowing as he must, that he will be counted among the blessed and the just on the judgement day.cheer up!

LOL... Valuable lesson indeed.... just glad it happened now and not after I started building.FSUIPC and Regional Jet were the first two addons to FS2004 I bought and FS2004 is legit too btw in case you are wondering). It's not like I was trying to steal from the Magenta crew. I had paid for it for gods sake.All I can say is that Enrico has got such a bug up his #### that it's going to FORCE people to use cracked software... not stop them using it. I now have 3 licences that I paid for and he's given me the money back which basically means I got it for free and to my mind that's worse than pirating.

Just to correct a factual error in your post:------- Project Magenta should be testable outside of the "official"graphics demos that show it animated but not working connected to FlightSimulator.-------The official demos on the project magenta website are not just animations - they are working versions of the program that can indeed be conected to flight sim. The demos however will cycle thru different instrument displays at regular intervals and will quit after a set time.The 'animation' mode that you discribe is only activated if no FSUIPC or WideFS is detected.Paul

Do I really need it?Well I WAS going to build a cockpit around it... but seeing as I cant use what I am forbidden to buy by a stroppy programmer then I dont have much of a choice do I.Oh well... that's saved like

see? you should be able to get a nice flask of 1994 late bottled vintage with that money. they're getting increasingly rare, but definitely worth every penny...one more benefit... hush, hush... i hear ladies are not too crazy about guys who spend time and funds building make-believe cockpits. ;)to think of it, $66 should rent you a cessna for an hour...peacevilk

seems to me he is driving you back to using a pirated copy.

I just don't see the harm as I paid for it after Itested it.Here's a scenario...Honestly Officer, I took this DVD player from the store to test it at home for a few days. I went back to pay for it once I saw it worked.....:-lolDisguise it any way that makes you feel better but, there are/were options available for you to "evaluate" the usefullness of the product. I can think of a few off the top of my head:- Current users (links on the References page)- The Information Page which has TONS of info (if you look)- THAT BIG BLUE LINK ON THE DOWNLOADS PAGE THAT SAYS Demos... all our software can be checked before it is boughtLike I said, there were options available to you to evaulate the software prior to making the purchase so appealing for help now that Enrico doesn't want you as a customer may fall on deaf ears.What's that expression..you made your bed now lay in it?http://www.members.shaw.ca/madamo/MCA_Aero_sig.jpgFS Parts Exchange

Yeah... but I thought the software was animation demo only... not a working copy. All I got was something that didnt appear to work at all but just showed the animation.Here is the sequence of events...I buy FS2004 and friend tells me about Project Magenta that he uses in his cockpit.I go to the Project Magenta site and download the demos..Install the demos and get the speed test and then what looks to be an animation demo. Nothing appears to work when I run FS2004 with it.I buy FSUIPC and FSWIDE as I apparently need those too and they are cheap enough that I could afford them last week.Friend sends me his copies of Glass Cockpit... He is using the boeing set but it's too much for what I want as I am going to be building in a small cupboard and want the real software anyway.Install the copies to check it out... use if for 4 days... Get hooked and when my disability money arrives use it to pay for Regional Jet Glass cockpit.Delete all the dodgy stuff my friend sent me... Install RJ... Great... but part of it doesnt appear to work... get in touch with Enrico.He asks if I have used a cracked copy previously... I dont beat about the bush and said I had... bang... end of story... he gives me back my money and I end up feeling like a piece of crap.This hasnt been a good day for me.

I had a little bit different experience. Downloaded the demo of FSNavigator and really liked it. So when the demo ran out I decided to register it. Got an e-mail back from simmarket.com saying that my credit card info didn't match up. Called the issuing bank and and was told that there was no problem with my CC and no reason for it to be refused. Sent simmarket an e-mail (trouble ticket?) explaining this and the toll free phone # of the bank. Got back a non helpfull reply and decided to pay via bank transfer, until I found out what that would cost (almost as much as the software). Went on the internet and in less than 5 minutes found where I download a pirated version and necessary updates for free. Rationalization: simmarket wouldn't sell it to me so how else was I to get it? But when I thought about it I just couldn't do it. Instead I got some charts, learned how to really use the GPS, and discovered that flying this way was Far more realistic and satisfying than using FSNav. Now I wouldn't use it even if I had it. So, I guess honesty really does pay off. Or at least sometimes LOL.DavidAnd thanks to simmarket for increasing even more my enjoyment of sim flying!