)))))))))-----OKEY DOKEY, I got a definitive answer directly from a real person in the Activation Center. I told him that I've gotten two stories on reactivating FSX, one from the developers who say they are not going to punish hardware enthusiasts, and FSX will be reactivated after the first two activations, by phone an unlimited number of times. Then I told him what the Pre-sales and Licensing department said, that I would get exactly three activations, two automatic, then exactly one more after that, and then they had said I would have to buy FSX again.So he said that there was a change, that before it was OK to install on two machines, but now it is licensed to one machine and can be reactivated "N" number of times unlimited by a telephone call. So we can upgrade hardware an unlimited number of times, and get reactivated by telephone.Thanks for everyone putting up with my cantankerous typing, but I HAD TO KNOW ABSOLUTELY FOR SURE MYSELF, and be able to verify that they would not make hardware enthusiasts purchase FSX again after upgrading too often (which was what I was told by the Pre-sales and Licensing department).Sooooo, I am a happy camper. I'm going to buy FSX DLX, plus X-Plane, and Fly!2, more FS9's, and get Flightgear! I'm going to eventually have MORE FLIGHT SIMULATORS THAN I CAN SHAKE A JOYSTICK AT!!!Additionally, I told him, FSX might grow to be as large as 250 gb's, and so I said, what if I only start out with a 20 gb hard drive, will I be able to transfer it over to a 350 gb or larger hard drive? He said, "Not to worry, that will not be a problem, we will activate it." Many people have been saying this all along, however when I received the opposite report from Pre-sales and Licensing, I got very worried, so I had to make sure myself. So now I'm satisfied. I will be glad to buy FSX DLX!

Being a part of this thread all I can say is "VERY GOOD"!!!Jimhttp://www.hifisim.com/Active Sky V6 Development Team Active Sky V6 Proud SupporterHiFi Beta TeamRadar Contact Supporter: http://www.jdtllc.com/AirSource Member: http://www.air-source.us/FSEconomy Member:http://www.fseconomy.com/

>Being a part of this thread all I can say is "VERY GOOD"!!!>Same here!

Same here! :-) Brilliant and thanks for the news. I'ld nevertheless like to see it in black ink on a piece of paper with a Microsoft letterhead. :-) Hope that's not too much asked? 'Mays' and 'mights' in an EULA aren't really re-assuring... Kind regards Jaap

Jaap,I know what you mean. I was extremely skeptical, you don't even want to know how hot under the collar I got about this issue, just ask my buddies Jim and Ladamson, they could not convince me--ha ha!Those reps from India are very nice people, they have been courteous to me 100% of the time. I spent almost a week to reach the point of speaking to the right person, I thought for sure that they would get tired of hearing from me and release the dobermans! And the activation person I spoke to was unwaivering in POSITIVE support. That is what I wanted to hear. The women in the Pre-sales and Licensing department seem to be less informed, and bite. You see, I have no choice but to be a frugal, and careful shopper, if I make a very bad/embarrassing mistake, I'll hear about it, and be ridiculed for years on end. And as a law abiding citizen, I follow the rules, and use the activation process.I have confidence now that I will be treated well.At the same time, I've become very interested in Linux, X-Plane, and Flightgear, and am going to of course, buy more FS9 a true masterpiece. Need more hardware. I'm a happy camper.

Oh, guess what, something has come up, check out Ossvconno's post over here:http://forums.flightsim.com/dc/dcboard.php...id=&page=#12993He says that in two weeks he has had to reactivate NINE times, guess why? He has an awesome game computer which he built just for FSX, however even with SLI he's getting slow frame rates. So he's been boosting the computer's performance going into the bios. Adjusting the bios is about as ordinary as throwing frozen pizza in the microwave! Any way the FSX photo image of the hardware configuration is so extremely thorough, guess what, it takes an image of the bios settings, if you change the bios settings then FSX requires that you reactivate it!I am completely stunned. It seems as if Microsoft desires that we all convert to $250 disposable computers that will never be upgraded.What do you think about this? And we're both wondering if Vista is going to be that overly sensitive?

I noticed earlier when i added my joystick to my games computer: You CAN change your hardware configuration easily with one activation by doing this:1. Activate with hardware config X2. Change to hardware config Y (i.e. new gfx card/more memory)3. When reinstalling computer, change hardware config back to X4. Activate5. Change to hardware config Y again(This assumes that the joystick hardware is baked into the signature that FSX uses to activate)

I am thinking about the support costs for Microsoft...As for changing BIOS settings and how common it is to change its settings, that is different for everyone. Myself is running an unmodified stock config, non overclocked hardware. Earlier in life i found it intresting to change operatingsystems and hardware like i changed underwear but that is not true anymore (I have VMWare now :))

Hi,What baffles me is that the developers stated that FSX was going to be very UNsensitive, for example I think they said changing a processor won't even deactivate it. Now it appears that it might be ULTRA sensitive, blow on it and it deactivates. The other guy who reported his problems gave up and put FSX in his drawer after NINE re-activations. I was really wanting another masterpiece from Microsoft. I feel discouraged again. I was just considering having multiple Linux variations to boot, changing the bios between each Linux choice, just that could lead to multiple re-activations in one day.

i dont believe everything what is said about the activation, too much rumours.I have changed my BIOS settings several times with FSX installed, and it never asked me to re-activate it yet!Cheers,Michael

So clarify this again for me...I buy a new PC, not upgrading parts, a new machine. Do I get another activation?Bill

Goodness me so even changed BIOS settings upsets FSX - this whole activation business is a complete farce!! If it wasn't for this ongoing issue I might actually consider FSX as GA only sim on my lowly AMD 64 3700+ with a view to an upgrade in 12-18 months time (Once VOZ for FSX is released and the desertification hassle is resolved) but until MS comes to its senses regarding activation no way.Bruceb

I had a lot of troubles with XP and FSX lately. Everything is good now but I had to do 5 FSX activations.The first 2 were online. The 3rd was on the phone with a person. Then the next 2 times were online again. So it looks like you get more online tries after you have verified over the phone.Speed

Just FYI, I changed my RAM from 2x512 to 2x1024 with FSX installed and the sim never blinked.That's it. Be well.

Last night tried to overclock my P4 3.0gHz up to 3.2gHz. The computer accepted this happily, and I loaded up FSX and clicked the Fly button. A few seconds later I got a blue error screen with a bunch of stuff about activation. Had to switch off, and it works ok again back at 3.0gHz.