One of the dilemmas we face as IT consumers is the dreaded protection system vendors use to protect the installation of their programs. And none are more protective than developers of audio and visual applications and editors.

All manner of things have been tried; dongles, tying the serial number to a unique number in the processor of the PC, systems that only allow registration of the application(s) on a specific number of computers – you name it they have tried it.

But is it all worth it? Does this cause more problems than the cash we are told they lose through piracy?

Just this week, I have had two PCs fail with hard disk failures. Simply getting them back up to speed is a big enough operation, even with Acronis images for the OS and backups for the data; there is still that interminable re-installation time due to the Registry system that Microsoft employ, which I guess we are stuck with until a newer and better one comes along.

But I have just discovered the nuisance of having an application tied to two specific computers that have to be “de-registered” before they can be re-installed.

I am all for developers protecting their assets. Nothing makes my blood boil more than messages in forums asking for information on cracked copies “because I cannot afford it”, or someone smirking when someone mentions they have just purchased so-and-so and are told “why feed those millionaires, they don’t need it”. I have even seen a case where a devout church goer in the IT industry knowingly gave so many copies of his copy of a major suite away that I actually stepped in.

But there must be an easier way for legitimate users to simply transfer these things to new PCs/Macs without having to jump through hoops. The one that invents it will be a multi-billionaire in minutes I'd venture.