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Topic: Best way to save downloaded software upgrades in zip files? |
Michael Winslow
From:
San Francisco, California, USA
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Posted 28 Sep 2008 2:46 pm |
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I have some music software and I've purchased an upgrade from version 2 which is on disc and now have version 3 as a download on my desktop. I have the "shortcut" icon to version 3 on my desktop and right above it is the 234 mb zip file. I right clicked on the zip file, copied it and saved it to a cd. It looks like I can extract it and install it on a new computer once I get one. Is this the best way to save my downloaded software to reinstall it when I get a new computer?
Thanks,
Mike |
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Wiz Feinberg
From:
Mid-Michigan, USA
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Michael Winslow
From:
San Francisco, California, USA
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Posted 28 Sep 2008 8:41 pm
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Thanks again Wiz,
I've had all these upgrades and programs sitting on my desktop for a while. Since I had installed them I hadn't given much thought as to how to transfer them to a new computer.
Mike |
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Wiz Feinberg
From:
Mid-Michigan, USA
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Posted 28 Sep 2008 9:49 pm
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Some setup files will compress slightly, but most are already as compressed as they can be. Enclosing them inside zipfiles is usually just a convenience.
If you have support files and emailed license codes it is smart to include them in the same zip archives. You may or may not be allowed to reinstall some programs onto another computer, depending on the licensing terms of each program.
Hard drives all have part numbers that are unique, as do motherboards, CPUs and other internal components. Much of the current breed of licensed software makes a record of the primary items in the computer into which it is first installed, including the hard drive. If the software in question is only licensed for one computer and you try to install it into a second unit, the install will either fail, or remain unregistered.
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Earnest Bovine
From:
Los Angeles CA USA
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Posted 28 Sep 2008 10:50 pm
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| Wiz Feinberg wrote: |
| Much of the current breed of licensed software makes a record of the primary items in the computer into which it is first installed, including the hard drive. If the software in question is only licensed for one computer and you try to install it into a second unit, the install will either fail, or remain unregistered. |
If I understand correctly, that record is on a system in Redmond, Washington. When you install software, it phones home to Redmond and will not allow you to proceed unless Redmond gives the OK. Presumably you could foil the scheme if you are clever enough to figure out what is in that OK. |
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Jack Stoner
From:
Kansas City, MO
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Posted 29 Sep 2008 2:06 am
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Whether you can install a program on another computer depends on whether it's OEM and if the EULA allows it. Some, but not all software have to be registered with the sofware company or in the case of Microsoft it must be "activated".
If it's a program that must be registered then that determines, based on permissions of the software whether it can be installed (activated) on more than one. In cases where it is moved from one PC to another it may require a phone call to the company.
OEM software, whether it's OEM software that is delivered with a new PC (usually everything is OEM on a new PC) is, in almost all cases, only legally licensed to be used on the PC it was delivered with. If you buy an OEM version of software, which costs less than the full Retail version (some are available such as OEM versions of Windows XP or Vista) then that too is only legally licensed for the system it's initially installed on. |
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