In Reply to: agree but posted by frank48 on Friday, 23. July 2004 at 19:12 Bali Time:
I've been using XP Pro (bought in Bali) for several years without any major problems. I even managed to get a few on-line upgrades (correction: "fixes") from Microsoft, but no more, of course. One can only push one's luck so far. Then again, there are so many "fixes" it can drive you nuts in the end...unless you're using a broadband connection which is always on, I wouldn't worry about them too much. (And even if you are, there are plenty of good fire-walls available which should help with security problems.)
I've seen some versions of XP here with a bunch of fixes already included on the disk. At the end of the day, one must always remember that pirated copies of anything can have some limitations. While most of these are not necessarily crucial, the only alternative is to pay the real money. I'm sticking with my stuff: at three bucks a CD, I'm quite prepared to drink my worries away with the money "I saved".
I should also point out, in case you're not aware, that pirated versions of programmes like Norton's and the latest Adobe Photoshop CS have their attendant "registration problems" as well.
Good luck.