NO SIR!, your not allowed to install Microsoft Windows again

There I was, sunday night just formatted my spare machine, all's going well . The wife's just made an excellent meal and I'm sipping some new blend of coffee that's surprisingly pleasing.

I pop the windows cd into the drive and watch it kick off the installer, after a short wait we get past the setup to config with language, keyboard, network, etc...

We get to the serial key page, I type in my key and click yes to activate windows online, I can hardly choose anything else, if I say no it moans at me for 30 days until I do it!

After clicking activate online and a short pause I get presented with this screen:

As you can imagine I wasn't in the best of moods after reading this. So I think to myself, what can I do now? I've purchased windows xp and it's serial key, I don't remember reading or being made aware that I had a limited number of activations...

Having no other choice at this point I clicked Next and continued onto the rest of windows. After it booted for the first time I get presented with what is now a very familiar nag screen. You all know it. "You have 30 days left to activate windows", blah blah blah. I clicked that little annoying bubble and it took me to a website that outlined my options, which was nice of it.

1. Take your copy of Windows XP back to the vendor
2. Purchase a new serial number @ £61 online
3. Purchase a new copy of Windows XP

I know of a crevis on the human body where all three of those suggestions can be placed...I think you know where I mean.

What does all this mean?

in one word: Linux.

Is this a preview of the future...? Are microsoft looking for a license system with windows? they've already started something like this with their virus and anti-spyware package.

Who knows (if you do, post here!)

Stay Safe peeps