request for special dispensation (attn: SD)

I don't understand what you mean.  If you are talking about Windows stuff that is nothing to do with SD.  If it is Impulse or Elemental you can install it as many times as you like.

The agreement when you download i think says 'you can install it on two machines, and you should be the main user on both. I guessing hes asking if its ok to have it on all of his PC's

last I check it was ok to install a Stardock game on as many computers as you want, provided it does not remain installed on all of them.    You do not have  a download "limit" of any kind.  You just should be the only one using it (don't give it to your friends, for example, with the  exception of the possible LAN scenario, but then its ONLY during that game session)  Just like, if you install it on your grandmother's computer to play it for a while, uninstall it when you leave, plz.

yeah, Dash5's got it right.

any offical words want ot be said.

i presume it's ok as i'm helping you out, but it would be nice to know for furture reference as i would like to be able to play on my eee if i could.

It also says that you can install it on a third machine when changing your primary machine.   Just uninstall it from one of your two machines when you want to test it on another...

ta

From the E.U.L.A.

So if I have 3 computers, I'm not allowed to have impulse installed on all three at once?

...:-\

Obviously that's an extreme situation, but I don't understand why companies care how many computers I install a game on as long as they're all my personal computers, and I am not giving them to other people to play on. The only reason for it that I can see is to prevent someone from hosting a LAN party or something (not that it's enforced) with friends, using just once license...

But then I don't see a problem with that, either. Thank god board game makers have the sense to allow me to play their games with other people using just one copy, and not make every person who wants to play buy the game. I shouldn't really be thankful, because a board game company that tries a licensing model like those used for computer games would never manage to be in business, let alone go out of it! Quite frankly I don't understand why people tolerate draconian licensing policies and such when it comes to software, when they would just put their foot down if such a thing were attempted with anything physical.

Note: I am in no way saying software-makers have no right to protect their products via licensing and other means; only that software-makers in general appear to feel more entitled than creators of analogous products through non-digital/virtual media. Sure, software companies have to worry more about illegal copies of their products circulating, but I see no logical step from that to the idea that if I want to spend a night playing a computer game with a few friends, we are each legally obligated to purchase our own separate copies of the game. One copy of the game and enough computers to run it on should be the only requirement (particularly if the person who owns the game also owns enough computers to go around).

/rant

I would say that the difference is that your frinds don't go home with their very own copies of your boardgame after they come over to play it.

If they're all my computers, no one is going home with anything... Granted not many people (and definitely not me) have enough personal computers for such a thing, but my point is that if I have 8 personal computers, and I buy software, I should be able to install it on all of them.

Thankfully Stardock doesn't use draconian measures to enforce these things, because I've had terrible experiences with software that tracks each install and won't let you install it again until you've disabled a previous one. An example was Macromedia Dreamweaver. My old laptop died on me, and when I tried to reinstall it on my new one it wouldn't let me, saying my licenses were all used up and I'd have to manually disable a previous one. Sorry, Macromedia, but that's easier said than done when your previous computer won't even start up. 5 hours on the phone failed to get me anywhere, and I never bought anything from them again. A similar thing happened to me with MatLab, the only difference being that it took me an hour to convince Mathworks that I wasn't trying to steal their software and they reset it for me...

I don't pirate software, I have purchased every piece of software installed on my computers, except of course for freeware and the like. But when I'm treated like a thief by people whose products I have legitimately purchased, it sorely tempts me. If they're going to treat me like a thief whether I pay them or not, why bother paying them in the first place? So long as I have no plans to use software for profit, then I feel violated whenever a software-maker makes assumptions about me and my lifestyle. 

I agree with you n this subject, I was just showing how the LAN example is different from the boardgame  example.

i thought for Matlab, you can deactivate and reactivate pretty easily compare with say mathematica.

Nope. Well, yes - if the install you'd like to deactivate is still accessible. If you recycled your computer, reformatted your harddrive, if your computer died, etc, then there is no way to deactivate a previous install. At least there wasn't 2 years ago. I had reformatted and given away my old computer, and didn't think about having to manually (and locally!) deactivate the install. I literally spent an hour on the phone with customer service convincing them that I was not trying to install MatLab on more computers than they allow (even though, considering I don't use MatLab in any sort of profitable way, I'm extremely unsupportive of that policy). In fact I think the regular license for MatLab only lets you install it on one computer, but maybe it's two...

Regarding Mathematica, I have never run into problems with it as I have always gotten a license through an academic institution, and so far all of said academic institutions allow me to install it on however many computers I want. 

Oh noes. Imagine the horror if he'd install it on a third computer without telling Stardock. He could get sued for sure.

Luckmann Sighting!

*sneaks away*