Its an activation issue, not a software issue. System specs would be of no use for activation issues.

I even tried the automated web site activation and it says machine ID is incorrect or serial number is incorrect which bullcrap since I copy the exact serial number listed under MY Account and copied the system ID from the activation alternate screen that pops up.

Because of the weekend activation problem that people have been running into for years, I have an emergency backup. I downloaded a keygenerator for all of my Sony software products. If I have to reinstall and run into problems with internet activation or there's no phone activation, I can use the keygen to get up and running. I have no qualms over having (or using) the keygen, since I am a licensed, registered user of the software. 5 minutes on Google will get you what you need (though I would do a full backup before accessing any of those sites). Be prepared....

Looks like that is my only option but unfortunately a search for Vegas 8 and DVD Pro 4.5 turned up nothing but cracks, no generator. Found plenty of stuff for v7 though that I no longer use.

Shoot me an email sometime. <wink>

p@mast3rs,

Can I suggest something I've learned in years of dealing with crappy customer service? Publically posting a thread like the one you've started is the least professional way to deal with something like this. You only posted in the forum becasue you want to vent and hope others will respond, many hopefully feeling the same as you.

You got a beef? Write a letter to Sony. It amuses me to no end how many people come over here to bitch and moan on this forum like it will do something in the long run. especially with vulgarity.

Be professional, be polite. I understand your frustration. I haven't had a problem with Sony persay but had this problem many times with form In-Sync who made an editor called Speed Razor.

Can you download the Vegas 8 trial and get that to work temporarily for you? As for the keygens, if you're a paid customer, I'm not against that route and they're out there for 8 but you better stick a condom on your computer because chances are you could catch something.

Hope you find a solution to your issue, not sure it will come in the form you want by the way you asked for it though.

cheno

I am frustrated and angry right now. The reason I posted here is because there is no one at Sony to listen right now. While my words be a bit on the side of unprofessional at the moment, the $12k project that I may not get done by Monday will make me look more unprofessional to my clients.

I just dont think my client is going to understand that I paid for a program and that I am blaming it on them why I didnt get their project done.

I thought you had given up on Sony and had switched to Adobe.

Not at all, I am loyal to my work, not the tools. As I have said many times before, each product does something the other doesn't and in this project, I need to use Vegas for what i want to get done. Only a fool would follow blind loyalty to one specific product when it doesn't suit all their needs. That much I have learned.

Using angry language may not win you friends but I can see why he is angry and frustrated. I would be too. If "Vegas 8 Pro" is intended for professional use, they ought to have some level of professional support to go with it. Professionals do have deadlines, and it's pretty common that work has to happen on the weekends, that should not be a surprise to anyone.

Cheno's suggestion of downloading a demo Vegas 8 pro probably be less stressful for the moment. With a 12K project on the deadline, the demo is also the safest. But I think everyone feels Pat's pain, but if Pat sends 500$ to each of us, we really will "feel" the for a speedy completion!

Agree with Cheno, just download the 30-day trial for now and activate it later.
Should work fine since you said you have a fresh install of XP.

Vegas 8 seems to have some issues that come up on the forum. For me some clips come down with audio and some don't. Some come down with audio, next time they don't, very strange. Tech guys where really nice about working it through when they found it was a Vegas 8 issue. Clips that come down with no audio have to be renamed .vob. Now I make a copy and rename, that means double memory use storage. With luck all will be sorted out with 8 eventually. Vegas 7 seems to be the stable one, 8 makes me nervous, never know if audio will be seen or not.

I wouldn't have used the same words although I share your pain.
When you sell a product such as this into a global market customer support means a bum on a seat ready to answer your call 24/7, they should have worked out by now that the sun never sets on the Vegas empire and if they want to keep it that way they need to be ready to deal with problems from anywhere, in any language and at any time. In the global maketplace there are no holidays, no weekends and no downtime.

Of course that kind of support costs money, how it gets funded given the asking price of Vegas, especially the upgrade price, is an interesting question.

Bob.

We all feel your pain with lots and lots of products but I agree with Cheno, writing a letter to Sony would be more effective approach. I don't believe in activation because I agree it only hurts paying customers. The fact that there are keygens available just proves that activation is useless at best and damaging to customers at worst.

But it's not just Sony. My PC is in need of a reformat but I dare not do it because I have Serious Magic HD Rack and Ultra 2 and I doubt highly that I will get an activation code out of the evil Adobe empire. I also have MatchMover and the node-lock license is non-transferable. That means if you format your hard drive you need to buy the software again! So there are lots of companies that are worse than Sony when it comes to activation but I agree, no activation is good.

Ditto on getting the 30-day trial for now and activate it later.

~jr

Your system crash was the CAUSE of the whole problem. Not being able to get a hold of Sony for a couple of days is only secondary to that.

JohnnyRoy, I definitely feel your pain! This drives me crazy about some of the highend apps, not only do you pay big $$$$ but re-installs are a non-no! My kids don't understand why I does can't just reformat if their games screw-up my machines when I refuse to let them use the my pcs for their LAN gaming parties.

If "Vegas 8 Pro" is intended for professional use, they ought to have some level of professional support to go with it.

Buy AVID. The support package costs roughly 4 times the software/hardware, especially if you don't buy multi-year blocks.

I haven't tried this as yet but I'm under the impression that those node locked licences can be transferred. The trick is to unregister the current machine before trying to install the licence elsewhere.
The other tidbit is for some such systems at least, the network cards MAC address gets a high enough vote in the process such that simply keeping the same network card will permit you to re-install.
Like I said, I don't know for certain either of these work in your scenarios and if they don't that really does suck.s
Then again I've read of one audio guy who'd spent a bundle on a Waves bundle and had his iLock die and was told sorry, pay for a new licence.

Bob.

Johnny, I had the same issue with a recent reformat and my Ultra2 activation. My account at the seriousmagic site is gone and none of my usual signin names or passwords worked at Adobe. I waited for weeks for reply to my emails and nothing. Finally, I hit on an old email address that I used to register the product originally (one that I long since updated on the serious magic site). That old email worked and the product is now activated again. whew. Thankfully, I didn't need to respond to anything they might have sent to that old address... talk about abandonment issues.

Patrick, I have been reading your input here for quite a few years now, and on this instance I can feel your pain, but I too believe your "anger" and frustration may just be being directed in a direction that isn't the one that you are currently may not have been considering.

You have been offered the advice of going with AVID and deal with the cost.

You have been invited to bide your time till you can get to the SONY people.

You have also been given support while you deal with this unfortunate impasse.

Might I just relate my latest "failure"? I had literally just finished one of my few but rewarding projects, for a London organisation. Done and dusted. Client loves the content and it hits the spot - good! Invoice in. Now back at base I start some well needed housekeeping. Power Supply goes poof! Agreed, not s/w. But I do have "paid-for" support by the pc builders. Turn around was 10 days. I'm happy AND I have QUADie upgrade out if it too.

Lesson learnt for me was -I was just lucky! - Now, I'm even further convinced of the need to have what I do have. And that is a slimmed down parallel functioning editing setup. And yes I DO need to tighten up on my workflow, but to think that my project - yours was/is $14k? yes - and if you do this more often, do, DO have a parallel editing suite. Could be a laptop, but do have something. Depeneding on one set-up, of this or that, is, and nearly was for me, is really a potentially disastrous false economy. I have far too much hanging on to what I do NOT to implement as much s/w and h/w backup that I can afford. Here's a thought Patrick, with prices of PCs and so on being that much cheaper nowadays that a barebones setup, well one could EASILY roll this into the overall cost of it not ONE but several projects and that could pay for any potential, well most, near misses. Look, at the very best, s/w is capable of gaining us much creative expression and income. At the very worst it is also capable of being flaky - and at a time when you/I/we most need it. $14k, now that ain't something I could walk away from and not provide it with the type of backup and alternate that it is due to it.

Patrick, if you are still reading this, I would think you are having a seed change in your thoughts - if you ain't, I don't know what else to suggest, 'cept be happy and just float. These lessons are lessons - they are ONLY lessons. Oh yeah, we can choose to learn from them or not - and that is true for us all. Please treat this as an exceptional opportunity to move on and the next time you WILL be better and more comfortably positioned to ride it out - sounds good - yeah? Tell you what, some people will go on gaily not being aware of the pitfalls that they are heading for. Often they miss 'em - good for them. But here, we are dealing with our Patrick - and you ARE our Patrick! I also believe that you have been offered some sound advise and much needed support while you deal with this.

Also, I DO build in contractual options to adjust deadlines according to what is needed. This may not have been an option here, but do you see that this is also an option for you, to take care?

As always, ALWAYS, my very best regards,

Grazie

Never had a problem with Sony software, but Adobe...

Install Creative Suite CS2.
Activate it.
Start After Effects then realise I need to use a 3rd party plug-in with AE (plug-in supplied FOC with the Adobe DVDs)
Install plug-in
Start AE
Error - plug-in folder can't be found. AE closes. But the plug-in folder is there.
Reinstall AE.
Plug-in folder can be found.
Uninstall and reinstall AE
Hooray, the plug-in folder is found, but I need to activate again
Activation fails. Can't use AE.
Try again.
Activation fails.
Check other applications in the suite. All need activation.
Uninstall entire suite and reinstall.
Activation fails.
Call support.
Closed in the UK
Call support in the US
Have to download new data files the force activation to be accepted.
Reinstall.
Fine, applications start, but I still need the supplied 3rd party plug-in.
Install plugin.
AE won't start, and so the saga begins again.

I'm sticking with Sony.

I would recheck your "i", "l", "L", "1", "0", "o", "O" figures in your serial numbers and activation numbers and equipment numbers. Recheck the "E" mail they sent you with the numbers you are punching in. If you made any changes to your equipment there is no way it will activate. The only problem I have ever had is typing in the wrong number and this covers all the way back to 2001.
JJK