In the latest attempt by software manufacturers to fight the unauthorized installation of their products, the technology ensures that each Windows XP software can be installed on one computer only.

It requires legitimate users to type in location information and activation codes, which vary according to each legal copy. Without activation, users can use Windows XP for only 30 days.

The technology makes it impossible to install the same copy on other computers, as the program recognizes the hardware configuration of each computer pre-installed with Windows XP.

"This program will help Chinese users realize it's illegal to install software on unauthorized computers," said Ma Tao, a spokesman for Microsoft China.

Microsoft China estimated that 95 percent of computers on the Chinese mainland use its Windows-series operating systems.

Most of them, however, are installed with illegal copies of the software, which are readily available on the black market and can be borrowed from other users.

A nationwide survey conducted about a year ago found that unauthorized software installation was one of the major copyright violations in China, causing more damage to software producers than pirated disks.

Some Chinese software companies have introduced their own anti-piracy products.

UFsoft, China's leading provider of accounting and management software, has introduced a device called "Encryption Dog," which can be plugged into servers.

"Our system has about 20 functions and its prices depend on the number of functions bought by users," said Peng Liusan, deputy chief engineer of UFsoft's research and development center. "The Encryption Dogs will block all unlicensed functions on computers."

In the past, such technologies proved popular among legitimate users.

In 1999, Microsoft applied the activation technology to its Office 2000 package in six countries and regions, attracting 6 million users.

Counterfeiters, however, are quick to catch up with the new technologies.

In the middle of last year, UFsoft found pirated disks that could be used to crack its encryption programs in 20 cities. The company estimated that it lost 20 million yuan (US$2.41 million) in 2000 because of the pirated disks.

Moreover, the pirated copies of Microsoft's Office XP, armed with the activation technology, were found on the nation's black market nearly at the same time the program hit domestic chain stores.

The Chinese government, meanwhile, is revising its law against the illegal use and installation of software programs.

(eastday.com 10/08/2001)