Almost all software has an "End user license agreement" that will be displayed when installed, it is important to read and understand the agreement so you are clear about how the software may be used. When you purchase software, in most cases you are licensed to use the software, you don't own it. Software is considered proprietary knowledge or information and ownership is retained by the creators. Software can be purchased as a "single user version" or as a "multi user version", it's important to know what version you will need. Single user versions allow the installation on a single computer at one time, where as multi user versions will allow installation on multiple computers depending upon how many "seats or users" as stated in the license agreement. Any installations beyond the agreement is considered a copyright violation and can be subject to penalties set forth by the law. Each year software manufacturers loose billions of dollars worth of software due to "Software Piracy", this hurts everyone who buys and uses software as a result of increased costs to the consumer. Software manufacturers employ a variety of ways to prevent and stop software piracy ranging from call-in or on-line registration to organizations who track and catch software pirates. The penalties for having illegal software can be very stiff, mostly a fine, however in severe cases jail time. Software piracy is consider "theft" and theft in some cases can be considered a felony (big time jail).

When you purchase a PC at a reputable outlet or even small shops, they may come with software that is "pre installed", along with the software you should have a "Certificate of Authenticity" for each operating system or application along with the original installation disk(s). Under no circumstances should you give someone these certs or disks for use on their PC. Not only is this a violation of the single user agreement, but if someone  else has your disks and you suddenly need them, you won't have them. On many occasions I have been out on a service call and the resolve to a problem is simply reinstalling the program, however because they have loaned out the disks to a friend or relative or took them to the office, the problem remains unresolvable. It is critically important to retain possession of all software disks, certs and reg numbers for the software in your computer, this also serves as proof of licensing if you should ever be questioned about it. When you sell or give an old computer away, you should also include all software and licensing or wipe the disk clean so it can not be recovered by the new user. If you purchase "upgrade" software and install it on your system, you are required to retain the original or OEM software that was first installed, you can not give away the originals and remain legal. Also if for some reason you should need to reinstall from scratch you will need the original and the upgrade.

There are many facts about software that most people don't know.

fact 1. You don't own the software, you are licensed to use it only!

fact 2. You are not allowed to give your software away if you still have it installed on your system.
            (unless expressly allowed by the user agreement)

fact 3. Giving or taking software that isn't licensed to you is theft.

fact 4. There is no such thing as a 30 day trial unless expressed by the license agreement.

fact 5. It is much less expensive to legally purchase software than it is to be caught with pirated software.

fact 6. Pirating software costs everyone!

Remember to retain all software that comes with your PC, device drivers included!