LicenseControl, along with our licensing services, has been designed to meet multiple, somewhat opposing, technical requirements:

Requirements from the end-User's point of view:

• if you have a product-activation mechanism:
• make it easy-to-use
• allow licensed software to be moved to any applicable system — whenever and as often as required (and without having to get anyone else involved!)
• allow licensed software to be backed up and reinstated
• impact the compliant User as little as possible

Requirements from the software Vendor's point of view:

• don't alienate our (compliant) Customers
• provide an easy-to-implement product-activation mechanism
• provide an easy-to-administer product-activation service
• provide some "pretty good piracy protection"

Underlying the LicenseControl capability are some fundamental philosophies:

• leave the compliant customer in control of their licensed software
• leave the Vendor in control of their information and their customers
• enable a User to verify the content of all information that originated on their system and was sent to the licensing server
• provide a pragmatic balance between the opposing requirements for ease-of-use, usage restrictions and anti-piracy protection

The founders of Derman Enterprises have a particular dislike for software that communicates undisclosed information to another system — especially when this is done without being directed by the User. We vehemently oppose software that communicates information to someone else's system "behind the User's back!" Providing an "above board" capability is something that we are very passionate about.

Obviously, our job would be easier if we didn't insist upon keeping the User more in control — but we do insist. That's a fundamental difference between our approach and others'.

Frankly, we don't like that it's necessary to have product activation schemes to prevent the bulk of software piracy. However, given that there will be activation solutions, we are on a mission to produce one that equally meets the requirements of both the Users and the Vendors.

Candidly, we'll feel we've accomplished our mission when Users generally have the opinion "well, I guess if we must have a product-activation mechanism, I'd prefer that it be LicenseControl" — and Vendors are getting paid for the use of the good products they produce (so they can produce more of the same).