[t.foster73]

I never said Dead to Rights used Tages. I was referencing a file I've seen for Beyond Good and Evil. That's beside the point anyway. Most NOCD cracks are originally created for the cracking groups own RIPS, and find their way onto sites such as this (You only have to read many of the included Readme files to see this). We use these files to allow us to make personal backups. It is assumed that we own the original, mainly because if we had illegally downloaded the full game, we would have the crack included in that file. You could see a NOCD as partly Warez from that extent, but I see no harm if you have bought the original. Starforce3 HAS made making a backup for the legitimate buyer a lot harder, as it's no longer a case of making a CD backup and using a NOCD crack. You now rely on the original in order to install the game, and Starforce3 is very picky. I had a TINY scratch on my Trackmania CD, and it wouldn't install. The shop did replace it, but only out of goodwill. This wouldn't have been a problem with other CD's, as I could have installed them from a backup if a problem with the original arose, which has happened a few times, particularly on older CD's. CD's are just not as hardy as many are led to believe. Now my Trackmania and Gangland CD's are hanging around my Desktop, within easy reach of my 3 year old or cup of spilt Tea. With many of these protections, you don't feel you OWN the game, but rather it's on lease to you until the CD gives up the ghost. It's a double edged sword that we sometimes use crackers code to allow us to play our originals without the CD or a backup, but I believe it's our god given right to make a backup, even if the Law says not. I'm not interested in point scoring my knowledge over other users, I'm sure you know much more than me regarding CD protection. All I'm trying to do is make a backup of the games which I've spent my hard earned money on. OK, my 'Hackers are defeated' is plainly wrong, as anything can be cracked eventually. Maybe I'm trying to spur the crackers on into making a fixed Install. A nocd is better than nothing, as the original can be kept safely away, but it's only a halway house if you still need the original to install the game, and this Starforce protection is going to take off I feel. Maybe then hackers will have generic templates to crack the protection, and nocd's will be a commonplace as Securerom/Safedisc, though I doubt it very much.