Curious - At what build will RC keys stop working

Hi all

Just an Idle question while sitting out in the Garden with a nice Breakfast (Old fashioned "Greasy English with Bacon, eggs, tomatoes etc etc" --absolutely Politically Incorrect and unhealthy but delicious) and scanning email with a Netbook (which I'm using to send this with ) when do you think the RC keys will stop working. ( I mean with what build as RC 7100 will of course continue until Mar 2010).

I'm surprised that they STILL work in the latest builds (even 7229).

As a side point will the BETA keys stop working when the Beta finally expires next month -- if it does I'd suggest anybody still using either the Beta or keys from the Beta download at least build 7100 with its keys.

Cheers all

(Can't beat eating outside when we finally get some decent weather - enjoy your weekend)

Jimbo

Most probably, RTM.

I would imagine it will be as soon as we can buy it officially.
I'm using a key that I got off a thread on here. There was a list of about 15 keys.
I think that was post beta. Hope so, the same key has worked on the last three builds.
God Jimbo, I was up late following fakes and now I can't stop thinking about a "full english" and am slavering on my keyboard thinking of bacon and I've got none.

lifes hard sometimes, John:)

Look at it this way: Beta.7000 had exactly 10 keys, 5 for 32-bit and 5 for 64-bit. RC.7100 had 15 keys good for either version. The various releases leaked since the RC have all been essentially the same as the RC except for bug squashes, code performance tweaks and drivers updates. Other than the general public, these have had the same distribution as the past versions; thus, they've used the same keys.

However, once the RC-testing is finalized and MS reins in the code for finalization for RTM, it makes perfect sence for them to incorporate the "real" activation key mechanism (instead of the simple lookup table that has been being used). And, it is highly unlikely that MS will provide new, general-purpose keys for use with Win.7 code that they do not intend to be distributed to ANYONE outside of MS, itself. In other words, it is likely that all RTM code compliations will be truly serialized (and, therefore, easily leak-tracable) and highly UNlikely that existing keys will work.

I could easily be wrong, but that is my thinking on the subject.