- Why must I register my copy of MinIdent-Win?
- What happens if I don't register my copy of MinIdent-Win?
- What happens when I do register my copy of MinIdent-Win?
- What is meant by the registration key code for MinIdent-Win?
- What is meant by the product code for MinIdent-Win and what does it do?
- What is meant by the computer code for MinIdent-Win and what does it do?
- Where can I find a record of the required codes
- Who is considered to be the licensee?
- How do I transfer MinIdent-Win to another computer?
- How do I uninstall MinIdent-Win prior to installing and registering it on another platform?
- What is the uninstall code?
- Why does Micronex® Ltd. charge customers for data upgrades?
- Why does MinIdent-Win contain the hand specimen characteristics for only about 600 minerals?
- Is there a manual describing the use of MinIdent-Win?
- Where can I read the license that I am agreeing to when I purchase MinIdent-Win?
- How do I know when my Student license for MinIdent-Win runs out?
- What are the minimum hardware requirements to run MinIdent-Win successfully on a PC platform
- Will MinIdent-Win run satisfactorily on a laptop computer?
- I have an older computer running under Windows 3.1. Can I run MinIdent-Win on it?
- Is a version of MinIdent-Win available which will run on a Macintosh computer
1. Why must I register my copy of MinIdent-Win?
Registration is needed so that we can maintain our records and offer you the good service due to a valued customer. It also protects us from the possibility of fraudulent distribution of the software.
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2. What happens if I don't register my copy of MinIdent-Win?
If you have either the full Professional Edition or the Collector's Edition, you will have a 30-day grace period in which to register while you suffer only our constant nagging. After that time, you will be unable to use MinIdent-Win until you have completed the registration. Once registration has been completed, full operation will be restored. If you have the reduced price Student Edition, the grace period is reduced to one day. In effect, you must register immediately.
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3. What happens when I do register my copy of MinIdent-Win?
If you have either the full Professional Edition or the Collector's Edition, after the 30-day grace period the program will cease to function unless and until registration is completed. If you have the Student Edition, the program will work for only one day unless and until registration is completed.
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4. What is meant by the registration key code for MinIdent-Win?
The registration key code is an alphanumeric code that will be sent to your machine over the internet. It informs the program that it has been duly registered on the platform on which it is installed. It prevents other, unauthorised persons from stealing the software from your machine.
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5. What is meant by the product code for MinIdent-Win and what does it do?
The product code is an alphanumeric code that uniquely identifies your purchase and the particular CD, edition and version that was shipped to you. It appears on the shrink wrap surrounding the CD.
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6. What is meant by the computer code for MinIdent-Win and what does it do?
The computer code is generated by the program during installation and serves to identify the machine on which the software is installed. It protects you from theft and us from fraud.
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7. Where can I find a record of the required codes?
Within the program, the various codes are recorded under "About" on the MinIdent-Win screen. Outside the program, these codes can also be retrieved from a file called MIWCODES.txt which you should find on your Windows desktop. We recommend that you print out a hard copy of this file and keep it in a safe and secure place.
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8. Who is considered to be the licensee?
For the purposes of processing orders and enquiries, and for legal matters, the licensee is considered to be the individual or organisation that purchased MinIdent-Win.
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9. How do I transfer MinIdent-Win to another computer?
This requires a series of steps as follows:
The program must be uninstalled from the first computer. This will generate an uninstall code which will be displayed on the screen but also written to the file MIWCODES.txt which you should find on your Windows desktop.
You should then reinstall the program on the new platform from your original CD.
Now go to our website and click on "Register" and then follow the simple instructions.
You will be asked for the various codes including the computer code generated on the new machine.
The whole process can take only a few minutes. Once again, it is designed to protect both you and us.
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10. How do I uninstall MinIdent-Win prior to installing and registering it on another platform?
Go to "My Computer" on your "Desktop", choose "Control Panel" and then "Add/Remove Programs". Select MinIdent-Win from the scrollable list of programs and then "OK". The uninstall program will do the rest and give you an uninstall code. It will also write this code to the file MIWCODES.txt which you should find on your Desktop.
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11. What is the uninstall code?
The uninstall code is an alpha-numeric string that tells us that the program has been removed from one platform prior to its being installed on another. Once again, it protects you from theft and us from fraud.
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12. Why does Micronex® charge customers for data upgrades?
Over the years, the acquisition, testing and incorporation of new data for MinIdent-Win involves literally thousands of hours of the time of highly-qualified scientists. The upgrade charges help in a small way to pay for that time.
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13. Why does MinIdent-Win contain the hand specimen characteristics for only about 600 minerals?
Although there are 5,000+ known minerals (if one includes the many that remain unnamed), the vast majority of them are rare to extremely rare. As a result, the possible ranges in their properties, particularly their hand specimen properties, are not well known. Quite often, they have only been recognised in, and described from, microscopic samples; and often from a single locality and sometimes only from a single specimen. If these minerals were added to the list of those for which hand specimen properties are recorded, the chances of identifying them positively on this basis would be very slight indeed. Furthermore, they would likely clutter up the lists of possible matches because, with the lack of evidence, they could not be discriminated against. Finally, because of the rarity of these minerals, it can be argued that it is statistically very unlikely that they would be encountered.
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14. Is there a manual describing the use of MinIdent-Win?
The short answer is "No". There are several reasons. Manuals are expensive to produce, go out of date, consume paper unnecessarily, are often weighty and inconvenient to carry around and finally, experience shows that they generally sit on a shelf gathering dust. For these reasons, very early on in the development of MinIdent-Win, the decision was made to choose to offer instead 'on-line' advice and help at several levels from within the program. Thus there are "hints", abbreviated pop-up messages, more substantial, contact-sensitive explanations and finally detailed, in depth help. All are available from within the program at the click of your mouse. For those who feel they really do need to have a printed explanation at hand, we have arranged for any part of the in-depth help file to be printable from within the program.
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15. Where can I read the license that I am agreeing to when I purchase MinIdent-Win?
Please click on the "Documents" button and then choose licenses.
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16. How do I know when my Student licence for MinIdent-Win runs out?
If you use the Student Edition within one month before the end of its license, you will be reminded when you run the program that its days are numbered and gentle suggestions will be made about upgrading. Nevertheless, it will, of course, continue to perform as well as ever. However, if you attempt to run MinIdent-Win after the license has expired, you will simply be informed that the license has expired and then be invited to our website to sign up for either the Professional or Collector's Editions.
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17. What are the minimum hardware requirements to run MinIdent-Win successfully on a PC platform?
We recommend:
At least a Pentium 100 or equivalent, or faster, processor
At least 64 Megabytes RAM
At least 100 Megabytes space available on the hard drive
Screen resolution of at least 800 x 600 pixels and high (16 bit) colour
A CD ROM drive (the faster the better)
Access to the Internet from the computer (for registration and upgrading purposes)
You may be able to run MinIdent-Win from a less powerful computer than this, but the program's performance and speed will probably leave a lot to be desired. As a rough and ready guide, if your computer was purchased in the last four or five years, it will probably run MinIdent-Win very satisfactorily.
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18. Will MinIdent-Win run satisfactorily on a laptop computer?
Absolutely-provided the minimum hardware requirements identified in the answer to another FAQ are met. In fact, you can even take MinIdent-Win out in the field with you; even to the outcrop!
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19. I have an older computer running under Windows 3.1. Can I run MinIdent-Win on it?
Sorry, no, it will not run satisfactorily.
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20. Is a version of MinIdent-Win available which will run on a Macintosh computer?
It may perhaps be possible to run MinIdent-Win on a Macintosh that is emulating a PC. However, we haven't tried it and suspect it would run very slowly. If anyone tries it and is successful, we would be very interested to know.
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