How to pull Windows 98 product key off CD

You should be able to use any valide Windows 98 product key with your CD - they are not unique to the CD!

There is no way of doing this by searching the CD. If you truly bought the the Win 98 upgrade, you should have a certificate of authenticity. With or without this, you should call Microsoft and see what they can do for you. Also, please do not ask anyone in this group to provide you with a CD key as it is unethical and against the rules of this forum.

Or/and
When you are in:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion
You will find a value in the right window either called "product key". Find your product key there.

Hello.  What you need to do is search the registry.

Instructions:
Click Start
Click Run
Type regedit
Click Plus Sign next to:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
Software
Microsoft
Windows
Highlight Current Version


On the right side of the screen
double-click Product Key and copy
the product number down and store
it in a safe place for future reference.

Robert! Welcome to E-E! Its common courtesy to provide comments unless you know your answer is the only answer and is 300% correct and is what the questioner is looking for and will fix their problem. Please don’t take this personally, (others could let you know before I and not so diplomatically) I made the same mistake when I first arrived and someone was nice enough to point it out to me (It hurt my feelings, but I soon realized its teamwork that’s used here). This accomplishes a couple of things: First: it doesn't lock the question allowing more exposure to other experts allowing a faster fix (many problems require an interactive dialogue to troubleshoot them properly), Secondly: it gives the questioner the option to make an award based on the best comment that helped the most in fixing their problem and it is also is common courtesy to other experts. Please change your present answer to a comment. Again welcome and look forward to working with you in the future, a lot of teamwork is used at this forum, as you will see! :>)
Quote shamelessly stolen from Dave, Thanks again Dave

Your answer may be correct, and I hope it is, after all the main goal here is to help the questioner, but when you propose an answer it removes the "accept comment as answer" button thereby robbing the questioner of the choice to choose which expert helped the most. If your comment is chosen by the questioner, you will be awarded the points. So again, please change your answer to a comment
Thank you
Steve
It is also not allowed to post another experts comments as an answer
Please see the tips on comments and answers at the bottom of this page

r18010:
Why didn´t I think about that!!

Navid is 100% spot on! (As always!!!)

stevenlewis, Navid (if you havent already done so)

Read this:

https://www.experts-exchange.com/jsp/qShow.jsp?ta=expinput&qid=11958738 

Storm ;-)

Storm :~)
Steve

I don't appreciate you on saying that I posted an another experts' comments
as my own.  I would never do that to a
member. I'm dedicated to answering a
question to full ability and extinct.  I think
you all need to rethink who's right and who's wrong.  Our job is to help the
member in need and not to bicker over
whether who has the same answer has
another person.  I highly suggest you rethink who's right and who's wrong.

Let's see you have been a member here for 4 days, and I  for over 2 months, but you know the etiquette better than I? If you read Navid's comment. you will see it is exactly what you posted as a comment. So is what you are telling me is that you didn't bother to read the other experts comments?
If you would like, you can go to community support, the link is a t the bottom, and post a 0 point question, include a link to this question, and ask them to come here and see what they have to say.
Steve
I asked you nicely, and continue to do so, as I said, it is a mistake many new experts make. I made the same mistake myself.
So i ask you to rethink who is right and who is wrong

pismocrab, I appologize for the off topic posts
Steve

r18010,
Welcome. If you notice, you have duplicated a comment.  We really try hard here to assist the questioner but also not try and duplicate things said by another expert.  we also try not to propose an answer unless we are 300 % sure (give or take a few percent).
Again, welcome and I look forward to using your expertise in the future.

Glenn

Hasn't anybody got anything better to do...

(a comment I don't think anybody else has made, put in the most polite of ways)

r18010,  Welcome you newly joint EE.
After reading through the whole thread, I agreed and appreciated that you've prepared a very good and well presented answer for this question.

It provided the steps in detail with clarifications, goal to achieve, actions taken and good precautions for the questioner's future consideration.

However, prior to your proposed answer there are already two comments posted by Navid provided with the same resolution. Though a little bit loose they are presented like answer and Quiz.  (Navid, hope that you don't mind that I've said that commentary . I've viewed from two different comments regardless the person of the writer here.)  

In summary of yours, you've both stated the resolution should be:
Click Start, Run, Type regedit, go to the  
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/Software/Microsoft/Windows/Current Version  
product key            

There is not much difference to achieve the same goal to resolve the captioned question but posted on two different dates.

But one thing I would like to point out for r18010, please read the guidelines here under this page for posting "comment as answer" and "proposed answer as answer".
Quoted………
Answers: An answer is a specific solution to a question and should be submitted if it will solve the questioner's problem and doesn't duplicate a previous comment.
Unquoted…..

Therefore, in my sincere request to this specific case only which depends on data put as aboved, I would like to ask you to withdraw the proposed answer to be a comment. The "Withdraw" button is in your page near the input box.  Let the questioner to grade this questions. He/she may be award points to your contribution or to both of you (i18010 and Navid).  

However, for the captioned question, the points should be awarded to Navid as he has proposed the same resolution first by in the format of "Comment".

Let us move forward and we are looking forward to work with you to help the others in EE after you have familiarized with the etiquette here. As far as I read your presentation skill, you should be one of the best expert here soon.

IMO.       pslh

Patricia,StormMajik ,Steven and Glenn: All thank you for your comments and involvments. Deeply appreciated and added to my "friend notebook".
r18010:
Our solution might not even help the questioner. Can´t you see how many unnecessary comments have been submitted which has nothing to do with this question??!! and sorry to say but it is your fault.
If you just had changed the proposed answer, it would not happen. If your answer is as great as you think. The questioner will accept it no matter if it is proposed answer or a comment. Ask the other experienced experts like above. They have got 98% of their points by posting simple comments.
I hope you don´t frusturate the experts and other questioners in other questions.
Please read E-E help.
Thank you and again welcome to E-E

welcome... everybody!
  I see the debate continues.... <g>
A.

What we all need to do is try to work
together as a team and stop bickering
over petty and pointless things.  We
need to be trying to help the user in need
and we are just sitting here arguing over
nothing.  You all need to think about
what's right in the interest of the user.

r18010, have you read thoroughly my suggestion above to you?

If you insist not to withdraw your proposed answer as comment, I think we need help from the Community Support.

pslh

Agree

Agree also

Oh Well, We can take this to CS Now!!


Rob

I have posted a question in Community Support for yours and other responses.
This debate ends on this thread.
Glenn

Rob / r18010, It is regretted to hear that. I’ve called the Community Support to attend this question. I do hope that they will come soon to settle this.        pslh  

Check it out, a DOS based program to find the Registration Number in the Registry.

http://download.cnet.com/downloads/0-10106-100-3668216.html?tag=st.dl.10014.new.10106-100-3668216

I'm a relatively infrequent user, so I'm not sure what happened here.  But I only have the option of crediting points to r18010, when Navid was in fact the first to respond with an acceptable answer.  I am therefore rejecting the answer.

I would be happy to credit Navid, just let me know how best to do this.  Guidance would be appreciated.

And by the way, jsaxon2, did I ask anyone in this forum for a product key?  Have I or my company bought enough Microsoft/Windows products to have about 10 product keys laying around? Yes.  However, we've lost the product key for this particular piece of software, which has rendered it useless.  This is the problem I was trying to solve.  Save your comments on ethics for someone who asks for your opinion.

pismocrab, you click the "accept comment as answer" which is next to the comment of Navid near the date chop. Follow the instruction and you'll grade this question to him.

pslh

Thanks, will do.

Thanks.

pismocrab, point well taken. It is just so often I see people trying to get someone to give them a product key for software they may or may not leagally own. Sorry to have upset you, but I was just stating a fact.

Hello everyone,

pismocrab - If you wish to do so, you can turn off email notifications now that you have accepted an answer.

r18010 - I know this can be a difficult situation and I want you to take this in the spirit it is intended. You are wrong.

While there are many mechanisms to provide a person with support, most of them have some sort of structure that must be respected if the support is going to be available for any length of time. At Experts Exchange, there are couple of things that you will have to become familiar with to be an effective Expert.

One of the very first things to know is that it is improper to re-post (or make a new post) of a previous post. Perhaps you didn't copy/paste the previous post. It doesn't matter. If you are saying the same thing, then don't post it as an answer - post it as a comment. This is a very simple courtesy that has nothing to do with providing the user with a solution (since a 'comment' reads EXACTLY the same as an 'answer) but it has everything to do with respecting the efforts of your fellow Experts.

Another thing to be aware of is posting as a proposed answer without a solid solution. When you propose an answer it needs to be reasonable given the nature of the problem (that is 'buy a new computer' is usually not a reasonable answer although it could solve most problems), it needs to be without guesses (if you have to preface your post with something like 'I guess' or 'Maybe this' then it shouldn't be an answer), and, finally, it must not repeat a previous post.

So, in this particular case, you should have withdrawn your proposed answer as soon as you realized it was previously posted by another Expert.

darinw
Community Support

I have a couple of other things to say.

pismocrab -

>Save your comments on ethics for someone who asks for your opinion

When you post a question like this in any forum, any public forum anywhere on the Internet that is not a hacker site, you will almost certainly get some questions about your intent. It isn't out of line and it doesn't require you getting your gander up about it. A simple response indicating that you are within the law is all that is necessary. Piracy, which is what the concern is, cost honest users a lot of money - even if you figure the super high numbers posted by the anti-piracy groups at 10 percent of their value.

"Answer Grade: B"

Although Expert Navid said nothing about the 'B' grade, I am curious for him. What was lacking that would have transformed the answer into an 'A' grade? It seems to be correct and concise.

>I'm a relatively infrequent user,

I only mentioned it because I know most Experts expect an 'A' grade unless there is some reason for less than that.

darinw
Community Support