Activation problems? 0 or O, 1 or l

I seeing a lot of posts where people flame SI because of the bad activiatio0n code (via box). I will get this game saturday or sunday and this sounds bad really. The whole activation sounds bad. I think SI arent treating their costumers right. Everytime i see a person criticize the system, a moderator just comes and closes the thread. Sure the users are mad and most of the times will say "wrong words" while others will talk in a more civilized way, but i think they are kinda right. I mean, they paid for the game, so instead of closing threads i think SI should help them more. Im referring more to some posts that a mod doesnt even explain the reason that he locked the topic. A user asks for help: thread locked for no reason (activation one).

Now, i want to know if more people are having problems in activating the game, the boxed version.

Thanks.

si could you please never use this whole steam and activation palarver again

it really is causing more problems than its worth

i just wanna go into a shop by the game i love so much install and play and im sure many people feel the same

instead we have to fiddle about workin out the difference between 0's and o's

Yes i've been sat here trying different combinations for 45mins now.

The O's and 0's are identical and i have loads of them in my code.

please can someone let me know how on earth i can activate this bloody game.

my keycode is very blurred and i have tried since 7.45 to try and get it to work but no luck.

what are si going to do about this as i simply cannot get it to work.

i have tried steam and uniloc but no luck at all.

i could try emailing si with my code but they are really slow at getting back to people.

can anyone help please

Anyone else having this problem?

Installed all OK here in NZ.

Double clicked fm.exe where the activation screen pops up (im not doing it thro stream).

Insert code off manual......'send activation request'

'we're sorry your Fm 2009 certificate could not be activated as we are unable to connect to the internet, please check your connection. For help visit sigames.com.'

HELLLOOO....in connected now posting this, so no probelms with my connection

thats very annoying......anyone??

if your in the uk it's not activated until tomorrow i believe or midnight

apparently not all the servers are live yet so wait a bit

if your in the uk it's not activated until tomorrow i believe or midnight

Im in New Zealand.....activated 6.00am Sydney time...hours ago I believe.

Turned firewall off, so nothing blocking it....

then i have no idea

do you have a tough code key? like zero's and O's? SI said look out for numbers and letters that could match ?

then i have no idea

do you have a tough code key? like zero's and O's? SI said look out for numbers and letters that could match ?

I have 1 o or 0 i have tried changing them around.....still the same!

boooo....this is sooo annoying!

well it looks like a complete mess tbh

a bit of a joke

Yes i've been sat here trying different combinations for 45mins now.

The O's and 0's are identical and i have loads of them in my code.

i am getting anry about the activation, trying it for about 2 hours now...i waited 2 months for the game and i cant play it, i'm getting nuts in here.

In my opinion it seems like a very silly way. They used this authentication partly so people can only play it on the 14th and not before and then they run the system so people can play tonight so th release date is useless and the way the "o" is mistaken for an "0" is ridiculous. I hope I don't have this problem tomorrow otherwise I'm going to be a very unhappy customer.

do you ned code is you buy actual boxed game?

well it looks like a complete mess tbh

a bit of a joke

INDEED.....the silance is deafening.

infact, no matter what code I put in it says cannot connect to internet, obviously my connectin is OK....otherwise, I wouldnt be posting.

even if I put in code...... thisactivationnonsenseisapaininthebehind

'sending activation request'

cannot connect to internet.

Ive had the game 2 hours now.....and that was AFTER the activation servers were meant to be turned ON....somehow, I feel a lil cheated???

do you ned code is you buy actual boxed game?

yes the code is on the manual.

thats not helped me though....2 hours of trying and soft anchor program STILl tells me it cannot connect to the internet....im getting p'd off now

yeah i can understand the frustration

i'm in england but i haven't got the game yet getting it first thing tomorrow morning but i can't imagine having it in front of you and it's not working

In my opinion it seems like a very silly way. They used this authentication partly so people can only play it on the 14th and not before and then they run the system so people can play tonight so th release date is useless and the way the "o" is mistaken for an "0" is ridiculous. I hope I don't have this problem tomorrow otherwise I'm going to be a very unhappy customer.

The fact that the codes managed to pass a quality check is laughable. Surely the first one was printed off and then checked to see if they were easily readable. If not a boot in the privates is needed for some one.

if i cant play tonight, fm has lost a customer...will trie fifa manager in stead. maybe the have less problems.

fifa manager has a great 3d engine but it isn't as good as a fully working football manager

Can somebody clarify...I have bought it via steam... and there is a box at the bottom saying "activate a steam product"

Will i recieve a code somewhere that i need to enter here?

Surely either a letter or a number should've had a slash in it to make them different. Such a massive slip up, it's unbelievable really.

I realise it's tough when things don't run as smoothly as we'd all hope, but can I ask for patience and perhaps a little understanding? Teething problems and all that...

Can somebody clarify...I have bought it via steam... and there is a box at the bottom saying "activate a steam product"

Will i recieve a code somewhere that i need to enter here?

I think you just click it. That's from memory though, and I haven't bought anything from Steam for a while.

fifa manager has a great 3d engine but it isn't as good as a fully working football manager

oke, but for now football manager isnt working at all. so fifa manager is look way better at the moment. never thought fm would make hugh mistakes like this. i hope they learn about this.

You didn't have to buy it with Steam. I agree with the code though, why on earth a company can't just use normal letters instead of this stupid font that's been around for years and years is beyond me.

well it looks like a complete mess tbh

a bit of a joke

do you ned code is you buy actual boxed game?

Anyone else having this problem?

Installed all OK here in NZ.

Double clicked fm.exe where the activation screen pops up (im not doing it thro stream).

Insert code off manual......'send activation request'

'we're sorry your Fm 2009 certificate could not be activated as we are unable to connect to the internet, please check your connection. For help visit sigames.com.'

HELLLOOO....in connected now posting this, so no probelms with my connection

thats very annoying......anyone??

OK...just tried again, and mysteriously, it worked! just waiting for the patch to finish.

:thup:

oke, but for now football manager isnt working at all. so fifa manager is look way better at the moment. never thought fm would make hugh mistakes like this. i hope they learn about this.

fifa manager better? you must be drunk or something. I want a manager sim, not 'the sims'.

I can't get on either.

Great font it has to be said, makes seeing whether its a 0/O 1/I so much easier. Thanks SI.

fifa manager better? you must be drunk or something. I want a manager sim, not 'the sims'.

football manager is better than fifa manager...if you read my posts well you would have known why fifa is a better game at the moment. thats because it isnt possible to play football manager 2009 at the moment. tried the activation for about 2 hours now and it still doesnt work. football manager isnt worth anything right now.

OK...just tried again, and mysteriously, it worked! just waiting for the patch to finish.

:thup:

It's just the activation server struggling to cope with massive demand I'd guess.

When I get my game I shall be praying for no O'S or 0's lol

Anyone buying the game from a retailer tomorrow should ask to check the code before hand!

mine is all of a sudden downloading now, after i've done the 'pre-load'

94% surely im close...

where do you find your activation code if youve digitally downloaded it?

si could you please never use this whole steam and activation palarver again

it really is causing more problems than its worth

i just wanna go into a shop by the game i love so much install and play and im sure many people feel the same

instead we have to fiddle about workin out the difference between 0's and o's

Yeah guys, this manual you download from steam into your hand with a magical cd key is all steams fault! I heard steam is responsible for aids.

have just done it wooo cant wait to get it underway has anyone else managed it yet ?

the be honest the 1's and I thing isn't an issue - the 1's clearly have a dot at the top on the left, whereas the I's look like I's - its about the same as this exact font 1I1I1I - quite easy.

The 0's and O's are a different matter though, thankfully i had none in my code

this may help with the code

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3274/3028118710_f04d50ffdb.jpg

finally in it was the letter O not a bloody zero

i have two 0 but one is number 0 and one is letter o took me about 15 attempts lol i rang tesco and they got it out the box for me hahaha i love tesco now

Yep having got my i's and I's and 0's and O's the right way round, I have done it as well, just creating my first game.

how you manage to get the boxed version before midnight

hello? can someone tell me where you find your code if youve used steam?

Gutted, I was going to go and buy it after work from PC world (about 10 miles away) but I thought nah, whats the point as I won't be able to play till tomorrow.

Went to the gym in stead, just tried the 24 hour Tesco but they don't sell it

Will have to wait till tomorrow morning now

I popped into Tescos at lunch time and they were selling it

Whichever fool thought it a good idea to use zeros and letter O's in activation codes, along with digit one's and the letter l... ha! Wally

You cannot blame SI for this though. They make the game. Another company markets it (well, apart from Miles doing his bit) and arranges route to consumer and activation process. It may well be another company who deals with this activation codes that Sega hired to handle this. I do not know.

People always auto blame SI though. They are the developers, not the distributors. They are probably just as annoyed as us sometimes.

If you truly cannot see whether its a letter l or a 1 and so on, scan it and send it to me...

this may help with the code

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3274/3028118710_f04d50ffdb.jpg

WOW BIG CODE!!!! And to think i will do that...

I was looking for this topic and some mod change the name(so i didnt see the "you posted here arrow"), which i thank because the zeros problem is what i forgot to add.

maybe a hint for coding keys

maybe add a line under any number s in games ffs

how hard is it to think this crap up?

it took my 8 year old son 3 minutes to think of "yeah don't code using 0 and O's"

marketing counting money instead of worrying about us poor people that buy the games

Here guys, this link may help: http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php?t=61131

Edit: I see Miles beat me to it