Success! Here's the latest: INVESTIGATION
I tried using a Dell-branded Win 8 Pro OEM disc. It installed without asking for any license info (beyond EULA acceptance) or edition. Upon reboot, it was running Windows 8 Home. Upon Internet connection, it activated itself. No need to enter a Product Key. The installed edition matches the license in the hardware, without asking any questions. Out of curiosity, I then tried Christian Korneck's "get_win8key" utility[1], which I found by following the link to Next of Windows[2] that Mr. Stovall provided. It yielded what would appear to be a Product Key. CONCLUSIONS A1. Windows 8 OEM media (at least some of it) will install the edition that matches the license shipped in the hardware with the computer. No Product Key or other magic required to activate. A2. Windows 8 Volume License media will install only the edition that it's advertised as. (Possibly it might be able to change edition post-instal, if you do a "Change Product Key"; I didn't try this.) A3. PCs shipped with Windows 8 embed a Product Key in the firmware. Third-party software can reveal this key, although I don't know if it gets it directly from the firmware, or just by asking the running Windows install. A4. Microsoft sucks. A5. Toshiba sucks. A6. Dell sucks, too[3], but in this case, at least, their OS install media doesn't suck more than it has to. Thanks for the help, all. I hope others find this info useful, too. -- Ben [1] https://github.com/christian-korneck/get_win8key [2] http://www.nextofwindows.com/how-to-retrieve-windows-8-oem-product-key-from-bios/?PageSpeed=noscript [3] "All hardware sucks. All software sucks." (alt.sysadmin.recovery)
