IMPORTANT: Laptop users with a docking station must activate the software in the undocked state. All users with both wireless and fixed NICs should disable the wireless/NIC temporarily before activating the software and then activate using a wired connection.

1. Open the Blue Marble Desktop. As a default, the License Manager will open on startup to show the status of your Desktop licenses (Figure 1):

Figure 1. The Blue Marble Desktop without a valid license file.

2. If the License Manager is not currently displaying, use the menu bar to select File -> Licensing -> License Manager.

3. In the Geographic Calculator area of the License Manager, click the License Wizard button to start the Geographic Calculator Activation Wizard (Figure 2). Choose "I want to activate the software over the Internet" and click Next.

Figure 2. The Geographic Calculator Activation Wizard.

4. Fill in the required User Information fields (Figure 3) and click Next.

Figure 3. The User Information dialog.

5. Choose from either a full license (if you have already purchased one) or a limited evaluation license (Figure 4) and click Next.

Figure 4. Choose an activation type.

6. Fill in the required order number information for a full license and verify your demographic information before clicking Finish to complete the licensing process (Figure 5).

Figure 5. User Information review dialog.

7. An Internet browser window will open and go to the Blue Marble Geographics licensing website, automatically filling in the information you provided in the preceding steps (Figure 6). Enter your Blue Marble website account password and click Request License.

Figure 6. License Request website.

8. You will receive a license file via e-mail.

Figure 7. Successful License Request.

9. Save the file you receive via e-mail from Blue Marble Geographics to the LIC folder on your local machine, which by default will be as follows:

Windows 2000 or XP:

C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\Blue Marble Geographics\
Blue Marble Desktop\Lic

Figure 8. The GeographicCalculator.lic file, in the correct folder for Windows 2000 and XP systems.

Windows Vista / Windows 7:

C:\ProgramData\Blue Marble Geographics\Blue Marble Desktop\Lic

NOTE: E-mail software often renames incoming files, and the Geographic Calculator will not recognize a license with a name other than GeographicCalculator.lic as being valid. If your saved file has any other name, please rename it to GeographicCalculator.lic after saving it to the correct folder.

10. Open the Geographic Calculator (Figure 9). The License Manager will now display a License Type of 'Evaluation' for an evaluation license or 'Single' for a full license of Geographic Calculator.

Figure 9. Geographic Calculator License.