InDesignCS2 rejects the serial number provided for CS2 special "no-activation" versions.

Hi, Jeff. Sorry to be so delayed in replying, life does that (heh). Anyway I have successfully re-installed all of CS2 using the files provided and the advice given here. Here is my procedure:

I used the Windows Vista Programs & Features utility to uninstall as much of CS2 as I could, but also had to use the Manually Remove CS2 instructions you linked to above. I did not do the Export All option, only backed up those registry keys I removed per the instructions, but seems as if that was sufficient. The documentation for registry key removal was very specific and useful, though I did not find all the keys listed. I then searched and scoured my drive for any remnants of CS2, found a few folders with preference-specific files which I backed up in case I wanted to use them after re-installation.

I clicked on the first of the downloaded .exe files (CreativeSuiteCS2Disc1.exe), which eventually led to opening the CS2 Install Wizard. This time through I cancelled the installation at this point, because to proceed would duplicate my earlier install attempt that failed. After this extraction finished, I clicked on the second of the downloaded files (CreativeSuiteCS2Disc2.exe) and pointed the extracted files to C:\Creative Suite CS2\Adobe Creative Suite 2.0\ -- this is the location recommended in the note about getting the "Insert Disk 2" message. After closing this extraction I then clicked on the last of the downloaded files (CreativeSuiteCS2Disc3.exe) and extracted the remaining necessary files.

After extracting the files, I then clicked on the Setup.exe file in C:\Creative Suite CS2\Adobe Creative Suite 2.0 and the installation proceeded. Three times during the installation an error message came up stating "The operation cannot continue." due to the failure of program ahc.exe. However this did not seem to actually interrupt the installation, so I used the "Close the program" option in the pop-up dialog. Turns out this error seems to related to some problem with Adobe Reader (I have it fully updated), perhaps because the new Reader version is slightly incompatible with the CS2 installer. In any case, Setup.exe completed and I can now use my CS2 files.

To recap, the main change I made to install process is to not use the Wizard that opens after extracting CreativeSuiteCS2Disc1.exe, point the extraction of CreativeSuiteCS2Disc2.exe to the proper directory (which was created in the extraction of the first archive), and use Setup.exe. This seems to insure that all the components are installed simultaneously and the new S/N is accepted by all.

Also please note that in the PDF posted with the files to be downloaded (CS2_install_Win.pdf), it is recommended that the "Install Later" option be used, to allow full extraction prior to installation. However, this option was not presented to me, which is why I made the changes to the installation process that I did, which extracted everything prior to doing the installation.

I hope this helps others who encounter this issue.