Hi ScinteX,
You gave me a lot to go on for sure! One thing that I came across quite accidentally was a serial key device driver written for LC Technologies as a replacement for MS skeys. It can be run in user mode and has many advantages over MS skeys.exe. I havent' had an opportunity to try it yet but perhaps it can be of help to others facing this same problem. Download it at http://www.lctinc.com/skeys/index.htm
Cheers,
Dan