Too many activations - Please advise

[hakmem]

I frequently format my laptops. After the lastet format, I installed Digital Editions and in the activation process I got the dreaded:

E_ACT_TOO_MANY_ACTIVATIONS http://adeactivate.adobe.com/adept/Activate ...

error message.  I've spent over one (1) hour with Adobe's support staff (Case #0204305157) on the web chat system with no results. My only request is simple:

- Please reset the counter

Somewhere in Adobe there is a counter that keeps track of activations. Activations of my laptop? Of my Adobe-ID? Of a combination of the machine and the Adobe-ID? I do not know. I do know that the counter has reached its maximum and now I cannot activate. I am simply asking for this counter to reset and Adobe's support seems to not understand the question.

So can anybody help me rephrase the question so that they understand what I want and give me a definite answer?

PS: I do not consider Case #0204305157 resolved. Adobe's staff does this after directing me to the Forum.

[Guest]

Support through ADE is not offered via phone or Web Chat support.  It is only offered through submitting a web case (http://www.adobe.com/support/digitaleditions - click on 'Submit a web case').  Avereage resolution time for these cases runs about 3 days.

Note: you have 6 activations (for computers, and then 6 seperate activations for devices) and each time you reformat you lose your activation.