Purchased the game today and down loaded it at work. Burnt' the downloaded files to a DVD and printed out the 2 manuals (IT admin has it's benefits here). 4 hours later I returned home and installed it with no problems.
The install tells me I have 7 total installs remaining. This sort of bothers me... ALOT because I've been mostly a legit gamer for 15 years and I know that this sort of stuff only creates problems for legit purchasers while the pirates just gallop off into the sunset with a crack and don't have to deal with it.
Glad I don't have to have a DVD in the drive to play the game though. As many games that I play, that becomes a real pain too.
As someone else said, many online purchases are safe. Of course this statement is not always true if you do not have responsible internet browsing habits.
I've been flying for about 6 hours and wow... I have a lot to learn. I hope I can find some people to fly with.