Let me start by saying thank you for all the advice! (Sorry it to took me ages to respond...) I do understand ASUS point of view of not supporting additional hardware - my issue is not with that... its with not having access to the OS cd's (and if you really want it.... then most ignorant (non tech savvy) people are forced to buy another copy (its the 'buying' again part I don't want to-do). Remember the days when an OS came with a set of CD's when you bought a new machine - joke 🙂 ). Anyway, since I realize the new approach (likely thought out by some guy in Redmond won't change I was at least able to find an ISO on the web and then using the product key below the laptop to get up and running.
Yep, as was indicated you have to make several specific tweaks to increase the life and performance of an SSD in Windows... Was it worth it? ABSOLUTELY! Have I screamed at someone yet? Unfortnelytly not yet. 🙂 I'm also curious, is there some list that says "follows these instructions to get all the bloatware installed"? (some of it e.g. the app that allows you to switch between vivid, multi media (Sorry, I don't recall the exact options anymore - but I think it was part of the control deck) was pretty neat.
Lastly, I do appreciate all the feedback! Thank you. Have a great 2011 (with this type of hardware at this price... you guys have a winning combination).