I have the original sleeve with the Product Key printed on the back, but due to age (or maybe a printing error back in the day), about four of the characters are smudged and completely unreadable. The installer is asking for the standard (groups of 5 characters), but I can't make out the third set.

There are a few ways to obtain a 25-character product key for AutoCollage 2008:

Since AutoCollage 2008 is legacy software, several modern, actively maintained tools offer similar or superior automated collaging features without activation restrictions:

Microsoft Research AutoCollage 2008 is a discontinued software product that is no longer officially supported, sold, or distributed by Microsoft . Consequently, obtaining a new 25-character product key through official channels is . Current Activation & Key Status

Also, I should mention that there's no official Microsoft Research Autocollage 2008 25-character product key available online. Any such codes found might be invalid or part of spam. There's a risk of malware or phishing if someone downloads from an unofficial site. So, the best course of action is to check the official Microsoft Research site or contact them directly.

The tool identified the "most interesting" or structurally important parts of an image to keep them in focus.

Microsoft officially retired AutoCollage 2008 many years ago. The official Microsoft Store page and the dedicated Microsoft Research download links have been taken down.

: The software prioritizes keeping faces whole and unobstructed, often placing them in prominent central positions.