So add an option to your configuration screen where people can opt-in to disabling these keys.

yes, I was thinking that would be the best way to handle it.

Giving up a few clock cycles to the API has turned out to be a necessary evil. The alternative just isn't feasible any more.

sad but true.

I think the point of "real" game development is to figure out how to build a game...without a Cray.

I'd say the idea is to build a cool game.

figuring out how to do it without a Cray is the "glory coding" part of it.

well, alt-tab and lost device is in the game now. took a while to find everything in D3DPOOL_DEFAULT, but once I did, it worked fine.

Now it Alt-tab's with the best of 'em! I'd like to thank everyone here for convincing me not to be lazy and to go for the quality implementation.