Sure, I also do some retro gaming here and there. But I never had a problem with a copy protection system. Even for all the old games with those manual codes like Wing Commander there are pdf files or complete cracks on retro gaming sites around the web.
The problem with running these games has more to do with my Windows Vista 64 or Windows XP and my new shiny hardware (and the drivers for it) than with any copy protection.
And honestly, these new cp schemes are far more tolerable than some Starforce crap (I look at you Spellforce 2). And yes, you can and should criticize those protection systems. But all these extreme yelling and screaming against it sounds like EA (substitute for hate publisher of the month) is wrapping their games in human skin and forces you to undertake black magic rituals in order to play it.