Help with Ultrasharp 2408 Monitor Warranty

All right...I guess I'm in position now to answer my own questions (after a lot of extra research and after talking to 8 to 10 different Dell representatives (from customer care, to sales, to technical support and perhaps a couple of others that I lost track of). 

If you ever receive a Dell monitor as a gift, or if you buy from a reseller, or especially if you receive one as a gift that was bought from a reseller, you must be certain to have in your records the original purchase order number from Dell, along with the address to which the monitor was originally delivered.  (It apparently matters not that the monitor arrives to you new in box if you don't have those details, regardless of source.)  I really don't understand having to know the original address to which the monitor was delivered, but the Dell representatives that I spoke with insisted on it.  Fortunately for me, I was able to track down both of those bits of information, and from that, Dell will honor the warranty. 

I think what bothered me most about this was that if I had not been able to track down the purchase order and the original address to which is was delivered, Dell would have treated the monitor as nothing more than a "used" piece of equipment in my possession with no warranty protection whatsoever.  As a monitor that failed after one year and one week, I'm guessing that "implied warranty" would have been on my side from a legal standpoint...not to mention what Dell should have done as a matter of good faith with their customers and with their own monitors (and the rest of my family and I own many pieces of equipment bought directly from Dell, which is in part why this particular case bothered me so much) 

Despite the fact that the monitor was only a year beyond its manufacture date (the date shown on the tag on the back of the monitor), Dell would not honor the warranty without the purchase order number and address of original delivery.  Personally, I have a hard time reconciling the supposed 3-year warranty on all monitors purchased after 2005 and this policy.  It seems to me that regardless of whose possession the monitor is in, if it has a three year warranty, and the monitor is still within that warranty period, the warranty should be honored.  (Edit:  I have to assume it's a way Dell uses to ensure that a monitor has not been purchased with a system with only a 1-year warranty and then presented back for warranty work after that year is up...but even that forced adherence of the monitor warranty to the system warranty length seems a horrible and terribly customer unfriendly policy.  However, why not build in some tracking of that info based at least in part on the monitor's serial number, which is permanently tied to the monitor regardless of whether it has a "service tag" or traceable purchase order?)

There seem to be no statements in any of the warranty material that I have found that prohibit change of ownership --  or that changes of ownership void the warranty (which they don't).  I don't think it should matter whose possession the monitor is in if it ceases to function within the warranty period....else the statements about the 3-year warranty seem somewhat hypocritical.  Just my opinions, of course, but there sure seem to be plenty of loopholes on Dell's side by which the unwary individual loses warranty protection. 

On the one hand, I am very happy that the monitor will now be replaced.  On the other hand, I am quite frustrated by the painful process (in this particular case) that I had to go through to have the warranty honored. 

On a happy note (and so to give Dell credit where it is due, despite my remaining frustration/displeasure over the way I was forced to deal with getting warranty service), Dell had a refurbished monitor at my door via next day delivery.  Kudos for that part. 

Strangely, I received the monitor via FedEx with enclosed shipping instructions for the old monitor to be returned to Dell via DHL -- but with an enclosed FedEx shipping label (and giving me a disconnected DHL number to call to arrange shipping, forcing me once more into another half hour's worth phone work with Dell to get that straightened out.)  After a rather long hold during which the customer service rep had to figure out what I was really supposed to do about shipping, she finally returned and told me the monitor would be picked up by UPS.  Bizarre.

Mine was also a gift.  I'm pretty sure i have no way of tracking down that info.  I hate you Dell.