I really like mine. Is it Stern's best machine? No. But I like mine and having the two different rulesets depending on which faction you choose is a nice touch. The core gameplay is the same as far as advancing through the game, but the modes are different, and even the MBs are different depending on the faction chosen.
As far as the code change I have heard that too, but from what I know it's not going to be a major update. I also don't think Lyman will have anything to do with it.