This looks a bit better:
Steam countdown
I uninstalled Half-Life 2, re-installed it, and Steam started to decrypt the files immediately like it should. I bet it was downloading the game files (as you don’t need to install it from the CD) the last time. Why, I have no idea, because the game was installed already.

[edit] IT’S ALIVE!! ALIVE!! Ok, have a nice time, see you in Easter. :laugh: [/edit]