IF YOU HAVE ANY CONNECTION WITH THE PHOTOGRAPHY, DESIGN, ADVERTISING OR PUBLISHING BUSINESS, I ASK THAT YOU TAKE THE TIME TO READ THROUGH THIS MAGNUM OPUS OF MINE AS I TRULY FEEL IT IS ONE OF THE MORE IMPORTANT THINGS I’VE POSTED SINCE I’VE BEGUN DOING THE BLOG…BRAD TRENT
Last week Adobe announced that, going forward, all of its software products will only be available on a subscription basis. No more perpetual licenses for Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Premiere Pro, or any of the applications that make up the Adobe Creative Suite…from now on, users will have to pay a monthly subscription fee forever if they want to use any of these products!
But before I set off on what might get interpreted as a narcissistic rant, let me make my opinion on Adobe’s decision to move to what they are calling a ‘cloud-based’ subscription only licensing model up front and crystal clear…
As a professional photographer who relies on Photoshop just as much as I rely on the digital cameras that produce my RAW files, I believe having to pay an ongoing monthly fee to use the application is an incredibly shortsighted decision by a company that essentially has the monopoly on digital asset management, and if I may quote David Hobby…the Strobist…”feels like the biggest money grab in the history of software”.
I will also say that the majority of what I’ll be talking about relates to Photoshop, since that’s the World I live in. Whether or not users of Adobe Muse, Dreamweaver, After Effects or any of the other applications in the Adobe Creative Suite find added value in paying the new $50.00 monthly subscription scheme, I have no idea. I’m gonna focus on the concept on what an ongoing $20.00 per month subscription means for photographers…
Adobe announced that by moving to cloud-based subscriptions they will have a better handle on software piracy, be able to better update the application as needed, and cut their development and distribution overhead. I can’t speak to their development costs, but as for software pirates, I’m not so dumb to think that if there is a will, there is a way. You can bet there is already a kid in a basement somewhere with a pretty good idea on how to distribute free “Cloud Copies” of piracy-proof software!
With the “Creative Cloud” being the really big news, it came as almost as an afterthought (perhaps to take your mind off the whole subscription thing???) when Adobe mentioned some new features they’ve added to Photoshop…like the Camera Shake Reduction tool, Smart Sharpen, and that you can now apply Camera Raw edits as filters. But let’s forget about any new features, since new features are why you would have paid for an old-school upgrade to Photoshop anyway. New features are a given. The real controversy is that from now on, you won’t have the ability to move forward incrementally as you see fit. In the past, if Adobe trotted out an upgrade to Photoshop that didn’t fit your workflow, you could just keep using the version you had and wait for the next version before you kicked in your money to be up to date. Adobe obviously didn’t like this. They saw it as a money-losing proposition if users didn’t slavishly continue along the upgrade ladder, paying for the privilege, of course. To counter this trend, they even changed their long-standing upgrade policy so that if you didn’t have Photoshop CS5, you wouldn’t be able to move up to CS6. That pissed off a lot of Photoshop users, but I understood it. I’m not against Adobe being able to charge for upgrades to their software, that’s their right. But apparently that wasn’t enough for Adobe. They have obviously decided that a perpetual subscription licensing model is the only way to continue bringing in a substantial cash flow. Assuming that hobbyists and ‘occasional’ photographers make up the vast majority of Adobe’s customer base, do they really expect these people to happily pay a $20.00 per month licensing fee to continue to use Photoshop? And if you can also assume that they will lose a pretty good percentage of that customer base…the casual Photoshop users, or those who decide to switch to Lightroom or Aperture…what are their plans to recover that lost income? Or maybe they’ve already got that figured out, and that is how they came up with the $20/month pricing plan for the Photoshop-only side to their cloud strategy. Maybe the actuaries have figured that since everyone who uses Photoshop doesn’t march over the upgrade cliff every two years, if they were to install a mandatory payment schedule it would ensure their income stream and they could claim the new plan, while more expensive, is actually better because it ensures a much more up to date Photoshop experience (even if the user doesn’t need the new features).
But let’s look at what they are really proposing…
Adobe claims the new “Creative Cloud” strategy “includes everything you need to experiment like never before”, and will allow you to “track comments posted to shared files, keep tabs on your work and your followers on Behance…”, and they drop buzz words like “Collaborate”, “Grow” and “Change” as though they are candies to be gobbled up by sugar-hungry children. I read this and couldn’t help but wonder if they have lost track of what a professional photographers work flow is REALLY like?!! Professional photographers aren’t looking to pay a $50/month license fee to ‘experiment’ with Illustrator, Premiere Pro or Dreamweaver! Professional photographers don’t use Photoshop as a social media tool. We don’t finish off an assignment by hitting the ‘Send’ button so our work posts in real-time on ‘Behance’ (which, in case you missed that press release, is owned by Adobe!). Professional photographers shoot, process, archive and retouch images in Photoshop. We send those images to our clients. And then it’s on to the next gig where we do it all again. I dare say that the overwhelming majority of professional photographers don’t waste too much time worrying about how Photoshop might aid them in ‘sharing’ their assignments on social media sites.
As for the “Creative Cloud” itself, it’s not actually a typical cloud service either. It’s simply an electronic distribution method of getting software to the end user. OK…there are some very minimal cloud services included…cloud file storage, syncing of settings, etc…but electronic distribution of software is hardly a new concept for Adobe. They’ve been selling upgrades for years using this technology. You will still have an actual application on your hard drive, but it will have to ‘call home’ to Adobe every month (or every 99 days for those who pay up front for a yearly subscription) in order to continue to function. What Adobe seems to think makes their cloud more desirable is their ability to issue more frequent updates and patches. In the past they have made patches available as needed and the version upgrades available every 1 to 2 years. With the cloud these feature upgrades can theoretically be added as they are developed. I suppose that is a plus, but again, there are huge chunks of Photoshop I don’t use or need now, so dropping even more features on most users isn’t going to be a make or break decision for most people anyway.
But let’s get to the two awfully huge elephants in the room…the pricing and what happens if you stop paying! After reading Adobe’s claims that the new pricing scheme has an arguably lower annual cost, I guess we’re supposed to all join hands and sing the Adobe Theme Song and be happy for the windfall that has been bestowed upon us. Personally, I don’t believe that paying $240.00 annually to rent a software program adds any value to my business model, but that would be narcissistic, and I’m trying hard not to make this all about me. Adobe is making it abundantly clear that they intend to employ this model to increase a revenue stream they feel they have lost because of those users who don’t upgrade on a regular schedule. We can’t keep going back and forth on that point. However, there is no mention from Adobe what happens after you lose the use of the software once you stop paying. How does a long-time user of an Adobe product access their files if they have stopped paying for a use license? And alternatively, what about your clients who may not have a subscription to Adobe? I guess they will not be able to view your work, unless of course, they decide to pay Adobe for the privilege. I have no issue with a company wanting to profit from their product. Adobe deserves to be paid for their marketing and R&D when it comes to all of their software, but under the old model if you stopped paying for upgrades to the new version, Adobe didn’t take away your software license on your old version! Stopping an upgrade cycle didn’t mean you couldn’t open a file you processed fifteen years ago! And believe me, if you get on the Adobe subscription licensing model train, if you get off that’s exactly what will happen with all of your work. It will become useless digital trash. The only way to continue to access your work is to keep paying the subscription license. And that is just wrong.
With this new decision to implement a subscription only licensing model, Adobe is in fact trying to change they way software licenses as we know it work. But is there something so totally broken with the idea of paying an initial fee for the license and then paying a scheduled upgrade/maintenance charge? As long as the user pays the maintenance charge, you continue to get the upgrades. If you stop paying the maintenance, you lose access to NEW upgrades, but your software will still function as you expected it would when you signed on. And I have nothing wrong with the idea that if the user stops paying the maintenance fee for a certain period, the user would then have to start over and re-purchase the base license if they want to continue along the upgrade path. I just had to do this when I moved from FileMaker version 5 up to version 12. I hadn’t the need or the want to pay for annual upgrade over the years, since I saw no added value…FOR MY PURPOSES…but when version 12 came out that changed. Since I had long since fallen out of the scheduled upgrade track, I had to repurchase a full version of the new software. That is a business decision best left to the consumer. What the vast majority of Photoshop users have been complaining about over the past few days is that Adobe has removed ALL choice in the software buying process, while reducing the value of the software for certain segments of their customer base…and increasing it for others. They seem willing to lose a large portion of their base clients…those hobbyists and ‘occasional’ photographers who don’t regularly stay on the upgrade path…and to make up that lost income it appears that the rest of the users will now and forever have to pay an ongoing fee to rent their product.
But perhaps the real reason Adobe is so hot to lock in a subscription-based scheme is because even they know there are only so many filters and gizmos they can add to ANY program before the end user reaches a saturation point and doesn’t see a cost benefit to upgrade! A new sharpening widget here or layering tool there every year isn’t gonna be enough to make most users feel the need to push $200.00 Adobe’s way, so before they ran out of ideas of ways to improve the software, they might have figured out this entire plan. And they don’t really have a compelling incentive to continue developing new tricks if their users are forced to pay FOREVER for a subscription just to ensure continued access to the files they’ve created with their software, do they?!!
These are only a few of the things that I really think need to be talked about. Adobe is, of course, making their “Creative Cloud” strategy sound like a wonderfully happy place and we should all bow down and thank them for thinking of us, the end-user, when they came up with this solution. But I’m sorry, but I can’t help but see this as a solution to a nonexistent problem! And I’m hardly the only person saying this. The outcry online has been thunderous. Just about every techie geek board on the interwebs has been filled with mostly negative comments. And these are aren’t the typical, “This Sucks, Man!” stuff…no, instead, thousands upon thousands of regular users of Adobe software are voicing their outrage in very clear terms. And if you’ve made it all the way through my own diatribe, I urge you to also make your voice heard. An online petition is sitting on www.change.org that demands Adobe to kill this ridiculous scheme and offer it’s customers what we expect…choice!!! Please check it out and add your name. There is also a new petition over at www.petitions.whitehouse.gov calling for a DOJ investigation on the legality of Adobe’s move, and it can’t hurt to put your name on that one, too. And if you have the ear of your Adobe rep, or even the guys at your local camera store, digital outlet or rental shop, make your opinion known. This is not going to go away without a significant groundswell that will be heard in the boardroom at Adobe.
Please sign these petitions I’ve linked to below in an effort to stop Adobe from moving forward with their new scheme for Subscription-only access to their software:
Damn Ugly Photography 
Bulll shit!!!! The majority of artists using photoshop can’t afford this. So stupid.
Sent from outer space
http://www.birdcallmusic.com
I am what you would consider an advanced amateur and simply cannot afford Photoshop any longer. I was working with a version of CS2 until I upgraded to a 64-bit system on which CS2 cannot be installed, which is another rant on its own. It is that point that I decided to give GIMP a try when I needed a little bit more functionality, such as text layers, than Lightroom 4 would allow me.
I cannot afford the upgrade with my limited sessions per year and if that puts me at a disadvantage, I guess I will just add it to the list, suck it up, and happily produce my work outside of Likeroom 4 in GIMP, each successful edit like a satisfying slap in Adobe’s face.
As you said, Brad, I’m not sure what I will do once they try this BS with Lightroom. It’s just too damn good and I cannot imagine going back to camera raw.
signed. : ) Go get ’em Brad.
Sorry to be the voice of the other side, but I love the cloud idea. I think it is nearly as good as sliced bread. The increased ability to work on files, create new items and form more collaborative methods of working is more than intriguing to me – it is my world.
Yes, I am not a normal Photoshop user… I use InDesign, Photoshop, Dreamweaver, Acrobat Pro, Premiere, Audition and the Adobe Type library on a daily basis. So take what I say with that in mind.
What does not appeal to me is the misinformation. CC is indeed a cloud – and files can be stored there straight from the programs mentioned. The working tools are local (of course) but the files can indeed be stored on an ample amount of storage supplied by Adobe.
I know there are also a fair amount of folks who purchase their Photoshops off Ebay with a KeyGen… and while that is not everyone, it is a significant amount. Let’s bitch slap those folks as we move forward, as they are guilty as hell of forcing software to this point.
As to the petitions… fine with the former, but I am not ever gonna want the government telling people they have to do what the customer wants as regards to IP. Is that really what you want?
I am used to the model Adobe is proposing. I am a professional photographer. My work is licensed, never purchased outright for commercial use.
The software that is purchased and put on a machine is also licensed and not owned by the user. You cannot sell a computer with your licensed Pshop on it. Illegal.
The way that it will be going forward will be this model. I am sorry you don’t agree with it Brad.
But I wouldn’t want it any other way.
Don…I know there are a lotta guys who feel exactly as you do, but ignore everything I wrote and simply focus on the issue of what becomes to your life’s work once you stop paying a license fee for Adobe software. What then? You’re not a young guy…neither am I. Are we to continue paying a monthly fee into our Golden Years just to be able to view what we did during our working life? I understand licensed use, but in the past, not deciding to upgrade a piece of software didn’t shut off the copy I had been using LEGALLY until I decided to stop moving forward. And as for whether it’s a real ‘cloud’ or not, once again, the vast majority of working photographers don’t work in a world where access and sharing over multiple platforms is part of the regular workflow. I can certainly see where in some instances, it might me a good thing to have, but it’s hardly on the top of most photographers wish lists….BT
I predict that more software companies are going to look at this type of method for selling software in the future. The reason is because a lot of programs have gotten good enough that upgrading is no longer a necessity. As someone who started back on pre-layer versions of Photoshop, this was when patches, updates and upgrades were released, they were essential because they unleased big features or actually fixed major problems with the software. There aren’t as many bug fixes as there used to be.
Microsoft hit the “upgrade simply for the sake of upgrading” wall back with Office 98. It was a great office suite, and honestly it worked. That was great for businesses, but not for Microsoft when they released a newer version and people felt no need to upgrade. Newer versions of Windows fixed that problem.
Sort of sounds like your Filemaker experience.
In the Mac world, Apple has been decent with keeping OS-X pretty similar on version upgrades and the pain to consumers low. Microsoft has not with Vista, Windows 7 & Windows 8, where each version practicallly forces you to buy a new computer, and the new operating system forces you to upgrade your programs.
So with Adobe, this is a way to make sure people stop skipping upgrades. Around CS2 it got pretty good, and it was easier to delay upgrading if the new features weren’t needed. I’m sure a lot of photographers feel that way with CS6. That’s where the idea of not moving to the creative cloud makes some sense.
Of course the concept of Adobe holding us hostage with PSD files in the future is somewhat of a mute point. It’s unlikely CS6 would run on a computer 20 years from now. In the event you stopped using Photoshop for a bunch of years and wanted to go back and open PSD files, the monthly subscription option would be nice if you only needed to convert PSD files and could just purchase a subscription for 1 month.
This really only hurts the person who likes to mostly stay current, but skip (or delay) upgrades if they choose.
Gimp is all right! It works. (Its is actually pretty decent) It is free! Some of the plug-ins are excellent. Where do you think Adobe got the “inspiration” for content-aware? It was in GIMP way before it was “a feature” in Photoshop. http://www.gimp.org/ Gimp is finally able to use 16 bit images! (yea!) Open source software works (think Firefox) and GIMP now has additional energy behind it.
Pixelmator and Apeture are looking pretty good right now.
Chris brings up a good point. The later versions of Photoshop require faster hardware to run on. So what happens when Adobe gets to the point in their upgrades where only a computer with X amount of RAM or a certain spec’d video card will run the latest upgrade of the program? Under the current system I know my version of Photoshop will run on my computer. But I don’t want to be forced into upgrading hardware just to get the “free” software updates.
I am less concerned about opening old files many years into the future. I am sure that by that time there will be other RAW Converters and software to handle the task. In fact, this may be the opportunity for another competitor (Google?, Phase One?) to move in on Adobe’s territory. It should be noted that all current versions of the program will still work in the future. However, you just won’t get any updates. The only thing that concerns me about this is Camera RAW. What happens 5 years from now when I get a new Canon 6D Mark V and my current ACR won’t support it? That’s when they have ya.
I don’t buy the argument that someone who paid $700 for the latest version of Photoshop can’t afford $20/month, especially if they are a professional. That amount seems trivial in today’s world. How much did your last gasoline fill-up cost ya? Also, it is my understanding that if you have a current valid license (CS5 or CS6) the cost drops to only $10/month for the first year at least. I can forgo one meal per month at McDonald’s to satisfy my Photoshop craving.
One issue that does concern me is that the monthly fee is actually part of a one-year subscription, and if you cancel early you will be charged half the amount of the remaining months that you don’t use. That hardly seems fair, but I guess they do this to discourage people from just subscribing every other month or so.
Overall, I am with Donald in that I believe the good in the CC outweighs the bad.
Without getting too detailed, here’s the main issue I have with what you said:
“…I am less concerned about opening old files many years into the future. I am sure that by that time there will be other RAW Converters and software to handle the task…..”
The RAW conversion aspect is hardly what I’m talking about! Exactly what I am gonna do with those tens of thousands of retouched TIFFs I have worked on if I stop paying Adobe to access Photoshop?!! Again, my workflow isn’t a drag & drop process…I typically have extensive alterations done to my images, not just a levels tweek or a color correction. That’s why Photoshop is the only thing I use. I’m sure there are a lot of photographers who live very happily with Lightroom, or Aperture, or GIMP…I’m not one of them, and neither are the majority of professional photographers in the business. And what about digital retouching houses? Everything is done in Photoshop, so assuming the CC is the way of the future, and the end product you received from your retoucher is a layered TIFF, the only thing that will open them is Photoshop. Taking a rather giant leap of faith that in time, Adobe will open the application code to other software developers so that you can open all those Adobe coded files with a third-party software is nothing I want to rely on. And by the way…I’m really getting sick of people saying that since I’m a professional, I should be able to handle the $20 monthly charge. Again…since I’m currently paying far less than that to upgrade every couple of years, and since I have no way of knowing what Adobe can cram into an already super-bloated program in the next 20 years of so, I see no added value to have Adobe reach into my pocket every month for a tax to use a program I’ve been paying for over the past 15 years!
Bret and Chris point out to argument that a professional would not mind paying $20 a month for latest PS. In their opinions, ‘good outweighs the bad’. I will not try to deride or argue with their logic, but just try to present a different scenario they have not thought about.
You guys are professionals, and by that i hope you can easily absorb the costs as business expenditure. And that includes not only subscribing the PS, but also constant up gradation to hardware to take advantage of the latest updates which Adobe throw on you.
But what about amateurs/hobbyist who are not earning from photography and are also not students who can get discounted rates (i certainly hope they cut some slack for students). I am a ‘once/twice in a month weekend’ photographer who looks to develop my skill and not make it into a business.
From what i gather, we have to pay for something we may not make money of it, nor something we use extensively like professionals or students. I am happy with old CS version i have right now but soon i wont have any option but to rent. Adobe is kind of letting this segment of consumers hang dry. The message i get is that PS is only for professionals or students who want to become professionals and is limited to the time they remain professionals unless you want to pay monthly premium for it.
For us amateurs, I hope Aperture and Phase One step in to burst this Adobe bubble.
And when Adobe in the future closes down (and they will at some point – don’t tell me that software companies like this last forever), then what? I don’t buy into this cloud thing at all. What I pay for is mine. That’s also why I won’t go into services like Spotify. I buy my music digitally and store it digitally. Should I loose close to 8.400 pieces of music (or a perfectly crafted play list with the same amount of songs) in one blow just because a company goes down? Or be forced to pay $8.300 for the privilege to keep them afterwards? Never. Same goes for software. I pay, I own. Period.
Totally agree!
I have a major issue with this business model. I’m currently an active duty U.S. Marine deployed a combat photographer in Afghanistan. Our entire occupational field (photography, video, and reproduction) uses Adobe CS on standalone equipment. Equipment that we can’t connect to the internet we’re given. Ever. We’re not permitted. It’s a government network, you can’t just go plugging computers into it. How exactly are we supposed to work that way in a deployed environment? How am I supposed to renew a software subscription in the middle of the desert? Sure we can buy a yearly subscription – but I have to renew after 99 days? I’m out here for a year. I just stop working when my software shuts off?
As an occ. field, I literally have no idea what we’re going to do when this happens. I don’t know of any service that doesn’t use Adobe CS for their media work.
How is this even going to factor into our defense budget? Is it going to be one DoD-wide subscription? Service-wide? My supply chain won’t even buy us paper for our plotter right now – does each individual supply unit have to subscribe?
This is a mess for us.
If they charged less and automatically registered all my imagery with the copyright office I MIGHT think about it.
BT, the solution to your problem about opening old files is simple. Just keep your current copy of Photoshop. It will still work.
Also, Massimo is incorrect. You never own Adobe software, you license it.
Mihir asks about the hobbyist or occasional user. Two words: Photoshop Elements.
Bret…unless I buy a new computer and use it ONLY for Photoshop, and don’t EVER upgrade it or hook it up to the interwebs, that’s about the only way I can guarantee that CS6 will still be running in 20 years. And even that assumes the computer doesn’t die for some other reason. I would bet that if you try to install CS6 on a new computer in 6-7 years, it probably won’t work. Hell…5 years in computer hardware terms is an eternity! Operating systems, processors, and source codes continually evolve. I can’t use the original CS1 on any of my computers now, so what makes you think CS6 will be any different in decade? BT
Sure Bret, I license it, but I still own the license to a product which is not bound to a virtual lease. I can take my copy and my license and install it at my will with no particular strings attached – even though, as BT says, the chances in this case are slim for me being able to do so indefinitely, without upgrading or somehow moving along…
BT, you seem to be making the case FOR the CC and not against it. With the CC you will get free automatic upgrades instead of having to pay for expensive upgrades every year or two.
As you say, no program is guaranteed to work 5 years from now. So won’t it be nice to always have the latest version automatically? When I got CS5 I had to buy a whole new computer to run it. That cost me a lot more than $20/month.
Under the current system one would have to buy CS6 for $700 or so and then spend another couple of hundred upgrading in two years. That’s 900 bucks after only a few years. With the CC you only spend $20/month (or less). That’s almost 4 years of use for the same money with the added advantages of cloud storage, Behance, and the ability to use your program on multiple computers. Plus, you will always be running the most current version. Add in the $10 Adobe Touch app and I can even edit on the iPad.
I am currently still using CS5 because I can’t justify the upgrade price.to CS6. But eventually I will move to the cloud. I know I can afford the $10/month that it will cost me (for the first year) as a current registered user.
Bret…I’m not for the CC in any way, shape or form. And your math is suspect for a million reasons that have already been rehashed to death. My number one reason for opposing this thing is simply to give the users a choice as to when they can get off the Adobe tit and still be able to use the software that they have produced their entire life’s work with! BT
This is a tough one, I can see both sides of the argument and that makes it the more confusing. I have been using CS2 for years and never found any need to upgrade. With a few extra filters like Alien Skin etc. and stand alones like DxO labs I can run that side of my graphic design business nice and dandy. I can’t see how mega photographic talents feel without the latest goodies from Adobe their doooomed. To stay in business I had to constantly search for new medias like video, animation and the like and that meant constantly learning new software. In addition I tried to learn as much as I could about my clients business just to hang in there. The constant battle with upgrades hardware and software is something I just learned to live with, like paying taxes. My five cents worth of advise: Adobe, in cahoots with Apple and MS, will do whatever the hell they like and there is diddley squat you can do about it. CC is not for me for some of the same reasons Brad mentions, but also I like to run my own show and nobody sticks their nose into it as long as I’m doing it. Why on earth would anyone compromise on that, having taken all the risks to do stay independent. For future archiving and accessing your life’s work, solutions can be found that I’m sure of (almost). As for now buy time, hang on to your last Adobe upgrades, get a $700.- tower for future use with Win.7 or Mac (if you wan’t to pay double), 10 ram, 1GB, videocard and i7 processor and you will be safe for the next 10 years without loosing your business…. After that……. you figure out a way, eh.
Tom, Calgary
I completely disagree with this new business model… A little like being turned off the movie industry when you get anti piracy adds on movies you paid to see in a theatre…
I respect the passion of those who oppose this move even if I don’t agree with all the sentiments behind them. Thanks to BT for letting us hash it out on his blog.
One analogy I came up with is buying an automobile vs. leasing. Some people prefer to own while others prefer to lease. Now, Adobe has said that you must lease and you cannot own, unless you keep your old car.
With all the backlash against Adobe I am confident they will revise the pricing of their plan, but will not abandon it. It is simply too expensive for them to support multiple versions of software and print all the discs and the packaging that goes with it. One suggestion I would give them is to make it less expensive the longer you subscribe. So maybe $50/month for the complete CC the first year and $10 less each succeeding year. After 5 years you’re good for life. What do you folks think about that idea? Not very realistic, I’ll admit, but perhaps they could level it off at $10-$20/month for the whole CC suite.
There is certain misconception and unnecessary paranoia that I would like to address.
Stopping subscription does not mean that you’ve lost your work or that the file has become trash. Keep in mind that the ultimate use of Adobe’s software is for the product. For Photoshop, it’s the jpeg file. For Premiere pro, it’s the mpeg4 file. For Dreamweaver, it is the website. All these jpeg files, mpeg4 files, websites will all be still there and accessible. What you can’t access without the subscription is the “working files”, i.e. RAW, .psd etc. And the “working files” are really all still there, still yours and definitely still usable. Send them to someone with the subscription and it can be edited. Renew your subscription and it can be edited.
One of the characteristics of the CC model is for businesses that experiences a cycle in the usage intensity of Adobe products. For example, a film may use the products for January to October. It stops subscription for November and December, and when it resumes operation in January the next year, all it’s previous work will be accessible and editable again. Stopping subscription will not make all your work trash.
A second thing that I would like to voice out about is the albatross of “forever”. Using the word forever to describe the continual payment model gives a sense of burden and being shackled down that is not always justified.
Firstly, a continual payment model does not mean that the product will be more expensive. As an extreme example, just for the sake of the concept, what if Adobe charges $1 per month for the CC. If you’ll live 100 years more, the cost will be $1200 for a lifetime. I know this way of saying is taking to the extreme and not really applicable but my point is, depending on the amount, continuous payment need not be costly and can in fact even be cheaper.
There’s a mention about the majority of the Photoshop users. I’m not sure about you or whom is defined as the majority of the Photoshop users, but mainstream wise, people do change their computers every 5-6 years. In the old model, licensing of Photoshop is applicable to only 1 computer. If a user wants to buy a new computer and use Photoshop, he has to buy another license. It’s not about updates and new features anymore, but the actual ability to use Photoshop in the new computer. With the CC pay as you use model, the user need not worry about the huge investment of Photoshop that becomes useless when he stops using the old computer.
James, under the current model the license gives you the ability to use PS on two computers. If you buy a new computer you can deactivate the PS installation on your old machine and reactivate it on the new one. At least that’s how it used to work.
To those who wrote in favor of the cloud, nobody here is saying that a cloud version should not exist, what we are saying is that it should be a choice,.
As for the fact that working files psd and tiff will always be accessible……are you sure? Adobe possesses the patent for both, sure other progs can open them but always with some limitations and suggesting that I should send my files to someone with an active subscription is outright ridiculous .
The piracy issue is a non issue at all even the Adobe people admit that it will not solve the problem!
Then the other argument Lightroom will alway be there as a perpetual license…….will it? what happens in 2-3-4 years (the foreseeable future as they put it) an it too goes the CC way, what will I do with all the catalogs that I spent thousands of hours building?
Personally I lost all my trust in Adobe and looking at Capture one, I’ll make the switch no mater what happens with CC finding a substitute for Photoshop unfortunately will be a lot harder I’ll stick with CS6 and I hope by the time it becomes obsolete there will be a viable alternative
True. Like Sandro says, it’s not that the idea with the cloud is bad, it’s the lack of choice and flexibility that is the problem. Adobe could set the price levels according to use. For instance, if I only use Photoshop and InDesign, I could pay a less amount, perhaps with an option for a reduction in price if I committed myself to use the service x number of years in advance (and then not be forced to re-register before the period runs out). Just like magazines.
As a hobbyist, this will probably make me milk my existing Photoshop subscription as long as possible and then perhaps cause me to drop down to a consumer version whenever the need arises. I think this move will be unavoidable for current users as the alternatives to Photoshop are not attractive, especially when you consider the learning curve and time required to change a workflow that has been in place for years. The nice thing about the old model was that it allowed for some price discrimination. A hobbyist could buy a license and then skip 1-2 versions before upgrading while a pro who perhaps valued faster workflow or new features would upgrade more regularly. Making the hobbyist pay the same as the pro will likely cause a decline in total users. It is just hard to say how many users are casual versus professional users (guessing the pros far outnumber the casual). The company could have put in stronger piracy controls (calling home for verification) without moving to a subscription model.
A blurb from a Goldman Sachs research report on the subject:
With the announced update of Adobe’s flagship content authoring tools
Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign the company rebranded them Creative
Cloud instead of Creative Suite and stated that the new editions would
only be available on a subscription basis. Further, the company stated that
going forward all new features for these apps would also only be available
with the subscription offering. Adobe will continue to sell and support
CS6. While our conversations with Max attendees indicate that most found
the timing of the move surprising, we view it as likely accelerating
adoption of Adobe’s subscription offering. We believe the lack of viable
alternatives to the Creative Cloud apps along with the productivity
enhancements in the new editions will drive the majority of CS users that
are ready to upgrade to migrate to Creative Cloud despite what will likely
be a vocal but small backlash.
Here is a blurb from a Piper Jaffray research report:
• Adobe MAX Survey Summary. We attended the recent Adobe MAX customer
conference on 5/6. At the event we spoke with 54 creative pros regarding usage patterns
and product upgrade plans. We compare the results of this survey to 15 other surveys
of over 900 Adobe users that we have conducted over the last several years.
• Interest in Creative Cloud Subscription Increasing Among Creative Professionals. In
our survey, 41% of respondents indicated that they subscribe to an Adobe service. We
asked Adobe users if they anticipate subscribing to Creative Cloud (in next 12 months)
and 87% said “yes” (details on pg 2). As of 5/6, Adobe indicated having >500k paid
Creative Cloud subscribers.
• Creative Headcount On The Rise. Not surprisingly, given the solid continued growth
of online ad spend and broader improvements in the macro environment, Adobe
customers we spoke with indicated that headcount is generally expected to trend
higher in the coming 6 months. 31% suggested their organization is hiring creative
pros, while 50% expect headcount will be stable in the next 6 months.
There are not so many photographers who earn from their business, and that does not mean they are bad photographers. Perhaps contrary. To have a bunch of programs on subscription basis is expensive on long run. All thing with psd files sound ridiculous to me. It looks like pressure to make me to pay till the end of my life. Other thing is that maybe Adobe is forced to do what it is doing.
Bret, thanks for the input. I’ve only used Photoshop on 1 computer at a time and always chose to get a new one with a new computer so I’m not aware of that.
Sandro and Gali, that’s what I tried to point out. .psd files are working files and not exactly what you produce with Photoshop. What you produce with Photoshop are the jpeg files which will be free for you to view and distribute. Unless you plan to keep on editing your RAW files, there’s no need for Photoshop to keep accessing .psd. I was also not suggesting sending the .psd files to someone with subscription to access it with you don’t have subscription. What I tried to point out was that the file itself did not become trash and someone with subscription can actually use it.
“….psd files are working files and not exactly what you produce with Photoshop…”
Huh?!! PSD files are exactly what Photoshop makes…and TIFFs….and JPEGs, too. The problem with Adobe’s subscription plan is that if you make LAYERED PSD or TIFF files, you must have Photoshop to open and edit them. BT
BT said, “unless I buy a new computer and use it ONLY for Photoshop, and don’t EVER upgrade it or hook it up to the interwebs, that’s about the only way I can guarantee that CS6 will still be running in 20 years.”
I would challenge you to name one piece of software that you are currently using that is 20 years old.
How about 10 years old? So why would you expect CS6 to last that long?
I have plenty of 20 year old hardware and software that won’t work with my modern computer. Should I complain that I can’t read my 5.25″ or 3.5″ floppies? It seems like you are making an argument FOR the CC rather than against it. Hopefully, we will no longer have to upgrade our computers whenever a new update comes out, but I agree that Adobe is unclear about how that will work in the future.
Bret, you are obviously missing the point I was making. One of the #1 things people are saying again and again is that they won’t move to the Cloud, but instead will just stick with CS6. I’m saying that you CAN’T simply stick your head in the sand and use a program that will get shut down simply because operating system upgrades, hardware upgrades and hardware failures will prevent that. That is not making Adobe’s case. That is pointing out that Adobe is FORCING it’s users to move to a program THEY think solves a problem nobody else seems to see!
You seem to be an already converted fan of the Cloud…good for you…but you’ll have to excuse me if your arguments aren’t winning me over. I’m gonna keep banging the drum against this thing as long as I can. If it has no effect then fine, I will likely have to join the Cloud and suck on Adobe’s tit for the rest of my life. Unwillingly. BT
@BT — “Huh?!! PSD files are exactly what Photoshop makes…and TIFFs….and JPEGs, too. The problem with Adobe’s subscription plan is that if you make LAYERED PSD or TIFF files, you must have Photoshop to open and edit them.”
Perhaps James Leeds is puzzled that you don’t acknowledge flattened TIFF as a lossless, public domain, archival format which does not require Photoshop.
My creative perspective on the Adobe CC controversy:
My initial reaction to Adobe’s announcement was disbelief. I’ve thought it over and come to some conclusions –
1. The CC has a “gotcha” that I haven’t seen comment on. You are only able to delay upgrading versions for a year. This means that Adobe will force you to upgrade. Let’s say the next upgrade requires a new OS or is a complete resource hog. Subscription to the CC has now forced an OS or hardware upgrade – even if that doesn’t suit your cash-flow. Upgrading the operating system usually means other software will have compatibility issues so that you’re either forced to ditch that software, upgrade it or abandon Adobe.
In my case, Photoshop is very small beer compared with other licenses I own. Any guesses on which way I’ll jump?
2. Camera manufacturers – Canon in particular – are going to have to get their raw files onto a reasonable standard. If they don’t do this pdq, sales of mid-level new camera models will plummet. I expect there will also be a hit when the amateur market using professional cameras come to upgrade. Fujifilm will also take a significant hit.
3. Even if the perpetual software roundabout went away….
As a licensed user, I already have a right to use all of Ps CS6 software perpetually. It seems reasonable that I should only have to pay for upgrades to the code and keeping the software functional on the next OS that comes along. I should not be expected to pay again and again for a license that I already own.
In the finite element world, maintenance and upgrades typically run at 15% p.a. Let’s say Adobe is similarly expensive, maintenance and upgrading of my CS6 functionality in perpetuity should cost about 15% of $700 p.a. – say $8.75 per month BUT IT MUST COME WITH A PERPETUAL LICENCE. If I choose to bail, I keep the licence, I don’t lose my capability and this keeps the developers honest.
I’d – grudgingly – pay 15% p.a. maintenance to Adobe if it came with the perpetual licence….
If not, I don’t see me paying $1.
Here is a cool list of good software online:
http://forums.cgsociety.org/showpost.php?p=7591918&postcount=21
BT, indeed, Photoshop makes .psd files, but are these the files representative of your work as a photographer? As a photographer, I believe what we ultimately want is the ‘picture’, which is in jpeg or which other open formats. .Psd files are the files that you work on to get that picture. I’m just trying to say that even if you can’t open your .psd files, your lifetime of work is not taken away from you, if you have the final product as a jpeg. I believe that once you get the result desired, no one will still need to perpetually access the .psd files to edit it.
Well, I would like to think that after I’m long gone, whomever is sitting on the archive of my life’s work might be able to access it the way I intended, and if that is via a layered TIFF or PSD file, so be it! The work of Ansel Adams, Richard Avedon and Irving Penn will still be able to be printed the way they intended, because their printers can use their darkroom notes and test prints as a guide, much in the way a digital tech can look into my layers and see what I intended my images to look like. BT
BT, well I would think that the way you intended your work is already preserved as a jpeg. The merits of digital photography is that the same file can be easily transferred and copied so the way you intend it is preserved and not subjected to variations during developing, like film photography of the past. You would actually want to pass down the working files if you want whomever accessing it to change the way you intend it to be, which is fine if that’s actually the stance you intend to take.
In the past, during my 20 years of design, I never find the right time to pay the 1000 bucks of PS or the 2-3000 bucks of the whole Creative Suite, knowing that every year I then would have to pay hundreds of bucks for upgrades. The only alternative was working for someone else, in his studio, or – let’s admit it – something unlegal.
When the CC came out last year I subscribed it immediately and I’m happily using it since then. Me and all the people I work with actually.
Since the CC arrival we are all happy regulars, up to date with last software versions and we can work flawlessly and rapidly, never missing a hit!
And even better the small amount I pay monthly is a work cost that goes in my budget and helps me reducing my taxes.
I really, really can’t understand all this harsh critics to Adobe cloud.
I pay almost 130$ each month for the services I use: my webserver, my adobe apps, my huge collection of music (spotify), my sync and teamwork solution (dropbox), my infinite backup (backblaze) and a constant flow of tutorials with Tuts+. And I’m extremely happy. All of this, after almost 20 years of design and 30 years working with computers, makes me part of a new shining era where I can discover new music each day (instead of paying money for music I get tired of in a few weeks), never worry for my backups (instead of buying very expensive hard drives every few months, each one the cost of a whole year of dropbox and backblaze, and always forgetting where I put that file) and occasionally find out that the new app from Adobe is already mine and I just have to download it and start using it and invoicing my clients for my work.
Wow! That’s a creative paradise!
If I make some calculations, I exchanged an expense of 6000$ dollars every year in HDs, CDs, Apps and manuals for about 1500$ yearly in goods that doesn’t collect dust or have to be moved when I change home.
Talking about photographers, I think that what happened is that many of them, one day of some years ago, stopped paying hundreds of dollars each month for films and development (which they paid without ever lamenting!) and after that day they thought they could work without fix costs, or even better, without investing a dime (apart from spending 10K$s on a camera, but they did it even before the digital revolution).
It’s the only reason I see for so many people being so upset: money flow. But working without costs is not possible, not at all. The only choice we have is where to put our money.
Working is basically spending money to make more money, so if you drop PS and Adobe your money will just go somewhere else. Where exactly?
Easy, in the time you’ll loose to make other software behave exactly like the incredibly good Photoshop and, even worse, in convincing your clients that the work you’re delivering is good enough for them even if it’s not good at all.
I don’t want to be misunderstand, regarding the last phrase, your work will not be good because you’ll be using tools that are not enough for the task.
Adobe is actually setting the standards and using GIMP or Pixelmator, even if they’re extremely good products, will put you some step behind.
Just consider the new antishake feature. Do you think that in 6 months any well informed client will accept a blurred image? They’ll ask you why you didn’t use that PS antishake function and correct it, not knowing that you are one of those who prefer to save 50$ a month than giving your client the best possible service…
Enrich, it’s not just about the money. Read many of the posts here and other forums and you will quickly find out why many people don’t like or support the creative cloud.
If you feel that Adobe is the only company that has or can make good software, then clearly you are not familiar with other good software available. If you like Adobe software personally, that’s OK, but to say that creatives can’t produce good professional work without Adobe software, that is a very naive comment. Software does not determine good work – experience, creativity, and hard work determines that.
Also, keep in mind that there is no guarantee that the monthly cost of the creative cloud subscriptions will stay at the same price. It will go up.
Actually, word on the street is that Adobe is considering dropping the price of the CC, at least initially.
Bret, the magic words are “at least initially”. Adobe is desperate and will do anything to get people to subscribe to the forced cloud. They know that once they get you, you will be stuck with monthly payments forever. Once some time goes by, they will bring the prices up. Much higher prices. What will you do then?
I would rather stay with CS6 for now or better yet, switch to other non-Adobe software.
Take a look at this poll:
http://www.toolfarm.com/blog/entry/poll_how_do_you_feel_about_adobe_software_moving_into_the_cloud1
Another thing they are considering is giving the subscriber the legacy software after three years or so. That would satisfy much of the worries that you and others have expressed.
The new features of the cloud are out now so I bit the bullet and signed up last night. Photoshop CC has a lot of new cool features that I look forward to using. I’ve already tried a few of them. I don’t know what features that AE and Premiere have for the video users although the SpeedGrade thing looks pretty cool.
So far my biggest gripe has been the lack of documentation. Adobe has never been the best at describing “how to” use their software so I guess I’ll be doing some research online and watching a lot of videos.
A lot of people today on the Adobe forum and other forums are already complaining of problems they are having with the creative cloud. This can’t be good. Adobe, bring back the perpetual license as an option for CS7 and above.
@ Massimo, Totally agree about Spotify. I had it for nearly a year until they changed the Android app so that I could no longer store music on the external SD card. That limited me to just a few hundred megabytes worth. I cancelled the subscription and lost phone access to all the music and playlists I put together. Looking back, I could have bought every single song I had on there in iTunes for the same price I paid overall, and I would still have it. I could have stored it wherever I wanted and never had any problem.
As for adobe, I mainly use illustrator. I could probably still get along pretty well with CS2 or even illustrator 9. The only thing that I regularly use that has been released since then has been image trace. Why should I be forced to pay for shit that isn’t useful, like its crappy 3D?
What this says to me is that Adobe has run out of stuff to add. It is fat and bloated and it’s content to curl up and die in the die in the house it has built. CC is a pension plan.
I have a plan too- from past experience a single version will last me at least a decade. Lets see who needs who more, buy CS6 if you haven’t already, dig your heels in, and let Adobe figure out how to prove over the next 10 years that CC is a justifiable expense, if they can make it that long, that is.
Well… I was nearly to subscribe to CC, and was need to clear out one question –
What happened if I will work in other country I subscribe in time more then ONE month and if I need to renew subscription from Russia, as example? (CC don’t have cloud service there) If I still will have eligibility to use the CC ?
No, ANY WAY!
Adobe dictate me what place I should to work from!
I have had long conversation with representatives just to find out how to restrictive the Adobe Creative Cloud service:
…………………………………………….
…………………………………………….
…Rona: You will be able to continue your work, until the payment is transacted.
Rona: Are we still connected?
Valentin: should I interact with you web server each month to put in a product key?
Rona: No, you do not need a product key or contact us to used the subscription.
Rona: It will get renewed by itself.
Valentin: so all year around I can work and to be OFFline?
Rona: You will need to connect to the Internet once in a while, say one in every 30 days.
Valentin: what happened if your webserver find out I’m working from bloody Russia?
Rona: It will suspend the subscription.
Valentin: ok thanks I’d better to stick to my cs6
I am actively fighting for the option to own rights to what we have paid for, the same way other software companies are offering online subscribers the right to continue to have access to the programs they have paid for after they stop subscribing. For Adobe to dictate otherwise is unconscionable. Please sign my petition and let’s try to add our voices to others who are as angry about this dictum by Adobe with no options and very few other options. There are so many issues on the horizon against being able to continue using older CS are not the least , new system software that is not going to be compatible…if you buy a new computer, and actually does not work now with CS2-3. They will phase out even our older apps that we paid good money for. http://www.change.org/petitions/adobe-cloud-stop-the-monopolistic-methods-of-adobe-allow-users-to-own-what-they-pay-for
I am very upset by this undisguised big brother move by Adobe. Pirated software has been around since software arrived, and companies still made money. I knew tons of people that wanted to learn a new software, but were hindered by the pricetag. Pirated software was the only option. I remember the day I was able to get my first “Legit” full price version of Photoshop. I was excited to be able to afford the real thing. I believe most people using the tool were the same way. Pirating was a necessary evil. I also knew people that were software hoarders and collected every piece of pirated software they could find. But it was just a hobby. There was no possible way one human could use or even learn that much software.
I heard one way the software industry determines how much money they lose to piracy, is to web crawl all the pirated licenses they can find, multiply that by the full retail price and declare… “Look how much money we are losing”. That isn’t “Lost” revenue. If the software was locked down as it looks to be in the future, I am sure you will see how many people are willing to pay that much, and with a bloat-co like Adobe, I am sure that will shut the doors.
They mention the high costs of development. That is an outright lie. How is GIMP still around? They have more features than Photoshop and it’s FREE! You would think Photoshop would have every feature on the planet given the resources they have, but simple functionality like “Snap to curve” still isn’t in the software. So aggravating. We own several copies of CS5.5 and I think it may be our last Adobe purchase. Maybe it’s time to use GIMP. in production.
My only hope is that the press is SO bad they relent and remember the people that made them the corporate giant they have become. When I think of it, I have given Adobe well over ten thousand dollars since I began to buy their software. Multiply that bu all the legit users and I think we can say Adobe is doing very well. But greed knows no bounds.
For me it’s simple…Adobe wants to make us slaves to their products. Sorry, not me…not doing it. I’m a slave to my mortgage co., my cable company, power company…etc. Enough…Adobe not turning me into their slave!!!!! They can go to h…..ll!!!!!!
Hey, are you using Creative Cloud yet and are you feeling better about it now? I am an early adopter and have been using it for well over a year, close to two. To me it makes complete sense.
Here’s why I like it. I lost my job as an art director 2 years ago and decided to take the freelance route for a while. I needed the Adobe Creative Suite, Photoshop, Illustrator and Indesign in order to work as a designer. The problem was I would have to shell out over $2000 bucks to buy the package. I was very interested when I heard Adobe was trying a subscription model and for only $50 a month I could have access to THE ENTIRE SOFTWARE SUITE including professional web software and much more. So that equates to $600 a year. Not bad I thought.
My rationale is at a freelance art direction rate of $75/hour I could pay for this cost with a mere 1 hour of work a month. Even at a production artist rate of $50/hour I still cover the cost easily. Deal.
Your really have to look at it this way.
The Adobe suite has always been marketed to working professionals, designers, photographers and illustrators. That’s their bread and butter. There is a host of less expensive solutions for hobbyists that are great tools which I use as well such as Lightroom.
I can’t fault Adobe for this. Without Apple and Adobe I wonder how I would have made a living this last 15 years? These companies employ insanely bright people who develop the tools and software we use to make a decent living. Think of how much business they have lost due to piracy, it’s staggering. I’m glad to be legit and get more than my moneys worth.
My experience is that it has been great to manage things through the Cloud. Software updates are simply. I can learn new software that I would not have had access to before. I have integrated font management now with Typekit which is also included. I have no problem accessing the Cloud on the road from anywhere in the world. I have a nice bonus of 20GB Cloud storage in a pinch. Also I can’t forget the access to tons of Adobe tutorial materials to help learn the software.
Simple as that. This is an inevitable change in the wired world we live in.
For you as a photographer what I would be worried and upset about is the devaluation of your craft with the advent of all the cheap stock photography out there and plethora of would be amateurs with cameras. I think it was the Chicago Tribune that fired their photography staff because they thought to are the reporters with iPhones and that would be sufficient.
If you ask me this if what you should be fighting first and foremost.
Cheers.
Pedro…my feelings about Adobe’s whole Cloud Scheme has very little to do with the financial side of things, although the initial $20/month (for Photoshop only) really did smack of a money grab. I fully understand how a guy like you…who apparently owes your living to Apple and Adobe for all the wonderful products they have allowed you to license over the last 15 years…will look at the new ongoing licensing pricing schedule as a “cheaper” way of doing business. But even after months of acrimony amongst hard-core professionals, Adobe has still not addressed what happens if a user gets off “The Cloud”. Losing the ability to be able to use files created with Adobe products unless you continue paying a license fee FOREVER is a major deal breaker for many people who devote their lives to a craft entirely dependent on a piece of software! BT
Pedro,
I still not sold on the FORCED cloud subscriptions. I know a lot of some people that paid for Photoshop a while back and that also lost their jobs and can still use the version they have to make money. This is a big deal, because they can still the version of photoshop they have to get work and not have to make CONSTANT MONTHLY PAYMENTS. They can use that money for more important things.
$20 or $50 means nothing nowadays…you can spend on stupid things in a day so it is worth it to invest in your career or work related.
Way to miss the point entirely, Tom! It’s not about the money…it’s about the simple fact that ‘The Cloud’ now ties users to Adobe FOREVER…stop paying and you lose access to your work! BT
Sorry, if this new model works for you (continually paying to use the software) that is great, but there is no other option. I have never owned software that requires a monthly fee to use and will never do so. You stop paying you no longer have access to your projects and files. That is unacceptable to me. Adobe should give the option to buy a perpetual license (as they do now) and charge a fee if you want continuous update support (this model is used by many software companies).
I didn’t read all the comments, so I don’t know if this was touched on yet. But I am a design student and I also contract with a company doing deisgn work. I bought the standard suite for home use at a student price, CS6 that is, and I love it! For the work that I do contracting as well as student work, I need Adobe products since that is industry standard and I simply cannot afford paying and budgeting for a monthly fee to use the software. As someone stated here already in regards to cutting out the extra meals at McDonalds or whatever else to be able to afford the software….I completely disagree because that doesn’t apply to everyone. As far as I know, you can still purchase the CS6 software outright. I just hope Adobe does something to make everyone happy.
In my opinion the only way Adobe drop this subscription creative cloud is when open source alternatives or another paid software company comes up with alternatives.
In the long term this could be a good thing because it opens the door to competition. If you could pay a one off fee for software that had 90% of the features of the adobe product you would have to think about it.
The real competition to adobe is open source and they know it look at brackets (an adobe open source product!) and tell me why would you buy dreamweaver.
Y’all know that there’s a deal with CC at the moment. And students can get every CC program for like $15 a month. Which is cheaper than the student version of CS5.5 I got a ferw years back. I like CC because you don’t have to worry about losing discs and there’s more frequent bug fixes. Plus you don’t have to pay like a billion dollars every year for a new CS to come out. The rate I’m paying for CC right now (includes EVERY Adobe program) is cheaper that just the Design Suite I’ve been getting which doesn’t have all the programs. And just FYI, you an still buy CS6 if you REALLLYY do not want the CC. Also, the CC allows you to store files online.
I personally think the CC is really great, since I can get programs I couldn’t get before while I don’t have to pay heaps of money.
Also guys, Just remember that the CC is a farely new thing, so of course it’s gonna have bugs, but Adobe will sort out all the bugs and make imrovements.
I find it disturbing that there are people actually supporting subscription licensing for Adobe software. And others are blaming the people who used hacked version before for Adobe’s decision to switch their business model. An army of unpaid PR people just spewing the bullshit that Adobe is selling them. Adobe is its own worst enemy. It is reminiscent of the music industry pre-digital downloading. Gouging its customers with ridiculously expensive pricing then playing the victim of piracy when people figured out how to access software (or previously, music) that they couldn’t afford. Then now they’ve changed their model to a perpetual payment system and are currently raping their loyal customers while pretending to offer a new and improved product. And you’re THANKING them for it?
Are you stupid, or just conditioned to financial abuse? This is a giant FUCK YOU from Adobe. Their software is not worth the thousands of dollars you’re going to pay for it over the next several years. The fact that they think their customers are dumb enough to use this new system is an insult, and the fact that some of those customers find it acceptable or even exciting represents a failure of common sense, good judgment, and logic in those individuals.
Maybe contractors should pay subscriptions for the power tools they use. Or EMTs for the medical supplies they need to do their jobs. Or how about a subscription to use a urinal 3 times a day? That makes sense, right?
That seems far fetched, but believe me, if a company thought they could get away with charging for things like that, they would. Which is exactly what Adobe is doing… pushing the limits. And people are just taking it.
It seems to me that the people who are supporting this move are the same people that pay for extra lives on Candy Crush and order $7 cups of coffee at Starbucks. It must be nice to be so programmed. Here’s a hint… in a free market the value of a product is limited only by what people are willing to pay for it. If no one pays $7 for coffee, guess what happens to the price? Maybe once people figure out that concept we can move forward.
I for one will not use their software anymore, or just get a hacked version of CS5. Because frankly, I have a brain that works.
It makes more sense to pay for the software out right like the Adobe CS6 version. This creative cloud is highway robbery. Its hard enuff to pay for internet and other expenses as a college student by the way. I understand monopoly but it comes to a point where enuff is enuff. I guess this is the new world where everything is a fucking bill.
We can only hope that this move to lock down control of their software will destroy Adobe. It will mean more money flowing into open source alternatives like GIMP
Stopping internet piracy is good but taking money from people forever felt synonymous. It’s fair to pay for product once, subscribe for free and pay for a unique license. The scheme must change until users
are happy.
I am infuriated!! I was a freelance graphic designer. I called up Adobe to pay for an upgrade to a version of CS and was talked into the subscription saying that I would save money, even if I only kept my subscription up for a year. My year expired, they added another $25 to my monthly fee, which I did pay for a few months.
I don’t do enough freelance work anymore to substantiate paying $54 a month for software so I called them to cancel. Their yearly subscription means the year automatically renews for a year term, so if you cancel mid year, they charge you 50% of the monthly cost for the rest of the year as a ‘cancellation fee’. My cancellation fee was $170. I can’t even express how bullied I feel right now. Cancellation fee? For what? That is just Adobe making a profit from people that for whatever reason can’t afford it anymore.
I did find some relief that I am not the only one that feels that this is BS…
http://www.law360.com/articles/552868/adobe-charges-bogus-fees-for-cloud-subscriptions-suit
Did you all know that this is a part of their policy?
Here is your solution. Do not buy and do not use Adobe Products. Make the sacrifice if that’s what you wish to call it. Cooperate with those writing open source software. Plain and Simple. Yea you – will you stop using it?
Let’s think about this, too. Let’s say it stays at $600 a year (which it won’t – they will continue to jack up prices over time). For a 20 year-old designer who will likely be working until they’re 65, that’s a grand total of $27,000 (again, remember that this is using a totally lowballed $600 annual figure) over the course of their career. I think, realistically, most designers could get away with spending no more than $10,000 on Adobe software upgrades over a 45 year period if they’re resourceful about it and aren’t clamoring to get literally every upgrade every time one comes out. Even ones who are more eager could keep it under $20,000. This is an enormous cash grab.
Hi! I could have sworn I’ve been to this blog before
but after browsing through many of the articles I realized it’s new to me.
Anyhow, I’m certainly delighted I discovered it and I’ll be book-marking it and checking back frequently!
I say sue the SOBs. Their latest “bundling” of Akamai “service” into Flash players is done exactly like malware without permission. Yes it can be removed in Add/Remove but it was fraudulently installed nonetheless. In fact, my latest dealings with “malware” on all my computers has come from Adobe products sneaking stuff through. Their partner, Akamai, claims it is installed only with user permission, which this proves is a downright fraudulent lie. They didn’t even offer their usual unlikely-to-find-or-read-it check box to opt out, this time.
We know what these tech guys do, live high on the hog and then after the borrowed money runs out, go bankrupt, and everyone has fun for a few years. Look at even Yahoo’s quality of advertisers these days. Need a date?
Also, if that monthly charge doesn’t send all you visual and graphics people elsewhere, I don’t know what will.
Adobe is one huge mess. I paid a lot of money several years ago for CS6 on disk. Then my computer hard drive crashed and had to be replaced, but CS6 would not reload without the proper installer which has been discontinued by Adobe — and I can’t seem to find the right updated version. I was told that I could upload CS6 on a second computer, but first I have to deactivate CS6 on the first computer which is now long gone. So now I have no option but go with CC creative cloud!
Bizarre. You don’t have to store your work on the cloud. You create your work, store it on hard drives. And you cannot escape the spiral of technology. Anyone who doesn’t keep up, gets left behind. Always been that way, will always be that way. This method of making software available, makes it available to far more people than the old model. And it may keep Adobe from committing their greatest sin over the last 10 years: RTM _ Rush To Market – making unnecessary changes to an app to justify a $600 or higher update fee. Now we may get actual innovation rather than change for the sake of change. This is the most positive change in software delivery I’ve seen since this began. No use tilting at virtual windmills – take the money you would have spent on updates, get a new computer and keep up. There is no other choice from here. We are entering the domain of the Matrix. Enjoy your Virtual Reality.
Steampunk…do you just keep this stock answer (love letter to Adobe?!!) ready to paste into any anti-Adobe post on the interweb? You are sorely uniformed. I don’t doubt a CC membership gives users all the most current technology seamlessly, and that has never been my argument. Take a few minutes to re-read what has been said in this thread, then get back to me with YOUR answer of what kind of ‘exit strategy’ you have when a long-time Adobe user retires. How would that user access his life’s work unless he continues to pay Adobe a tariff for the privilege? BT
I don’t want to pay Adobe 600+ a year for the rest of my life just to make some graphic designs. I don’t know what my other professional options are since Adobe bought out Macromedia and then killed them. And since there are no laws against being douchy like they are I guess we are stuck. The bigger sins they commit though are those of usability. All of their product need an overhaul.
I was originally out here searching for answers to my CS6 issues. I’ve read 99% of this post and may like it. I’m not a supporter of subscription based licensing.Donald Giannatti states ” I am a professional photographer. My work is licensed, never purchased outright for commercial use. The software that is purchased and put on a machine is also licensed and not owned by the user.” OK. Why stop with digital data? Let’s license your camera and your lenses. You’d only be a photographer as long as you paid the subscription. Technically you took the photos with the camera, therefore you only “own” those images as long as you pay Canon or Nikon a subscription. If you choose to sell your camera equipment on Ebay, aren’t you as guilty as the software pirates screwing camera companies out of money? Please….
Adobe was built on folks like us (me) who’ve paid the price through all these years. They’ve reinvested millions in allowing school aged kids to use the software free or next to it until they hit the workplace. It’s got to be one of the most successful business models of all time. The new licensing isn’t unprecedented or anything like that, but they’ve taken that creative spirit many of us had and put a monthly price on it.
Well I see many are mentioning GIMP here, but none mentioned Interview, for some basic stuff like crop, darken simple effects BATCH blazing FAST (it is under 2 Megs install)…
Irfanview can Crop, resize, light darken, change format (whatever), batch on 100images! while photoshop still booting up!
Irfan is blazing fast compared to anything, and it has batch processing that saves so much time if you’re not into some heavy touch-up stuff where you just use GIMP/Photoshop…
Plus most of the commands are present as keyboard shortcuts options and that means speed!
That is my golden combo,
Adobe can do whatever they want with their service/product and you can change the program you use, i am sorry you and other have vested your time gaining experience in PS you just did not see that coming…
I am in other field professionally (ee) and i always choose open source path (been on that same crossroad already) and over time get vested in open source software so i don’t have to worry about these corporate money sucking gimmicks you’re experiencing now…
Irfanview/GIMP go (check them out)!
Software is a perishable. Rather than paying an insane amount of money for a product that will over time become obsolete, you subscribe to the product for as long as you’ll need it and automatically get the latest updates and features. I love it.
So many of you sound so sad talking about this… If you can’t afford $50 and you claim you’re a professional, you need to reevaluate your career. They still allow you to own older versions, and don’t act like you don’t know how to download the software illegally.
I think CC is great and it’s awesome for business. Glad to see Adobe successful with this concept, they’re a great company and make some of the best software in the world.
The subscription model makes so much sense from so many angles. One real issue with the previous ‘boxed’ versions is Photoshop support for new cameras. The older versions get left behind. You buy a new camera and suddenly that 7D Mk II isn’t supported in ACR on version 6, so you have to buy an upgrade. Paying a subscription allows you to move forward with the times. It’s easier for Adobe to manage and better for the end user who can always use the latest technology. Most of it comes down to where your software sits in your life. If you smoke and want to subscribe to CC, then give up smoking and pay for the software and stop moaning! (Just one daft example, it’s all about priorities really). A lot of people are also carefully ignoring the fact that there are good deals to be had. I cancelled a subscription to a photography magazine to help fund my CC sub, and it’s really not that expensive all things considered.
You might win the prize for the lamest excuse yet for signing up to Adobe’s life-long subscription service! Have you NOT been paying attention??? I guess you don’t understand that if, for whatever reason, you decide that you no longer want or need to keep paying a monthly tax to use Adobe products you will not be able to open your life’s work?!! Try opening a layered TIFF file in anything other than Photoshop…I dare you…it ain’t gonna happen! Same goes for a number of other Adobe Suite editable files formats. So you better be happy with storing everything as a flattened JPEG or other more user-friendly format, cuz anything that you might wanna be able to edit down the road will require an Adobe engine to crack it open.
Just because new hardware technology comes out every ten minutes is hardly a reason to rejoice at having to pay an ongoing fee to use a piece of software. BT
Aww, are the evil corporations trying to get more money out of you? Suck it up and live with it… if you love it so much and can’t live without… that’s exactly what the evil corportions want to hear…. if they have you by the balls, they can do whatever they please. You have a decision to use something else (or write the damn program yourself). But quit with the whining, it’s nauseating.
You should hire better writers if you’re gonna keep trying to be funny. And if my ‘whining’ nauseates you, then see a gastroenterologist, cuz you’ve got a pretty weak constitution! But I gotta say, you are living up to your fake name…fredtheidiot@microsoft.com BT
Why don’t you try replying with a little nicety, instead of being so damn aggressive all the time? If someone disagrees with you then that is their prerogative. I stand by what I have said. If I were to opt out of the Creative Cloud then I would use my very considerable IT knowledge to do so. Until there is a viable and worthwhile alternative I will stick with it. I stand by everything I said, and no, it isn’t lame at all.
Pippy…most folks who bother to hang out in here have the smarts to know this is my playhouse with my rules. If my brand of discourse offends you, sorry, but I don’t see myself toning it down anytime soon. You made a comment that I find patently absurd. Subscribing to Adobe’s Cloud scheme so that you can easily process whatever file format comes down the road as soon as it is released is hardly a valid argument for paying a never-ending tariff to allow use of their software. Adobe ALWAYS updated ACR in a timely fashion long before CC came along. And since the Cloud has been implemented, the level of advancements/improvements to Photoshop has stayed on par with the previous upgrade schedule. Just because they drop them onto users whenever they finish the code doesn’t really any value for the vast majority of users. Try as I might, I’ve yet to find anyone who went gaga over the “Collaborate on Libraries” or “Improved Guides” enhancements when they were released. I’m sure they’re very nice, but nothing mind-bending.
As for your other silly solutions like quitting smoking or dropping magazine subscriptions in order to afford a CC monthly charge, they simply make you look out of touch with the big-ticket problems that most people have with the entire scheme. And while I’m tickled pink that your ‘very considerable IT knowledge’ will allow you to back out of an Adobe subscription whenever you want to, the majority of users are tied to paying a lifetime subscription to Adobe in order to continue to view, edit and access their work. And that’s unacceptable. BT
Brad,
I’m glad you created this website regarding the absurd Creative Cloud mandate by Adobe. I for one, will never “pay” to continue using software that I already paid to use. I use Photoshop myself BUT I am still using Photoshop 7.0.1 because it does everything I need it to do with what I need. I guess Adobe charging over $1,000 for a suite was not enough, now they want you to continue to pay even when they make updates that might not be the biggest improvement or feature you really think is needed.
I can see this subscription based “garbage” continuing into other fields such as Music, Personal Electronics (Does anyone remember DIVX players that Circuit City tried to sell???) I still buy physical copies of program when I can and I cannot believe that so many users (Consumer and Pro) think that Subscription based fee’s is alright? In what world is paying monthly for something until you die is alright? I left a Big satellite company because their fee’s were getting outrageous.
Adobe should offer both types of licenses still instead of going only with the creative cloud.
I really hope more users start to think ahead and calculate how much $$ they will end up spending on a monthly basis just to continue using software.
Great stuff! Thanks for the info. The government petition is closed?
The humorous part for me is that Adobe actually thinks this will stop people from pirating it. If anything, people in the industry are MORE inclined to pirate the software than ever before after this move.
You can still get around the Cloud Subscription Service by Buying Adobe CS6 Master Collection for Only $151.00 which has Photoshop CS6 Extended, Illustrator CS6, InDesign CS6 and just about all Adobe software and it downloads right from Adobe who makes this Adobe software.
http://directsoftwareconnection.com/adobecs6masterspecialoffer.htm
Anyone who loves the idea of a subscription has not tried to work offline in the middle of no internet service for more than a week.
Try it. Adobe shuts off your apps because it can no longer verify that you have an active subscription.
I loathe Adobe so much. So so so much, and my partner is sick of me bitching about them. But third-party preset makers continue to create only for Adobe apps (RIP Aperture).
I bought CS4 and the CS5 upgrade, too. Now, I’m stuck using CC, but at least my workplace pays for that. When I’m no longer working here, though…I will absolutely stop paying Adobe. And be so happy about it.
My deepest wish is for someone to take over Aperture and make it so much better than LR + PS combined that every pro photo abandons Adobe. Someone get on this! I will support your Kickstarter!
Is it just me, or are there some obvious posers here? You can write a dissertation trying to defend this scam, but I call bs. “Oh but the benefits!” Get off the fan-boy cool-aid. Amazing how well marketing and word play can part you from your money. For all the brilliant effort put into every billboard or advertisement, I can only see “give us your money.” Is it ironic that I see the same from all you clever posers trolling the sites of opposition? I’d be happy to pay twice as much just to get the hell away from Adobe. CEO, Shantanu Narayen already makes about 5 mil a year from his 18 billion dollar company, who’s also neck deep in behavioral targeting using force-fed flash cookies. In the end, I would hope other developers see an opportunity and Adobe reaches catastrophic failure. Not only because Adobe deserves it, but to set an example, but mostly because Adobe deserves it.
Easy solution.
I just installed an old copy of CS5 on Yosemite but before I did that installed Radio Silence so Ps does not phone home.
Chalk it up to the culture of corporate globalism, boys and girls, and in-betweens. If you landed on this blog because you were unsuccessful with resolving your problem through the Adobe or Marketplace webspaces, and all of the related forums, there is a reason for that.
But to grasp the actual validity of this blog (hat’s off, Brad.), you have to be of a certain age. The younger you are, the less you mind wrapping your behavior around every new and experimental bell and whistle. You like bells and whistles. You appreciate the adventure of learning about all the latest gizmos. Gizmos offer the allure of automating your workflow. The future of “work” promises to be a less formal social experience. Collaboration will no longer require that you to be at the office.
If you are a young manager, you like the prospect that you can manage your people from home. The cloud will provide for that. You like that.
But as a younger CC user you might fail to recognize or register the overall production time that is being lost worldwide. Within this new context Adobe is offering less value for more money. This loss in value is less noticeable when you are younger.
There are many aspects of this Adobe slide into corporate globalism. But unless you are older, you have no reference to what it was like in a time when software engineers were hired to meet release dates for a fixed package, not the other way around. The finished product had to be “right” when it hit the shelves and engineers were held to that degree of discipline. Multiple levels of quality control were in place. You could pronounce most of the last names of Adobe project (application) contributors.
That is no longer the case at Adobe, and to cut costs somebody saw the genius of the CC model. Hey. If you screw up, which you can under the liberal CC “sorry let me fix that” model, then you and all of those like you, can excuse (cover-up) your own incompetence, by essentially posturing as wide innocent children. Imagine if you will that English is not your first language and you come here to America and rise to CEO of one of Massachusetts’ most prized companies. First you grab your best frat bro from MIT who then proceeds to fill more and more job openings (deadline needs) with people who understand your native (non-English) tongue. Eventually you lay off every snobby English(-as-primary) tech writer (or engineers) in house. And then it all breaks down when over the multiple applications in your ever-expanding suites of esoteric features and interconnectivity, you can no longer respond appropriately to the ways in which your people begin to disappoint and abuse your end users.
But Adobe boardroom and committee meetings must surely be a trip these days. I imagine that if you are Caucasian you probably need to bring/hire an interpreter to make sure you don’t miss something important. Like the fact that a simple cross the board CC update will consume 20 gigabytes of what is in my case the standard allotted monthly satellite bandwidth. Each time there is the smallest “fix” to any of the many scores of prematurely released Adobe bugs, CC will cost you the price of that bandwidth allowance, say $70US. After that’s exhausted, on DISH it’s $10US per single extra gigabyte.
Adobe is off the rails. The only remaining question really is whether it was/is intentional. I fail to see any effort to reverse the growing alienation.
We (user) will never become a winner. If you work with an old Illustrator version and your clients abroad have newest version, you will know that it won’t work to exchange document. That is why keeping current is necessary. And that is why software packages like Adobe and Microsoft Office force everyone to upgrade. And that is their right to do so. That is only from file format point of view. Remember DOC become DOCX ?
I tried to sign the Petitions but it states, “Petition Closed” on both sites!
I truly hope your hard work pays off.
I 100% agree with you Brad Trent.
The most wonderful thing that could happen is another software that we can all use and leave Adobe forever!!!
Well…after 2+ years, it’s not surprising the petition is closed, but in that time we’ve all seen the many flaws in Adobe’s money-grabbing plan on how to hook the World on it’s products from cradle to grave in order to keep a never-ending flow of cash fill their bank account. BT
don’t know about you pal. but all this time, i used a cracked adobe master software. so, it won’t bother my wallet. 🙂
I have mixed feelings. I’m a photographer but am doing more video work so on balance the subscription saves me from buying multiple expensive platforms, and I was using CS4 before the upgrade so I didn’t make the decision lightly. I don’t really buy the argument that ‘my life’s work will no longer be viewable’–this is true with software in general–there’s no guarantee that PS or any other program will even be in existence next year let alone 20 years from now. Keep an old computer in good condition with old software if that’s your concern. But I agree that the lack of choice is annoying, we should have the option of not bowing to the new regime.
CS4 was the last product I bought from Adobe in 2009. I got a full time job at a startup in 2013 that I still do, so that tells you how badly I needed to update Photoshop. I didn’t, and when it turned out to have the worst batch processing and scripting tools around, I looked elsewhere and found a new friend – GIMP.
CS4 Production Premium itself was an infuriating atrocity. The batch website creating didn’t work, the DVD burning didnt work, Premier was a complete disaster. After Effects and Photoshop were what they were supposed to be, but the ‘extras’ were hardly anything to write home about. I was learning Flash, and was annoyed when Jobs dumped it, but now I’m glad he did. I waited for years for Adobe to make a decent batch processing tool, which exists in BIMP, under GIMP. THen when I looked at CS6, it turned out I couldn’t buy it. Then they discontinued everything for this stupid subscription. I never got on board. Adobe removed me as a cash paying customer, and I’m back in the market now to upgrade with someone, but $600 a year to use software I may not like? JE REGRETTE!
I’ve read there are some workflow things in the new Pshop that I would really like to try, and I thought Muse was an interesting program before they made it impossible to demo. I like After Effects as well, but its not the only game in town. I still use CS4 photoshop, and I guess I should be thankful it still operates in my newer OS X updates. I guess Adobe did something right after all. I will do all I can to move away from this company however. They are a living atrocity. I guess if this industry was knee deep in money, then it would be an easy expense. However, I still don’t trust Premiere, and would rather update my FCP to Apple’s FCP X despite an equally clueless transition. Motion is pretty good as well, in some ways FAR more intuitive than AE and it’s unbelievably stupid lack of audio monitoring (yes, I know, render to RAM, gimme a break).
Flash is dead, good riddance. ANImated gifs destroy it. There were so many things Adobe could’ve scripted into Photoshop and never did, because they were a bunch of lazy scum sitting on a pile of money.
I hate thet fucking CC also.
fucking steve jobs ruined the fucking world, I don;t know why so many people think he was cool.
fucking asshole
You can use crack by Painter. Even for CC is available crack. God Bless these people who create cracks for Adobe. 🙂
i don’t like sliced bread. Unfortunately my cs5 is getting pretty out of date so cc is a must.
That’s right…you have ZERO choice but to get on the CC bandwagon…and pay for the rest of your life, or at least as long as you feel you have to access your photos! And that’s wrong! BT
find an open source alternative
http://www.creativebloq.com/photoshop/alternatives-1131641
atleast give a try to these especially the 2nd option. It may be quite difficult in the beginning but its worth it. Creativity of an artist should not be limited to tools he/she uses.
Just a heads up, developers need to eat too. Adobe is balancing the need for software licensing fee’s with end-user requirements… It’s also not fair to say “so I have to pay forever”. If you had CS6, you’ll always own CS6; if you want CC, you have to pay for CC as it’s the only way they can stop piracy reasonably. Your assets will still be your assets; but yes you can’t drive your car without fuel. They constantly update their apps, I think you are being massively unfair
What you DON’T know about Adobe’s true reason for moving to a subscription-based pricing model would fill volumes, but I’ll just say that keeping software developers fed is way down their list of priorities! Keeping their corporate jets fueled is waaaaaay up the list, trust me! BT
A silly post if you think it still applies.
Price: I pay $10.88 a month for the subscription, which is about 4.5 years worth of software (when it cost $600).
Forced upgrades: Nonsense, I have to click the update button. Granted, you can’t revert to a previous version. Besides, how many people are really sitting with CS 4 because they want to?
In general, I am much happier with the subscription. I couldn’t afford to upgrade PS every time I got a new camera because ACR didn’t support the latest raw format. I like that I get the latest version of Photoshop. Sure, some things may change that you don’t like, but the vast majority of people will view those changes as progress and improvements.
Mario…your argument kinda makes no sense. If you can’t afford to upgrade PS every time you get a new camera, why would you want to pay EVERY MONTH for software?!! That’s 11 bucks (or whatever it will be when Adobe raises the monthly fee) forever and ever and ever. Not buy it once and upgrade every couple of years….you always pay. But my post is NOT about the 11 bucks a month…really! It’s about a money grab by one of the largest software companies in the World. By moving to a subscription-based system, Adobe not only increased total profits at the expense of it’s customers, but essentially enslaved them for life by making them pay forever in order to use their product. It is already virtually impossible to use older Adobe products like CS4 if you buy a new computer, so your only choice is to pay monthly…forever. But if you don’t mind a tax on your creativity that will last until they plant your ass in the ground, feel free to keep paying. BT
I work professionally as a designer. I really like the subscription model. I can now use all of their programs on my Windows desktop and Mac laptop and pay $50 a month. For me, that is one hour of design work to pay for the entire month of software I need which covers 99% of the software I use for design.
I can see the other side of the argument, especially if you use only one piece of their software and aren’t required to have the newest versions. I use InDesign, Photoshop, Illustrator, Acrobat DC, Lightroom and Bridge.
I’ve been using CC for years now and I love it. I never could afford the various software that I needed personally (as the price would have been close to 10 thousand dollars) and so only had it at work where it would have been unethical to use it for freelance projects obviously. Now I have it all on my home computer and have been working hard to build a business. So, I have to say that this has been a great investment for me and I was excited when they announced they were doing this.
People are different so I respect that others are going to have a different take on this direction that Adobe has taken with some applauding it and others being upset. But I have zero respect for the commenters here who have justified (and at times bragged) about using stolen copies of Adobe software. As someone who has worked to earn money to be able to start my own business, I find it distasteful that there are people that feel so entitled that if they can’t afford something, instead of working for it, they just steal it and then feel so confident of this choice that they tell others about it and attempt to justify it. Bet you wouldn’t feel so happy about someone who entered your business and just took something they couldn’t afford just because they wanted it. Or who stole your graphic work without paying you and acting like you should be OK with that even though you worked hard and that is how you earn your money.
$20/Mo as a student and $70/mo as a business is a small price to pay for the products I am getting out of it. I use a variety of Adobe products and make well more than $70/mo using them….I’m completely ok with the way things are going…
I used Adobe Dreamweaver at IBM back in 2004 and decided it was time to get it for myself since I have been using cheap knock offs since leaving IBM. So when I visited Adobe.com and realized I would have to rent it I immediately changed my mind. This is not the American way! In The USA we own our cars, we own our clothes, and most Americans still strive to own their own house. Why would Adobe think we are okay renting software? I have a feeling that they have lost many of their customers.
By the way, Corel Paint Shop Pro is a pretty good photo editing application. You can download it or do what I do….Have it delivered in a box. That way I have the satisfaction of holding the installation CD in my hand. It is mine. I bought it.
We are planning to keep our entire studio on CS6 and if Adobe sabotages that, we will take a new look at Quark and all of the new vector options becoming available. When a company bites the hand that feeds them their days are numbered.
Also, to the point about feeding developers: If they keep adding **desired** new features, people will keep upgrading.
If developers reach the end of their utility on a given product, it’s time for them to move to a different product, not time to squeeze perpetual money out of a program that hasn’t changed in a **meaningful** way is 15+ years!
Exclusive subscription-based models don’t lead to excellence – they lead to stagnation. If the subscription model is truly valuable, it should be **an option**, not forced on everyone. Let the market decide whether they want a perpetual license or an ongoing subscription – the numbers will declare the winner. Forcing everyone to subscribe betrays the real motive and is anti-capitalist. But have no fear, capitalism will find a way around this or the Open Source community will fill the void.
Adobe already has plenty of my money and I do not pirate. But when greed and shareholders take over, even a loyal 20+ year user of Adobe products will find greener pastures. Quark learned that lesson the hard way and ironically they may save the day again… Photoshop hasn’t changed for its common uses in 10+ years…
PS CC 2015.5 is one of the glitchiest buggiest pieces of software I’ve used in many years. I trialed it extensively and the only thing I can say good about it is the camera raw filter. That’s a treat. Else it is awful. PS CS6 is stable and the good thing is- you can still purchase it.
Adobe stomps all over your computer to add telemetry and other forms of intrusionware to watch and monitize every move an end-user makes. Fuck Adobe and the horse they rode in on.
GIMP, Krita and Inkscape are all 100% free and killer power applications. There are some new progs being developed that will also help slay the PS dragon.
I love their software…specaly adobe audition. But i don’t use it so much, so it’s not worth paying each month for it. So i have to find other software.
Based on Travis Bunns comment. I wonder if a lot of younger people like the subscription model as it helps them get a foot in the door with what seems like an invaluable piece of software, wait till they’ve had a few hard years under their belts, then they’ll start to look at their regular overheads and become cynical at why subscription software models are of no benefit to them or their businesses, then that lovely enthusiasm and naivety will bite them in the pocket.
And the latest from Adobe (after doing a “silver bullet” to delete all boxed software a few years ago)…. A pop-up from Adobe comes up telling you that the software you are running is illegal.
We checked our computer where it says all of our software is legitimate and passes, and checked our account on Adobe (where we purchased it). We also have the physical box set. But we are hearing that when you call the number at Adobe, that want you to prove you purchased it because there are ways to have tampered to make it look like you purchased it. WTF???!!!!
So yes, they are trying to take away our ability to use the software we purchased legitimately by scamming us.
We purposely took one of the computers in our office “offline” so that Adobe could not silver bullet it, but if we have to resort to using it with only 5.5, we wouldn’t be able to open newer files on the software we legally own. To combat this, we actually have one computer on CC software and pay a monthly fee.
To those of you who like the little upgrades to your software through CC, what happens when that software cannot be used on the system you currently have? This happens all the time. It’s why some of us do not upgrade our iTunes and other softwares. Do you have the money to upgrade your system when Adobe makes your computer “too old”?
I still own the 3.5″ disks for Illustrator 88 as well as Photoshop from 1990. I purchased all my software legally so Adobe should not be able to erase it. If you’re okay with that, you are sheep and deserve to be ripped off.
As someone that uses acrobat very little, the cloud concept sucks! There is no way that I use it enough to warrant $20 a month. So I just can’t have it because Adobe sucks!!!
My point exactly! I can afford Acrobat…but I almost never use it, so I do without! And that is bullshit…BT
Adobe sucks. Period. For a while, they supported Linux with binaries for their popular applications Reader and Flash. Now they don’t. Even Ubuntu had a “partner” repository that had them you could install easily with one apt-get command. Now those are gone. But even when people have begged Adobe to make Linux binaries for their more popular creative applications like Photoshop and the like… “We don’t wanna” was their common answer.
And to those who complain about Adobe’s ridiculous licensing fees… heck, the FCC (I’m an amateur radio operator) dropped fees to get a vanity call sign years ago! (my call sign is a vanity call)… I feel ya! The only fee that usually is paid is to the VE’s (Volunteer Examiners) is $15 for your technician exam or upgrade (to General or Extra)! The FCC doesn’t see one cent of that.
Now, I am not trying to advertise here, but I am a user of these alternative applications that do almost a good job and are FREE (as in freedom [open source] and free beer [no cost]), and you’ll have to Google for them, links probably will enter the spam filter if I tried to link them. (I run a WordPress site too, so I know. 🙂 )
GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program… despite the controversy… whoever had said GIMP is derogatory is a fool… IT’S AN ACRONYM!) is pretty close to Photoshop.
Kdenlive (KDE Non-LInear Video Editor) is an awesome video editor. It actually is a GUI frontend to the MLT framework but it makes GREAT videos. And it’s now available for Windows! (Has been for a couple years already.) I use this to edit my YouTube videos before I upload them.
Audacity is a fine audio editor. I have a friend who uses it to edit and clean up his band’s tracks.
Blender is superb for vector and 3D graphics.
I have used these programs before and highly recommend them.
73, W9JYD