November 15, 2005

• Not in support of piracy activities or anything, but Adobe used to be really hard to deal with if you wanted to purchase software. Until they finally got some international download shopping happening for many English speakers in non-English speaking countries it was a case of beg someone in the States to get it for you and ship it over. OK it may be/have been a small market to deal with but still it's some hundreds of people who were either going through the drama of getting other people to purchase or ship - or going down the piracy route. Also completely off the beaten track of the topic - it may be surprising but as the English version of software usually comes out first any English version copies in stores here in Japan are usually snapped up pretty quickly. So yes it was a quirky site - but did it address the issues of why people pirate Adobe software fully? The scene portrayed didn't seem related to any I've known to happen. damn I sound so serious...need to drink more...
• I didn't get the point and gave up. Probably too soon, but ... what's the point?
• Adobe: "Software is a service, so shut up and ante up your few-thousand-bucks for the same shit you paid for last year." Adobe: "Why compete when you can just buy the competition?" Adobe: (lower lip trembling- about to cry) "Software piracy isn't FAIR."
• I believe if Adobe charged a reasonable price for Photoshop, say $200 or less, they would actually make more money. I buy the software but for me it's a business expense. For the rest of the millions of people who need it just to cut gifs - i suspect the majority are pirating because it doesn't make sense to pay 600+.
• Isn't that what Photoshop Elements is all about? It sells for about 80 US bucks. Now here we have a stupid example of naming. "Elements" - does that sound like a basic version of Photoshop to any normal person? NO Why didn't they name it "Basic" or "Lite" - "Elements" sounds like it's a addition to the full version of Photoshop itself.
• *is really putting the boot into Adobe tonight*
• The amusing part to me was the sturm-und-drang about the penalties for piracy while also saying that more than a quarter of software used in business is pirated. Guess there's not much fear of punishment. Or is the stereotype of the British salaryman wanting a good whipping really true? I buy legal software--educational versions, 'cuz I'm still a student--but I agree with calimehtar, and not just on Adobe. Most commercial software is way overpriced and often overfeatured.
• I use legal software because can't afford not to. Photoshop, Illustrator and AfterEffects are great tools; BUT, what makes me boil is the constant featuritis that Adobe and many other companies suffer from. 'New' versions arrive in shorter periods, and usually with just some bell & whistle nobody asked for. Ok, fair enough... but when you discover the new release has broken some vital feature that was working fine to begin with, and you need more computing muscle to run it, and maybe update your OS, and be subject to net-based registration schemes (that, yes, for those of us outside the US can mean quite a hassle), and then learn most software is going teh subscription route - wanna use my app, you pey annual fees, that's it. THEN is when I say: !@*&#$%@&!!
• Sorry for typos - anger tanlges ym fingres.
• Gimp for Winders!
• Pirating software by students also means they learn to use your software, get a job and might be instrumental in having their boss buying it. But of course for a market leader who just bought its biggest competitor that is less of a point. And they certainly won't admit it. When I was starting I used a pirated version of Director, got good at it and then bought the application. Now they give it to me, but that's a different topic.
• Adobe also has an annoying habit of releasing a new version rather than fixing the bugs in the old version. I have issues with Photoshop CS1 (screen NEVER refreshes on my laptop unless I force it to, so I can't see what I'm doing to the image!) but they never released a patch - just expected everyone to move to CS2. I sure as hell am not going to pay for CS2 without knowing for a fact that it will fix the problem. The other issue I have with this website: People are better served by having legal software because they will only have access to the software they need? WTF is that supposed to mean? The issue with corporate software piracy is not that Bob down the hall has Adobe Premiere and I don't, it's that Bob down the hall buys one copy of Photoshop and everyone else in the building installs it using a cracked key. "Companies with legal software will better know what programs they need" my ass - the tech guy will always find a way to get the office to buy what he wants, and generally the higher-ups have no clue what the software is for, that's why they hire the techie to tell them what to buy. They used to have a fairly loose licensing model - the fine print said that every person with a right to use the software could also install it at home. Now they've moved to the one license, one computer model, which just seems to make people work harder at bypassing the registration.
• I use crayons. Crayola crayons.
• dirigibleman, look closely. Those are Craloya, cheap knockoff crayons.
• Isn't that what Photoshop Elements is all about? It sells for about 80 US bucks. The trouble with Elements is that it lacks the really compelling features of Photoshop (the ones that actually distinguish it from The Gimp). The target market is different: Elements is for tidying up your digicam pictures. If you need Photoshop, it's no substitute. Adobe have thrown some pre-gnawed bones under the table, but the full Photoshop is still unconscionably expensive. If you make your living from graphic art, it's an acceptable cost, but for an amateur or occasional user, the choice is either to use an inferior tool or to obtain an unlicensed copy of the full Photoshop. Wait until everyone realises that Adobe wants another $600 for a trivial* x86 rebuild of Photoshop when the Intel Macs come out. What Photoshop really needs is some decent competition... * Photoshop already runs on the x86 architecture and uses a cross-platform toolkit. I doubt that there are many technological barriers to making a dual binary of it.
• You could be right ThreeDayMonk. The only experience I've had with Elements was via a client - and it seemed to be just what he needed.