[boriscleto]

Important Customer Security Announcement (Adobe Featured Blogs)

[Jamfke]

Makes me glad I use Corel...

I like what you can do with the technology we have today, but on the other side of the coin, I hate what some people choose to do with said technology.

[magkelly]

Well isn't it fortunate for me that Adobe doesn't have my credit card info? Cough. (Yes, that was sarcasm...) FYI my copy of Photoshop CC is legit, an employee of the company got me mine, but I've also hacked it so that CC is disabled and not calling home. My friend at Adobe initially set up some kind of a dummy ID account for me with them so I would not get charged every month, but not too long after I got a polite request from someone there in CS that I update my info and provide them with a credit card "just in case" I ever wanted to upgrade to the full suite. I was polite about it but basically I said "Look my copy is legit dude. I am not legally required to provide that info to you for this. No, I'm not upgrading and NO you can't have that info. Go away." The guy didn't much like my answer, lol, but there was nothing he could do about it really. At least not yet.

I have a legit serial code and I have absolutely no plans to upgrade any further. He simply cannot upsell me into getting that info. They will never get any such info out of me and frankly I'm really tired of being spammed to death to subscribe to more. I'm totally glad all they have is my junk email account let's put it that way. I've gotten so many upsell emails from them it's ridiculous. For now I am fine. They haven't insisted, but I was afraid they'd try to deactivate me and say they needed that info for "security purposes" eventually or something so I hacked my copy. It's totally and utterly stupid that I have to do that when my copy is legit to begin with and I do hate to go there, but I just can't see any way around it if I want to keep my privacy and my credit card number away from Adobe. Eventually I am sure they will require it even with a situation like mine. One way or the other they are just determined to get some $$$ out of me every month.

I guess I'll probably run into that anyhow if I ever have to reformat and re-register my copy and he can't do it for me. Probably he can but I imagine if he couldn't that they'd probably try to pull that when I activate again, make it a security requirement or something that I offer it up, but at that point I'd probably say F it and just use CS2 maybe since I don't have to activate that anymore. There are things about the versions after CS2 that I do like but I'm not sure using the versions I have after that is even worth it anymore. I have legit copies but I'm kind of sick of all the draconian activation stuff. Heck I can't even get away from it with a legit promo/insider copy where you are not supposed to have to pay every month? They're going to ask for a credit card and try to upsell me all the time anyway? That's batshiz insane.

Inevitably every new release their programs get hacked in 24 hours usually anyway. All they're doing with this bull is inconveniencing (Maybe even endangering?) their legit customers and I'm totally fed up with it. Just let me buy an upgrade when I want one, give me my legit serial code, and let me be done with it. I hate online activation with a passion and I really, really hate it when it comes with having to be forever connected online so they can check if you are legit every so often and potentially deactivating you if they can't. Goodness help you if you actually like to work with PS on a strictly offline, secure machine. You're just plain screwed. I'm guessing there is a way to call them directly to do it, for corporations and such to deal with the periodic security checks via phone every once in a while, but isn't it sweet that you'd even have to do that when every hacker out there can have his not so legit copy every time and and never have to go there?

You know if they could ever get it to work I might just think it was actually justifiable but it literally took them 24 hours to release CC into the wild. 24 HOURS and every software pirate on the planet had a not so legal copy that they don't have to check in with. Yet here I am with my legit copy and I do have to? There is something so completely perverse about that that I can't help but shake my head and laugh. I mean this is just absurd. Why even have activation if every Tom, Dick, and Joe Hacker can disable it in 24 hours or less? It's a waste of time particularly when it just aggravates many of your legit customers.

I love Photoshop but none of the upgrades from CS2 on are worth this hassle or the tons of spam mail they're intent upon sending out apparently. FYI, I get at least 25 emails a month from them pushing more programs in the CC suite on me. You apparently can't have just one program in the suite and not be harassed with spam. They're pretty determined to sell you the whole thing. Doing this means no tech upgrades but I don't care about that. CC is totally compatible with my system and I've had zero problems so far with it. It does everything I could possibly want and then some.

I don't really care if I ever upgrade. I'm not going to be upgrading my OS anytime soon anyhow. I really did not like Windows 8 and I'm sticking with Windows 7 so long as I can get or build a computer to run it. This copy of Photoshop is probably the best I can do for a system running Win 7 anyway. Any future upgrades would probably require an OS upgrade, and even faster computer, and/or more graphics upgrades like CS6 did and I'm just not much into going there. I used to think having the latest and greatest copies of every piece of major software I owned was a good thing but I've found I can live with less up to date software a lot of the time. I'm still using CS2 just to be able to use some very old plugs sometimes. It's no less useful because it's an older version than CC is. Not quite the same level of bells and whistles but honestly I could do most of what I do with that instead of CC. I don't *need* CC I just like using it. Every piece of hardware and software on my machine has advanced to the point where it's pretty effective and further upgrades just aren't all that necessary. I can do everything I want on my PC with almost no issues anymore.

Most of what the software companies are offering now with most of my programs is just window dressing. They're updating the interface a little bit and calling it a new version of the program. The only programs I do update once in a while now are Photoshop and my anti-malware stuff, and actually I use free defense software so I don't even have to pay for that. At this point I guess I can live sans any more PS upgrades so that's that. No more Photoshop upgrades for me unless I can buy them in one shot and not have to constantly be online to use them. They'll have to let me buy reasonably priced one time upgrades again sans this subscription stuff or just forget it.

I think Adobe knows that a lot of their customer base is getting to the same point. I think that's why they pulled this crap with a subscription mode. I'm lucky in that I have a free legit serial code. It's going to be very hard for them to back me into a corner and insist upon getting my credit card details but I'm sure they will keep on trying and that eventually they'll pull a security request thing just to try to get me to go there. It's about the only way they could get away with insisting upon it. They probably think having it on file means it's more convenient and it's more likely I will subscribe to more eventually and they will start getting $$$ every month but I simply will not. They push me I will just quit using Photoshop CC. I've been using Photoshop since V4. Not CS4, version 4. I have actually bought my fair share of upgrades in the past and I just won't do it anymore. Not under these circumstances.

I actually hacked it because I was worried that they'd try to insist I start paying after the first year and my friend says they might if there are significant upgrades and I do get them. He just might not be able to get me another promo copy. I'd have to buy the new upgrade like it or not if I am connected online and it dl any big upgrades and changes my version number. This version of the program sans any major upgrades is still free for me but if I stayed connected and they went to say CC.5 or something they might insist I pay to get the upgrades and to continue using it and I don't think I'd be able to just say "no" and skip the upgrades. I would go there if I could just buy a one time upgrade in the box but I don't want to eventually be forced into upgrading and giving them my credit info and paying every month. I can use a gift card to buy a traditional upgrade anywhere that sells it and Adobe gets nothing that can be hacked. I cannot do that with a forced pay by the month subscription. My promo probably won't be valid anymore if they can force me into a major upgrade. I just want to stay where I am at.

The only reason I even bothered with CC is because my friend at Adobe got it for me. I was halfway back to using CS2 all the time, seriously. I had a legit copy of CS5 then CS6 and I could just go back to one of those versions that too, but CS6 it just did not work as well on my machine as CC does and I'd rather use CS2 and not have to activate at all then go back to CS5, though to be fair CS5 worked pretty well for me. Whatever little things they fixed in CS6 to get to CC it did wonders for me and my system. I know not everyone had issues with CS6 but I sure did. I've read I am not alone on that score. I was getting pretty frustrated with it at times I will admit. Even after upgrading to suit it I still had more crashes and glitches with CS6 than with any other copy of PS I have ever owned. It wasn't constant but it was annoying. I never could figure out why and I tried everything, even went to Adobe for tech support. Put CC on the same machine, same exact specs and it was a completely different scenario. CC is running like a champ and I've not had one glitch or had it crash once and it works with every fairly recent plug I have that I have thrown at it too. For once I did not have to upgrade any of them. I still have some old ones that only seem to work in CS2 but overall CC has been a breeze to use compared to CS6....

Sure I'd like to keep CC but only if I don't have to subscribe monthly (or risk ID theft) to do it. :P

[adwb]

I have bought every version of LR and CS or the upgrades, right up to v4 and CS6 and never get any contact from them at all , they have me email address as I have two accounts with them both emails work, I don't know why you get so many.
I certainly won't use their cloud system however.

[Vylen]

Doesn't matter if you use their cloud or not. This beach extends to anyone who has an Adobe ID. You would've created one to download a program trial or to purchase any software.

I've bought Lightroom through them, got the notification about the breach. Somewhat annoying but all the big companies are always targeted and sometimes they're successful in their attacks.

The scary thought are the companies who don't realise they've been breached.

[Kobayashi.K]

Cloud is a flawed concept for a lot of technical reasons, it's a cynical way of doing business because it's only invented for generating revenues, disregarding the dire consequences for the customers. It creates severe dependencies for the user and it is unsafe.

Adobe introduced their Creative Cloud and Pay-Per-Use model exactly on the wrong moment in a desperate move because they are obviously not generating enough revenues from their traditional software. As one commentator said: "they jumped off a building but they forgot their parachute".

I have purchased PaintShop Pro X5 this year after a thorough inventory of all the available editors. It is less advanced than Adobe's software but I pay only once, I can decide for myself when to upgrade, I'm not forced to organize my data in a certain way (https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/digital-processing-software-printing/2362...lightroom.html), and I can work offline as long as I want.

[p38arover]

How does one use Photoshop CC if one has very poor/limited internet access?

Can I buy a stand-alone copy of PS or have I missed the boat?

I have a very old PS V7 (pre-CS).

[Colbyt]

CS6 was / is your last chance to buy. Even that will probably have to be purchased from a stocking dealer or Ebay.

For Photo manipulation Elements has most of the tools you will likely need for casual use. 11 is the current version. I find that PS6, one version prior to yours handles all my web related needs and Elements 9 does all I need to do with photos including DNG RAW. I might move up to Elements 11 with a real deal but am at the end of the line with PS. Both work fine with Win7 and I don't plan to upgrade the OS until it is no longer supported in about 10 years.

[newmikey]

I am free, entirely free. No such worries but it does drive home the dangers.

"Free software is a matter of liberty, not price. To understand the concept, you should think of free as in free speech, not as in free beer."
—Richard Stallman

[barondla]

It seems that Adobe has based their previous business on an unworkable business model. To make an expensive product and expect people to constantly buy a new one is silly. As a software company they need to be developing new software to do new tasks ( not just photo/graphic work). Look at all the aps for phones etc. Don't think the CC will save them.

thanks
barondla

[magkelly]

How does one use Photoshop CC if one has very poor/limited internet access?

Can I buy a stand-alone copy of PS or have I missed the boat?

I have a very old PS V7 (pre-CS).

You don't. Unless you're willing to hack it. PS-CC will call home every so often for verification of your activation status. You also need to go online initially to activate it. I have my firewall set up to alert me when programs on my machine try to connect to their servers. Adobe officially says that you're only connecting every so often (Like every 60 or 90 days, I forget exactly, but it's supposed to leave you with a much longer time between checks.) to validate your activation but actually according to my firewall before I stopped it it was connecting to the cloud every few days. It was constantly calling out. Upon install it clearly set itself up to load and monitor with a watch dog utility of some kind. I did not like what I was seeing. It was very intrusive, looked insecure, took up more resources. I just felt it was leaving my computer too vulnerable so I disabled all that, and hacked it so it could not call out and so Adobe could not call in. Technically what I did was questionable. I'm not going to deny that but my copy/code is legit otherwise and I just felt like my Photoshop CC was being held hostage by the new activation/forced upgrades scenario and I really just did not care for that.

[wildman]

It seems that Adobe has based their previous business on an unworkable business model. To make an expensive product and expect people to constantly buy a new one is silly.

It may be silly but it's the foundation of the American economy - buy or die.