Adobe Announces New Creative Cloud Apps, Abandons Creative Suite

[handsome pete]

My subscription costs for this year and still nowhere near what it would have cost to upgrade even the Master Collection to CS6, so that alone was worth it.

In the short term there are likely savings by going with the subscription plan. However when you project it out over the long haul, it's much more expensive. Over 10 years you'll pay $6000 on a subscription. If your were a purchaser that upgraded every year, then you would have spent $5300. But if you were someone who only upgraded every 2 years, then you would have only spent $3300.

I honestly don't think the pricing is as absurd as many. However I don't like not having a choice in the matter. And I don't like potentially being in a scenario where a new version is buggy and I can't just wait to upgrade until the issues are solved. I don't know how that works with the creative cloud versions.

 

[x86isslow]

Sure, but in this model you don't just pay for it in the months you use it. It's recurring. The individual "cancel at any time" price is $75/mo. How many of your small businesses are going to sit and think about whether they should pay $75 this month to edit their flyer? It's not a viable option.

How many small businesses are going to throw down $2500+ on a software suite for the off-chance they need it to occasionally edit a flyer at some point down the line?

So you are able to just leave moneygaps in your subscription, when you don't use the software?

Why would you pay for something when you're not going to use it? Just pay for it based on demand.

 

[MacEdit]

Worth every penny

A lot of these complaints that I see are understandable, but some, I don't think a lot of thought (or research) has gone into the complaint.
I've be on Creative Cloud since day one and I haven't looked back once.
You don't need to always be online, and the normal downloaded version is installed to your computer. Plus the whole install process is way easier then installing the master suite ever was.
For me I'm a creative professional, so i make my living off of the CS suite. If i wasn't anymore, then really, I figure I don't need to pay for it. But as long as I am, $50 month is cheap for what you get with it. It was cheaper for me to go creative cloud then upgrading my master suite from CS5 to CS6, plus you get way more features from it.
Some of the new additions like the behance sites, type kit, adobe digital publishing suite are so worth the price.
Plus, even if you do only use photoshop, you now have access to everything else and training videos for them to learn and expand your skill set.
I feel like a lot of people will come around to the idea of the creative cloud.
If you are in the industry and want to keep using the old stuff, you can go right ahead, but believe me you will be left far behind faster then you ever did before.
I feel like a lot of the people complaining about the price probably don't make their money from this software, if you do its time to change your rates and factor in $50 extra bucks a month for the software.
The pirates will always be that and feel just for doing that, so there opinion really doesn't count in my book anyway.

 

[handsome pete]

All of you who say you don't like this. Here is your opportunity to get rich. Sell a product that competes with Adobe. Don't gripe, take it as an opportunity.

If only it was that easy.

 

[dawindmg08]

Curious (and serious) question for you or anyone experienced in such matters. If this new method is "calling home" once a month to verify subscription, how is that different from Adobe app's calling home when opened/used? As I understand it, pirating CSX now means the "Hosts" file can be modified to block or trick Adobe app's from calling home or believing they have. This is one (of many) area('s) I'm ignorant in, I always wondered about the process. If it is the same "system", just done differently, surely someone will craft a way around this model. No?

I'm not 100% on this, but I do think it's a different system. Under the old system the app would check in online and verify the serial number was valid, and that "call home" could be blocked on the user's end. For the Cloud, the software HAS to be able to verify your activation at some point during the month, otherwise it stops working. So blocking the call home won't work; a hacker would need to be able to allow the apps to contact Adobe and somehow spoof it into believing it's from a fully paid subscription.

Adobe isn't stupid, I'm sure they're aware of all the different piracy methods that have been used over the years and they're trying to make it as difficult as possible.

 

[handsome pete]

If you are in the industry and want to keep using the old stuff, you can go right ahead, but believe me you will be left far behind faster then you ever did before.

I don't think that's true at all.

 

[3282868]

I really think that Apple has gone in the right direction in terms of "pro" apps and pricing with FCPx.

I realise there are still two very distinct marmite style camps but many are trying it out after the few updates and realising that it is a very robust affordable editor.

Apple is not only getting current pros but also hopefully getting the pros of tomorrow interested.

A young person is going to look at $300 as an achievable purchase but $699 a year as a joke and move elsewhere.

True, but I would classify them as "semi-pro's". Individuals who are either hobbyists or earn some cash on the side with Apple's current "pro-Apps". Professionals who use(d) Pro-App's have moved to Windows, Avid, CS5/6 (Adobe was smart in stepping their game up, as Premiere Pro, etc shaped into great pro-Apps when Final Cut Pro X first came around), etc. FCPX 10.0.8 finally added many essential tools that drove FCP7 pro's away. I've been using both since day 1 in hopes X would improve, thankfully it seems to be. However, there are many in the pro community who dislike Apple's new GUI as many seem it consumer oriented (iMovie) and less pro-related. Meaning Apple focused on bringing iMovie elements into FCPX while dropping many tools that ver. 7 offers(ed). Aperture is in dire need, ironically the new "Lightroom" release garnered a lot of praise, with many jumping Aperture's ship as 3.0 is stale. This may change (I hope).

 

[yoink]

But even if you don't include the upgrades, it still takes two to four years of subscribing before you match the cost of the store bought versions.

That's the biggest advantage to the sub service. It's a lower cost, stretched out over time. It's only more expensive for people who buy one version, then only upgrade every 4 versions. Even then those people only start taking a relative hit to their wallet after a span of years.

The biggest disadvantage is, of course, that you don't officially own the software. You can lease it for up to a year, and its yours to do with as you please for that amount of time. Once that year is over, you have to lease it again or lose it entirely.

Incorrect. Let's do some math:

I buy Production Premium. $1799

I upgrade every year (even though I don't).

Year 1: $1799
Year 2: $349
Year 3: $349
Year 4: $349

Cost: $2850 - So for $400 more I dont have to pay anything to keep using my software.

I'm a creative cloud customer:
Year 1: $49.95 ($600)
Year 2: $?? - But let's say it stays the same ($600)
Year 3: $?? - " ($600)
Year 4: $?? - " ($600)
Cost: $2400 (minimum) but I must pay to continue using it at all and these prices are at 1 year commitments. What happens when they pull mobile-carrier behaviour and make you commit to two or three years for these prices?

 

[Meandmunch]

And this is what a Monopoly can get away with. There are no tried and true alternatives for professionals.

 

[Luis Ortega]

Yup exactly! Say that to cracked Adobe Muse which is offered only by CC subscription or cracked Creative Cloud features update manger for CS6 that supposedly only Creative Cloud members could get. In other words people who bought CS6 can use cracked update tool to get Creative Cloud features for their PS, AI, ID, DW, etc.

I predict that piracy or hacking cracks will surge in response to this move.

 

[3282868]

I'm not 100% on this, but I do think it's a different system. Under the old system the app would check in online and verify the serial number was valid, and that "call home" could be blocked on the user's end. For the Cloud, the software HAS to be able to verify your activation at some point during the month, otherwise it stops working. So blocking the call home won't work; a hacker would need to be able to allow the apps to contact Adobe and somehow spoof it into believing it's from a fully paid subscription.

Adobe isn't stupid, I'm sure they're aware of all the different piracy methods that have been used over the years and they're trying to make it as difficult as possible.

I wonder if a "fake" Adobe server/IP could be used, allowing the app's to home in on a modded IP to an address that would verify subscription. If this could be done at all, it would require a 24/7 server running that can't be prey to a DoS attack.

Not that I'm, um, considering, uh, anything of the sort, just writing in hypotheticals

 

[cube]

I think many people do not know that you can rent Adobe software for just one month.

This removes the barrier for occasional users to rent, who may think it would be better to buy, but finding it hard to justify, do nothing.

For continuous users it would be cheaper to buy the software occasionally, but like this they are always up to date, while being able to justify it.

 

[fivedots]

Aperture is in dire need, ironically the new "Lightroom" release garnered a lot of praise, with many jumping Aperture's ship as 3.0 is stale. This may change (I hope).

As do I. If Aperture can become even 75% of what Lightroom is, I will be very pleased. Lightroom is going to be hard to catch though.

 

[Luis Ortega]

And this is what a Monopoly can get away with. There are no tried and true alternatives for professionals.

There is CS6. If everyone sits on this version for the next few years, adobe will get a clear message.
I can see if you are a pro who uses the software for a living, you might feel compelled to buy into this scheme, but the number of people who aren't pros and use adobe apps is huge and those people will not be happy about being forced to pay for what amounts to yearly upgrades just to use their software.

 

[jdodoubleg]

#1 “I don’t want to run my Applications in a web browser!”

When people hear “cloud” they get visions of running applications in a web browser. While that may be the case with other cloud offerings, it’s not the case with Creative Cloud. Creative Cloud members download and install their Apps as Adobe customers always have. The Apps like Photoshop , Illustrator, InDesign and even the new app Muse runs from your Hard Drive, not from the cloud.​

#2 ” I don’t want to have to be connected to the internet just to use Photoshop.”

Once we get past the fact that you download the Apps and install them on your hard drive, people still sometimes think that they need to be connected to the internet to actually run the Apps because they are Creative Cloud Apps. Again, this is not true. Your Apps not only install on your hard drive, but they also can very much run offline. You computer does have to connect to the internet once a month to verify that your membership is still current, but that’s it. Once that check has happened you can disconnect and run all of your Creative Cloud apps OFF-line.​

#3 “I can’t share files to my clients or colleagues unless they’re Creative Cloud members.”

With your Creative Cloud membership you get 20GBs of cloud storage. You can use this storage to sync files between your devices and access them via the Touch Apps like Photoshop Touch and Adobe Ideas. If you place files in your Creative Cloud folder on your hard drive those files will not only be accessible when you’re offline, but you can also log into creative.adobe.com and share them. Once you decide to share a file you can email a link to your colleagues or clients and they will be able to view your file in their web browser even if they’ve never heard of Creative Cloud or the Adobe applications you used to create them. They don’t have to create an account or register for anything. See my video on how to share files with Creative Cloud here.​

# 4 “If I decide to leave Creative Cloud I won’t be able to access the files I’ve created.”

When you create files with the various Creative Apps from Adobe, the files are yours. Adobe doesn’t take any ownership or copyright of those files. If you decide to no longer be a Creative Cloud member then you won’t have access to your Creative Cloud applications anymore, but if you’ve got previous CS App versions, you’ll be able to open your files provided that you’ve saved them down to compatible formats with your older applications or other 3rd party Applications. If you ever decided to re-join Creative Cloud you’ll have access to the latest Creative Apps again and you’ll be able to continue working on YOUR files.​

# 5 “If I go with Creative Cloud I’m going to always be forced to run the newest versions of the software.”

With Adobe Creative Cloud you will always have access to the latest Adobe Creative Applications, but you are not forced to upgrade. You can continue to run which ever versions of the software that you want until YOU are ready to upgrade. This is crucial for workflows that involve working with clients or vendors that may not be on the latest versions of the software. You can continue using your current version of the product for one full year after the subsequent version is released.​

Bonus Myth “If I have a Mac and a PC I’ll have to join Creative Cloud twice!”

Actually not only is this not true, but it’s one of the best benefits of Creative Cloud. With Creative Cloud you’re allowed to install the software on up to TWO of your computers. Just like you are able to do with the Creative Suite applications. However, unlike Creative Suite, Creative Cloud allows you to download and install either the Mac or Windows versions for each computer. This is great for people that have say a Windows PC at work, but a Mac at home.​

 

[Michael Scrip]

There is CS6. If everyone sits on this version for the next few years, adobe will get a clear message.

I can see if you are a pro who uses the software for a living, you might feel compelled to buy into this scheme, but the number of people who aren't pros and use adobe apps is huge and those people will not be happy about being forced to pay for what amounts to yearly upgrades just to use their software.

Adobe has been around for 30 years selling traditional boxed software products.

Abobe's Creative Cloud subscription has been around for 1 year... and now Adobe is transitioning fully to subscription-only products.

Obviously Adobe thinks this is a good idea. Why else would they do it?

Who knows... maybe since Creative Cloud came out... they had a huge uptake in subscriptions and their boxed products and upgrades shrank.

If ZERO people signed up for Creative Cloud over the last year... then that would tell you something.

But clearly Adobe saw something good coming from their software subscriptions... and now they're committing to it.

 

[wildfire99999]

What are the best alternatives

I'm going to date myself but I've been using Photoshop since it was in its original Beta (0.8) and Fontographer, Illustrator, and Freehand since their beginnings. I've been very down on Adobe products since CS (actually, Photoshop's most usable version was probably 2.0) as they just keep getting more complicated and junked-up in the interface (things you do once in a long while are exceedingly easy but the things you do a zillion times a day--like switching tools or calling-up certain dialog boxes--get worse). I've missed Freehand since Adobe killed it and find Illustrator unusable. InDesign has interface issues but, at least, is usable. I use Adobe products when I need to, now, but hate every moment of the process.

This will definitely send me elsewhere--but where?

I see that Pixelmator and Acorn are recommended by people in this thread as Photoshop replacements. I'm already downloading the free trials.

What about Illustrator, InDesign, and Dreamweaver replacements?

"I WAS the one" included a screenshot of his toolbox, listing some possibilities (thread #163). What are others' recommendations?

 

[fivedots]

#2 ” I don’t want to have to be connected to the internet just to use Photoshop.”

Once we get past the fact that you download the Apps and install them on your hard drive, people still sometimes think that they need to be connected to the internet to actually run the Apps because they are Creative Cloud Apps. Again, this is not true. Your Apps not only install on your hard drive, but they also can very much run offline. You computer does have to connect to the internet once a month to verify that your membership is still current, but that’s it. Once that check has happened you can disconnect and run all of your Creative Cloud apps OFF-line.​

I'm assuming it's a rolling 30 days as well? i.e. it actually checks daily and you are given 30 days from the last time it connected, rather than checking monthly.

 

[dazed]

Sorry if this has already been asked, but since I already subscribe to creative cloud, and am still on my first year at the reduced cs3 rate, would I automatically be rolled over into this?

Would I get the first year at the reduced rate again or am I paying full price.

Thanks.

 

[cube]

I'm going to date myself but I've been using Photoshop since it was in its original Beta (0.8) and Fontographer, Illustrator, and Freehand since their beginnings. I've been very down on Adobe products since CS (actually, Photoshop's most usable version was probably 2.0) as they just keep getting more complicated and junked-up in the interface (things you do once in a long while are exceedingly easy but the things you do a zillion times a day--like switching tools or calling-up certain dialog boxes--get worse). I've missed Freehand since Adobe killed it and find Illustrator unusable. InDesign has interface issues but, at least, is usable. I use Adobe products when I need to, now, but hate every moment of the process.

This will definitely send me elsewhere--but where?

I see that Pixelmator and Acorn are recommended by people in this thread as Photoshop replacements. I'm already downloading the free trials.

What about Illustrator, InDesign, and Dreamweaver replacements?

"I WAS the one" included a screenshot of his toolbox, listing some possibilities (thread #163). What are others' recommendations?

Well, since GIMP now has deep colour and heal brush, I think it could now be considered as usable for more than basic stuff.

For Illustrator, I find there's no usable free alternative. I don't know if there's any commercial one than can be considered acceptable (at least on Mac).

Acrobat can be unreplaceable for forms.

For LiveCycle, there's no alternative at all.

 

[iMcLovin]

So I guess I will stick with CS6 for many years then. Because the only reason I´ll upgrade to the subscription model is if there´s some photoshop features that will be impossible to resist. But, knowing Adobe thats not gonna happen for many many years.

 

[MadDawg2020]

A lot of confusion over this, the software is NOT cloud based , ONLY the activation is. The software is downloaded and runs like always but it calls home every month to check you subscription status and will shut down if you have not paid.
The biggest problem is the price model.
Those who get shafted here are the ones who use 2 or 3 apps only. You either have to pay$ 20 a month and chose a single program or $50 and have dozens of programs and crap utilities most of us never use.
They should have it as an App Store where you can just buy what you want a la carte like apple did with final cut. And there is no reason to charge this much since you no longer have to package ship or deal with retail...

 

[I WAS the one]

As much as you'd like to believe otherwise, Adobe is the only viable solution in many areas.

They're not. I've been a graphic artist since 1992. yes I used Adobe products since day 1 until CS5. Today others apps can do what these apps are offering. Did I lost money with Plugins that now I don't use? yes. Did I miss them? NO. Do I get the same results at the same speed? at the same speed? No, but I got the same results.

Wake up and smell the coffee. Adobe is not the only option now.

 

[CrickettGrrrl]

Don't know why this surprised me, the writing was on the wall, but still....surprised and really disappointed. A big poke in the eye from Adobe...

 

[I WAS the one]

any motion graphics?

For Motion Graphic I use other apps this folder I was showing are graphic/web designing only. If you mean animation as in Flash or Html5 Hype works wonders.