Photoshop CS5 prices!!

Mitch.Carter said:
But it's the fact that something you can get for one click of the mouse.
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Just like printing a digital photograph.

*click*
*whirr*
*click*
*whirr*

Should I demand Getty's library give away the images because I can obtain them with a click of a mouse? Nonsense!

As for the comment about Illustrator CS4 giving grief, yes, I absolutely concur that CS4 is the "Vista" of the Adobe world. I gave it a miss because all those changes to the interface and structure were never going to settle down in one release... Let's hope CS5 improves it, and that they fix the new Info pallette bug, else I'll be sticking on CS3 for a while longer.
 
I have CS3 and hardly ever use it as I do 99% of stuff in Lightroom. I didn't upgrade to cs4 and I can't really see it's worth the £180 to upgrade to CS5. In fact I have found a few plugins recently that do some of the things I used to do in photoshop better for a lot less money.

I guess part of the reason is that I have watched lots of LR tutorial videos and feel that I am pretty proficient in it, but I always feel that I am scratching the surface with photoshop.

If I was using photoshop regularly and felt the new feautures would save me several hours a week than it would be sensible to upgrade.
 
braddersmd said:
Out of interest, what would be the license position with student edition software, if I use it, but I am not the licensee? Say, my other half (NUS pass) or my nephew (school) were to purchase it?
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If your other half purchased it then there is no problem. If your nephew is still at school he is unlikely to get the student discount though. They will give it on occasion but he would have to be taking an art course and you have to catch them on a good day.
 
It's extortionate IMHO. Sincerely, I believe that if the software was £200ish they'd make alot more money. Why? Because far fewer people would use pirated copies, they'd just buy it instead. I reckon for every 1 genuine copy of PS sold, there's at least 12 others using a pirated version. Just my thoughts of course...
 
MagicMynx said:
It's extortionate IMHO. Sincerely, I believe that if the software was £200ish they'd make alot more money. Why? Because far fewer people would use pirated copies, they'd just buy it instead. I reckon for every 1 genuine copy of PS sold, there's at least 12 others using a pirated version. Just my thoughts of course...
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You say that and of course it is true but would 5 times as many pay? If they did then their turnover would not increase but their customer support would be 5 times as high. For them to profit they would possibly have to sell 6-7 times as many.... Would this happen? Windows is £80 for an OEM version but how many people copy that? At the other extreme Script writer licences cost £10 and quite a few people have been good and honest enough to pay but I still see some people using it that have not and it is just £10. If people can get something for nothing then they will in a lot of cases.
 
MagicMynx said:
It's extortionate IMHO.
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It's not extortionate, Adobe are not forcing you to buy it. Those unhappy with the cost have alternatives available, e.g. GIMP, which is free.

Reduce the price to £50 and people will still pirate it.

I work in software development and know what it costs, the assumption that once a product is released then all you have to do is cover the development costs is entirely wrong, no product more complex than a "Hello, world!" program works perfectly on release, it will need bug fixes and the next version will need to have work started on it - you don't just fire all your programmers once a program hits the streets.
 
onomatopoeia said:
It's not extortionate, Adobe are not forcing you to buy it.
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unfortunately yes they are to some extent. we have no viable alternative to using illustrator here. we've only just had budget released (reluctantly) to upgrade to CS4 (which has turned out to be a shocking move but again had no option with snow leopard). bent over a barrell springs to mind.
 
They're free to set what price they think is "fair" and they're in the game to make money, not provide the world with cheap software. We can argue the merits of reducing by 10%, 20% and 50% but only those in the know (i.e. Adobe) know how much the product costs to develop and support, and the business plan they're working against. They're perfectly entitled to charge whatever they like, and if people pay it then presumably they think it's a fair price.

The only thing that sticks in the throat is the international pricing. Again they can set whatever price they want locally, but it's very much more difficult to argue that pricing is fair if it's markedly higher than in another territory (local taxes notwithstanding). Legally they're not doing anything wrong. Morally they are. But in a monopoly position you can afford to do what you like. Real competition is the only way to apply downward pressure on the price.
 
onomatopoeia said:
I work in software development and know what it costs, the assumption that once a product is released then all you have to do is cover the development costs is entirely wrong, no product more complex than a "Hello, world!" program works perfectly on release, it will need bug fixes and the next version will need to have work started on it - you don't just fire all your programmers once a program hits the streets.
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Whilst it is true, please tell me how much updates/bug fixes Adobe issues to their products when the new versions are released? I.e. how many updates will you see done to CS4 after CS5 is announced/released? I'll answer that - 0. So now tell me whether those 900 quid I paid for PS CS4 a year and a half ago was really worth that?

I am a software developer myself and I still don't think there is a justification in that price. In software world, the higher prices usually reflect the one of two things - either the product is niche (unique) and fit for a very specific purpouse so those who use it prepared to pay extra. Or there is no real competition yet in which case the company can dictate prices as absurd as those we see for Adobe products. It's the same as with train tickets in UK - no competition so prices are driven up to ridiculous levels ;-). Adobe products in my view fall in that second category - no real competition so they drive the prices up as much as their marketing department sees fit (and those people in my experience are almost always out of touch with real world).

I, as an end user, would be prepared to shell as much for Adobe software but they would have to give something extra for that kind of money. Like for example excellent support - if I have a problem I'd expect them to deal with it and provide a fix (patch etc) asap. Do they do that? - don't think so.

To all those saying that the prices are justified, look at their product from end user prospective. How much changes are in CS5 from say CS4? Do they really cost as much? I somehow don't think so. Why a CS4 or CS3 user is being forced to upgrade if they want fixes (support for new cameras in ACR or simply bugfixes)? Yes their development team may spent ages rewriting things and making internal restructuring but anyone in software development will tell you that it is absolutely wrong to do it at the customer expense. If the complexity of the software would be reflected in its price then operating systems like MacOS X or Vista would have cost a lot more than Adobe. Adobe may actually do a lot better if they take some lessons from the way open source companies operate (and I don't mean give it for free) - sell their products relatively cheaper (say in 200 pounds per product) and the charge extra for support (but for that they need to address support issues efficiently not like they are now).
 
cowasaki said:
If your other half purchased it then there is no problem. If your nephew is still at school he is unlikely to get the student discount though. They will give it on occasion but he would have to be taking an art course and you have to catch them on a good day.
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If I am understanding this correctly it seems that anyone who is at school qualifies for the student edition.

http://www.adobe.com/uk/education/students/studentteacheredition/faq.html

Who can buy?
Who may purchase and use the Adobe Student and Teacher Edition?

The following people are eligible to use the Adobe Student and Teacher Edition:

* University and college students—students enrolled at a higher education institution defined as an accredited public or private university or college (including community, junior, or vocational college) that grants degrees requiring not less than the equivalent of two years of full-time study

* Primary and secondary school students—students enrolled at an accredited public or private primary or secondary school providing full-time instruction

* Faculty and staff—teachers and staff employed by an accredited primary or secondary school or public or private university or college

Are part-time students and teachers eligible to purchase Adobe Student and Teacher Editions?

Yes, as long as the student or teacher qualifies per the terms stated above.
What kind of evidence of eligibility is needed?

The following is needed from students and teachers to provide evidence of eligibility:
Students

Students must provide a photocopy of a valid, current student ID that includes the student’s name, date, and a photo. If the student does not have such an ID, he or she must instead provide a photocopy of a valid photo ID and one of the following items:

* Official, current non-photo student ID with name and date
* Official, current school transcript indicating name of school and student
* Official, current school tuition bill indicating name of school and student
* Official, current report card indicating name of school and student
* Other official dated proof of enrollment

Students who are under 18 and do not have a valid photo ID may provide an official letter from their eligible educational institution stating their name and current enrollment status.

Teachers, faculty, and staff

Teachers, faculty, and staff must provide a photocopy of a valid, current school ID that includes the educator’s name, date, and a photo. If the educator does not have such an ID, she or he must instead provide a photocopy of a valid photo ID and one of the following items:

* Faculty or staff paycheck stub
* An official letter from the registrar of the educational entity
 
cowasaki said:
If your other half purchased it then there is no problem. If your nephew is still at school he is unlikely to get the student discount though. They will give it on occasion but he would have to be taking an art course and you have to catch them on a good day.
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Edit - Just saw the above post answered :)

Not true. Primary & Secondary students can get the software through this so long as get a headed paper stating name and enrollment status. See the faq I posted.

They however have to have it on their personal computers the girl with the nefew who probably doesn't live with her would probably mean that use would not be legit.
 
EOS_JD said:
Not true. Primary & Secondary students can get the software through this so long as get a headed paper stating name and enrollment status. See the faq I posted.

They however have to have it on their personal computers the girl with the nefew who probably doesn't live with her would probably mean that use would not be legit.
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When CS3 came out they were only giving it to students doing an Art or related subject. If all you need is school letter headed paper and nothing more then anyone with kids can get it!

Just read the above and yes if basically means anyone who's kids are at school can get it, thats a help for a lot of people.
 
Jimmy_Lemon said:
I love they charge you £20 more to download it too - how is them sending you a box £20 cheaper? :|
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Do you think that maybe someone pressed '+' instead of '-' and then didn't want to admit their mistake or alternatively just found it funny :lol:

Everyone else gives a discount!
 
£932......they must be having a larf.:nuts:
 
cowasaki said:
When CS3 came out they were only giving it to students doing an Art or related subject. If all you need is school letter headed paper and nothing more then anyone with kids can get it!

Just read the above and yes if basically means anyone who's kids are at school can get it, thats a help for a lot of people.
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Yip :)
 
ccsnet said:
Question.... how would they know what use you where giving it if its a bought licence.... :rules:

Terran
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Education softwarew used to be restricted to non-commercial use. Which must be difficult to control. What's you reference to the rules?
 
I can't find anything on the Adobe website about upgrading from the educational version of cs4 to the ed version of CS5. Does anyone know if it's possible to do this?
 
You can't "upgrade" from any Education version. If you are still eligible you can however buy another one - depending on when you bought CS4 - One upgrade per symester I think
 
EOS_JD said:
You can't "upgrade" from any Education version. If you are still eligible you can however buy another one - depending on when you bought CS4 - One upgrade per symester I think
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In case it's helpful to anyone, I found I could upgrade from the educational v3 to full v4 as if upgrading from full v3 to full v4. (This was the official Adobe policy, not just a quirk in the system)

I'm guessing this'll also apply to v4 educational to v5 commercial.
 
EOS_JD said:
You can't "upgrade" from any Education version. If you are still eligible you can however buy another one - depending on when you bought CS4 - One upgrade per symester I think
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Not true! You can upgrade from either the Student or Education versions, although you will find it is actually cheaper to buy another new copy!
 
EdBray said:
Not true! You can upgrade from either the Student or Education versions, although you will find it is actually cheaper to buy another new copy!
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I stand corrected :)

Edit
I kind of take that back. You can't upgrade from one education version to another - you basically need to buy a new one. You can upograde from Student to full version although as you say that is more expensive if you still qualify as a student
 
EOS_JD said:
You can't "upgrade" from any Education version. If you are still eligible you can however buy another one - depending on when you bought CS4 - One upgrade per symester I think
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Source? As far as I can determine there's no restriction.
 
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