Why is Adobe making life so difficult for legitimate users

BS
Posted By
bw_stenman
Oct 18, 2007
Views
653
Replies
17
Status
Closed
I am in the process of reinstalling CS and then CS2 for the third time in the past year. This time it is due to a code defect that generates the message “Your Adobe Photoshop user name, organization or serial number is missing or invalid. The application cannot continue and must now exit.” Apparently the only recourse is to uninstall CS3. Then with the problems with CS3 not recognizing the CS disk in the drive I need to reinstall CS first. After I install CS and CS2 I can then reset all my preferences, reload actions sets, reinstall plug-ins and my design software. I lose a day’s work every time this happens and it only happens with Adobe products.

In May I got the error message "license for this product has stopped working" and had to do a reinstall of everything as well.

I now need to find a substitute application I can use while on the road and in particular overseas. I cannot afford to have my image editing application crash and carry around a set of install discs for PS 7, CS, and CS2, as well as install discs for the plugin software I use on a daily basis.

If I was doing this as a hobby it would be frustrating but not quite as irritating as having to explain to clients why a project is delayed because my primary application crashed and cost me a day.

These are known problems that have been appearing for many months. Why is Adobe making it more difficult than any other software vendor to keep their applications running and why must they make it so difficult to install in the first, second, and third place. I have the same problem with installing CS3 on a Mac Pro so the problem is not limited to the XP registry or Windows.
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PeterK.
Oct 18, 2007
Don’t know what to tell you other than to make sure you’ve got regular maintenance running on your computer and make sure your hardware, hard drives, RAM, cables, etc. is all in working order. The licensing activation should only fail if something in your hardware setup changes. A glitchy piece of hardware may also trip up the activation if it sees it as being changed somehow.
(I bet the illegitimate users, the ones that activation was supposed to stop, aren’t having these kinds of problems.)
H
Ho
Oct 18, 2007
Could be worse. They could double the price and make you use a dongle.

I *am* sympathetic. You’re not the first user to be left high and dry by the self-borking activation protocol.
T
TLL
Oct 18, 2007
Scrounge up a copy (legitimate of course) of PS7.0 , with the 7.01 update. Put that on your traveling box and never, ever remove it. That’s the most stable version I’ve had experiance with, does just about everything a roady would need should your primary app (CS2, 3 whatever) crap out. Things will get better with CS4, really…
LH
Lawrence_Hudetz
Oct 18, 2007
PS 7 won’t do much for RAW.
H
Ho
Oct 18, 2007
Scrounge up a copy (legitimate of course) of PS7.0 , with the 7.01 update. Put that on your traveling box…

I use PS6 for traveling. It will run off a USB key. Seriously.

What’s RAW? 🙂
T
TLL
Oct 18, 2007
There are stand-alone RAW converters out there. Shoot raw/jpg?

PS 6 on a thumb drive? Hmmm <dig dig dig into the old software box>
LH
Lawrence_Hudetz
Oct 18, 2007
I know, but then you come back and in CS3, it wants to open in it’s own RAW.

There are enough headaches out there!

I have RAW Therapee, but it’s not as good as Adobe.
H
Ho
Oct 18, 2007
<dig dig dig into the old software box>

All you have to do is drag the PS folder from a working installation onto the USB drive. I’ve never tried installing directly to a USB drive—I doubt that it’s possible to do that.
BS
bw_stenman
Oct 18, 2007
I tried moving the PS folder but got an error message that looked like a permissions problem though I was logged in as the admin.

I can use the Nikon or Canon programs to convert RAW to TIFF if need be but it takes extra drive space. On the plus side they do a better job than ACR with high ISO images.

What I cannot understand is why this problem which is the number one incident listed on most boards, has not encouraged Adobe to provide a re-registration routine instead of an error message. Why not enable the user to re-enter the serial number, re-register the application, and re-activate the installation? It is not a technical hurdle but a mindset hurdle that must be overcome at Adobe.

Even with CS3 on the Mac Pro I had to get assistance over the phone with Adobe customer service to get the activation to succeed (actually an work around known by the support people who evidently have to deal with a lot of failures of the process).

The only solution I have found in the past is to buy a cracked code version of Photoshop that does not require activation over the Internet by Adobe. Often I am not at locations where there is phone access much less Internet access so reinstalling PS even if I carry around the 5 DVDs I would need is not an option. I guess I will have to get cracked versions of CS2 and CS3 just so I can use my current licenses.

A bit ironic that the best solution for being able to use the software I have purchased from Adobe is to buy counterfeit copies as well. I wonder if Adobe realizes its business practices are encouraging this and in fact making it necessary for its customers.

Aren’t monopolies wonderful.
RK
Rob_Keijzer
Oct 18, 2007
There are numerous users who don’t have the issues you do.

And why would you need all those disks? Do you think you need to install 7, CS, CS2 first to be able to install CS3?

It’s nothing to do with monopolies, because there isn’t one.

And about your comparison between ACR and Nikon/Canon converters: look again.

Rob
P
PeterK.
Oct 18, 2007
If you want an alternative to photoshop that seems to do everything that photoshop does, for a tenth of the price, try the following.

www.pixelmator.com <http://www.pixelmator.com>

It looks and acts like photoshop, and might be perfect for taking with you on your laptop.
JO
Jim_Oblak
Oct 18, 2007
Peter, does it act like Photoshop on Windows? 🙂
GD
glen_deman
Oct 18, 2007
Hate to say it, but I know my friends who have an illegitimate copy of PS CS3, never ever have these issues.
P
PeterK.
Oct 19, 2007
Oops, sorry no. It’s for Mac only!
O
Ottz0
Oct 20, 2007
don’t look like you are the only one

< http://apcmag.com/7391/adobe_trips_over_photoshop_copy_prote ction>
S
Stan
Oct 23, 2007
On Thu, 18 Oct 2007 01:42:24 -0700, wrote:

“Your Adobe Photoshop user name, organization or serial number is missing or invalid. The application cannot continue and must now exit.”

Had the same exact problem. Someone on another forum suggested that I reinstall and instead of using my legitimate paid for registration information, I simply run a crack available at some crack site they pointed me towards. So instead of using my legitimate paid for registration, I cracked it and have never had the problem again.

I can understand why they are saying that flawed activation schemes are driving what would have been legitimate paying customers to hack the software just to get around the hassles afforded by the flawed activation schemes. Looks like instead of thwarting piracy by implementing these flawed activation schemes, they are forcing piracy.

I read an article in pop-computing a few months back where M$ was starting to see this. It was evident to the great unwashed from the start but it took the geniuses at M$ 4 years to get a clue that when flawed activation schemes cast false positives or just go belly up and blame honest paying customers of being thieves, then you start loosing your base and animosity grows within what use to be supportive ranks.

Flawed Activation schemes only cause havoc with the honest paying customers while the pirates and hackers have a good laugh because their hacked copies don’t have to deal with flawed activation schemes.

Regards,
PM
Peter_Melnicoe
Oct 23, 2007
I was astounded to read the suggestions posted here by Adobe of things to try if CS3 crashes. Some of these things, including a complete reinstall beginning with the operating system could take a week to implement — and with no guarantees of success. Had no problems with CS or CS2. CS3 has some software conflict, I suppose, that one would play hell to find. Because the backup external hard drive (Seagate) has an auto shutdown, which no longer works, I suspect that may be the problem. But, who wants finnicky software on their computer. If this problem cannot be easily fixed, it is my last update and I’m going to seek a refund from Adobe.

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