A coronal mass ejection will make it essentially impossible for archivists and librarians, in 30 years, to read the files and archives created today. Because all electronic records will be toast.
Fixed that for you . . .
No, you made my reasonable statement into an absurdity. But the reality is that Microsoft has a track record of NOT SUPPORTING its old file formats. You write with the attitude of someone under 40 years old. Why should I expect MS to support todays formats made with subscription software into the near future? When I need to open an old MS Word 4 file, I can still use MS Word 4 on a legacy Mac that I have. That is ONLY because I have the software. Were it subscription software, MS would have long ago forced my files into obsolescence. My statements are not based upon projections of the future, but rather upon observations of the past and present.
To equate rational, reasonable objections to a poor business model with the futility of doomsday predictions is... just... foolish.
Some day, with luck, you may find yourself in your eighth decade of existence, and reflecting on your life in a retirement community. Will you have a physical photo album handy to help with those reminisces? Because all your CDs, smartphones, and cloud-storage files will be gone. It's a certainty. No coronal mass ejection required.
Adobe lost my future business as well. Because of their subscription model, instead of upgrading Creative Suite as I would usually do, I'm instead milking my current version until it's no longer viable, and seeking alternatives in the meantime. Plenty of options are surfacing these days. I expect I'll have what I need by the time my last "non subscription" version of Photoshop/Illustrator, etc. no longer works (5 years down the road? 3 or so OSX versions later?)... I'm sure I'll manage...
See, that would never work in our environment. We have 8 global offices and also a lot of graphics vendors, consultants and freelancers. We can't even make it 30 days without having to upgrade simply because someone is going to send us a file that requires a newer version.
So if $100 per year, every year, forever, for 5 computers and 5 iPads is too much, then $70 per year, every year, forever, for just 1 computer and 1 iPad is is reasonable?
Right.
What if you are a single person who has one PC or Mac and one iPad? Why buy a license for 5 PCs and 5 tablets if you don't have them?
Try opening a file created by MS Word version 4 with Word 2011. Nope, impossible. It just won't even view it.
THANKS FOR NOTHING, MICROSOFT.
Sure, there are ways to convert files, but I have over 5,000 documents of family data and records that we'd like to preserve. Who'd a thunk 30 years ago when we transitioned the project to the Mac that by 2015 the only way to view the documents would be by looking at the PRINTED HARDCOPY. Thankfully, we did print all those pages. Over 12,000 of them.
In retrospect, it would have been simpler, cheaper, and more durable just to stick with the bloody typewriter with which we began the project 45 years ago.
While it's true that in the digital age records are more ephemeral, that seems to be changing. Office file formats changed a lot until Office 6 on the Mac and PC. That version survived until Office 2007/2008, is still supported to this day, and the new format is XML and open source. Also PDF has become a de facto standard that has survived for quite a long time. So there are some file formats that should be more lasting.
So how does MS determine the difference between a real personal use verse the BYOD to work and using it for actual corporate work. Today more people use a personal ipad at work than a work supplied device.
Right now Microsoft's licensing doesn't work well for the BYOD era. The $69 and $99 plans technically don't permit commercial use. That said, lots of businesses don't want corporate data on personal devices, or at least want to control it because of legal or regulatory reasons. The enterprise versions grant access to enterprise versions of OneDrive and other services that can pass muster for security and privacy concerns. But a small or mid-sized business is in a tougher spot. The small and mid-sized business licenses are pricier, and those companies would be more likely to want BYOD users to bear the costs. Microsoft should try to find a middle ground.
Try opening a file created by MS Word version 4 with Word 2011. Nope, impossible. It just won't even view it.
THANKS FOR NOTHING, MICROSOFT.
Sure, there are ways to convert files, but I have over 5,000 documents of family data and records that we'd like to preserve. Who'd a thunk 30 years ago when we transitioned the project to the Mac that by 2015 the only way to view the documents would be by looking at the PRINTED HARDCOPY. Thankfully, we did print all those pages. Over 12,000 of them.
In retrospect, it would have been simpler, cheaper, and more durable just to stick with the bloody typewriter with which we began the project 45 years ago.
I've got hundreds of documents from 30 years ago created on Wordstar and WordPerfect. I don't have any difficulty accessing them. It took me less than an hour to code a program to read the files, strip out un-needed data and even convert popular formatting codes/commands to modern equivalents.
To claim a typewriter would have been better is beyond asinine.
THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS AN UNREADABLE WORD PROCESSING FORMAT.
"The suite was last updated on the Mac in 2010, and subsequent updates have not arrived because Microsoft disbanded its Mac business unit soon after it launched." That is not true. Not sure where this rumor originated from. Probably because Microsoft Mac Business Unit has been renamed to APEX after Mac Office 2011 was released and that name change was not publicly announced because APEX team (still the same people as MacBU) started working on Office for iPad.
- If you're a student MS will give you a 4 year subscription for $79. Or $19.75 per year. That's a bargain.
- Office 365 includes Outlook, Access (a biggie) and Publisher (not so much). You also get 60 minutes of Skype per month and the extra 20GB OneDrive for all 5 users (100GB free online storage is a big deal for me as well).
- If I buy a version of Office for home it doesn't come with Outlook, Access, Publisher, OneDrive or Skype.
I've got hundreds of documents from 30 years ago created on Wordstar and WordPerfect. I don't have any difficulty accessing them. It took me less than an hour to code a program to read the files, strip out un-needed data and even convert popular formatting codes/commands to modern equivalents.
THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS AN UNREADABLE WORD PROCESSING FORMAT.
Nice that you have the training and skill to do that.
See, that would never work in our environment. We have 8 global offices and also a lot of graphics vendors, consultants and freelancers. We can't even make it 30 days without having to upgrade simply because someone is going to send us a file that requires a newer version.
Wow... so you have no "version controls" in place? That's only costing your business a ton of money and giving up control of your own budgeting process. And speaks to my point exactly.
I ran an interactive agency in Tokyo for 7 years. I know about working with outside graphic designers, freelancers, contractors, agencies, etc. We never required the "latest and greatest" version (nor was it ever required of us) because that was almost a guarantee of a "least likely to succeed" project strategy. In fact, the opposite was more likely to be true, that is, requiring support of (what we felt were) archaic older versions of file formats. Sometimes two or three (or more!) generations back. That was the more common scenario. Printers and Ad Agencies always seem to be the last to upgrade. They always ran with versions one or two generations back. Always. They controlled their budgets.
I also controlled when my company budgeted for upgrades. Not my vendors, and not Adobe... As it should be.
I can recall only a few cases where a vendor sent a 'latest version only' file, and they were always asked to resend a copy supporting at least one version back. It's very rare when a "new feature" affects the functional end results anyway...
So, my point stands. Your company might be well served to manage those budgets (and vendors) better. That said, Adobe has always found ways to make it very costly for companies to use their products... the subscription model isn't doing them any favors.
Comments
A coronal mass ejection will make it essentially impossible for archivists and librarians, in 30 years, to read the files and archives created today. Because all electronic records will be toast.
Fixed that for you . . .
No, you made my reasonable statement into an absurdity. But the reality is that Microsoft has a track record of NOT SUPPORTING its old file formats. You write with the attitude of someone under 40 years old. Why should I expect MS to support todays formats made with subscription software into the near future? When I need to open an old MS Word 4 file, I can still use MS Word 4 on a legacy Mac that I have. That is ONLY because I have the software. Were it subscription software, MS would have long ago forced my files into obsolescence. My statements are not based upon projections of the future, but rather upon observations of the past and present.
To equate rational, reasonable objections to a poor business model with the futility of doomsday predictions is... just... foolish.
Some day, with luck, you may find yourself in your eighth decade of existence, and reflecting on your life in a retirement community. Will you have a physical photo album handy to help with those reminisces? Because all your CDs, smartphones, and cloud-storage files will be gone. It's a certainty. No coronal mass ejection required.
Adobe lost my future business as well. Because of their subscription model, instead of upgrading Creative Suite as I would usually do, I'm instead milking my current version until it's no longer viable, and seeking alternatives in the meantime. Plenty of options are surfacing these days. I expect I'll have what I need by the time my last "non subscription" version of Photoshop/Illustrator, etc. no longer works (5 years down the road? 3 or so OSX versions later?)... I'm sure I'll manage...
See, that would never work in our environment. We have 8 global offices and also a lot of graphics vendors, consultants and freelancers. We can't even make it 30 days without having to upgrade simply because someone is going to send us a file that requires a newer version.
What if you are a single person who has one PC or Mac and one iPad? Why buy a license for 5 PCs and 5 tablets if you don't have them?
While it's true that in the digital age records are more ephemeral, that seems to be changing. Office file formats changed a lot until Office 6 on the Mac and PC. That version survived until Office 2007/2008, is still supported to this day, and the new format is XML and open source. Also PDF has become a de facto standard that has survived for quite a long time. So there are some file formats that should be more lasting.
Right now Microsoft's licensing doesn't work well for the BYOD era. The $69 and $99 plans technically don't permit commercial use. That said, lots of businesses don't want corporate data on personal devices, or at least want to control it because of legal or regulatory reasons. The enterprise versions grant access to enterprise versions of OneDrive and other services that can pass muster for security and privacy concerns. But a small or mid-sized business is in a tougher spot. The small and mid-sized business licenses are pricier, and those companies would be more likely to want BYOD users to bear the costs. Microsoft should try to find a middle ground.
To claim a typewriter would have been better is beyond asinine.
THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS AN UNREADABLE WORD PROCESSING FORMAT.
That is not true. Not sure where this rumor originated from. Probably because Microsoft Mac Business Unit has been renamed to APEX after Mac Office 2011 was released and that name change was not publicly announced because APEX team (still the same people as MacBU) started working on Office for iPad.
More agressive, very good move. Only $70 to go.
Is that $83.88 per year?
That's what it cost if you pay month by month. It's only $70/year if you pay all at once.
A few more things.
- If you're a student MS will give you a 4 year subscription for $79. Or $19.75 per year. That's a bargain.
- Office 365 includes Outlook, Access (a biggie) and Publisher (not so much). You also get 60 minutes of Skype per month and the extra 20GB OneDrive for all 5 users (100GB free online storage is a big deal for me as well).
- If I buy a version of Office for home it doesn't come with Outlook, Access, Publisher, OneDrive or Skype.
I've got hundreds of documents from 30 years ago created on Wordstar and WordPerfect. I don't have any difficulty accessing them. It took me less than an hour to code a program to read the files, strip out un-needed data and even convert popular formatting codes/commands to modern equivalents.
THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS AN UNREADABLE WORD PROCESSING FORMAT.
Nice that you have the training and skill to do that.
Most do not.
In 2014, I would expect it to be under $10 forever use, if not totally free. Otherwise no thanks iWork is enough for me.
See, that would never work in our environment. We have 8 global offices and also a lot of graphics vendors, consultants and freelancers. We can't even make it 30 days without having to upgrade simply because someone is going to send us a file that requires a newer version.
Wow... so you have no "version controls" in place? That's only costing your business a ton of money and giving up control of your own budgeting process. And speaks to my point exactly.
I ran an interactive agency in Tokyo for 7 years. I know about working with outside graphic designers, freelancers, contractors, agencies, etc. We never required the "latest and greatest" version (nor was it ever required of us) because that was almost a guarantee of a "least likely to succeed" project strategy. In fact, the opposite was more likely to be true, that is, requiring support of (what we felt were) archaic older versions of file formats. Sometimes two or three (or more!) generations back. That was the more common scenario. Printers and Ad Agencies always seem to be the last to upgrade. They always ran with versions one or two generations back. Always. They controlled their budgets.
I also controlled when my company budgeted for upgrades. Not my vendors, and not Adobe... As it should be.
I can recall only a few cases where a vendor sent a 'latest version only' file, and they were always asked to resend a copy supporting at least one version back. It's very rare when a "new feature" affects the functional end results anyway...
So, my point stands. Your company might be well served to manage those budgets (and vendors) better. That said, Adobe has always found ways to make it very costly for companies to use their products... the subscription model isn't doing them any favors.