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+--- Thread: Follow-up: Cheap Softwares, Inc. (/showthread.php?tid=49429)
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Follow-up: Cheap Softwares, Inc. - mrlynn - 02-15-2008
Update to
http://forums.macresource.com/read/1/427510/430138
and http://forums.macresource.com/read/1/430490/434546
I went ahead and ordered the CS3 Design Premium suite, which at $505 including shipping was easily a third of retail. I was rather appalled to see it coming from China, fearing counterfeit. How would one tell? The package consists of a light-plastic box with two DVDs in it. The disks are printed in one color, sort of olive, and bear the legend "Copyright 2007 Adobe Systems Incorporated."
A license key arrived by e-mail. The software installed on my MBP easily, and accepted the license key. I registered it with Adobe, and downloaded the 5.0.2 InDesign upgrade, which installed without any problem.
As far as I can tell, it is the legitimate full product. There was no piece of 'hardware' with it, so I assume it was not OEM. Conceivably it comes from some kind of 'grey market', but how is an end-user to know?
There were no manuals or other paper products with the disks, and no box, but there is documentation on Disk 2, which is adequate for my needs. I'm not doing much design or production these days (an occasional ad or form, for which I was using Pagemaker 6); I just needed an update to run under OS X.
This is not an advertisement for Cheap Softwares. But it is a deal. If it turned out to be unlicensable, or illegal, I would return it. But as far as I can tell, it's OK.
/Mr Lynn
Re: Follow-up: Cheap Softwares, Inc. - Paul F. - 02-15-2008
Congratulations on your new piece of illegally counterfeited chinese look-alike packaging software...
Re: Follow-up: Cheap Softwares, Inc. - JJ - 02-15-2008
[quote mrlynn]
As far as I can tell, it is the legitimate full product.
This is not an advertisement for Cheap Softwares. But it is a deal. If it turned out to be unlicensable, or illegal, I would return it. But as far as I can tell, it's OK.
/Mr Lynn
"As far as I can tell" means you don't really know. A simple phone call to Adobe would validate your product.
If your purchase is truly valid (call Adobe), others would be happy to use the vendor you have highlighted.
Good luck.
JJ
Re: Follow-up: Cheap Softwares, Inc. - Panopticon - 02-15-2008
Was it mailed and marked as a "GIFT"?
If yes, I'd say fake.
Otherwise, if the package had a US Customs sticker on it, it might well be 'legal'.
Re: Follow-up: Cheap Softwares, Inc. - Racer X - 02-15-2008
they may just be taking advantage of global pricing disparity?
Meds in Africa coming out of the same plant as our come from go for pocket change compared to what we pay.
Re: Follow-up: Cheap Softwares, Inc. - mrlynn - 02-15-2008
[quote Panopticon]Was it mailed and marked as a "GIFT"?
If yes, I'd say fake.
Otherwise, if the package had a US Customs sticker on it, it might well be 'legal'.
It has an international shipping waybill on it, from an outfit called EMS, and the customs section says "CD document", declared value $10. That of course is the conventional value when you don't want to get charged duty.
[quote JJ] "As far as I can tell" means you don't really know. A simple phone call to Adobe would validate your product.
If your purchase is truly valid (call Adobe), others would be happy to use the vendor you have highlighted.
Don't you think an illegal copy would not be licensable? The license number worked.
BTW, some Adobe products require activation. This one doesn't. Don't know if that means anything.
/Mr Lynn
Re: Follow-up: Cheap Softwares, Inc. - papercup - 02-15-2008
Consumer CS3 installs require activation and a serial.
There are volume commercial licenses that do not require activation, just a serial.
On a similar note: http://photoshopnews.com/2008/02/13/siia-sues-nine-accused-of-selling-pirated-software-on-ebay/
Re: Follow-up: Cheap Softwares, Inc. - mrlynn - 02-15-2008
[quote papercup]Consumer CS3 installs require activation and a serial.
There are volume commercial licenses that do not require activation, just a serial.
Interesting; when I queried the vendor, the response was, "It comes with sleeve mediakits and commercial license."
Someone on the other thread suggested these could be promotional copies—maybe handed to journalists, reviewers, etc.?
/Mr Lynn
Re: Follow-up: Cheap Softwares, Inc. - wave rider - 02-15-2008
If you live in California, take a class at your local community college. Adobe and the Foundation for California Community Colleges cut a deal...
http://www.foundationccc.org/Default.aspx?tabid=138
Adobe CS3 Design Premium - $314 +S&H
Adobe CS3 Master Collection - $519 +S&H
http://www.uscollegebuy.com/0ab/asl.htm
Other states may have similar deals, I've only heard of this one so far. I suppose you could take an online course to qualify but the out of state tuition might shift the deal...
=wr=
Re: Follow-up: Cheap Softwares, Inc. - mrlynn - 02-15-2008
Well, you'd think that if these were 'educational' specials, they'd be labeled or coded in an identifiable way for licensing.
I would assume that a software company can design its products to tell whether a serial number is legitimate or not, and when registering, determine if the number has been used before and request proof of a valid sale if it has. If they want to distribute "volume commercial licenses that do not require activation," then arguably the onus is on them if these get into the e-tail market.
/Mr Lynn