This looked like it might be an excellent upgrade. For some it may be. I personally cannot make any software purchase which ties my future use of the product to someone else's continued benevolence and the continuing existence of their servers.
I purchased the Finale 2004 update on 8/8/03. I have since cancelled my order.
I am currently an extremely vexed and irate former customer of Coda/nom du jour. Smooth words from marketing droids will not soothe my anger. Only concrete action that removes all invasive copy protection will suffice. I will not purchase a product that requires me (or my computer) to contact another party to successfully install it; to do so submits to an unacceptable reliance on the continued existence and charity of another. This is not an acceptable basis for a purchase contract.
Best wishes to all,
-=-Dennis
FWIW here is a copy of the email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] (and [EMAIL PROTECTED]) cancelling my order.
Original message to finalesales and macsupport: ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
From: "Dennis W. Manasco" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: Cancellation of Order Number {number deleted}
Cc: [EMAIL PROTECTED]Hello --
On 8/8/03 I placed a pre-order for Finale 2004. I have since discovered, despite omissions and prevarications on the Finale website, that Finale 2004 uses a copy-protection scheme that requires my computer to be uniquely identified to Coda/MakeMusic servers in order to successfully install the program.
This is unacceptable. This means that whenever I require a new hard-disk or purchase a new computer I am at the mercy of the existence and integrity of Coda/MakeMusic's Copy Protection Servers to successfully install my legally purchased product. I cannot and will not submit to this potential infringement of my right to continue to use, and derive benefit from, a product which I have legitimately purchased and thus should rightfully expect to have access to, and complete use of, in perpetuity.
I thought that the debacle of Finale 98 would have been sufficient to alert you that many of your customers resent being treated as a priori criminals. This incarnation of copy-protection is even worse: Not only do you brand your legitimate users potential criminals, but you tie their businesses and livelihoods to the continued existence of your Copy Protection Servers. If you are using one of the pervasive systemic copy-protection systems (such as PACE) you may even be irrevocably invading and damaging the integrity of their computer's operating system and data. These are not the actions of a benign company.
I will attempt to continue with my current version of your software, but it is essentially incompatible with my primary operating system (Macintosh OS X). I will be actively looking for other Macintosh solutions and exploring Unix Open Source alternatives. I will be advising friends and associates to search for other solutions as well.
PLEASE CANCEL MY ORDER NUMBER {number deleted} OF 8/8/03.
Thank you,
Dennis W. Manasco
Dennis W. Manasco, Inc.
{address deleted}
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
{end of original message}
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