Johannes Gebauer wrote:
Personally I find it quite generous by MakeMusic that they allow us two installs, even on different platforms.
I have an old Waves plugin, which I hardly ever use. However, when I got my new computer I asked for a new code. At first they refused saying that only one install is allowed. Only after I explained that the old computer was no longer in use they gave me a new registration code.
Furthermore, on the Finale 2k5 info page, you will find the following paragraph:
Please Note: Finale 2004/2005 requires that you register the software within 30 days. New with Finale version 2004, you are now authorized to install Finale on two computers for your use in locations such as home and office. [more]
That's pretty clear, isn't it? As far as I remember this information was there all the time. You are asking for more, and they say you should pay more. Pretty normal business practice, and from my point of view nothing wrong with it. It may be inconvenient for you, but once you decided to accept the current copy protection (which I don't like myself, but I put up with it) you accepted the inconvenience. We actually got the dual platform support through this, which personally I welcome.
And I hope that the aggressive marketing department of iLok doesn't make any inroads into MakeMusic (or Sibelius, or any other software that I use) -- I know they're out there trying, and with something like 10 or 12 other music applications using iLok, I'm sure they're working hard to convince all the music application marketers of the convenience of being able to put all the activations into a single iLok key. Such a thing would of course benefit Hiro because he could in that case install a hundred different copies of Finale and simply move the iLok key from computer to computer as he needs.
I am also sure that the aggressive marketers at iLok will also point out that it will free up MakeMusic's support team from having to deal with authorization numbers and people needing additional installs and such.
From a developer's point of view, it's a great device. From an end user's point of view, I think it could be a nightmare. Witness Hiro's account of his friend's inability to use ANY of the iLok-protected software because things didn't go right when he tried to use one of iLok's touted benefits -- being able to combine activations for more than one program onto a single key. Having our music software stop working because of a flaw with the iLok would be a nightmare is something I'm not willing to live with!
I pray that MakeMusic doesn't bite the marketing bullet on this one! In that case I'm on Finale2005 forever.
And the thought of paying an additional $30/year for zero-downtime-protection from the iLok people amounts to extortion -- imagine how irate we would all be if we bought a car and were told that the door locks and ignition locks weren't covered by the warranty and that we would have to deal with a third party (and PAY!) if anything went wrong with them. We'd all simply walk out and refuse to purchase that car.
I'm sure that somewhere in the micro-fine print is some statement to the effect of "youse guys better pony up that toity bucks or you'll find yourself with some busted knee-caps if youse don't!" :-(
So, while I am sorry that Hiro is inconvenienced by Finale's current authorization scheme, and I do hope he is able to resolve it amicably, I certainly don't want them to switch to iLok, which would resolve Hiro's problem immediately.
-- David H. Bailey [EMAIL PROTECTED] _______________________________________________ Finale mailing list [email protected] http://lists.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale
