Open letter to companies still using iLok ( looking at you Slate Digital )

[Jace-BeOS]

People used cracked copies of programs that cost $30 or less. Tell me that isn't pathetic!

It is pathetic. Even at my poverty existence, if a tool does what it says it will, reliably, $30 is worth spending. I've harassed my own friends over never registering WinZip or WinRAR, especially the one that uses it in a business. It's the problem of intangibles and high prices that are legit. Not the jerks that want to steal $30 software. Those people will never be customers. Don't harass the rest of us wih complicated protection schemes and wasted system resources because of those lazy jerks that will never be your customers anyway.

[hibidy]

True. Again, deciding not to use a dongle is a lifestyle choice!

[kelldammit]

True. Again, deciding not to use a dongle is a lifestyle choice!

Disagree. You're either born that way, or you're not.

[SoundGoddess]

It's pathetic to use something you can easily afford for free because you're a cheapskate.

It's a bit different when it's something you can't afford and you want to try it out to see if it's worth saving up to spend the money on, and there is no way to personally evaluate if it suits your needs or not without installing the cracked version.

Thankfully these days a lot of companies are at least are willing to allow you to use their software for free to the degree that you can actually evaluate if it's worth buying or not. But it's too bad this isn't a ubiquitous business approach; frankly there's no way I'm ever going to buy an iLok just so i can try a demo of something which may or may not be worth spending money on...let alone the BS hassles associated with all the DRM stuff.

[Jace-BeOS]

I don't get it why people hate ilok. Sure, when they updated their software earlier this year, bad things happened and many people experienced problems. But seriously, how often has that happened before? I didn't upgrade first thing so I didn't have ANY problems whatsoever when I installed the new software. I think upgrading to new software on day one is never a good idea if you can't afford downtime. That's why I always wait with updates, just in cases like this. Works for me.

This is such a computer industry attitude and fundamentally illogical non-solution to a real problem. Don't update immediately? If EVERYONE took your advise, what then? No one would ever update? Who is to be the bug catching victim if there are no "foolish" early adopters? Oh yeah, there are supposed to be beta testers and QA people. But when developers marginalize the bugs reported and QA isn't valued as a profit center... The customers are the victims.

[rod_zero]

Imagine if SAP used iLok, that would be fun xD.


I think the OP has all the right to express his POV and I am sure Steven Slate takes it from a bussines perspective, he probably has all the data needed to make the choice between iLok and other solutions.

That being said iLok service is not good enough compared to other software markets and that is fact.

[dalor]

Setting up my laptop
On the stage
The crowd is ready to party
3, 2, 1 - Engange!

Suddenly, what's that on my screen?
"ilok not found"
I'm turning green

The massive crowd stares at me
waiting for fun
The speakers are silent
I start to run

Being chased for hours
By the angry crowd
I had enough, get my guitar and start singing loud

"No music tonight, my iLok is dead!"
Suddenly a bottle hits my head
"Okay Okay I'm singing for you - but no EDM!"
Another bottle - *BAM*
"Let's play some rock, give me a chance!"
The crowd warms up and starts to dance

The night goes on
We all had fun
'Start packing my laptop
..but this wasn't expected..
The USB hub with iLok wasn't connected

[Jace-BeOS]

A well known user on here told me that soundtoys will be dropping Ilok, so I guess not every company will be sticking to using it.

If true, that's good to hear. I even balked at using a free product I received from them due to iLok!

I did too. There's no damn reason for any non-hardware product to install drivers or system services if that isn't the point of the product (and aside from ASIO4All and such, no audio software-only product should go there).

I know some people say to pick your battles and this isn't a battle with fighting, but I think that same argument gets used way too much and way too few bad scenarios get changed thanks to comfortable complacency. The computer industry itself has enjoyed consumer and legal complacency for a very long time.

[hibidy]

Setting up my laptop
On the stage
The crowd is ready to party
3, 2, 1 - Engange!

Suddenly, what's that on my screen?
"ilok not found"
I'm turning green

The massive crowd stares at me
waiting for fun
The speakers are silent
I start to run

Being chased for hours
By the angry crowd
I had enough, get my guitar and start singing loud

"No music tonight, my iLok is dead!"
Suddenly a bottle hits my head
"Okay Okay I'm singing for you - but no EDM!"
Another bottle - *BAM*
"Let's play some rock, give me a chance!"
The crowd warms up and starts to dance

The night goes on
We all had fun
'Start packing my laptop
..but this wasn't expected..
The USB hub with iLok wasn't connected

This thread was worth this one post

[Jace-BeOS]

The real issue here is the completely false notion that 'preventing piracy' equals 'more sales'. It doesn't; the people who use cracked software do so because it's available that way. It's never a choice between 'buying it' and 'finding a cracked version' for those. If there isn't a cracked version, they simply get some other cracked alternative. I've never, NEVER! heard anyone state: 'I have the money to buy it, would have bought it but now I have a cracked version so I saved my money.

Bottom line: copy protection is a hassle for legitimate users, while it prevents nothing worth preventing.

I would even argue that the negative experiences encourage legitimate users into pursuing the crack so they don't have to deal with the punishment for being honest. Thus keeping the crack alive. I know I've thought about with my Adobe products.

YES!

A few years ago, I bought the F. E. A. R. collection (game). I got distracted by life and never installed it. I started getting into games again this year and have bought a few games on Steam. Then I remembered I had this unopened game on my shelf. I installed it, (which involved typing in the cd key, ok no problem), added the key to my text file of keys, put the materials back in the box, and the box on my shelf out of the way. Then I checked for any current patches, and, finding none, started to run the game.

BAM! "DVD NOT FOUND."

EFF YOU!!

This game is "protected" by SecuROM. A well hated (for good reason) "anti-piracy" method. I'm not going to mess with discs in my optical drive for several reasons:

1. Windows is retarded. When you open various Explorer.exe views (including file dialogs), Windows throws a fit and stops responding until all the drives have been looked at. Optical drives are slow to spin up and stop spinning when idle. If I'm not going to use it, I don't want to be bothered by it. Best to keep it empty. Besides, the damn OS should know already what is and is not there from the last time the hardware was opened/closed. A read-only volume isn't going to change no matter how long it sits there. I can't change Windows' dumb ass behavior, so I don't leave discs in the optical drive. Sometimes I power it off, even.

2. My computer studio space is cramped. The computer lives in a corner and is not easily accessible from the desk (I created a U-shaped surrounding to my seated position by necessity and the computer had to go opposite the open end for various reasons). That's also where the optical drive sits. It takes a literal trip around the room to handle optical discs and I have no money to buy different furniture of hardware or computers or houses to change this. The game is on my hard drive. It's already using that space. There is no effing reason for me to fuss with discs after install.

I downloaded a no-cd crack and proceeded to play the game. It crashes occasionally during play, but only after several hours. It's either the crack and something they missed in the cracking process, or it's just the game, or Windows, or my GPU... Etc. it's more of the same crap I already put up with. It's easier to swear and then reload the game than to be swapping discs around. I can only imagine how much more annoying SecuROM is for hardcore gamers with 20 games on their system being played regularly. I imagine they're the REAL reason such cracks exist; NOT for piracy.

Also, back to different copy-protection methods:

In Native Instruments' defense (and I have my complaints against them for their treatment of Kore), they have stated that, under the circumstance that they ever go out of business and shut down their challenge-response server, they have a license key that they can give to customers that will eliminate the C/R process. I hope this is true. Some day it might be put to the test. With as big as they are in studios and among users, their products would have to become utterly undesirable to the industry in order for there NOT to be a crap storm aimed at them legally if they shut down their C/R server and left users hanging.

[billcarroll]

personally, ive never had a c/r protection take down my entire operation for 2 weeks the way those idiots at pace managed to... and i was one of the lucky ones, a few out there are still screwed.

Yep, that was a bad one. But I figured it might be, and waited 2 weeks before updating anything and all was squared away by then. Since then, no problems whatsoever. The simple answer is, everybody has to make their own decisions whether or not to buy a tool.

Chris Conlee

This Chris guy, he's kinda making sense here.

Similar situation with Windows and Mac OS updates. If you want to be sure your systems will work, wait to upgrade. You'll find a bunch of producers who actually make their living producing music online yesterday and today asking others about the Mac OSX Mavericks update and stability with their music production software.

If you make your living producing music don't upgrade anything until you're sure it works. Treat it like the software running a fancy machine in the hospital that is keeping you alive. That, or try it on someone else first

As for iLok, I'd put all of my licenses on iLok if I could, and I do when I have the opportunity like with Melodyne. Makes it easier to move licenses around.

I also like to see developers get paid well for their work, and not get ripped off. Not all developers have the expertise like u-he to create their own uncrackable copy protection scheme. It takes valuable time and money and diverts resources from developing great audio software, especially for small developers. Exponential Audio is a great example. Amazing developer who just wants to focus on making incredible reverbs.

Hate iLok and think copy protection is bad karma somehow? I suppose you leave your keys in your car and your house doors open? Or maybe leave your checkbook out on the street with your bank cards and social security number? People steal and there is no bad karma in peacefully protecting your stuff.

Developers who get paid well keep making more amazing software. I love it when this happens. Slate Digital, Celemony, iZotope,Exponential Audio, SoundToys, Avid, Sonnox, Softube (to name a few on my iLok) ... all fantastic software companies making incredible stuff. More power to them if they use iLok to make sure they get paid for their work.

[conleec]

This Chris guy, he's kinda making sense here.

[snip]

Hate iLok and think copy protection is bad karma somehow? I suppose you leave your keys in your car and your house doors open? Or maybe leave your checkbook out on the street with your bank cards and social security number? People steal and there is no bad karma in peacefully protecting your stuff.

Developers who get paid well keep making more amazing software. I love it when this happens. Slate Digital, Celemony, iZotope,Exponential Audio, SoundToys, Avid, Sonnox, Softube (to name a few on my iLok) ... all fantastic software companies making incredible stuff. More power to them if they use iLok to make sure they get paid for their work.

But this is exactly it.

That Chris guy.

[bluedad]

this topic has been done over and over, round and round. this is where this one ends.