Thoughts on Ilok?

[ghettosynth]

Hold whatever opinion you want, it's still absurd reasoning. For it to have validity you have to give up all uses of your USB ports on a laptop. As he states, he only uses it for traveling. Ok, then while traveling use disk authorization and put it back on a dongle when you return. The likelihood that you disk will go south for that small percentage of time is fairly low.

I don't feel the need to be mindful of absurd reasoning, but especially not when one is being forceful with respect to their absurd reasoning in a public forum.

And yet in the course of your post, you demonstrated why it's not absurd. The risk of losing you dongle when traveling is substantially higher than the risk of your SSD dying. So it is in fact quite rational to prefer disk based authorization in this case, which you seem to acknowledge yourself.

Nope, I never said that AT ALL. Go back and look, I just put my dongle on a lanyard and take it with me. I'm saying that if you're paranoid about knocking your computer off of the table when you travel then putting it on the disk for that minimal use case is relatively low risk.

I wouldn't bother doing anything while traveling with the laptop sound card, so I'm plugging things into my USB ports no matter what. Generally, I also need some kind of controller.

If I'm going to do some kind of business traveling and just want to pretend that I'm going to work on music, I don't need iLok for that. In fact, I think that I've posted this before, I typically just install Reason 5 on a work machine and call it a day.

Think all of this "traveling music" talk is a red herring.

[jamcat]

I have a dedicated DAW. That's what I use at home. I use the laptop when I'm away, which in recent years has typically been a total of 2 to 3 months of the year. It's enough that it's a major consideration for what I purchase. I use physical modeling instruments instead of samples almost exclusively, and SSD space is a primary reason for that. My MacBook Pro's audio performs as well as any audio device on Windows, so that's just not a concern. I have a small keyboard controller that I've taken on occassion, but I don't end up really needing it. I've always painted MIDI in the piano roll and drew in automation. I know how I want to performance to sound. I don't need anything but a trackpad and my Sennheiser 650s to write orchestral arrangements with SWAM.

[BONES]

My MacBook Pro's audio performs as well as any audio device on Windows, so that's just not a concern.

Really? 8 in, 4 out, that's impressive for a laptop.

[jamcat]

Well, I get 32 samples latency at 24/96 using CoreAudio and the headphones jack. No drivers needed for my iRig HD. It just works.

Also, I can playback Studio One while watching YouTube with no problem, unlike most audio devices on Windows.

[ghettosynth]

My MacBook Pro's audio performs as well as any audio device on Windows, so that's just not a concern.

Really? 8 in, 4 out, that's impressive for a laptop.

Yeah, does it have a popout XLR connector? I like to mix on my M1 Mac's internal speaker, it's all about getting that mono mix just right.

[BONES]

Also, I can playback Studio One while watching YouTube with no problem, unlike most audio devices on Windows.

Maybe with Windows XP but it's 2022 and it shouldn't be a problem with most devices these days. That said, my EVO 8 needs to be set up to do it, whereas my other devices work straight out of the box. Most of the time, though, I'd prefer that other things went to my laptop speakers and only Studio One went to my Monitors and that's easy to set up, too. I also get realtime performance from Windows Audio with standalone softsynths like Equator. They don't report latency but it's more than acceptable for live playing. It's years since I've needed ASIO4all to get that kind of performance from Windows but, even back then, I had ASIO4all so it hasn't been a problem for around 20 years. That's 20 years you've been paying through the nose for a Mac you didn't need.

[jamcat]

Not exactly. We just had this discussion. You were part of it.

viewtopic.php?t=583445

[BONES]

Yes, and I said exactly the same things. I wouldn't know about multiple sample rates, I couldn't even tell you what sample rate I work at. I only know I render to 44.1/24 because it's CD quality with extra headroom for mastering. It's not something I worry about at all otherwise.

[Ah_Dziz]

Well, whilst everyone is debating the pros and cons I have now been over a week without my EW Play Library's (10 of them), AKAI software and Zynaptiiq software...all of which only give one licence. A simple windows crash has now meant that I wait at their mercy to renew the licence, no guarantees. How can that be a good thing for someone who has paid for software? This is an iLok issue, my Windows install recovered, same hardware but locked out and potentially thousands of pounds of licences lost...how can this be good copy protection?

I don't appreciate that this is a thing that can happen. It is why I only use the hardware versions of iLok and eLicenser. The only issues I've ever had with any "copy protection" (as well as most of the ones I hear of from other users online and such) were problems systems that were tied to the system drive or some other "unique system ID".

I would contact iLok as well as any companies that you own iLok "protected" software from. I've known lots of folks that have had issues where their system drive died and took down lots of software authorizations with it. They generally were able to get back up and running with just a bit of friendly back and forth with all the companies involved. If you have your studio insured then that's an option as well if anyone decides to be a jerk.

Hope that things work out with all your licenses.

JJ

[airon]

Using several tools with iLok authorization.

One iLok2 failed for me a few years back. It took a while, but thankfully I wasn't depending on them for my work, so those 3-4 weeks of sending it in, paying $50 for them to check it and make sure it was really faulty and getting my licenses restored wasn't a big deal. You have to buy a new one too of course, which is always a good idea. Not for people who don't make a living with those tools.

If I depended on those licenses I'd be buying that 'insurance' that gets you temporary licenses. It's a trade off. On the one side you have plugin devs who want to get paid for their work. On the other side you have users wanting to use those products in a convenient fashion. Some like to use them on the go, so that's a plus for iLok, and a liability of course.

iLok is old. But the companies that use that system are very often nice about replacing your licenses if that thing dies. Many users report convenient solutions for them to keep working with those tools.

You don't need to rely on someones good graces, however much I appreciate that, with companies like Fabfilter. They're doing fine, despite not using the iLok system. iLok will often exclude the hobbyist because of those hoops. Maybe that's why Waves opted for USB stick authorization and extra licenses instead.

[insert-name-here]

I will never use iLock. Allready enough time lost fighting technology

[nitex]

My issues are finally sorted. InMusic were pretty quick to solve the issue once i had contacted them. The last plugin was from a developer who didn't have any access anymore to the iLok system, so was not able to approve it themself. After some back and forth with iLok they finally agreed and solved the issue as a "one time favor".

Up and running again here, but sure have a bit of a sour taste left.

[SLiC]

I have most of mine back now...just waiting for zynaptiq...it would help if they didn't just issue just one activation, a bit unnecessary really.

[vurt]

I will never use iLock. Allready enough time lost fighting technology

like yoshimi, hoy hoy!
gotta be strong to fight em
so she's takin lots of vitamins

[balafon]

Zero Downtime Subscription.png

Dongle Buddy.png

How many of you, including lovers, haters, and everyone else in between, are subscribed to the Zero Downtime insurance?

Looks like a pretty smart and cheap remedy, in case of a hardware or software disaster, especially if time is money for the unfortunate user. Theft & Loss Coverage is a no-brainer.

Being a non-professional user, I can easily wait 2-4 days for the delivery of a new iLok 3rd Gen.

Travelling is not my cup of tea, so my iLok is always connected to my M1 MacBook Pro through a CalDigit TS3Plus+, via a small extender cable, like the Dongle Buddy (to protect the USB port on the CalDigit, should I need to disconnect my iLok, to connect it to my PC, with another extender cable).

I respect everyone's opinion, based on what they consider as the most acceptable trade-off for their particular case. There's no perfect solution, neither for us, users, nor for the software publishers. They also should have their part of headache, between going with dongle, challenge/response, license file, or nothing. While the majority of users are honest, and even proud supporters of other's intellectual property, this is not always the case. As an example, a fairly talented guitar player declares in her YouTube video that she likes using REAPER, because it is free. What about the countdown at every launch of it, and the warning that REAPER is free to try for 60 days, and after that, you have to buy a license... Then some people will chime in, and say that Justin Frankel (REAPER's developer) is rich enough, to tolerate this kind of very personal interpretation of his terms and conditions.

All in all, your mileage/setup/preferences/goals/comfort zone/opinion/bank account balance/etc. may vary, and that's good. One size cannot fit all. I personally have nothing against iLok. The hardware dongle, with Zero Downtime + Theft & Loss Coverage, is a state-of-the-art solution for many of us, I guess. Especially, if you have dozens, or hundreds of iLok licenses, worth thousands of dollars, and time is money for you, should you need keeping your deadlines, or just reinstalling your rig. Nothing is simpler than plugging in an insurance covered dongle. Authorising the rest of your software may well be a real pain, compared to iLok's solution, if you have hundreds of software assets, with a great creativity in licensing schemes.

If you don't like iLok, don't use it, or at least accept it, as the preferred trade-off chosen by some iLok protected software developers, if you cannot live without those products.

Peace and love...