Greg Hile

Once again, I didn’t ask Affinity to refund my purchase. That was for Microsoft (which it did). What I asked Affinity to do was honor the faulty Microsoft purchase by giving me a product key to convert the trial into a full version. Certainly Affinity had the ability to do that. I do find it hard to believe there is no way for a developer to communicate with the seller about the defective roll-out of the developer’s product. Not talking about refund requests.

Thank you, Brad, for your very helpful and insightful comments. My point is that it would gone a long way for Affinity to have said what you just said up front and then take at least some proactive measures to deal with the problem instead of just saying they were waiting for Microsoft to fix it. Again, what I’m mostly peeved about is their self-inflicted reputational sabotage.

There were a couple of options. One, since the trial version did work, Affinity could have just issued me a product key. Two, since we know I was not the only person who had this problem, Affinity could have reached out to Microsoft, and, from a customer relations standpoint, told me they were doing it. I am no software developer but it did seem somewhat strange to me (and to my son-in-law who is a software developer) that one version of the software caused so many problems and the other presumably identical product did not, nor did anything else.

I agree concerning Microsoft or Apple security and privacy reasons, which is why I provided Affinity with proof of purchase. Again, that’s not so much the issue as was Affinity’s refusal to even try to work with Microsoft.

Sorry but I am not willing to start rolling back Windows updates or turn off services for the sake of a problem that has already been resolved to my satisfaction. If I want Publisher I’ll just get it through Affinity instead of Microsoft. However, Unless something radically changes in the next few days, I think I’ve been convinced to go the Adobe route.

Okay, fine. Maybe it's all Microsoft's fault, but they solved their problem, which was me asking for a refund. My problem was solved because I can now either purchase the product through Affinity or switch back to Adobe or whatever. The only people left with a problem is Affinity because they have a product that doesn't work for some end-users and a totally self-inflicted reputational loss. All I suggested was that they might want to be a bit more proactive in dealing with Microsoft. I don't know what your official connection is with Affinity but you certainly haven't helped the situation or the company any.

Affinity did reach out to me again with apologies and a little more substance, but it was essentially only to refer back to the previous posts and to say they were waiting for Microsoft to offer up a fix. I am a Microsoft Fast Insider currently running Windows 10 Insider Preview 19018.1 (vb_release), and while I am aware of the comments and issues with the recent Windows 10 update that's not what I am running and I never experienced any of the issues previously reported with regard to that troubled release anyway. With the exception of the Microsoft Store version of Publisher, I still have not experienced any of the issues described, and I have recently installed other software, both from the Store and directly from the developer, again without incident. The trial version of Publisher I downloaded directly from Affinity also worked just fine. Microsoft offered to have their people look into it further, or refund my purchase of Publisher, which is what I did. I was a long-term user of the Adobe Creative Cloud and dropped it in favor of Affinity after I retired and just didn't use CC enough to justify its expense. However, I am now embarking on a project with a relatively short time frame, such that I need reliable software and I just don't have the time or inclination to mess with all this. To that end, I downloaded a trial version of CC and now must decide which direction to go in -- Affinity or Adobe. Right now, I am leaning towards heading back to Adobe. I have read about Affinity Photo being dropped from the Microsoft Store because it did not meet the requirements for the new line of Surface hardware. I have no idea whether this might be related to the Publisher issues but I might suggest a more proactive approach on Affinity's part than simply waiting for Microsoft to provide a fix would be a better approach.

Yes, I saw the previous posts but nothing has worked so far, except for downloading and installing Affinity's trial version. My biggest issue is the lack of customer services on Affinity's part. They claim it's all Microsoft's fault but the original files that Microsoft is selling through its store had to come from somewhere, and it seems that somewhere is Affinity. So why couldn't Affinity stand by its product or at least say they would work with Microsoft to resolve the issue? Strongly considering moving back to Adobe. I've got a major product due by Christmas and don't have time for this shit. BTW, I loved your comment about Johnson, but, really, now, you think you've got problems?

Yesterday I purchased Publisher through the Microsoft Store. The app has crashed every time I opened it. I get a BSOD and a cldfit.sys failure error message. I tried repairing, resetting, uninstalling and reinstalling, all to no avail. I then deleted the app again and downloaded a trial version directly from Affinity and it seems to be working as it should. I then asked Affinity to honor the Microsoft Store purchase and give me credentials to convert my trial into a full license. Affinity says, without any explanation, that it "would not be possible" and that "[w]e are not able to provide for customers who have bought from other companies." Aside from the fact that we all know it IS possible to simply issue me a product key, does anyone have any suggestions on how to fix this mess? I provided Affinity with proof of purchase, my computer is fully up-to-date and has never had any of the issues caused by the Microsoft version of the Publisher app.

There is, indeed, a vocal contingent of SU users upset about the 2019 release but derei I think misstates the situation. I don't want to generate another big controversy on this forum, but there is no web-based pro version and while there is now a subscription option available, current users still have the option to continue their existing perpetual license. I do agree with derei that it would be a great idea for Affinity to look into an alternative to SU, if you are not already doing so. Two major issues, of course, would be the development of tablet-based versions, and the question of extensibility either by Affinity or third-party developers, which, as derei correctly points out, is where SU's real power comes from.