Disgruntled purchaser.

[ahnay]

I purchased the set in june i believe and now informed you have a new version, costing the same price.  And you dont offer us a discount for people that just purchased it, why?  

[debraspicher]

10 minutes ago, ahnay said:

I purchased the set in june i believe and now informed you have a new version, costing the same price.  And you dont offer us a discount for people that just purchased it, why?  

 

[RichardMH]

Current discount expires in a few days.

[ahnay]

1 hour ago, RichardMH said:

Current discount expires in a few days.

Dont care, im not buying it again.  Perhaps in a few years, im tired of the lack of support on the V1 version.  Cant imagine it will be different on V2.  We ask for fixes and suggestions, and they do what? put them in a new version and then charge us again for it?  

[ogdredweary]

1 hour ago, ahnay said:

Dont care, im not buying it again.  Perhaps in a few years, im tired of the lack of support on the V1 version.  Cant imagine it will be different on V2.  We ask for fixes and suggestions, and they do what? put them in a new version and then charge us again for it?  

But they are still supporting V1, aren't they? From the announcement linked above: 

Quote

Updates to V1 moving forward

While we did say on the FAQ that V1 would no longer receive any updates, I want to clarify that was about new feature updates. We will be updating V1 to fix any critical problems caused by operating system updates in the future. So if the next version of macOS breaks V1 we will endeavour to fix it. There will be a point in time when continuing to maintain V1 in this way will not be tenable, but certainly for the foreseeable future we will continue to patch. In fact, we have an update to V1 queued up for release very shortly with some fixes for Ventura and issues caused by a recent Windows security / quality update. 

Personally, I found the V2 universal licence plus the 40% discount a worthwhile investment since previously I only paid for the Mac V1 licence. It's also important to me to support companies that are steadfastly against subscriptions, especially this company that is taking on the likes of Adobe. But, that's just me. 

[firstdefence]

£90 quid for all three apps on multiple platforms plus all the v2 updates in the future, I'd say that was a damn good deal, you'd spend that having a meal, you spend that and more on a night on the town and not bat an eyelid. Sometimes you need to gain a little perspective and I think you will later regret the refund and the missing out of the 40% offer on the table at the moment, but, it's your choice.

[Designer1234]

And since MS is screwing Windows more and more (recent update that caused problems with Affinity V1) purchasing V2 seems to be necessary because honestly we don't know how long will Serif fix V1 after next Windows updates

So even though V2 is not a revolution for me and currently I don't need it (changes are small) I think I'll eventually buy it in the hope for support in next few years.

[ahnay]

7 hours ago, ogdredweary said:

But they are still supporting V1, aren't they? From the announcement linked above: 

Personally, I found the V2 universal licence plus the 40% discount a worthwhile investment since previously I only paid for the Mac V1 licence. It's also important to me to support companies that are steadfastly against subscriptions, especially this company that is taking on the likes of Adobe. But, that's just me. 

I understand, yet everything in V1 is available free in gimp and inkscape.  Actually the free software is much better as it is fully functioning, instead of having so many non-functioning attributes.  Its had the measuring tool for years, lol.  Also, saved files print at the correct dimensions, unlike in affinity.  I was very disappointed in this software.  The only thing i really like about it is its fast loading.

[ahnay]

7 hours ago, firstdefence said:

£90 quid for all three apps on multiple platforms plus all the v2 updates in the future, I'd say that was a damn good deal, you'd spend that having a meal, you spend that and more on a night on the town and not bat an eyelid. Sometimes you need to gain a little perspective and I think you will later regret the refund and the missing out of the 40% offer on the table at the moment, but, it's your choice.

lmao, no i wouldnt spend that having a meal!  too funny, glad you can afford spending that for your meals, but not helpful, and id actually like them to stand behind what they already made, and fix all the crap in it before bringing out a new version and charging again for it!  I mean really. 

[François R]

https://forum.affinity.serif.com/index.php?/topic/175852-old-v1-users-being-asked-to-pay-exactly-the-same-for-v2-new-users-not-cool/&do=findComment&comment=1011763

[ahnay]

4 hours ago, Designer1234 said:

And since MS is screwing Windows more and more (recent update that caused problems with Affinity V1) purchasing V2 seems to be necessary because honestly we don't know how long will Serif fix V1 after next Windows updates

So even though V2 is not a revolution for me and currently I don't need it (changes are small) I think I'll eventually buy it in the hope for support in next few years.

Again, gimp and inkscape keep up with all windows updates easily, why cant this company?  I mean why is the ipad version better than the windows version?  Thats just laziness because they use an ipad instead of a computer, mac or windows os.  Think about that.  Gimp has everything the the new v2 has added, and its had it for years!  lol.  I didnt see anything bottoming out in v1 from the last update?  I get the tester updates for win.  

[jmwellborn]

If you are perfectly happy with Gimp and Inkscape then why not just use them?  Personally I am thoroughly enjoying all of the new things in Photo2, Designer2, and Publisher2.  To each his/her own.

[firstdefence]

I don't totally disagree with @ahnay gripes and while Inkscape is a bit more seasoned it does have it's own flaws, personally, I use whichever app gets the job done and while I would like it to be Affinity for 100% of the time, realistically I know that will not happen for the forseeable future but, being a Notts lad born and bred I'd rather support a Notts company and muddle along, until the feature I would like, appear in future versions and updates. Lets hope V2 isn't just a long line of fixes and will have new useful features added too.

Someone did a vs post on Inkscape and Affinity designer, not sure it's the "ultimate" but it's  not a bad comparison and Nick obviously uses both Apps a lot so might be worth a read for anyone thinking about the Inkscape over Affinity Designer dilemma: https://logosbynick.com/inkscape-vs-affinity-designer/ 

[debraspicher]

Inkscape can "get the job done", but is not at all comfortable for me to use like Affinity. I use it for limited workarounds and Trace Bitmap. I admire these programs for what they're able to accomplish and it's amazing they are free. However, free or open source apps have a problem in that they're 100% tethered to user feedback/requests. It gives developers an opportunity to flex with the detailed implementation of new features, but because they are largely developer-driven, they are not at all optimized for the user experience. They become replicas of other programs, but they don't offer more beyond the swiss army knife approach. Affinity programs would be no different if their development was 100% tethered to user feedback/sentiment and had no other underlying vision behind it.

[iconoclast]

4 minutes ago, debraspicher said:

Inkscape can "get the job done", but is not at all comfortable for me to use like Affinity. I use it for limited workarounds and Trace Bitmap. I admire these programs for what they're able to accomplish and it's amazing they are free. However, free or open source apps have a problem in that they're 100% tethered to user feedback/requests. It gives developers an opportunity to flex with the detailed implementation of new features, but because they are largely developer-driven, they are not at all optimized for the user experience. They become replicas of other programs, but they don't offer more beyond the swiss army knife approach. Affinity programs would be no different if their development was 100% tethered to user feedback/sentiment and had no other underlying vision behind it.

I like Inkscape very much, but it doesn't really offer CMYK-support. So you need an additional professional app for that or you have to fiddle around with Scribus to convert RGB to CMYK. And that is really annoying. But for me open source apps like Inkscape, GIMP and Krita are very good tools for many additional purposes. E.G. I often use them to create content like textures, light leaks, brush heads and other stuff, even for my Affinity Apps.

[ahnay]

4 hours ago, jmwellborn said:

If you are perfectly happy with Gimp and Inkscape then why not just use them?  Personally I am thoroughly enjoying all of the new things in Photo2, Designer2, and Publisher2.  To each his/her own.

 

4 hours ago, jmwellborn said:

If you are perfectly happy with Gimp and Inkscape then why not just use them?  Personally I am thoroughly enjoying all of the new things in Photo2, Designer2, and Publisher2.  To each his/her own.

I am!  Its amazing how people take opinions on this forum.   I stated a simple fact, i paid the 100 bucks for the set in june, and believe i should get v2 free, since v1 is riddled with crap that doesnt work, or completely missing altogether.    and all these posts are complaining that im wrong, omao at every one of you!

[ahnay]

3 hours ago, debraspicher said:

Inkscape can "get the job done", but is not at all comfortable for me to use like Affinity. I use it for limited workarounds and Trace Bitmap. I admire these programs for what they're able to accomplish and it's amazing they are free. However, free or open source apps have a problem in that they're 100% tethered to user feedback/requests. It gives developers an opportunity to flex with the detailed implementation of new features, but because they are largely developer-driven, they are not at all optimized for the user experience. They become replicas of other programs, but they don't offer more beyond the swiss army knife approach. Affinity programs would be no different if their development was 100% tethered to user feedback/sentiment and had no other underlying vision behind it.

Actually, i think affinity is a copycat.  Only challenge is the designer/coder isnt up to par with the designers of the free software.  It is nice the three codes play with each other, except of course how they rename the files to themselves instead of keeping them the same, lol. er the extension of the files. 

[R C-R]

9 minutes ago, ahnay said:

It is nice the three codes play with each other, except of course how they rename the files to themselves instead of keeping them the same, lol. er the extension of the files. 

The extensions just set which app opens the file by default if you double-click it. You can change the extension to one of the others & if you have that app installed, it will open with that instead. Or you can right-click on the file & open it with any of the other apps listed.

IOW, the data in the file is the same, no matter which of the 3 extensions it has.

[iconoclast]

I can confirm  what R C-R is saying. It is normal behavior by the way. Many apps do this. E.G. the Magix Apps and as far as I remember, also GIMP does it. If you don't like it, you can easily change it back to what ever app you want.

[Ron P.]

1 hour ago, ahnay said:

i paid the 100 bucks for the set in june, and believe i should get v2 free,

There's the reason for being disgruntled.. You bought it 6 mos ago and think that your entitled to get a upgraded version free of charge. I and sure most have known companies provide a free upgrade for those that have purchased the program like maybe a month prior to the new upgrade dropping. For example Corel, you've heard of them right? Yeah, they have around 5x if not more the revenue/assets as Serif. Their cutoff was 2 weeks, anything older, sorry pay. Yes they offer upgrade pricing. They don't market their products through MAS or MS. That is what the big problem Serif ran up against when trying to determine upgrade pricing. Serif is not allowed to tell them how much to ask for their programs/apps. Thus they settled on a initial discount. Oh other companies due that too. I still get offers from Corel about big savings, and I can tell you by the dollar amount when the next version is going to drop. I know their marketing strategy...

 

[ahnay]

59 minutes ago, Ron P. said:

There's the reason for being disgruntled.. You bought it 6 mos ago and think that your entitled to get a upgraded version free of charge. I and sure most have known companies provide a free upgrade for those that have purchased the program like maybe a month prior to the new upgrade dropping. For example Corel, you've heard of them right? Yeah, they have around 5x if not more the revenue/assets as Serif. Their cutoff was 2 weeks, anything older, sorry pay. Yes they offer upgrade pricing. They don't market their products through MAS or MS. That is what the big problem Serif ran up against when trying to determine upgrade pricing. Serif is not allowed to tell them how much to ask for their programs/apps. Thus they settled on a initial discount. Oh other companies due that too. I still get offers from Corel about big savings, and I can tell you by the dollar amount when the next version is going to drop. I know their marketing strategy...

 

Not sure what your point is other than you like corel and you know when a new version will drop?  glad you have that kind of time. at 73, i dont have time like that to play games. whatever.  Had serif said they had a new version coming out, i would have waited for it, but they did not, that says a lot about reputation.  I used to love Serif and have many of their other products, they never were so cut throat as this. 

[R C-R]

3 minutes ago, ahnay said:

Had serif said they had a new version coming out, i would have waited for it, but they did not, that says a lot about reputation. 

FWIW, back when you bought V1, they did not know how long it would before the V2 retail apps would be ready for release & purchase. So at best, they could have said that eventually they would release V2 (which they have mentioned many times) but could give anyone a specific date or even month when it would be available.

[DenisJ]

Im reading about cross platform universal license, which should be there before and it should be standard to be honest. Im moving from Windows to Mac OS on a daily basis and that bothered me when I noticed and figured that one license is limited only to one OS. And now when we need to pay for v2 same price as totally new users, this I don't agree. Let's be real, competition even if they have subscription is cheaper at the end when you run on two different OS + you get cloud support & mobile app.

 

My point is, watch how Blackmagic is doing with Davinci Resolve. Their payment version makes cracking it worthless, people just either use free version or pay once for studio version and can be used on 3 different OS. And they even included free studio version with most of their hardware.

It could be same with Affinity and Photo 2 in particular in little different way. Im sure, if you would offer existing buyers some very cheap license upgrade, everyone would upgrade. Right now I personally dont see any reason to upgrade my v1 to v2 (Im only Photo user). And I am sure many feel same. So thats loos of money. 

 

Affinity owners, think more strategically, don't just think how to grab money fast. 

[deeds]

I suspect the amount of upgrading suite users is significantly less than the number of new suite buyers convinced by the fact that this Suite has reached version 2 status, and is therefore worthy of considering as an investment of time-to-learn (the most expensive part of switching to a new creative suite) and by the fact that they're being offered the same discount as existing users and therefore they're feeling targeted/welcomed/embraced/encouraged etc... as they also have no idea about the reasoning for this all encompassing discount... it feels, therefore, like it's time they jumped in and gave it a shot as a suite.

It's a great pity that Affinity hasn't found a way to inject an upgrade button into one of their v1 updates so that users that have recently bought could directly communicate via their licensed version of v1 to request an upgrade pricing discount FOREVER, regardless of current new user discounts of the v2 Suite and individual products.

 

However, it's still possible. 

Affinity could provide an update to v1 that inserts an upgrade button which queries the license/machine/owner registration details such that an informed decision can be made by Serif as to the time the owner bought into the Affinity software.

Upgrade pricing discounts, from one version to another, commonly aren't time limited in the manner that promotional and launch discounts are.

 

[R C-R]

4 hours ago, DenisJ said:

Im reading about cross platform universal license, which should be there before and it should be standard to be honest.

If by before you mean from the beginning for the V1 apps, keep in mind that initially in 2014 there was only the Mac version of Designer & it was only available through the Mac App Store. At that time there was no Affinity Store, no Windows or iPad versions of any of the apps, & never was there a version 1 iPadOS Publisher app.