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   I am working in area ( video games)  where artists and companies   are all using Windows PC only.   Never seen a single Mac  all my 15 years of artist career.

 

Still would probably buy Mac mini for Affinity Designer

 

And   I am not in search for Adobe CC replacement .   I hate them,   both Photoshop and illustrator.      Would rather prefer something similar to Creative House Expression or what Microsoft tried to do with it  + a bit of Xara  + few bits  from  Corel Painter . 

 

In a word something innovative   with unique features that would suite modern  game interface and content  art challenges,  working quickly  and giving me some competitive advantages. 

 

Have no idea if I should waste my money on Apple products for Affinity .     The site is just typical  neat looking advertising information noise we all mastered to do at our jobs.  

 

More youtube videos please .With unique features or workflow examples.     Also about brush stokes, bitmaps usage, crop/save/export automation. 

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@hifred

 

Our code is platform agnostic mainly because writing in pure C++ allows us to write code that is closer to the hardware.  We don't rely on higher level memory management, or other features that could limit our performance. The fact that our code is highly portable is a consequence of good practice above other things.  Apple moving to Intel also helps in this regard.  Experience has shown us that C/C++ is still the standout language for performance code.  Other languages have come along with high claims, such as C#, but well written C++ will always win on performance and for the most part is platform agnostic.  Of course, our development strategy always leaves our choices open for us.

 

Affinity is going to be released as a Mac exclusive.  Affinity's front end is tailored for Mac, with features such as support for Apple's Cloud and sandboxing.  We are trying to create a front end that is very 'Mac', as opposed to Adobe's choice of creating a common interface that doesn't fit with any particular OS.  Yes, they have a common UI across all platforms, but generally users pick up an OS that they like the feel of, and expect their software to feel like it is written for that OS.  Adobe's attitude is generally to dictate to users - and their choice of UI look and feel is no exception.

What this post says to me is that, because the bulk of the code is OS independent, you could make a Windows version with relatively little effort. That  you  say you can adapt if Apple changed course only reinforces this. No one can force you to do so, of course. But someone will and they will make the money.

BTW, Unless the user can customise the interface, the maker is dictating the design. That you choose to follow Apple's lead makes no difference, someone besides the user is dictating.

PhotoPlus is not a valid option. It is, by Serif's own admission, not truly a Photoshop rival.

I loathe the subscrition model and choose not to go the the CC and am hoping for a real replacement.

I find your company's decision regrettable and believe you are missing an opportunity. I honestly wish you success, though, regardless of this decision.

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I feel that your decision to go Mac only is spot on.  It's funny how so many people want all that Affinity has to offer on their PC.  If they only realized the limitations of their choice of operating systems, they would understand why this is Mac only in the first place.  

If you want the benefits that a Bugatti has to offer, you don't buy a Ford Fusion and get mad that Bugatti doesn't make an engine for your Ford.  I use Windoze, Linux and OS X operating systems.  They all offer one benefit over the other in certain areas.  Serif made their choice and decided to capitalize on all the features that it's chosen operating system has to offer.  Was it to fill a niche or to capitalize on the the OS's benefits and abilities?  Obviously that question has already been answered.  They have designed a super responsive program that will be(and apparently is) the envy of the competition.  

 

Keep up the great work Serif and if you as a user really want the benefits of the Affinity product line, get a Mac and be happy. 

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  • 3 weeks later...

Most people can't afford Apple products - well, most people outside of the US perhaps.

 

That's what it boils down to. That's why most seemingly 'anti-Apple' users in this thread (and those outside of it) are truly upset. Because they're part of the 91.02% OS market share of Windows users whom have been ignored and excluded from the minority (less than 8%) that now enjoys a much welcomed alternative to what Adobe has been 'offering' until now.

 

Windows users would have only liked to be part of what's happening in the OS X camp.

 

So, while a few 'rivals' have it out (as usual) on threads like these and the never-ending Microsoft/Apple war ensues, most of us will just wait quietly and continue to apply resourcefulness where we can. Like this gentleman

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If the Affinity suite had been announced as cross platform I doubt I would have ever downloaded the betas and later purchased AD (and soon AP wheeee!). Why? Because in my 20 years of work in design and development, it has been extremely rare to find cross platform software run as well on one platform as another. Software designed specifically for one platform always runs better.

 

 

I'm so pleased with Affinity and the direction in which its heading that I'd prepay for Photo and Publisher if that were an option. If I knew that Affinity was simply trying to clone Adobe, I'd stay with Adobe.

 

I think a lot of Windows creatives become very insecure when the topics of design and Macs are brought up because there's this old stereotype that Macs are for creatives and Windows is for video games and word processing. How frustrating to be told your work is not as good because of your OS! Those of us who use multiple OS know this isn't the case though. A good creative can make art, when pressed, on a VIC-20!

 

I don't think Affinity, as some in this thread would assume, is trying to snub Windows. But instead they are minimizing development variables by building the best applications they can on only one platform. As far as market share goes, there's plenty of Mac only development studios that have had great success. I don't see why it can be the same for Affinity. 

 

And to the poster above me who wrote "Most people can't afford Apple products - well, most people outside of the US perhaps." I would argue that the audience for whom Affinity software is intended can afford any computer they'd like with minimal effort. My new MBP and 5k iMac together cost less than I charge for a standard client package and my studio is only middle-of-the-road.

 

I think Affinity/Serif made the right choices and I am excited to see where everything leads. My wallet and body are ready!

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@Diller 

 

I don't think Affinity, as some in this thread would assume, is trying to snub Windows. But instead they are minimizing development variables by building the best applications they can on only one platform. As far as market share goes, there's plenty of Mac only development studios that have had great success. I don't see why it can be the same for Affinity.

 

And to the poster above me who wrote "Most people can't afford Apple products - well, most people outside of the US perhaps." I would argue that the audience for whom Affinity software is intended can afford any computer they'd like with minimal effort. My new MBP and 5k iMac together cost less than I charge for a standard client package and my studio is only middle-of-the-road.

 

 

 

  1. Serif develops new graphic design software that solves productivity issues Adobe has been oblivious to since its acquisition of Freehand, etc.
  2. Thousands of designers jump for joy at the announcement
  3. Thousands more look on with disgust as Serif decides to only develop for hipsters
  4. Those hipsters then snipe & sneer at the excluded users while uploading yet another shot of their minimalist, Apple-clad work spaces to Dribbble
  5. The bulk of the creative community (who forms part of the 91% of the prospective market) are left to watch Adobe make much ado about features like 'linked smart objects' & 'editable corner radius'...after 20/odd years of having the oppertunity?

 

...Hipster.

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@Ulrich Schroeder

 

Apple users in 2000s: "Why don't you port this software to Mac? I don't want to run Windows. Please support OSX."

Microsoft user in 2000s: "Well you bought a Mac. Deal with it, you shouldn't have buy one."

 

Microsoft user in 2015: :crying:  :crying: "It's so unfair, no new cool App are available for Windows 7/8, WP or Surfaces"  :crying: :crying:

Apple users in 2015: "Deal with it"  B)

 

Enjoy your own medicine folks !

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So again, I got up, got my cup of coffee and for the pure enjoyment (and amusement) I started to read this lengthy thread. Wow, a lot of opinions for sure. Hmm..should I add my 1 12 cents?  Ok...my coffee is making me but I promise when I'm done with my coffee I'll stop typing.

 

This thread reminds me of the requests for features. We all want what we want which is basically AD to be AI but cheaper, and on all platforms. Personally I switched to Macs in 2008 and haven't regretted it once. PCs dominate for more business reasons than artistic/creative IMO (and if your opinion differs I respect that - so respect mine...which is based on the past 25 years). At my office I still run PCs for the business part but the creative is all MAC. Yes there are other ways to go about this but some business software I use is Windows only. I do what I have to do and don't worry or complain about it. Ok, maybe I complain a little. For instance, I have a 130K CAD/CAM Windows system at my office. There is no MAC version. I hate it personally. I get more hang-ups and crashes than I have ever got on a MAC. The funny thing is most of the developers of the software are on MACs that have Windows installed. Pretty funny but that's life. Am I saying MACs are better then Windows systems - no, maybe, sometimes. It all depends. 

 

I know this thread is mainly about addressing some concerns about Serif's "bad business decision" to not go for the PC market. I get it but it's their business. Your opinion is fine but it is not law, nor is mine. If you would rather go to Adobe, god bless. It just really stinks that when I cancel I have no more software, nor way to open my files. Perhaps that is what other developers need to focus on - being able to open Adobe product files as well as AD opens up AI files. Hmmm...let's think about that one :)

 

I think most here actually still maintain the Adobe subscription, I know I still do. There are still things I need like AE that make the subscription model still viable for now. My subscription is due to renew in Jan 2016. Hopefully by then I can cancel and stop using Adobe products because I resent the subscription model. Then again, one of my friends who is a popular motion graphics artist loves it and recommends it. His audience is bigger than mine so he wins and so does Adobe :(  What we have to be careful of is the possibility of more companies going to the subscription model. If they do, we are all screwed  and held hostage. The only way these companies will reconsider is if financially they are hurt. That would take a lot of people canceling at once, and companies also. Banning together is the only way to reverse this monopoly. I won't hold my breath...and ooooops... my coffee is done. I have to go reboot my PC....lol

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@ChrisP,

 

You are a gentleman and a scholar ;)

 

What you wrote is true, agreeable and fair. Given the melodramatic/sarcastic undertone of some of my posts here, I may have overdone it a little. I apologise.

 

Achim63,

 

I may have entertained some trolling here, though I'm sure both you and Mr. Dams are affable people in person. So, go back to our earlier exchanges and have a chuckle at the silly things we write online sometimes.

 

@Dams,

 

Amaze opinion, such individuals, plz laugh (haha)

 

Well, back to grindin' the ol' 'Photosuprette', as it were.

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Some CC information. Just shows people complain but sign up anyway. Hopefully this will change.

 

 

Momentum Continues with Accelerated Creative Cloud and Adobe Marketing Cloud Adoption

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Dec. 11, 2014  Adobe (Nasdaq:ADBE) today reported financial results for its fourth quarter and fiscal year 2014 ended Nov. 28, 2014.

Fourth Quarter Financial Highlights

  • Adobe achieved revenue of $1.073 billion, near the high end of the targeted range of $1.025 billion to $1.075 billion.
  • Adobe added 644 thousand net new Creative Cloud subscriptions in the quarter.
  • Creative Annualized Recurring Revenue (“ARR”) grew to $1.676 billion, and total Digital Media ARR grew to $1.947 billion.
  • Adobe Marketing Cloud revenue was $330 million with record bookings in the quarter.
  • Diluted earnings per share were $0.14 on a GAAP-basis, and $0.36 on a non-GAAP basis.
  • Cash flow from operations was $400 million.
  • Deferred revenue grew to a record $1.155 billion, and unbilled backlog grew to approximately $1.7 billion.
  • 66 percent of Adobe’s Q4 revenue was from recurring sources, compared to 44 percent of Q4 revenue in fiscal 2013.
  • The company repurchased approximately 1.8 million shares during the quarter, returning $127 million of cash to stockholders.

Fiscal Year 2014 Financial Highlights

  • Adobe achieved revenue of $4.147 billion and generated $1.288 billion in operating cash flow during the year.
  • The company reported annual GAAP earnings per share of $0.50 and non-GAAP earnings per share of $1.29.
  • Creative Cloud subscriptions grew by more than two million to 3.454 million.  In addition, Adobe grew net new Digital Media ARR by more than $1 billion during the year.
  • Adobe Marketing Cloud achieved a record $1.170 billion in annual revenue, with record annual bookings that is above the company’s target of 30 percent.
  • The company repurchased 10.9 million shares during the year, returning approximately $689 million of cash to stockholders.
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Just shows people complain but sign up anyway.

 

 

 

@ChrisP,

 

This is exactly the point I have been trying to make.

 

Adobe has the numbers purely because of its leviathan-like status and because the general public thinks that Photoshop is the mother-beast of all design - not because of streamlined, professional-user-focused products.

 

BTW, anyone see this thread on this very forum? It's like the FAMILY rated version of what's been going on in here.

 

 

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

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...Plus, people complain but sign up anyway because they don't have a choice.

 

In SA, it costs about R30,000 (Rands) for a top-spec iMac. A new car costs about R100,000 - that's a third of the price of a new car...for a computer.

 

I realize an Apple Mac Mini is cheaper, though I'd still have to purchase a monitor and its specs will probably not be sufficient.

 

Boo-hoo

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  • 3 weeks later...

I wonder if all the people stating that Serif should make Affinity a Bi-Platform application, are going to use all their energy telling all of the other Windows OS Software manufacturers to buck their ideas up and make their software run on Mac as well. PCs have an enormous amount of software that is only available on Windows, and as has already been mentioned much of that is aimed at the graphics market, this includes Corel, who refuse to make their flagship product CorelDRAW run on Mac. Corel produce Painter and Paintshop Pro now with RAW edit capabilities, and both these products have been tried and tested for software in the same price point as Serif.  I have a Mac, but I can also run any Windows software (including CorelDRAW X5 and MS Office 2007) on my system side-by-side with my Mac software without any restrictions to operability. Is it not time that Microsoft enabled their software to do the same on PCs even if it is via a third party piece of software. I also have Windows 7 running on my Mac using BootCamp as if it were running on a native PC, so I technically have two Computers in one. So why not get on to the PC software and hardware community and get them to enable PCs to run Mac software seamlessly alongside their own programmes, that way it doesn't matter what platform you have. Apple have done it for years now.

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Not only this but it's well known that Mac users are more willing to pay for software meanwhile Windows users will try to pirate it first. (kind of the iOS vs Android story).

 

Wow...that's a rather sweeping statement; and I guess there are no Mac users on the planet that pirate software?

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