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Originally Posted by Duardo  I've run various software programs and plugins for well over a decade using various types of copy protection, including various types of dongles, and the biggest problems I've had have been related to hard drive failures. I've had one problem relating to a dongle and the license was easily replaced.
And I've never lost one, or had one stolen...I can see how theft can happen, but I have a hard time imagining how someone could just up and lose something so valuable...but if they do, I don't see how the software or dongle manufacturer could be to blame.
Dongles were never free...one may have been included with the software you were buying, sure, but you were still paying for it. Nowdays I get a little annoyed when I purchase a product that comes with an iLok, specifically, as I have so many of them already...
I'm not aware of any such scheme...as far as Waves is concerned, you're covered for all upgrades for a year after you register your software, and at worst after that you'd have to pay an upgrade fee, which is not nearly as much as buying the product again...but maybe there's a particular situation I'm not aware of?
Well, sure, that seems reasonable to me...especially as it may well be that the person who stole your laptop knows exactly what they were stealing.
Even so, though, how is the dongle to blame? I would say that depends more on the software vendor than the fact that their software is authorized to a dongle. There are certainly companies who use dongles for protection who will give you new authorizations if your dongle gets stolen, and there are certainly those who don't use them who won't give you new authorizations if the laptop your software is on is stolen. I'd imagine that companies that aren't helpful in those situations that use dongles still wouldn't be helpful in those situations if they stopped using dongles tomorrow.
That also doesn't relate specifically to dongles as well...it could be the same with some other sort of authorization, and if you use a dongle you may well be up and running the same day if you have a spare dongle around. Again, it depends more on your specific issue and software manufacturers that are involved.
Typically no, that's not a problem...if the dongle breaks you can usually send the dongle to the manufacturer of the dongle (rather than of the software) who can verify that those licenses are valid.
Please, please tell me that you did not just compare dongles to Jim Crow laws?
First off, you can open up a Pro Tools session (LE, at least) without an iLok...you just can't run any third-party plugins in that session that do use an iLok for copy protection without an iLok.
And, regardless, why is that "stupid"? A huge part of the reason that Digidesign adopted the iLok was because of the number of people who were using cracked plugins on Mix systems...which had an entry price of about ten grand, and required that hardware to run...which just shows that even people who have the means are more than willing to spend money on what they have to, but if there's a way to steal stuff they will.
That depends entirely on your perception of what "equal quality" is. Way too subjective to make a blanket statement like that. |
Well, obviously you're an apologist for the dongle companies.
It's pretty obvious that you never work where your system is exposed to the public, or even to numbers of musicians - things walk off, expecially small things. I'm glad you never lost one or had one stolen - you're lucky.
Concerning Waves - their "upgrade policy" is a sham, considering that they are on a one to two year upgrade cycle, which means that if you but their stuff shortly after it comes out you get no upgrades. And forcing you to upgrade ALL your Waves plugins just because you bought a new one of a newer software generation is unconscionable and dishonest. Should I have to replace all my compressors in my rack simply because I want to add a new piece of hardware? This is especially egregious since Waves has not actually upgraded the actual PROGRAM of many (perhaps most) of their plugins for a long time - the only "upgrade" is the new version of the copy protection!
If I have a non-dongleized program and my laptop gets ripped I can simply re-install. The worst that might happen is that I might have to email a scan of my software package to the company to get a new online registration - but that's not likely as I never use online registration because my DAW is not on the internet - ever - and I keep records of my authorization codes, usually written on the CD with a Sharpie.
Yes, I absolutely did compare dongles to Jim Crow laws. Pro Audio people are the "N-words" of the software market and I, for one, happen to resent it deeply. You should too.