computer issues, might loose CS4

So I have PS CS4 and am being told that my computer needs wiped and everything reinstalled. My issue is that my copy of CS4 is in northern California in a storage and I am in Florida. The tech says he can upload a copy of CS3 master series but I have heard of some negatives to CS3. Any advice?comments? Thanks.

Sounds like it's time for a road trip! A great oppertunity to photograph America as you go get your program

I have used a variety of the Photoshop series over the years, CS3 was like many pieces of software some had issues, others did not. Its worth a try to save you the road trip Whats up with the PC that it needs wiped? there must be another way to fix it surely??

Rick, I have made that trip 3 times in the last 9 months lol. I missed a lot but unless I was headed out to do another wind turban project my wife would probably divorce me for a trip for the program lol.

I am going to talk to another tech and see what he says. I really like my PS CS4 and bridge is very helpful as well. Even with the master series I believe I would have to find a way to get CS4 back on it. The bruch sizes and speed would be a killer for me in PSCS3. But it would be way cool to have dreamweaver and aftereffects

If your program is registered with Adobe, maybe they could help you out with this one. There is usually a hidden serial number somewhere and maybe, just maybe, if you call them for help they could with this number give you authorization to re-install a version you could download. It would be a lot cheaper than a divorce for sure...

Yeah I had thought about that as well. I am going to try calling them today. The only 2 times I have called adobe I. Did not get much in the way of help. 3rd times a charm maybe lol

I'm not at all advocating piracy however as long as your serial number is valid you can activate a downloaded .iso of CS4. There are many places to retrieve .iso files for CS4.

Failing that, you MAY be able to convince someone at Adobe's tech sup to provide you with a download, however it's unlikely, at best.

Yeah. I really wish I could just save it to my hard drive

I have a contact at Adobe. I have already sent him an email, and will let you know the results as soon as I hear something. Should be Monday.

Thank you. It would suck to loose it even temporarily for sure. Might be a year before I make it to cali again

Sorry for the delay...Rich is out on the road a lot. Here is his response:
I would venture to say that you most likely don't have a licensed edition, those are usually for business/education customers.

Hey thanks for the responce. I had actually already gotten the same answer from them. My edition is not the student but the full licensed edition so I have to have the box with the key code anyways. I mailed my storage key to cali and have a friend going through my storage to find it. I don't do pirated copies as it always seems that there is something missing plus no updates etc. Well worth the money imo

Anthony Hereld said:

I would venture to say that you most likely don't have a licensed edition, those are usually for business/education customers.

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I would also like to add that Anybody can buy a CS version and not only full time pros use a CS version, although when you get into the CS bundles you wont find many non pros that have these, and even then they are usually designers, producers, etc. I did not kick down for the extended version that includes 3D and and some other stuff but the regular CS4 for $600+. I had already had elements 6 so the tranition was not that bad as far as learning curve but I am still learning on it. The switch to CS4 was also not an upgrade as they did not offer the upgrade from elements 6 at the time.

I will add I got my computer back tonight and as I stated before I do not like pirated versions of anything because it seems as though parts are missing and this is true of the package he installed while I wait for my box to get here. I am stuck with transforming my raw images in NXView and then working on them. This definitly wont work for my work flow.

I have been at this for 10 years so again this is not my first rodeo, although this is the first time I have had to deal with 4 different companies to get my computer fixed lol.

I don't think anyone suggested you use pirated software.

Anyways, sounds like you should look into some disk imaging software for your backups such as Acronis.

Ripeart said:

I don't think anyone suggested you use pirated software.

Anyways, sounds like you should look into some disk imaging software for your backups such as Acronis.

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The only way to have an unlicensed version of photoshop is to be running pirated software...
Acronis does sound kind of cool being able to backup my images, music, AND programs would be sweet.
I backup everything that I currently can on an external harddrive but the option to save everything would ease my mind considerably.

Yeah, Acronis is great. If you're looking to do something like that and want some advice or just want to talk it through, feel free to PM me. I've been in IT 20+ years, and backups are my bread and butter, so to speak.

Right on. Yeah, after this little episode I will be thinkin' pretty hard on that. I have been looking for a safe secure way to store all my stuff without having to ship my external hard drives back and forth. I have never really understood how some people save their stuff in the cloud. Is it possible to save raw files that way?

Perhaps there is some confusion?

When you buy a software license, it's typically for multiple copies...such as 5-10, 20+, or even hundreds. These are most often used by schools and businesses. There are individual licenses available, but they almost always cost more than buying a box version. Licenses usually don't include a physical disk, they are digital download and usually administered by an IT professional.

That's not accurate either anthony, when you buy PS from adobe, you are purchasing the license to use their product. Many community colleges use a teacher/ studend version that costs about half the cost of the version to the general public. Like any copyrighted material you are paying for the license to use that material. Any copy of adobe that you purchase from adobe is a license edition of their product. It does not take an IT to download from their site nor does it take one to download from a disk. It does not even take an IT to download to multiple computers, just that key code and internet access.

It's entirely accurate, Mr. Aulabaugh. I think I know something about this, considering I used to sell Adobe licenses to schools and businesses. Box versions of software are available to students and staff for discounted prices, but not licenses. Nor did I say that it takes and IT professional to download the software. I said they are typically administered by IT...as in "managed". There are 3 types of software distributions:

• OEM - Comes pre-installed on the computer. The only difference here is that there are no transfer rights, which means you can't even move it to a different server.

• Box - Retail versions purchased in stores. Have a physical box and CD/DVD. Has transfer rights.

• License - For volume purchases. Requires digital download and account registration. Upgrades available at a discount. Has transfer rights. Does not contain media (disks).

Yes, all versions include a EULA (End User License Agreement) which permits use of the software. Please do not attempt to question the accuracy of my posts again unless you have your facts straight.