Does anyone know why Photoshop 8.0 CS drops so much in price once used? I mean from 489 new, down to 20 used. Whats the disadvantage/risk of buying used? Ta

Before you buy a used copy of Photoshop, be very, very aware that it could be a pirated copy. In fact at that price there's no doubt in my mind that it isn't a pirated copy.

Keep in mind that even if you buy it from a friend the license to use the software may not be transferrable... in fact I highly doubt that it is.......call adobe to check on that. A non-transferrable license would also make this a case of an illegal purchase.

You cannot register the copy. You do not get a users manual most of the time. You can get in trouble with Adobe. And as Renderosity has a zero tolerance policy for warez and pirated software you could end up getting banned from this site. 0_o

Message edited on: 09/19/2004 15:04

Really? Sounds serious, and I don't want to risk being banned. Its better to ask first eh? I looked on Ebay and seen the huge price difference and obviously got suspicious, I think I'll stick to to software that came with the camera for now. Thanks for answering.

There is allot of stuff like that on eBay, many of them say in the small print that is is supplied purely as a backup copy for a legitimate licensed copy (a loophole in the law) its a no no. I believe that Photoshop CS (8) has to be activated the same way that Windows XP does, and if it has been activated then it cant be activated again. Abobe may (dont know their policy) sell you a licence to use a second hand copy if it is an original legitimate CD, but it will likely cost the same as buying it new, as you are paying for the licence to use the software more than the software itself. Also beware that people will try to sell US copies and they will not work in the UK and I believe that it is also illegal to do so. It is possible however to get a legal copy (if you are in the right place at the right time) for about 160, these are usually companies that have bought hardware that has come with Photoshop (scanners etc) and already have their own company licensed software so they sell it off cheap. If you want to have a play with PS to see if you like it you can download a free 30 day trial from Adobe. I am interested Michelle how RR would know if people were using illegal software? I do agree however that the zero tolerance is a must. I have used CS that is owned by a press photographer when he is kind enough to let me play, It is difficult to grasp but an impressive program (thinking about saving my pennies!)

They don't know who is using legitimate and who isn't but we do have people who will sometimes ask for a serial # for a specific software, or they will stupidly advertise their warez site with all this wonderful software available for download. Those accounts are immediately banned.

Thank you. It was just a nosy question, (I am an info addict just in case you hadnt realised):-) got all my serial keys somewhere under all the junk! Not enough hours in the day to sort my bad filing.

Adobe used to transfer licenses with no problem. [This was about 5 years ago, when I had an extra copy from buying a scanner.] Their customer service number was very helpful. I do not know what their policy is now, nor do I think buying "blind" from e-bay is such a wise idea.

AFAIK non-transferrable licenses are illegal over here. So whether the license can be transferred might also depend on your location. But $20 for the software does indeed sound like a pirated copy.

I agree, at $20 it can't be the real thing. Even with the disgusting $/ price differences we suffer in the UK. (Bitching? Me? Nah! Apart from the fact that Bratz Dolls are advertised on US web sites at LESS $ than we can buy here in !) btw, Chelle, I dig the zero-tolerance comment, but come on - look at the number of contributors in the Bryce/Poser sections - there's probably 3 times as many people in each MORE than the total number of copies sold of both of them..... random banning would probably have a higher than 70% success rate at weeding them out! lol (",) btw, speaking of banning members, anyone heard from Ry recently?