P: Map module keeps flashing "map offline" when it's not

This is still a problem in Lr Classic on Win10.  Solved by closing and reopening Lr.

Yeah, of course you want that. Free updates for the rest of your life. Who wouldn't want that? It is absolutely criminal that people at Adobe want to get paid for their work!

I just want my current Lightroom 5.7 to continue working with the GPS-map function, which was fine until some time ago. I am not interested in monthly subscription methods or any new features, however fantastic they may be. I think it is nearly criminal by Adobe to require expensive updating to a otherwise working programme.

As far as Adobe is concerned, you already left (because you didn't buy Lr6).

I think this is a shame. I will leave Adobe for this

I think this is a shame. I will leave Adobe for this

As you can read in the rest of the topic this was merged into, Google changed its servers and broke compatibility with LR Maps.  LR CC 2015.12 / 6.12 (the most recent release) fixes this, but Adobe won't be issuing updates to prior versions (LR 3, 4, and 5), which are unsupported.

 Using Windows7 Home Premium Ver 6.1 and  LR 5.7.1

Google changed the API and Adobe doesn't want to update 'obsolete' software. see page 2 of this thread for some work arounds.  It's only the Map imagery that isn't loading you can still add gps coordinates to photo's http://regex.info/blog/lightroom-goodies/gps is a great plugin it has external map viewers as well as matching photo's to gpx tracks.  This is a smaller problem than it first appears, you just need another external editor 🙂
    

It is an API change from google they depreciated a function lightroom uses to move the map it can still load a map but mostly the wrong one,  you need to restart lightroom to change it thou. It doesnt matter see page 2 of this thread for a working solution.