Another Major Adobe Failure

Thank you for taking the time to offer a decent reply.  All you suggested already existed or I did try with the exception of clearing the plugin installation cache.  For reference, how would one clear that specific cache?  Also as reference, computer is Win 11 Pro (64 bit), Intel i9 with 128Gb memory NVidia RTX 4060 with 8Gb.  PS and other Adobe apps are updated as released.

I did find a solution and would like to provide the information in context of potentially helping someone else. In continuing to search for a solution, I ran across a post, in an Adobe forum no less, where someone described a ccx and in doing so indicated it was a compressed file which could simply be extracted.  So that is what I attempted.  I copied the extract files to the PS Plug-In directory and the plug in works.  The only down side, if one can call it that, is the plug in is not registered in the “Stock & Marketplace” in the Creative Cloud controller app. 

I think I understand what Adobe is attempting to do under the guise of making an easy installation and app management experience for the end user.  Where it seems to me there is a failure is in error reporting.  My beef with the installation approach is no error message is given when going the “double click” the ccx route.  Running the UPIA from the command line gave me an error message that included “-410!” as what I am assuming is some type of error code.  Could not find any reference to what it indicated in terms of problems.  Knowing where or why something failed in a process seems to be a pretty basic programming feature.  It strikes me as odd considering the obvious expertise Adobe can bring to bare on challenges and the highly invasive nature required  by all of their software, doing a better job of providing some basic insight and help with problems is possible.

As an aside, attempted to discuss this with the developer and mentioned the extraction methodology.  The company is relatively small and usually responses quickly to any questions.  In querying the extraction and installation approach, I received no response whatsoever.  So who knows what the dynamic is in the Adobe developer world.  All I know is as impressive as the software has become in the last couple of years with the greater advent of AI and other features, I have found the Adobe philosophy to be rather indifferent to customers.   

This was not the first problem I have run into and I am fairly confident I am not alone in this regard. Had some large problems with PS over the last year and a half to two years. Things Adobe more or less dismissed as OS or machine yet magically disappeared with subsequent upgrades. Then they insult users by force feeding them advertisements in software they pay to use as well as charge relatively exorbitant fees for credits. Being a user since shortly after the introduction of PS in the 90s, Adobe actually seems they now want to rid themselves of the bother of anyone less than large business users in a market where there are now numerous competitors that have nearly equivalent, if not better, features. Seems Adobe will not be able to buy them all as they did Topaz. I anticipate those products will be where a lot of current Adobe users will move their business.