Photoshop CS2 for free?

[God_I_hate_Adon_tbe]

I've seen several websites advertising Photoshop CS2 for free, is this true?...

[Piracy sites removed by moderator]

There are far more sites like this if you search.

[Test Screen Name · Accepted solution]

These sites are liars. They don't care that if you follow their instruction you will have unlicensed software. They don't care that if you're a business and you get audited, you face large penalties.

The deal is, this is a REPLACEMENT CS2 for people who ORIGINALLY PAID FOR CS or CS2. The replacement is needed because the original no longer installs properly. That's all. If anyone else uses it, it's no better than any pirate software off the web.

[God_I_hate_Adon_tbe]

Wow! Strong response, nearly as strong as my response to some of the junkwear that gets installed with Adobe products.

After reading the first site a bit more closely, it appears that you are correct; the site is quite misleading and edges around the subject of licensing and whether it's truly free or not.

Thanks for the reply.

[D Fosse]

Wow! Strong response

We're just a bit tired of pointing this out...

Although, honestly, I don't think anyone at Adobe cares all that much. This is ancient software, seriously outdated, which will probably not even install or run properly on most current systems.

But from a legal standpoint it's perfectly clear. You must have a valid CS/CS2 license to use it. It was put up because the original activation servers had to be shut down for technical reasons, so if these licensed users needed to reinstall, it would not activate.

[God_I_hate_Adon_tbe]

We're just a bit tired of pointing this out...

Irrespective, I did search this forum prior to asking this question and couldn't find anything about it; whether it's the way I was phrasing my search or whatever, I tried a number of different searches. The search engine for the forums is not very good. Improve the search engine then you MAY NOT HAVE TO SHOUT at people for asking obvious questions.

[pavlal70004446]

Ok, what if I still would like an older version of Adobe CS2 (having an older system version on my PC), am not a professional but would like to work with Photoshop, albeit not the newest, most uptodate, hi-tech version??? Do I have a chance to get to it??? I assume, it would still be cheaper than the new version, but is it possible to get it anywhere not desiring to become a pirate?

[pavlal70004446]

PS: Hard to believe it would have disappeared from the face of the Earth

[Guest]

Hi

There's plenty of free alternatives that may run on an older OS

Just do a Google search

https://www.google.ie/search?source=hp&ei=NsIsW9KNLuqUgAai2LLoBQ&q=free+alternative+to+photoshop&oq=...

[MichaelGL73]

Sign into Adobe, locate and download CS2.

Every time you open it up, it asks you to register now or later

You get the same result either way.  It's impossible to register because there is no way to do it.  I tried!  LOL.. Honest.  It can't be done.

And it's completely usable.

If Adobe cared, they would have some kind of link for it.

[matthewh89]

If I paid for CS4 when I was going to school, and someone stole my bookbag and ruined my college career. Can I get my CS4, or am I out of luck?

[Dan Ramirez]

For exactly this reason(actually, it's because I lose pieces of paper easily), I put my serial numbers into a password protected document saved in the cloud. Doesn't help if installer media is no longer available, but it usually is.

[Trevor.Dennis]

https://forums.adobe.com/people/Dan+Ramirez  wrote

For exactly this reason(actually, it's because I lose pieces of paper easily), I put my serial numbers into a password protected document saved in the cloud. Doesn't help if installer media is no longer available, but it usually is.

Amen to that.  Or to a variation of it at least.  I use Notes on my phone protected by fingerprint or password.  I even have my Windows serial number saved that way.  It's a one stop location that will more or less always be available, but having seen this thread and thought about it some more, a cloud based location might be a good idea for a second level of redundancy.

[Test Screen Name]

I really hate the irresponsible attitude of these sites, who really just want to boost their ratings or stick it to Adobe, and who are (in the first generation at least) fully aware of the limitations they don't share. It's like telling someone they can get free goods in [name of store here] by sticking them in their pockets and walking out. They are setting people up for serious legal repercussions, without a care in the world.

I'm not sure we can say Adobe "don't care". Big companies set up piracy encorcement departments, whose job it is to care, and who probably haven't been issued with a statute of  limitations. But that doesn't really matter; software auditing is an independent activity; in some countries at least, auditing organisations have the right to visit and inspect every company, and may even reward tip-offs. These things could get companies fined, and staff sacked.

And yes, I hate the junkware too.

[God_I_hate_Adon_tbe]

Yes - I'm afraid I genuinely dislike Adobe as a company. Photoshop is truly a great product, but it has been taken away by the suits and turned into a cash cow, purely and simply. There's no reason on this planet, with all the money they've made from the software over the years, that they can't take a similar approach to the like sof Microsoft and lower the price for home users. It's simply out and out greed.

This question, though, isn't the correct forum for my moans. (Let's face it, Adobe will never listen to us).

[D Fosse]

take a similar approach to the like sof Microsoft and lower the price for home users.

Actually they have. The current subscription price for PS+Lr is significantly lower than the old perpetual license pricing. Just do the math, and be sure to factor in upgrade pricing along the way.

I can't imagine anyone not being able to afford $10 a month. It's about the same as Netflix, and people pay several times more each month for their cellphones. without flinching.

Greed? Maybe. I have no doubts that the Adobe CEO pays himself more each day than I make in an entire year. But that's a different discussion.

[DassKM]

"I can't imagine anyone not being able to afford $10 a month. It's about the same as Netflix, and people pay several times more each month for their cellphones. without flinching."

May be people living in country where you are could be able to pay 10$ easily, but people living in developing countries like Nepal don't even earn 10$ per day (hardly they earn 5$/day). So should  they be deprived using software?.  Why not to reduce at least the price of Monthly plan, so we can pay and use whenever we want. Just for a work 2 or 3 hours in photoshop, we are forced to pay Rs.3500. Is there any justice here?

[D Fosse]

dassd32255842  wrote

people living in developing countries like Nepal don't even earn 10$ per day (hardly they earn 5$/day).

OK, that is a valid point, and a good argument for differentiated pricing. It's not as if it would make a big dent in Adobe's bottom line profits.

Remember that capitalism has no heart. Sad, but that's the world we live in.

[DassKM]

"It's not as if it would make a big hit ( now you changed "hit" to "dent" in your reply) in Adobe's bottom line profits.

Remember that capitalism has no heart. Sad, but that's the world we live in. "

Please do understand that you may not have a hit in your bottom line profit but you would not be able to take all the wealth with you when you pass away.

May God grant heart to Adobe !

[gener7]

You can't take Photoshop with you when you pass away either.

As for greed, remember there was the other side who felt they were entitled to Photoshop for free. First Adobe tried serial numbers, they got passed around. Next was activation, they found ways to crack it. I'll bet that was a hit and a factor in the subscription model.

I wonder if that did not exist, neither would the subscriptions.

[DassKM]

"You can't take Photoshop with you when you pass away either. "

Could have answered with better reasoning! Mounting up of wealth cannot be compared to using something of basic necessity.

I don't support pirated software and neither have I  come to ask for free software, if it is so, you get lot of cracks on the web, no need to waste time here. But I asked for a fare pricing.

[God_I_hate_Adon_tbe]

gener7  wrote

I'll bet that was a hit and a factor in the subscription model.

Irrelevant - you can still take the software and disable the telemetry and registration process easily.  There's nothing to stop someone from releasing a cracked version of the latest Photoshop.

The reason I posted originally about the greed factor is that there are plenty of other companies out there providing a subscription model that offer far better benefits.  Microsoft Office 365, for instance, though half the price of Photoshop, I still get five licences for it...

[D Fosse]

No doubt it's still technically possible, and examples pop up here too. But not nearly as often as it used to.

I think the main blow to piracy is not technical, but lowering the entrance threshold. You no longer have to set aside half a month's pay.

Microsoft? I thought everybody hated them? They're the good guys now? Noted...

[God_I_hate_Adon_tbe]

https://forums.adobe.com/people/D+Fosse  wrote

Microsoft? I thought everybody hated them? They're the good guys now? Noted...

Don't be silly!

[Eternal Warrior]

https://forums.adobe.com/people/D+Fosse  wrote

Microsoft? I thought everybody hated them? They're the good guys now? Noted...

The whole world is one large pot of various shades of grey.... I'm not going to say that they're aren't any "good guys"... but this depends on your definition anyway.

Whilst I agree with dassd32255842 I unfortunately don't think this is very easy to enforce in any way without either creating lots of red tape or further availability for exploit.

But that's neither here nor there in the grand scheme of things.

Whilst it's definitely not Photoshop.... and I like the adobe products... otherwise I wouldn't participate here as much as I have been...

Programs like GIMP 2.0 can be a reasonable alternative for those who don't want to pay.

Also for what its worth with the whole Adobe/Microsoft thing - https://forums.adobe.com/people/God%20I%20hate%20Adon - Don't forget that you can have all the Creative Cloud apps (depending on your licence) on two computers... Plus there are the apps that you can download and use from your phone/tablet...

It may not be 5 PC's but its not terrible....

How many people - in either developed or developing countries - actually have 5 PC's FRS?

Best,

EW

[Beeman_2070]

The current pricing model is better in my opinion. Although, $10 might mean different things to people in different countries, I still hold it up as a better pricing model. However, I would suggest to Adobe to think of ways to to business especially with countries that have money with low exchange power. Adobe is big and by that I mean it must have a lot of people in its staff. I don't really see lowering the prices of its products as a better way for both the company and users of its products. But I can suggest, Adobe could give away some of its old products for free like Creative Suite CS5. Personally, I prefer the new upgrades since they are way better compared to the old ones. But for guys with money that goes thousands for a dollar, they could be given old Adobe products just to help them get things going. Adobe is a giant in the design and creative tools category. I don't see anyone else towering higher than Adobe in the next couple of years. The words design and photo editing go with Photoshop on almost every lip. Granted , Not everyone would prefer the old versions of the software. But there a many who will appreciate it. Just a suggestion.