(Actually not) Free Adobe CS2

[Eclipse]

This is all over the pipes today, and appears legit.  I'm guessing that Adobe is releasing these older products to try and
steal some market share and pinch off pirating.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/adriankingsleyhughes/2013/01/07/download-adobe-cs2-applications-for-free/

You have to register for a free Adobe account if you don't already have one.  These products work fine in Window 7.
(I'm still using PS6).

For those of you doing insignia design or work for your websites (or need to update things to comply with 900-2), this is
a sweet opportunity to grab industry best tools.  Most people don't need the whole suite, just Photoshop and / orIllustrator.

From what I can tell, the only issue is the Adobe systems are getting slammed, so people are getting international error pages sometimes.  My DL's are running, but I had to login first and try a few times to get to the page.

[Eclipse]

Acrobat Pro 7 & 8 are in there as well - for those of you working on going paperless, for CAP or otherwise, this
make editing and working with PDFs (like WBP forms) simple.

Create your scanned signature as a "stamp", sign click, send.

Profit!

[Pylon]

Legit, even if just for the Acrobat Pro.  I have it at the office and miss having it at home for CAP work and the like.  Thanks for sharing!

[Eclipse]

Just installed the stand-alone Photoshop CS2, no issues, works great on Win 7.  I am one happy camper today.
Selecting multiple layers was the only thing missing from PS6 that I really needed, which is a feature of CS2.

Aweandthensome!

[JeffDG]

Heads up on the "Legit" part...the link in the Forbes piece is now broken, and it may well have been out there in error from Adobe.

Not saying it's not Legit, but some caution is advised before taking advantage of an offer that seems too good to be true.

<EDIT> OK, the article has been edited...Not Legit officially per Adobe

On behalf of Adobe Systems Incorporated ...

You have heard wrong! Adobe is absolutely not providing free copies of CS2!

What is true is that Adobe is terminating the activation servers for CS2 and that for existing licensed users of CS2 who need to reinstall their software, copies of CS2 that don't require activation but do require valid serial numbers are available. (Special serial numbers are provided on the page for each product download.) See <http://forums.adobe.com/thread/1114930>.

[Eclipse]

Well, color me embarrassed.  It sounded too good to be true, but when Forbes and Gizmodo jumped on,
I made a donkey out of U and Me and went with it.

That sound you here outside your window is ethics crashing into need.

[JeffDG]

Well, color me embarrassed.  It sounded too good to be true, but when Forbes and Gizmodo jumped on,
I made a donkey out of U and Me and went with it.

That sound you here outside your window is ethics crashing into need.

I have 4 letters for you:  GIMP

[Eclipse]

I have 4 letters for you:  GIMP

Believe me, I've tried to move that way on several occasions, but even with the menu PS-like plugins it's just not the same and some features either
don't work or don't work as expected / I'm used to.  Photoshop is a pretty significant learning curve, took me about 6 months
of nearly daily use to get really proficient, and GIMP is a curve all it's own.  I'd like to move to Linux as my main machine
and the lack of a viable Photoshop is all that's really stopping me.

When I started using PS about 10 years ago, GIMP wasn't even close.  It's caught up significantly, but I'm too far ingrained to swap-over now.

I got burned by a Chinese counterfeit a couple of years ago as well.  I don't need the full feature set of CS6, just a few things missing from PS6,
and most of the work I do right now is non-profit or personal, so I just can't justify $600+ (though I had it in my hands last week at Fry's).

[a2capt]

Then.. what's this:
http://www.adobe.com/downloads/cs2_downloads/index.html

You are only legally entitled to download and install with that serial number if you have a valid license to the product!

You know how that's going to go..

[Eclipse]

Tell me about it - the entire interweb is saying the apps are free, but Forbes is quoting one guy in one forum who says they aren't, and the links are still live.

The weird thing is that if Adobe intended for this to be abandonware, you'd think they'd actually announce it formally, but if they don't,
then why don't they take down the links or put them behind something? There isn't even a note either way on the page you linked
as to why they are there to start with.

At this point I'm inclined to keep using them until Adobe actually makes a statement on the issue outside a forum post.

[JeffDG]

Tell me about it - the entire interweb is saying the apps are free, but Forbes is quoting one guy in one forum who says they aren't, and the links are still live.

The weird thing is that if Adobe intended for this to be abandonware, you'd think they'd actually announce it formally, but if they don't,
then why don't they take down the links or put them behind something? There isn't even a note either way on the page you linked
as to why they are there to start with.

At this point I'm inclined to keep using them until Adobe actually makes a statement on the issue outside a forum post.

Do you have some kind of license for them?

Otherwise, you're violating copyright by installing and using them.  News reports do not constitute a license.  Unless you have explicit permission from Adobe to utilize their software, unauthorized use is a violation of Title 17.

[Extremepredjudice]

Why would you want cs2?

[Eclipse]

First, I agree with you on the ethics and legality, otherwise it wouldn't even be a discussion (in fact, this might make an interesting CDI conversation).

But with that said, I actually might have a license, or at least a legal / ethical basis for using it.

The product is no longer supported or sold by the vendor (i.e. "abandonware", which has uneven court precedents).
Since the copyright is not likely abandoned or expired, I can't sell it, of course.

It is being distributed by the copyright holder on a public website which includes the installer keys.

Upon installation I agreed to the terms of service and used a key provided by the vendor (not a hacked "borrowed" key, etc.)

I've got plenty of software that is perfectly legal and ethical that I never paid money for, so...

[Eclipse]

Why would you want cs2?

It's a powerful product with an upgraded featureset to the legal version I have today.

[a2capt]

Well, you've got one Adobe "staff" account posting that you are supposed to have license to it already.
You've got another saying ...

Effective December 13, Adobe disabled the activation server for CS2 products and Acrobat 7 because of a technical glitch. These products were released over 7 years ago and do not run on many modern operating systems. But to ensure that any customers activating those old versions can continue to use their software, we issued a serial number directly to those customers.  While this might be interpreted as Adobe giving away software for free, we did it to help our customers.

.. and the actual download page says -NOTHING- other than "here are some files" .. and "serial numbers".

I have CS6 already, and 5.5, and 4 .. and whatever. Matters not to me.

[Extremepredjudice]

Why would you want cs2?

It's a powerful product with an upgraded featureset to the legal version I have today.

Get cs6. It is so much better.

[Pylon]

Get cs6. It is so much better.

Yes, that's a cute little statement to throw out there.  But that's tantamount to saying, "You have a Honda?  Get a Maserati.  It's so much better."  No kidding, you don't say?   


CS6 Master Collection costs $2,600.  Not exactly lost couch change for those who casually would have use for it.

[Майор Хаткевич]

I use Photoshop 7. Works for me!

[♠SARKID♠]

I use Photoshop 7. Works for me!

+1   Learned it in high school, still use it today.  I'm sure the CS programs are great, but for as often as I use PS I'll stick with what I know.