Adobe Systems is a Monopoly; acts like one.
The company has created a wonderful set of applications that are considered the gold standard in business and creative industries.
So much so, that Photoshop is a verb-substitute for “image editing”.
Google, Band-Aid and Kleenex all enjoy brand recognition where their name is synonymous with the product itself.
But what happens when the company abuses their mindshare and marketshare? What happens when a company only values its customers in terms of revenue potential?
What happens when a company becomes openly hostile to its products’ consumers?
Two choices, both involve voting with your wallet:
- Pay the bill.
- Pursue an alternative.
Adobe has put its biggest industry supporter in an untenable position.
As education institutions across the globe, in response to the pandemic, have transitioned to more online-delivery methods, many software partners have adapted their licensing models to shift from on-premise solutions to remote-installations of their products directly on a student’s computer.
Adobe, inexplicably, is unwilling to bend. Their response to the transition to online? Fleece the institution and fleece the learner.
Smart companies recognize that educators are training the next cohort of their future customers.
No bueno.
Even though we’ll pay the bill and ensure that learners have access to the very best software, we’ll have to think long and hard upon the future with a software vendor so brazenly toxic to its users.
Here are some products you can use instead of supporting Adobe:
- For raster-image editing, alternatives to Photoshop:
- For vector-image editing, instead of Illustrator:
- Image management and digital darkroom, instead of Lightroom:
- For video editing and effects, alternatives to AfterEffects and Premiere:
- Sound editing, instead of Audition:
- For page layout and desktop publishing, instead of InDesign:
- Microsoft Publisher (Windows-only)
- Scribus
For PDFs, did you know that you can print directly to PDF format from any Microsoft product? You can annotate any PDF in Microsoft Edge or something like Foxit Reader.
Honestly, do you really need Acrobat? Really??
Wrap Up
That’s just a sampling of all the software choices you can try in your own personal attempts to shake off the stink of Adobe. Or you can continue to use their products. You do you.
As for the college? We are a business too and a steward of public trust. Our contract with Adobe expires in 2021. We have some work to do to ensure we can meet legitimate academic requirements while also ensuring value for money.
