Is Adobe Removing Previous Versions

[Steve Sherrick]

Am I understanding the situation correctly, that Adobe has removed previous versions of their software from the Application Manager? What I've seen mentioned is a licensing issue with Dolby. If David is still poking around Reduser and can comment, I would appreciate it. I will also try to contact someone I know at Adobe tomorrow to see what is going on.

What has brought this to my attention is that I just did dailies for a client through Silverstack Lab using the Premiere CC XML workflow, and the dailies are fine on my Mac in Premiere 2017.0.2 Build 11.0.2 (47) but the client's PC which has 2018 is seeing the audio as 5.1 instead of individual audio tracks (within the merged clip). The thought was to have me try and install 2018 on my system and see if I could reproduce the problem. However, I decided not to do that because the Application Manager would need to be updated, and quite honestly what I have been hearing about versions not being there (through Adobe forum) has me nervous about making any changes to my system.

What I'm getting at here is that if it is true that they have removed previous versions, with no warning to their customers that they are doing so via email, notifications on their website, etc. then this is exactly the type of fear I had when the subscription method was first announced. Professional postproduction people need to have access to all versions of software. There are many valid reasons why that is so. I'm not going to list them here as many of you probably already know, and hopefully Adobe knows too. Bottom line is, if I need Premiere Pro CC 2015.3, and for whatever reason I don't have that available to me, I need to be able to get it through Adobe. Trust me, if versioning is not handled properly and gets chaotic, this will give many post professionals pause when it comes to choosing an NLE.

Before I go any further, I'd simply like to know if anyone has insight into this situation and can verify that this is indeed what is going on or do I have bad information? Here are some of my sources of this information.
https://foigus.wordpress.com/2017/11/03/blinded-me-with-silence/
https://forums.adobe.com/thread/2397729
https://forums.adobe.com/thread/2397676

I will try to hold off any further opinion until I can get confirmation.

 

[Homer Dulu]

Hi Steve,

I have the updated CC. I upgraded to Premiere CC 2018, but discovered that it would convert CC 2017 files to a new file format, which would screw whoever I shared the project file with. Luckily the latest version of the App Manager allowed me to reinstall CC 2017, so I have both 2017 and 2018 running side-by-side.

Not sure if that answers your question, but I was able to install a previous version, even though it's only one version back. Not sure if I can install 2015 - I can check when I get home.

 

[Steve Sherrick]

Hi Steve,

I have the updated CC. I upgraded to Premiere CC 2018, but discovered that it would convert CC 2017 files to a new file format, which would screw whoever I shared the project file with. Luckily the latest version of the App Manager allowed me to reinstall CC 2017, so I have both 2017 and 2018 running side-by-side.

Not sure if that answers your question, but I was able to install a previous version, even though it's only one version back. Not sure if I can install 2015 - I can check when I get home.

Yes, my client is able to go back to 2017 but not to any other versions. If what I suspect is happening, is truly happening, then it's the nightmare scenario I anticipated back at the release of CC. For some, this may be a non-issue but for others, versioning problems whether it's the availability of previous versions or compatibility between versions/platforms will absolutely bite them in the rear if they don't manage it properly.

I''m hoping David McGavran or other Adobe reps can jump in here and clarify. Here's what I expect to be able to access when it comes to prior versions of software.

 

[Zack Birlew]

That’s really scary actually! I still have my film, “The Review - A Fatal Frame Fan Film”, up for festivals and it was made in CC 2015. I recently upgraded some Adobe apps thinking I could always get the previous versions just in case. Sure, there might be bugs in older versions but changing file formats and such is where things can get messed up (like FCP7 to FCPX). Needless to say, it would be a nightmare to have to re-edit or remake some of the many effects shots in the movie if I ever needed to.

 

[Jeff Kilgroe]

Every prediction I had regarding Adobe going full subscription model has come to pass... The real problem here is they don’t have any serious competition. That’s not just going to materialize out of thin air and it may be a long while, or even never. If they at least had a moral compass, that would help immensely.

 

[Anthony Berenato Jr]

I just reinstalled a few older versions for a client yesterday. The system is still in place.

The Dolby thing was a simple update to CC17 that came out of nowhere to remove the Dolby additions. It didn’t look like they were leaning to remove older versions when in fact they’re still adding QoL fixes.

 

[Steve Sherrick]

I just reinstalled a few older versions for a client yesterday. The system is still in place.

The Dolby thing was a simple update to CC17 that came out of nowhere to remove the Dolby additions. It didn’t look like they were leaning to remove older versions when in fact they’re still adding QoL fixes.

In Application Manager I still see a whole bunch of versions missing for Premiere. Are you seeing the 2014, 2015 versions?

 

[Robert Hart]

It seems like the old mantra "what goes in Premiere stays in Premiere" may be still with us??

 

[Sergio Perez]

Resolve is the future. Now if all decent plugins that work in Premiere and FCPX got available in there...

 

[Zack Birlew]

Update! Thank goodness I thought to keep 2015.3 on my editing PC! Granted, if all it is was the removal of the Dolby stuff then my project would probably be fine but until this is sorted I'll be sure to leave my installation as-is.

 

[Steve Sherrick]

I want to make sure we stay on target here. Although, I am not happy with what I am seeing in regards to this versioning issue, this thread could very easily turn into an NLE war type of thread and I'd rather it stay on point so that Adobe can get constructive feedback and hopefully improve their methodology in the future. I have been in contact with someone at Adobe, but I will leave that conversation offline to respect the privacy of the conversation.

I ended up having to update to PP CC 2018 because a client project would only open in that version. I will say that the advanced options did allow me to keep my previous installations. So nothing was wiped out, which is good. One of the many challenges with building reliable, workhorse systems is keeping track of the myriad of compatibility criteria that comes with system OS, software and hardware. When your system has a single purpose, for example let's say that you just use Adobe software, this is easier to manage. However, when you are using one system to manage multiple apps, with various hardware connected to it, that all needs to live in perfect harmony, that can be a real nightmare. And if many of you are like me, you are jumping around between video editing, motion graphics, sound design, color, etc. And generally speaking, no one tool set does it all well enough to only need that one tool. So, such is life in 2018. The good news is it's affordable as it has ever been. Even with Adobe, as frustrating as it can be with them at times, to be able to have access to all of those tools for $50 month is incredible if you are making money off it. If you are making even $50/hr, you essentially pay for the software with one hour of work each month. Where the subscription model falls flat for a lot of people is that you always need to be paying into it if you want access to your projects at any time. Whereas, with perpetual you always have access, albeit you are stuck at that version until you upgrade to the next version. But you had the option to stay where you are, which works for some people.

So, to sum this up, make sure you manage your versions carefully right now with Adobe stuff, especially Premiere. I still find it very strange that people are being directed to ProDesignTools.com to download installers. Perhaps, this is a way around the Dolby situation. I have no idea. But that is where people are being sent to get the installers. That seems plain weird to me. But I guess it's better than the installers just disappearing into thin air and some people being stuck.