Adobe Creative Cloud Services Offline (Again?)

New submitter jvp (27996) writes "Adobe's authentication system for its Creative Cloud as well as its website services is down, and has been since Wednesday (14 May) afternoon. What this means: If you're a Creative Cloud subscriber, you can't log into your account via the desktop application. Online services such as the fonts are not available. Applications (eg: Photoshop, Premiere, etc) will continue to work. Softpedia has a nice article on it, but their time frames are off quite a bit." As of this writing, a message on the Adobe Creative Cloud page says "Creative Cloud is currently undergoing maintenance. Please check back later. Thank you for your patience." Even though I've come to like some remote-hosted software, like gmail, I don't think I'd want tools for manipulating local media tied even loosely to the uptime of a remote computer (or network connection).

Comments

NO Photoshop for you!

[bazmail]

Wasn't avoiding the "single point of failure" a large part of the reason for cloud services being pushed in our faces in the first place?

This is truly a spectacular failure on Adobe's part.

Re:NO Photoshop for you!

[jvp]

Fortunately, as I pointed out: you can still the CC apps while this debacle is being un-FUBAR'd. That is unless it takes them up to 2 months to fix it, at which point the app will no longer be able to authenticate and validate your subscription. THEN it's "NO Photoshop for you!"

If it takes them that long to fix this, then they are truly, completely, and absolutely incompetent...

Re:NO Photoshop for you!

[Ol Olsoc]

Wasn't avoiding the "single point of failure" a large part of the reason for cloud services being pushed in our faces in the first place? This is truly a spectacular failure on Adobe's part.

The Cloud can NEVER fail. NEVER I tell you! Only we can fail the cloud.

Software as a service has only one thing to recommend it. When it fails, just like it has here, you'll have someone else to blame it on. Of course your boss might not believe you, since he or she has been sold on the cloud and all it emcompasses is the zenith of civilization, the first thing mainkind has ever designed that is fail safe, and will never ever have a problem.

Re:NO Photoshop for you!

[rduncan10]

Not all CC apps will work. If you have, for example, used CC fonts in an InDesign document, you won't be able view them properly or publish the document if you can't sign into CC.

Re: NO Photoshop for you!

[tbuddy]

If today was the day you needed to revalidate you'll be having some hassles, though. 60 days is only if you got in for a year at a time, also.

Re:NO Photoshop for you!

[Dogtanian]

Wasn't avoiding the "single point of failure" a large part of the reason for cloud services being pushed in our faces in the first place?

No, that was only the rationale used to justify it to Photoshop users. The *reason* for it in many cases- such as this one- is quite obviously to increase software companies' control over users, and to get them used to a subscription model that provides those companies with a continuous income stream, rather than having the hassle of creating upgraded versions of software (gratuitous or otherwise (*)) and then having to convince users to pay for that upgrade when they might not feel the need for it.

That's not to say that cloud computing (i.e. distributed computing and distributed storage) is a bad idea in itself; of course, it has many theoretical benefits. But the concept has been co-opted and distorted by marketing, who have reduced the meaning of "cloud" to little more than a buzzword that applies to anything with online connectivity, even if that's not designed in a cloud-like way. And they've used that to make a method of control a selling point- or at least to try to sweeten the pill Photoshop users are being forced to swallow (**).

Really, what major cloud-like benefit does the latest Photoshop offer users? Does it let them harness the enormous power of a distributed computer network to massively speed up processing times on slow operations (vs. doing it on their own computer) in short bursts?

(*) Canonical example, Microsoft Word, which reached what most people needed several versions ago, but had to force upgrades to keep it selling, so kept adding new features, which also force other users who want to interoperate with those using the latest versions to *also* upgrade.
(**) Along the lines of (*) above, while some may argue that "you don't *have* to upgrade", those in industry who wish to interoperate with others and keep up with latest developments probably *will* need to upgrade eventually

Re:NO Photoshop for you!

[jeffmflanagan]

>is quite obviously to increase software companies' control over users

No, it only increases Adobe's control over their own software. This does not give them control over you. You can still do pretty much whatever you want with yourself or your own property.

>and to get them used to a subscription model that provides those companies with a continuous income stream

Of course. Do you somehow believe that companies should not be able to determine their own business-model? The fact that Adobe once offered an unlimited license to their software was their choice at the time. It didn't entitle you to anything regarding their future business.

The best part...

[MachineShedFred]

The best part is that this is happening on the eve of Adobe canceling sales of perpetual licensing to Adobe Creative Suite products. If you are a volume license customer, you will no longer be able to buy ANYTHING BUT Creative Cloud as of June 1; and you get to pay Adobe every month whether they update anything or not as expense rather than capital purchase.

Hooray for not having competition?

Re:The best part...

[realmolo]

The thing is, if you are heavily tied to Adobe products, paying $50/month to ALWAYS have the latest version is actually a good deal, from a usability perspective. Adobe likes to change/abandon file formats with every upgrade, and that causes issues. If you always have the newest version, you don't have to worry about that.

You're right, though: Adobe has no competition. But that isn't Adobe's fault. For all the screwy-ness of Adobe's software, they are STILL better than any of the alternatives, and basically always have been. They "won" their market legitimately.

Re:Cloud Services are the FUTURE!

[ColdWetDog]

For all of you who take your cue from the Adobe marketing team, the moniker "Creative Cloud" is really a misnomer. Yes, the applications have to hit the authentication servers - every 90 days or so. The applications are run locally. The only thing that is 'cloudlike' is Adobe's 'Behance' service which is a store, a Dropbox wannabe and a typeface collection.

It's a dick move and one that benefits Adobe rather than Adobe's customers (amazing ...), but it's Not The End Of The World.

Re:Worst Case Scenario = War

[tbuddy]

That's the kind of thing that keeps me up at night. In the event of a catastrophic event that could upset the lives of millions where will my InDesign layouts. When I rise from my bunker I'm going to still have trusty CS6 and those Creative Cloud subscribers are going to starve.

library e-books fail to work while adobe is down

[iamscottevil]

I tried to download some e-books from my library website, adobe digital editions is dead while this the authentication system is down, so can't get any e-books. And it's been more than a day without any explanation. Another disappointment courtesy DRM.

WoW!

[jeff13]

Damn you Blizzard! I pay a subscription, you're down again and... oh wait. nm

This is why CS 6 will hang around forever

[sandbagger]

Creative Suite 6 will become Adobe's XP. Solid enough that no-one ever really needs to upgrade and expose themselves to cloud evaporations.