But even with this move, I had to drop some applications. When Macromedia added activation to their latest MX suite on both platforms, I did not bother to upgrade, but I did bother to let them know why I would not be upgrading. The response I received was canned and gave the impression they just do not care.

Adobe added activation to Photoshop CS for Windows, but not OS X. A letter to them also received a canned response about how activation would only be a small inconvenience to most users. Given the horrendous quality of support in this industry, I cannot take another 'small inconvenience'. For now, I continue to use Photoshop, but only for as long as activation is kept out of the OS X version.

The list of vendors I refuse to do business with continues to grow each year. Whether it is terrible support, unacceptable licensing terms, or product activation more and more companies begin to dabble in these ridiculous practices each day. What's sad is I believe it is causing irreparable damage to an industry I love. Innovation has shifted from new ideas in products to new ambiguous clauses in license agreements.