I just got my email telling me about Dopus 13. Looks great, and I'll probably end up upgrading. BUT . . . I have a 5 PC licence here (have done for years) and the costs, particularly with the new subscription model, are looking extremely unattractive.
Although I have a 5 PC licence, it's not like there are 5 users getting the benefit of the product. I run a basic PC for normal use, I have a PC specifically for flightsim, another connected to my dumb TV to make it smart (!), yet another connected to my Hi-fi which allows me to access music files if I want, and lastly my wife has a PC (which I maintain for her).
I am only ever going to be using a single PC at any one time, but I have been using Dopus for ever, it seems, and I cannot abide using the native file explorer. Even before I discovered Dopus (and I can't remember how long ago that was now - possibly pushing 20 years?) I always used addon file managers like PCtools etc. It gets a lot of use on my main PC, occasional use when I'm using the Sim PC (which I do quite often), minimal use on the two "server" systems (TV and Music) as I hardly ever use those PCs, and is only ever used on my wife's PC if I'm doing maintenance or troubleshooting on it - she doesn't use it as she is a typical "user" - Word, email etc but no systems level stuff.
I can live with paying for a 5 pc licence, it really is an essential tool even if I rarely use the majority of the PCs it's installed on, but I don't think it's fair that the subscription cost should be any more than for a single PC use.
The licensing system should really reflect the number of PEOPLE using the product, not the number of PCs it's installed on. You're effectively defining a multi-PC licence as if it were a commercial/office environment, and that's not true in my case and I suspect also a lot of others. You should have a commercial licence with an appropriate fee structure - it is a very impressive tool and would certainly be of significant benefit in such an environment, but the current 5 PC licence is patently unfair once a subscription model is introduced for updates.
It now says a single license equals one install. This used to be two (for example PC and laptop). Has this changed or can I still use one license for two computers?
Oh and how can you downgrade from two licenses to one? The website won't allow this.
Within the license manager window, they still state that it is usable for one PC and one personal laptop. I don't think they changed or will change that option.
Man, you described my situation exactly ! I've been using DOPUS for 20 years, and there's no way I'm letting go as I'm using lots of its specific features, plus 13 seems to bring some really interesting stuff.
I don't have a PC on the TV (which is smart enough) or the stereo, but between my wife and myself we have 6 PCs (2 desktops @home, 2 laptops and 2 desktops at our second home), and I'm the ONLY one ever using DOPUS at any given time !
I will need a solution too, or else I'll have to keep to 12 on the nonessential (aka, my wife's ) machines, which is a pity...
So, to make sure I've got this right. I could downgrade my current licence (Dopus 12) from a 5 to a dual licence, and then get an upgrade price for v13? I'd get my two years of updates subscription free, and then the subscription would apply at the dual licence rate.
A USB licence (it seems I already have one, so would that be updated to v13 if I do a main program update?) means I install Dopus to that drive, and can then run it on any PC exactly as if it were installed on that PC's hard drive?
Which leaves me with just two more questions and then I'll have a think about it all.
How do I downgrade my current system? I can't see anything on the site explaining how to do that.
What would be my upgrade price for a dual PC licence?
Sorry for all the questions. But I would probably just gone ahead with a straight 5 PC upgrade were it not for the implications of the subscription model. And yes, for the amount of time I use my two "server" systems a USB licence would probably work just as well anyway.
@lxp, OK. I've not really used the forums/support here before so I sort of assumed you were an actual support guy responding (maybe you are!) but I'll try a direct mail to support, if I can find an appropriate address.
The jump from 11 to 12 worked the same and was priced similarly to the jump from 12 to 13, including multi-machine licenses.
The change with 13 is that future updates will come out as soon as they are ready and we’ll charge a smaller amount annually instead of a larger amount every few years.
Also means people no longer have to worry about “buying at the wrong time” as you get every update released for a year (or two) after your date of purchase (or upgrade).
The new model is less about costs and more about moving away from monolithic updates that delay release of finished code for years and are less predictable in terms of dates and pricing.
Many of the changes in 13 are things people have wanted for a long time and have been finished for years but only usable by three people in the world (us) until now. We wanted to move away from that, while keeping pricing about the same.
Multi-machine licenses have always been a hot debate within the team as well, but the logic is that it’s the same with Windows and a lot of other software, and it’s not a lot of money per machine, especially for people who can afford that many PCs and need advanced file management on all of them (not just old machines lying around or acting as a NAS or similar), which is quite niche in itself. (Although I am also such person myself. :))
I suppose my gripe is exactly what you're talking about in your last para. My environment is exactly that - old machines sitting around for occasional use but being charged as if they were prime PCs. And I have to say, even Windows seems to be pretty easy-going re upgrades and licence issue these days.
But never mind. My choice. There seem to be things in v13 that look interesting, so I'll probably just upgrade my 5 PC licence and take a view on whether I can be bothered with any future updates in a couple of years time when my subscription cuts in. Gotta say though, that if you start down the path of compulsory and auto renewing subscriptions I'm gone. I don't care how good the software is, I won't accept that as a business model.
Dopus is a beaut of a piece of software, and I'd hate to lose it, but nothing in life is permanent.
I wish you all well, and thanks for the product so far.
I upgraded a 2 license pack. The license manager says 2 installs and one additional laptop, so a total or 3 install. Not an additional laptop install per license.
It's never going to be compulsory. We can't force anyone to give us money, and you can use any version you buy forever, even if you never pay again. Same as it always worked, but updates are just going to be more frequent, smaller and cheaper from now on, instead of waiting 7 years to get a feature we finished writing 5 years ago.
) machines, which is a pity...