Isn't the cloud just one big remote server? Any software that requires an internet connection at all is stupid.
NX is just about the most perpetual seat of CAD/CAM you can possibly buy… and if it can’t ping the server to verify the license, it won’t run. You have the option of a dongle license, but I don’t feel like being responsible for a USB stick with the approximate value of a certified pre-owned BMW 5 Series.
If I "HAD" to go subscription? I think I would just close the doors.
I too am in the camp that doesn't quite understand why someone as smart as you, is always defending autodicks?
There is no reason in humanity, EVER, to defend dishonesty. Maybe we were raised different?
Well, I don't have first-hand experience with them being dishonest to me because they never have been. I do think what happened with you (and others) as outlined on this forum is abhorrent behavior on their part and I'm never going to begrudge you your personal animosity towards Autodicks - I think they worked hard to burn that bridge. 3 points though:
- The real villains in your story are Delcam, who sold out to AD, thus negating any existing contracts or reasonable expectations. They full well know what they were doing, they could have added covenants for existing customers or created a long-term position for you with contractual protections, but they wanted extra drinks in the Seychelles.
- I've brought your story up, almost by name, to folks with decision making authority across the relevant technical parts of Autodesk, and they fully admitted that the subscription transition went really badly, they think your feelings are justified, and all the people behind how this all went down (including the CEO) are gone.
- I admit they treated you poorly, but I also know dozens and dozens (literally) of folks who have their careers and businesses changed by Fusion. It took software that was in the tens of thousands of dollars and put it in their hands. They have started new businesses, they have advanced their careers, the have done incredible things because of the business model Autodesk implemented.
I think the subscription model is critical to the future of the industry. CAD/CAM has been in a god damn rut of low innovation, poor usability, and absurdly high prices for about a decade (if not longer). My NX seat, with the add-ons, is $40k. That is just absolutely fucking stupid. SW+MasterCAM is about $30k. One of my customers told me their quote for Esprit was $75,000 just a couple of months ago (for a B-head mill/turn... so all of the possible options, but still!).
These prices are absolutely insane, and the only thing that is going to unfuck the situation is for someone like Autodesk to come along and beat them up. The market has gotten stagnant, insular, and arrogant. We should be extremely happy that the software folks on here called a "Toy" just a few years ago is actually starting to hurt them financially. I want the executives behind these companies to read some Clayton Christianson and literally lose sleep via nightmares. Perhaps the clue handed to them by falling revenue hitting them on the head will pull their heads out of their asses to start actually pushing the field forward and lowering their pricing.
