Today's email blast from PTC urges its unwilling-to-sign-that-cheque CoCreate customers to get back onto subscription: "Sitting on a time bomb? Upgrade now at a special price." It's not, however, about the money PTC needs flowing into its bank account, people: it's about staying current.
How current? Try out these newfangled features described by PTC in late 2008 as "exciting innovations":
- Support for new data exchange standards like DXF and DWG.
- Enhancements like Undo and Redo.
- [Replaces] older versions of software ... that don't offer the look and feel of Windows.
These bullet points are sufficiently exciting to give some CAD geeks multiple virtual orgasms. Twenty-five years ago.
Lessee, what else is there in this early morning email with its caffeinated Sitting on a Time Bomb headline? Try this item:
IT investment to maintain ... out-of-date hardware configurations rise every year as customers ... maintain the old software environment.
Old software runs just fine on old hardware. It's the (expensive) new software that requires expensive new hardware and expensive new training. I know, because I operate my business on Windows 2000 (copyright date 1999) running on a 7-year-old desktop computer, and it don't cost me nuthin', 'ceptin' 'lectricity.
Fortunately, nearly all my software is pre-2008 and some is even pre-1998. PTC understands my fortunate circumstance:
Most pre-2008 software releases won’t run correctly on the latest environments, e.g., Windows Vista.
So, not upgrading is good, then? No, the PTC solution to Vista being as incompatible as Linux to existing software is to (1) pay for Vista, and then (2) pay again for software that works with Vista, and finally (3) pay again for new hardware to replace the still-working hardware made out-of-date by Vista + new software. Sounds to me like a win-win-win situation -- for PTC, Microsoft, and HP.
(I do wonder about use of the "e.g." What other environments does PTC consider as "latest", considering that just 9% of businesses worldwide have bought into Vista.)
At least we will not be reading this convoluted logic in the future:
PTC has no plans to repeat this offer.
Whew!
Together with "time bomb," could these phrases actually be secret references to the countdown towards PTC's own end as an independent entity? If the company gets sold, then it won't be PTC making the decision whether to continue persuading non-maintenance-paying customers to get with the program and start paying up. PTC sales partners are standing by. Call now. Offer ends 31 March 2009.
Something tells me this offer will be repeated. Again and again.
The full sales pitch is here. (Readers must be old enough to sign purchase orders.)
They offerd me a 64bit system but they couldn't run it on the network with pro/e.
Yes it is a timebomb for some company's. When old systems crash there are no replacements.
Posted by: Haas | Oct 10, 2008 at 07:58 AM