Vectric now Employee Owned :)

[scottp55]

As if it's not already a day for giving thanks, Now Vectric is Employee Owned;
https://forum.vectric.com/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=33383
I Just downloaded from my Portal the free 3D clip art they're giving in celebration:)
Congratulations to Brian and all the new owners!! :)
scott

[8Ball]

I've seen this scenario with other companies. Not saying it will happen to Vectric, but other companies went downhill and pricing increased.
Vectric seems to only appreciate those who continually pay for their upgrades and acquire the latest version of the software. They do nothing to accommodate those who, for whatever reason, still use an older version than the latest. There are plenty of excuses for these actions, but never a solution. A simple lack of customer support.
At one time, I considered purchasing the upgrade(s), but once seeing how things are handled, I've come to the conclusion that this is a perpetual condition to force compliance. I have since decided to purchase a more powerful software package, for a comparable price to Aspire.

[coryatjohn]

As someone who is in the software industry, I can say that the only way to run a software business successfully is to have minimum version support levels. A company who will support any version, even one ten years old, is going to be carrying a lot of heavy baggage. The training requirements for the support personnel, who are generally lower skilled labor, are way beyond the value to the business. Customers who languish on older versions beyond the service life are on their own. Upgrade or move to another platform.

Obviously, the danger in that is that some customers will eventually move to another platform but the cost balance probably makes it more profitable to let those customers go.

[8Ball]

If their new releases included valuable upgrades, something significant, to justify the cost, it would be understandable. Just a few small additions, doesn't make it a viable expense.
One of the issues that could be resolved, is their free projects. They claim that the projects are created in the latest version, and aren't reverse compatible. 2D vectors don't require compatibility, and the 3D files could be converted to an .stl file for use with any version that supports that feature. Again, it's not a viable expense to upgrade simply for the free projects, and with the projects not usable to those without the latest version, reduces their customer base. If losing those customers to another company is profitable, then they will see an incredible increase in revenue.
If customers are expected to purchase upgrades to remain important to the company, and get the proper support, then the subscriptions seem to be a better option.

[JimDav]

Agree with Coryatjohn - I am 'retired' IT as well. Pretty much industry wide the current and previous release is supported. The other problem that can exist is, as new versions are released, there can be internal data structure changes of data storage, etc. Paths are provided to upgrade the more recent version data structure to the new. That path is probably not available going from vs 3 to vs 8 as an example. If one chooses to remain on an old version, be it hardware or software, that is fine as long as their set up does what they need BUT they also have to realize the potential ramifications down the road if their needs change. That could include a new full purchase and no way to upgrade from their old stuff.

[woodshop]

Since I'm an EQUAL OPPORTUNITY OPINION PERSON (and comfortable with that), here's my brain-dump on this great subject...

Let's hope Vectric can manage the new employee owned setup well. Those situations always end up with TOO MANY CHIEFS, NOT ENOUGH BRAVES. Good luck, Vectric.

Many years ago, Microsoft and Apple discovered that large corporations budget for new hardware upgrades every 3 years. Aha! Lets do the same with software versions! To heck with small business people.
Both Microsoft and Apple realized the increased revenue in that business model. Aha!

I am still very happy with Vectric v8.5 . It works! It makes money for our small company year after year.

[jTr]

I have since decided to purchase a more powerful software package, for a comparable price to Aspire.
Are you willing to share the name of this software package?

[jTr]

I Just downloaded from my Portal the free 3D clip art they're giving in celebration

I've logged in twice in the last two days, and all it says is to "click link below".

No link.

Hope this isn't an indication of how things will run now with new ownership :rolleyes:

(Or maybe I just don't have a new enough version of the software to qualify?)

Still struggling with whether to give them $500 or $1400 more to keep going...

[Brian Harnett]

Well I hope it works for them my last real job turned into an employee owned company the owner kept 49% got a huge tax break and slowly ran it into the ground then sold his share to investment bankers that bankrupted it. I was lucky enough to see the righting on the wall 5 years previous so I quit cashed in on my stock before they tanked. They had 5 years to pay me I got burned on two. Employees that put in to the end got nothing.

[scottp55]

Jeff,
Still works after I log into Portal even though already downloaded and installed.
Think I've seen your portal page, and you're VCP8.5** ?
Maybe someone else with 8.5 can say if they got theirs?
Possibly try a different browser(?).
Didn't mean to start a firestorm...personally very happy with Vectric so far for my needs...also glad that there's one more rung in the ladder if I ever decide to give up 3 months of groceries:)
scott

[Jerry Carney]

I've logged in twice in the last two days, and all it says is to "click link below".

No link.

Hope this isn't an indication of how things will run now with new ownership :rolleyes:

(Or maybe I just don't have a new enough version of the software to qualify?)

Still struggling with whether to give them $500 or $1400 more to keep going...

Same problem no link ????

[jTr]

Didn't mean to start a firestorm...personally very happy with Vectric so far for my needs

Sorry to have contributed to the grumbling undertone present in this thread.:o

I think part of the angst is simply Shop-Botters who bought into a good machine, great company, fantastic community, but are now seeing a series of cracks appearing in the foundation.

Referring to Thermwood dropping e-cabinets link earlier this year, stagnation in development of the large scale machines/unmitigated communications errors, as cited in several recent threads. Just feels like the Vectric shift is yet another fissure opening up in the foundation. No single event is a seismic issue, but from a distance, there are lots of significant keys being re-cut, replaced, or lost completely from the perspective of an experienced Shop Botter.

Not concerned as much about Vectric for it's internal ownership change, as much as the dropping of the ShopBot "partnership" and the resultant monetary surprises some have experienced. As usual, it's most likely nothing to take personal, but does contribute to a general sense of abandonment surrounding the ShopBot brand as of late, leaving many of us veteran users with a mildly nervous sense of "why?" and "what's next?"...

I'm here and running strong as a business, thanks to ShopBot, Vectric and Sketchup.

Going forward, it would serve us well to try and pull ourselves out of this "funk" and see enthusiasm, productivity and evolution seeping back into our discussions here as we enter the new year.

A little good news from the "mothership" wouldn't hurt either....;)

jeff