Then I suggest you read again. I did not say I did not update, but I do not update all the time often skipping the latest and the greatest if I do not need it. The cost of this has been about $900 over 16 years as opposed to $2000 I would have paid had it been subscription based from the get go. The combination of what I have now, LR6 and Elements 14 will process this camera for the length of it's life. So if in 5 years I need a new camera I will shop around for software or may take the subscription. This saves me about $600 in subscription fees. If you want to subscribe be my guest, but not all of us care for that model.

To all those who think the subscription is so cheap how about paying for mine? Of course I am being absurd but so are those of you telling other people how to spend their money. I have been using Elements since 2002. I have been using Lightroom since 2008. If I had been on a subscription model since 2003 I would have have forked over to Adobe about $2000. But since I don't need to upgrade all the time I have spent less than half that. I will soon be on a fixed income and do not need an added monthly expense. I have recently purchased a refurbished Nikon D7200 which I hope will last me for the next 5 years. LR6 and Elements 14 give me all the processing I need for my RAW files. If in 5 years I purchase a new camera perhaps I might consider going to a subscription, but in the meantime I will save the $600 I would be paying if I jumped on the bandwagon now.

I began using Olympus in 2001 with purchase of a digital point and shoot, Graduated to an Olympus bridge camera in 2004 and then a DSLR in 2007. I have had the E510 and E520 as well as the E3 and E30. Last year I rented an E5. I have four of their lenses. I have been happy with the quality of the picture and the performance of the lenses. Service was good because it was a fixed rate for repair so no surprises. However last year I discovered except for the E5 they were not repairing their old DSLRs. Then last October at PhotoExpo in NYC I was told they were not repairing the E lenses. This was confirmed recently by another Olympus user at a B&H event. I would have migrated to their mirrorless system if I could have used the old lenses to start with, but since the lenses are now obsolete I switched to Nikon.

I just found my copy of the novel. As I thought the novel came out after the movie and is based on the screenplay as opposed to most screenplays being based on the novel. While Kubrick and Clarke collaborated on the screenplay, based on a short story by Clarke, the movie came first.

Competition is good!

I think On1 Raw 2018 is almost there as a Lightroom replacement. The organization is not quite as good and the printing module leaves a bit to be desired. But the processing is quite versatile without having to go into a pixel editor. Given the progress they have made I think they will eventually be a viable alternative to Adobe.

Only if you update all the time is there a savings. I have been using Adobe products for about 15 years and have paid in total about $600 because I did not do every update. A subscription for the past 15 years would have cost me about $1800. The point here if one's needs do not require the latest and the greatest then one makes the choice if they need it or not. I also wonder why both subscription and perpetual license can't be offered simultaneously? Car dealers do this why can't software companies?

Not to be disparaging to the amateur/enthusiasts members - if $10/mo is an obscenely unreasonable amount of money to pay for a good set of tools - I am totally speechless . . . 😧[/quote]

Gene51 there is an old adage; never judge a man until you have walked a mile in his moccasins. If I were a professional the subscription plan would be great deal. But as I am soon to retired amateur I really have to think of the bottom line with a fixed income. $10 a month might seem trivial to you for a good tool but not all of us have that where with all. If it's a choice between meds and software one does not have much choice

I find your comparisons rather ludicrous. Rent for a place to live, utilities, these are all needed to live in today's society, yet depending on income one does have options. You can buy or lease a car. You can rent or buy a dwelling. But if I buy a tool, I do not expect that somewhere down the road the company that sold it to me will say I can only use it now for a monthly fee. Adobe has not given it's consumers a choice by saying you can only rent from us even if we have paid into their perpetual licencing updates for the past few years. I could never afford Photoshop so I went with Elements. Updates were my choice to make. All told in the 15 years I have been using Adobe products I have spent roughly $600. Had I been renting all that time the cost would have been about $1800. I understand the subscription model for the professional and that makes sense. But for many of us amateurs approach retirement and a fixed income every $10 counts. If Adobe was really giving us a choice why not do what the car dealers do, offer it for buying or leasing?

First of all thank you OP and all for a very civil and informative discussion. Too often by page 5 these boards usually have degraded into anarchy. Much applause to the OP! That said I am on the fence about whether or not switch. I have LR6 and have been using LR for nine years since LR2. As an amateur I have no need for full blown Photoshop but have upgraded Elements when I needed to. I have downloaded Capture One, ON1 Raw 2018, and Corel Pro and all have good points and bad points. At 66, I will soon be on a fixed income so I do not really need anymore monthly bills. On the other hand I am quite adept on Lightroom and have substantial investment in that learning. I think for now I will just wait and see what enfolds. I have downloaded Adobe's DNG converter in case I am able to purchase a new camera. I will probably stick with LR6 until something significant changes.

You know I have been waiting for someone else to remember that. Since there are now two Lightrooms , does this mean they have effectively doubled the price of the subscription like Neflix did a couple of years ago?

I have used Lightroom for about 9 years but On1 for only about 90 minutes so it is hard to give a comprehensive evaluation. It is very similar but I am still getting used to it. I really do think they are on the right track and could be a viable alternative. I will use LR6 for as long as it works but might slowly migrate over ON1 if it stays non subscription

As hobbyist soon to retire I do not need another monthly bill on a soon to be fixed income, so no subscription for me. I just downloaded the Beta of On1 Raw 2018 and it is similar enough to Lightroom with extra benefit of layers that I think I will eventually migrate over to that. By the way I have been using LR for about 9 years. The initial cost in 2008 was $300 with 3 upgrades the total cost over 9 years is $570. If I had a subscription over those 9 years it would come to about $1100!

FYI
Lexar Brand update
Additional information from Lexar following the Micron blog post on Monday, June 26:
Lexar is continuing to ship products into the market through early September and fully supporting retail partners around the globe through the end of that month. Additionally, Micron will continue to support all Lexar product warranties per the published warranty terms.
Micron blog post: https://www.micron.com/…/micron-discontinuing-lexar-removab…

In the NYC metropolitan area, it is only a partial eclipse. And while I am not going to take pictures of the eclipse I am might take advantage of the unique lighting it will cast on the landscape. Cloudy or sunny, que sera sera!