Is it necessary to have a legit copy of photoshop? $600 is a pretty penny. Will you lose any updates or functionality?
Well, to get it cheaper, you need to be a student or a teacher or know anyone who is so that you get a good discount from Photoshop. You need to produce an ID card that states that you are either a student or a faculty.
Updates are applied to any installation you have regardless of their status, even to trial versions. Functionality could be reduced in the area of inline services which requires connection to the Internet.
I think it's good to purchase it if you absolutely need it. I think using a student or teacher copy would be illegal if you just "know" the person. You have to be a student or teacher yourself.
If you can't afford to buy Photoshop, there are an open source alternative like Gimp and Paint.NET that you can use. - Dynashox -
If you can't afford to buy Photoshop, there are an open source alternative like Gimp and Paint.NET that you can use. - Dynashox -
You wont lose anything from a pirated/illegal version of photoshop, but you'll easily make back the money you spent if you use it commercially - it's an investment.
Free version is less likely to have threats such as hidden viruses etc and more importantly less legal implications if caught. As mentioned many a time above if you apply yourself and learn to a decent level photoshop will enable you to easily cover your purchase costs.
PankajeKumar ir right. I think you can use illegal copy for youself only. For education purpose, may be but you have to buy it for commercial use
While you have no registred trade mark or commpany use one version thats hacked every ne does :S meybe not good suggestion but what to do
It's always better to go legit even if you're not planning to use it commercially. It maybe very expensive but using that as an excuse to encourage piracy is not a good idea. In the end no one is going to stop you from making a decision, but don't try to encourage piracy just because of one excuse.
Well, I'm guess illegal internet activity discussions are not allowed here. If you use it commercially, go legit, you earn alot in selling graphics actually. Now $600 is pretty much so I guess that's why many have a illegal copy, however there's no difference between them.