what do you do with old software?

[back alley]

when i started digital shooting i bought a copy of the then current photoshop elements and have continued using it since...i tend to buy a new version as i move to a new camera that needs up to date software to process a raw shot.

anyway, i have a few older versions of pse on my desk and thought i should just throw them out...

what do you do with your old software?

 

[Shac]

Give it to friends

 

[back alley]

my friends use better computers/software than i do.

 

[Godfrey]

I delete old software that I've replaced. There's no point to keeping it.

 

[michaelwj]

If it's just something I've downloaded then I delete it. If I have a hard copy with codes etc, then I deactivate the software on my computer, delete it, then give it away. If no one I know needs it then I post it to give away on local classifieds (in Australia I use Gumtree which is free).

 

[dmr]

I delete old software that I've replaced. There's no point to keeping it.

It's been a while since I've bought boxed programs, but a while back I took a few (including a legal copy of an older Photoshop) to Goodwill along with various clothes and household stuff.

 

[sepiareverb]

I have a copy of the first Photoshop hanging on my wall. A 3 ¼” floppy disk with some very dated graphics.

 

[citizen99]

I'm still using PS Elements 2, which I like and which does all that I need to do, and earlier this year bought another copy for my daughter to use. So I noticed there is still a market for older releases on ebay where somebody may be glad to find it, if you don't happen to know somebody to give it to.

 

[willie_901]

I agree with Godfrey.

Before pitching old software make sure any documents, images, video, etc and exported to a format that can be read by current software.

Another option is to keep old PCs with old OS and software and never connect them to the internet. This will insure access to legacy documents and data. On the other hand, over time one could end up with a closet of old computer hardware that rarely gets used. Eventually somebody else will be burdened with recycling this electronics.

Older software is often incompatible with newer, more secure OS versions. Giving it away just encourages people to use a less secure OS than they could.

If it weren't for smart thermostats, TVs, door locks, surveillance cameras, coffee makers, ovens, etc., the only place criminals could create botnets would be old PC running unsupported OS versions.

 

[citizen99]

If your old image software needs to run on a 'legacy' OS, you can probably run the legacy OS as a virtual machine on your modern hardware+software system. (A word of qualification; here I am considering direct manipulation of files, or USB interfaced equipment, if it is a question of e.g. scanner operation, I couldn't say about SCSI interfaced equipment.) Concerning security, isolation from the internet is a configuration option.

 

[BillBingham2]

Speaking as a reformed-semi-horder (according to my wife), I say keep it or gift it to someone here.

With the movement of software to subscription model they still have value.

I bet some of the younger folks on this forum use older computers like we do too. They might enjoy non-pirated software for the price of shipping. Put a $10 value on it for customs and declare a gift as it is (should avoid most fees).

B2 (;->

 

[Rob-F]

I'm still running Snow Leopard from 2009, with Aperture.

 

[ForestCap]

If the new versions are stable (which are sometimes not), I would delete the old ones.

 

[aizan]

keep it backed up along with the files from that era. backwards compatibility can be a problem later on.

 

[Ko.Fe.]

In my profession, if old software works and provides for all needs, it is not changed then. Often hardware gets changed first now.
In my photography I'm using old software. Because I'm not forcing myself to change hardware.
In my profession every new hardware needs new software. I guess, OP in photography as profession. If so here is no doubt. Do whatever you want with old software. In my profession, we keep old software because sometimes new one has new bugs and they are deadly 🙂