Last week I shared in Foster’s Dream Computer 2024 Is Hard at Work the details about how the hardware in my new computer had performed. Today I’m going to share my experience in getting software installed and activated on the new machine as well as the migration of data.
Who isn’t excited about a new computer? It seems that it is an exciting event for everyone. The next step of getting software installed and setting everything up is something I normally really enjoy and I’m not sure that is true of many people. With this computer, it turned into an extremely frustrating process due to various installation and licensing issues.
Activating Windows
I turned on the computer for the first time and it ran through the process of Windows configuration. It sure feels like in trying to make it easier for the majority of users that Microsoft has made some things more difficult for experienced pros. Setting up my user account to log in using a plain old password is one such task. After the initial configuration, there were various updates to download and install. As you probably know, many of these tasks are “hurry up and wait” where you do a few things and then you can walk away for a bit.
When all was done, it was time to get Windows activated. It asks for my serial number which led me to scramble for a bit to find it. When I purchased the computer, it included a license to Windows 11 Pro. So I knew I had a serial number. First there was an envelope with a sticker on it that said to rub lightly to expose the number. That didn’t do anything. I realized after a bit that the part of the sticker with the serial number had been attached to my computer case. Now that I found it, I did have to scratch it like a lottery ticket to expose the number. Now came an even more difficult task in that it was so darned small that even Superman couldn’t read it! I had to take a photo of it with my phone and zoom in. After what was likely 30 minutes of time, activation was complete. Below you’ll see the sticker before I scratched off the Microsoft logo.
Adobe Creative Suite CS6 Issues
When I’m installing software, I typically try to install some of the oldest software first. This way if various libraries are required, it won’t overwrite newer versions of those libraries with a very old version. This meant that the very old Adobe Creative Suite CS6 would be installed first. It was the only software I would be installing that came on a DVD (instead of a download) and it took at least half an hour to get everything installed.
Adobe’s licensing allows Creative Suite CS6 to be installed and activated on two computers. As I already had it on two computers, I went to my old desktop computer and deactivated it. When I tried to activate on the new computer, it wouldn’t work. I learned that since Adobe had ended support for the product, it could no longer be activated. Argh! Not only won’t I be able to use it on the new computer, it was also now deactivated on the old computer. I do still have an activated copy on my laptop that I’ll have to rely on should I need to work on an Illustrator or
InDesign file. I think I have an alternative for working with Photoshop files. Note that my need to work with these files is very limited and thus the reason I was still using a very old version of the software.
Photoshop Elements 2021 Issue
While Photoshop files themselves aren’t a major part of my workflow, I do have one Photoshop plug-in that doesn’t seem to work in anything except Photoshop. It claims it can work in other host software that I have, though I’ve never been able to get it to work. A few years back, Adobe provided me with a copy of Photoshop Elements 2021 and I’d just have to locate the installer and serial number.
It didn’t take too much longer to find the installer and what I thought was the serial number and I got it installed. But what I had was a redemption code and not a serial number. This certainly wasn’t the least bit clear when it was sent to me. Adobe support sent me to a page where I could enter the redemption code for a serial number except it didn’t work. So their support had to get me a working serial number and assist me in getting the software up and running. It was quite the process, but we finally got it working and my plugin also worked as expected. Whew!
Wondershare PDFelement
One other component from Adobe Creative Suite CS6 that I could no longer use was Adobe Acrobat Pro. Sure, I could buy the latest version (or rent it) from Adobe. But the issues I had with their products left a bad taste in my mouth so I searched out a new tool to work with PDF files. I often have to make minor edits to a PDF file. Some of those edits are just fixing text, but others are bigger changes like making the file a fillable form.
I didn’t have a good alternative in mind, so I reached out to a group of fellow Web designers for their suggestions. Two primary options were listed and I felt that Wondershare’s PDFelement was not only the more powerful product, but also the best value. I purchased a lifetime license and I’ve already used it a few times.
Microsoft Office 2021
When I purchased Microsoft Office 2021, I purchased two licenses so I could install it on both my laptop and desktop. Installation on the new computer was very quick and easy. The way it is licensed, you simply login to your Microsoft account to activate it. So I had to go to the old computer and log out then log in on the new computer. No problem at all.
The more challenging task is to have Outlook point to my existing file filled with emails, contacts and calendar. This is always more challenging than it should be and I almost always have to search out a tutorial showing me the steps required. After a couple of tries I finally got it working.
Later in the process I needed to install a utility that connects Calendly to my Outlook calendar so there are no booking conflicts. The folks at Calendly make this a nearly impossible task as they hide the utility on their Web site as I found numerous other users also complaining. The only way to get the link is to reach out to support. Even though my request was very straightforward, it took three emails before they finally provided the link and the “plugin key” I needed to make it work. Due to this difficulty, I will be looking for an alternative to Calendly in the near future.
CorelDRAW Graphics Suite 2024
On my old laptop and my old computer, I used CorelDRAW Graphics Suite 2019. It met my needs and I couldn’t really see any new features that convinced me to purchase a newer version. That said, it was five years old and I can’t say there was nothing that wasn’t of interest to me. For my needs, being able to work with newer file formats like WebP and HEIC would be really helpful. So I waited for the Black Friday sale and ordered CorelDRAW Graphics Suite 2024.
It installed and activated with no issues on my new computer. For now, I still have CorelDRAW Graphics Suite 2019 on my laptop. At some point I’ll need to put the newer version on there, but I rarely use it for working on CorelDRAW or Corel PHOTO-PAINT so it isn’t urgent.
One thing that didn’t work was the third-party Thumbnailer macro that I use several times a month. It was originally written by Alex Vakulenko and posted on his Oberon Place site. Many years ago, he went in a different direction and his macros were no longer updated. Cameron Moore had created an updated version that I had been using with CorelDRAW 2019. But his update did not work in CorelDRAW 2024. I reached out and he provided me a new version that you can download from his site. Yes, the new version works great in CorelDRAW 2024 and I’ve already used it a few times.
Vector FX
I’ve been slower than some to integrate AI into my workflow. But I’ve made the decision to use it more going forward. In fact, you’ll note the image at the top of this post is AI generated. Of all the AI image generators I’ve seen, only one creates vector graphics, to the best of my knowledge, and that’s Vector FX. While you’ll see it is being sold by Corel, it is actually developed by Distinct AI.
While I was doing my Black Friday shopping, I purchased a copy and then waited for the new computer to arrive before installing it. I downloaded the installer file and ran it. The first screen shows my serial number and then when you click the button to continue, the dialog box below appears.
This didn’t seem odd as many of the installers you download are small files that trigger the download of the larger files. Except this dialog just sits there, once I left it on screen for more than twelve hours. Clearly something was wrong so I reached out to Corel’s tech support for assistance. They basically said “it isn’t our product, go to this link for help” and gave me the link for Distinct AI. I did that on December 19, 2024. At the top of the page where you can open a support ticket, you get the message shown below.
When I first saw the message, it was reassuring as they already knew about the problem I was facing and they would get back to me with a solution. I submitted my ticket and immediately got an automated response saying my ticket had been received and they’d soon get back to me. I waited. Thinking it was near Christmas and New Year’s, I gave them the benefit of the doubt that their support was taking a break. January came and I still had not received any response. I tried Corel again. I submitted another ticket with Distinct AI. I looked up the Distinct AI phone number and left messages. I directly emailed Distinct AI’s press relations and investor relations addresses. Nearly a month later, I still haven’t gotten any response at all from them.
Finally I asked Corel to issue a refund and they’ve done so. I really wanted to use the software. It may not have been great, but I sure wish I could have tried it. Sadly, the company that created it provides zero support at all for it. I feel it also gave Corel a black eye for not only selling the product, but continuing to sell it to this day.
Other Software
While I’ve noted some of the software I installed, this is far from a complete list. I focused on the software that caused issues along the way and/or the “big” stuff. There are a lot of small utilities that just worked. Start 11, Rainmeter, Irfanview, Joplin, Mailwasher Pro, Chrome, Firefox, Opera, Zoom, Roboform, IDrive and FileZilla to name a few of them. Affinity Photo 2, Affinity Designer 2, Affinity Publisher 2 and Camtasia are some of the other productivity tools that all installed without issues.
There is a list of software I have yet to install simply because I haven’t needed them yet. I’m sure there will also be tools I find I need in the future and I’ll add them to my software toolbox.
Migrating Data
All of the software in the world doesn’t do much good if you don’t have data and I’ve accumulated a lot of it over the years. Most of the data is kept on a NAS (Network Attached Storage) drive so that all computers on the network (with proper credentials) can access it and so I can get to it remotely if needed. For the data that was stored on my old computer, I simply copied it to the NAS drive. Then when I got the new computer, I copied it across again.
This was probably the one task that went smoothly and didn’t cause me to say things under my breath. I’m glad the transfer took place when it did because the NAS drive died on January 1, 2025 just a couple of weeks after I finished the transfer. I’ll discuss more about its death, the data it still contained and where I go next in a future post. Most likely that will be in a couple of weeks as I have yet to get a replacement.
In Closing
The process of loading software is never truly complete. There are always new things to install and updates to patch what is already installed. But the vast majority of the work is done and now I’ve focused on using the new computer to create content and generate revenue. While this process was more painful than what I faced with previous new computers, I did learn a lot and found a few new tools to add to my arsenal. There is no doubt this new computer will serve me well for several years!
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