Detail Man
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Note: To the moron who keeps telling me how long my posts should be - get yourself a frickin' life!
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. I am a straight-shooter (not a salesman or a shill, which is just not in my nature). I will tell you what I do know without reservation, though ... this is about the consumer (not DxO)
Yes, ... money (that awful subject). DxO is selling their new Version 7.x at a discounted price through January 31, 2012. $99 USD ($169 USD normally) for the Standard version. However (if you have certain pricey dSLRs around with compatible add-on lenses), you may want/need the "Elite" version ($199 USD, $299 USD normally) instead (they call it "value-added" - this means charging you more because your dSLR cost you more ). You only need the Standard version for M43 camera models, though. To see what cam bodies/lenses are (or will be soon) supported, see:
http://www.dxo.com/us/photo/dxo_optics_pro/for_your_equipment
While DxO RAW processing does support camera bodies (in terms of Color Rendering and NR), you will want to see if your existing/planned lenses are or will be supported (as all of the automatic optical corrections depend on the existence of a DxO Optical Corrections Module for the specific body/lens combination). Here is where the angst begins/ends for many prospective customers ...
I purchased the Versions 6.x Standard edition license around 2 years ago. They added RAW support for my LX3 at that time - but stupidly caused a Panasonic-related bug that caused all other Panasonic (compacts, anyway) to be un-processable (in any form). I identified the bug, supplied them with information, and waited nearly 4 months for them to release Version 6.2 (which, unlike the patches released for Version 6.1, finally addressing the bug). They floundered around for a while, then changed many processing control-parameters at Version 6.5, angering nearly all users. Then the "flopped" back, and (finally) settled into (Version 6.x) "maturity" (and only a small handful of still irritating, but not major bugs), with Version 6.60 released around June of 2011.
Just when all was (nearly) well in the valley, they decided to earn some more cash for themselves (by forcing users to purchase or upgrade to Version 7.x for all bodies/lenses newly supported after November 29, 2011). They seemed to have scrambled the user-interface (in the name of "progress", of course), claim processing-speed improvements (highly dependent on PC system hardware and graphics-card features), but which appear to actually be true (from reading the DxO Forum) on the more recent Mac OSs. (Of course), for humble 2 GB RAM PCs running WinXP Pro SP3 (like mine), it looks like a resource-hungry rat's-nest of uncertainty ...
So, I hammered on DxO Rep "Axle" in the comments section of this DPR page:
http://www.dpreview.com/news/2011/11/23/DxoOpticsPro7
and started a thread on the DxO Forum:
http://forum.dxo.com/showthread.php?t=5897
... as to whether this "profiteering pig" (Version 7.x) actually improved image-quality one whit. It surely looks like it likely does not (save for one new "Bokeh" control in the "Lens Softness" tool that allegedly allows the user to reduce the amount of deconvolution-deblurring artifacts in out-of-focus areas). I probably will not be upgrading (as Version 6.60 already supports my LX3 RW2s, may likely never support my G 14-45mm lens on my GH2, anyway, and does already support the G 14-140mm already - if I ever muster the cash and the courage to "go Pinocchio", and have to tote my mono-pod along every outing just to physically support it).
http://www.dxo.com/var/dxo/storage/fckeditor/File/learning/tutorials/Working_with_Lightroom_and_DxOOpticsPro6.pdf
... but, from all that I read about Versions 7.x ... they have "yet to get that working". Given your profession, if you get the idea that the (pre-mature, and yet unpolished) release of Version 7.x (the only version that you can now download from DxO, BTW) is little but an un-impressive profit-grab (all about them , and not really about the customers ) that have (mandatorily) dumped on the market with lot of loose-ends, and claims of "coming soon, we promise" to their customers, you would be absolutely correct. 1/2 French myself, I can perhaps better understand their insanity
If I (as a first-time customer) were to buy a Version 7.x license (which is good on 2 systems, BTW) at the discounted price right now, I would probably give it a couple months until they have patched and glued this pig into better working order (and will by then be supporting more possibly relevant to you lenses, as well) before doing more than playing with the (fully functional Standard/Elite 30-day trial version). BTW, they use PACE Anti-Piracy hardware ID stuff that makes Microsoft's protection look lax (and DxO seem ultra-paranoid), which embeds in your OS, and never leaves. Woe have been some who dared to try to selectively delete those folder/files. If you are the type who is wise enough to be able to fully backup/restore the hard-disk MBR and primary partition - this would be the only sensible way to "completely" uninstall that and other such things.
Maybe not the world's "prettiest picture" - but exactly what I know and think about "what it is".
.
Groan, sigh ...
. I am a straight-shooter (not a salesman or a shill, which is just not in my nature). I will tell you what I do know without reservation, though ... this is about the consumer (not DxO)Yes, ... money (that awful subject). DxO is selling their new Version 7.x at a discounted price through January 31, 2012. $99 USD ($169 USD normally) for the Standard version. However (if you have certain pricey dSLRs around with compatible add-on lenses), you may want/need the "Elite" version ($199 USD, $299 USD normally) instead (they call it "value-added" - this means charging you more because your dSLR cost you more ). You only need the Standard version for M43 camera models, though. To see what cam bodies/lenses are (or will be soon) supported, see:
http://www.dxo.com/us/photo/dxo_optics_pro/for_your_equipment
While DxO RAW processing does support camera bodies (in terms of Color Rendering and NR), you will want to see if your existing/planned lenses are or will be supported (as all of the automatic optical corrections depend on the existence of a DxO Optical Corrections Module for the specific body/lens combination). Here is where the angst begins/ends for many prospective customers ...
I purchased the Versions 6.x Standard edition license around 2 years ago. They added RAW support for my LX3 at that time - but stupidly caused a Panasonic-related bug that caused all other Panasonic (compacts, anyway) to be un-processable (in any form). I identified the bug, supplied them with information, and waited nearly 4 months for them to release Version 6.2 (which, unlike the patches released for Version 6.1, finally addressing the bug). They floundered around for a while, then changed many processing control-parameters at Version 6.5, angering nearly all users. Then the "flopped" back, and (finally) settled into (Version 6.x) "maturity" (and only a small handful of still irritating, but not major bugs), with Version 6.60 released around June of 2011.
Just when all was (nearly) well in the valley, they decided to earn some more cash for themselves (by forcing users to purchase or upgrade to Version 7.x for all bodies/lenses newly supported after November 29, 2011). They seemed to have scrambled the user-interface (in the name of "progress", of course), claim processing-speed improvements (highly dependent on PC system hardware and graphics-card features), but which appear to actually be true (from reading the DxO Forum) on the more recent Mac OSs. (Of course), for humble 2 GB RAM PCs running WinXP Pro SP3 (like mine), it looks like a resource-hungry rat's-nest of uncertainty ...
So, I hammered on DxO Rep "Axle" in the comments section of this DPR page:
http://www.dpreview.com/news/2011/11/23/DxoOpticsPro7
and started a thread on the DxO Forum:
http://forum.dxo.com/showthread.php?t=5897
... as to whether this "profiteering pig" (Version 7.x) actually improved image-quality one whit. It surely looks like it likely does not (save for one new "Bokeh" control in the "Lens Softness" tool that allegedly allows the user to reduce the amount of deconvolution-deblurring artifacts in out-of-focus areas). I probably will not be upgrading (as Version 6.60 already supports my LX3 RW2s, may likely never support my G 14-45mm lens on my GH2, anyway, and does already support the G 14-140mm already - if I ever muster the cash and the courage to "go Pinocchio", and have to tote my mono-pod along every outing just to physically support it).
I take that you mean the marketing joke in Adobe Photoshop that few can even make work ? No.
Well ... once again, a somewhat complicated and frustrating subject. Where it comes to Versions 6.x, they got some limited (and in my mind not very useful) things going, documented here:
http://www.dxo.com/var/dxo/storage/fckeditor/File/learning/tutorials/Working_with_Lightroom_and_DxOOpticsPro6.pdf
... but, from all that I read about Versions 7.x ... they have "yet to get that working". Given your profession, if you get the idea that the (pre-mature, and yet unpolished) release of Version 7.x (the only version that you can now download from DxO, BTW) is little but an un-impressive profit-grab (all about them , and not really about the customers ) that have (mandatorily) dumped on the market with lot of loose-ends, and claims of "coming soon, we promise" to their customers, you would be absolutely correct. 1/2 French myself, I can perhaps better understand their insanity
If I (as a first-time customer) were to buy a Version 7.x license (which is good on 2 systems, BTW) at the discounted price right now, I would probably give it a couple months until they have patched and glued this pig into better working order (and will by then be supporting more possibly relevant to you lenses, as well) before doing more than playing with the (fully functional Standard/Elite 30-day trial version). BTW, they use PACE Anti-Piracy hardware ID stuff that makes Microsoft's protection look lax (and DxO seem ultra-paranoid), which embeds in your OS, and never leaves. Woe have been some who dared to try to selectively delete those folder/files. If you are the type who is wise enough to be able to fully backup/restore the hard-disk MBR and primary partition - this would be the only sensible way to "completely" uninstall that and other such things.
Maybe not the world's "prettiest picture" - but exactly what I know and think about "what it is".
Will email you about that. Your illness sound daunting - hope that you are well on the mend soon !
).
