LabVIEW subscription model for 2022

[yubeshi]

I too feel the subscription price is too high.

And we believe that the permanent license option should be reinstated.

Generally, software companies that move to subscription licenses do so with a strategy of increasing both user base and sales through accurate license fee collection by tightening license management in exchange for a lower price.

Shortly before NI decided to consolidate to subscription licenses, a web survey of existing users was conducted. I did not respond too negatively because I thought NI would at least keep the price the same or lower. However, what they actually did was raise the price.

I have been using LabVIEW for about 15 years and I love LabVIEW, but it is honestly hard for me when I am asked to continuously generate profits that are commensurate with these prices.

The company I work for is considering lowering the grade of the LabVIEW license.
On the other hand, if the price had been lower, we could have propagated it to other departments.

Organizations that have a good track record since their introduction, large companies with sufficient funds, and alliance partners will probably manage to keep their licenses.

For small businesses and sole proprietors, maintaining a license can be quite a burden.

For new users, it is hopeless.

New users have to convince the company without in-depth knowledge of the product.

Perhaps the new user will consider adopting the product based on a recommendation from someone else or based on their experience with CommunityEdition.

In this situation, why should it be LabVIEW? What makes it different from others? And the company will ask you, "Why LabVIEW?

If the person in charge has a strong intention to introduce the product, he or she may manage to explain it with the support of NI's sales staff. While believing in their own and their team's abilities, NI's product, and NI's support.

After that, the company demands results that are worth the price. And continuously, year after year. If you do not see results, the contract may be terminated.
If you actually terminate the contract, you will not be able to maintain the software you created.

This is too risky and hard.

Especially for RTs and FPGAs, where LabVIEW shows its true value, it will be difficult to make a purchase unless you are very competent and confident.

*** Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator ***

[Prof_Dude]

I am a physics professor that has worked with LabVIEW since 2000 when it was adopted at the University of Texas at Dallas.  I taught it there for two years as a visiting instructor.  I then did a 3 year visiting professorship at the University of Dallas where I installed the same course at the undergraduate level in the physics department.  I am currently at an Associate at my current university and in charge of the electro-mechanical courses in the engineering physics/ physics program.

The last 7 years we have been working on a grant from the department of Ed to expand our lab and offering of classes in the engineering physics and was awarded $3,000,000 over 5 years.  LabVIEW, Elvis, and MyRIO were the center piece of this classroom portion of this grant.  Last year, we purchased the equipment as scheduled by the grant.  This year we went to purchase the upgrade from LabVIEW 2011.  Without warning, we have found out that NI has gone to subscription format.  This has completely destroyed the grant budget model.  We are now scrambling to find an alternative.  NI has bricked our purchased copy of LabVIEW 2011 because it requires an NI verification on install which they no longer support.

Because of this, I am ending my 26 year association with NI and teaching university courses based on their equipment and software.  The university will be ending its 15 year use of the equipment and software.

I am making it my goal for the next year to develop new course materials using other software and hardware and publishing it to the Texas Engineering Physics and Physics community.  I have the full support of my administration and they share my sentiments in what NI has done.

[beuvink]

Sadly enough, I think you have the ‘best’ post in this thread…not only a terrible way to end your career, also a very clear point that NI is killing itself if they stick to this BS..

let’s all make the post above, the best kudoed post ever

[ConnerP]

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@beuvink wrote:

Sadly enough, I think you have the ‘best’ post in this thread…not only a terrible way to end your career, also a very clear point that NI is killing itself if they stick to this BS..

let’s all make the post above, the best kudoed post ever

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NI will survive because they sell complete solutions to industry for millions. LabVIEW is definitely not going to survive this though. Some say this is intentional to get people to drop LabVIEW so they can stop supporting it all-together and move those resources to turn-key solutions.

[beuvink]

I’ve heard this before and don’t have that kind of business knowledge of NI. Are these turnkey systems based on LabView or some other platform?

if so, without a user base, how will they be able to keep this up. If LabVIEW is only used internally I don’t see how they can keep up the quality and get qualified people.

If these large turnkey systems are what is making their money now… I will be in for a great ride, the way things are going now. In ~7 years skilled LabVIEW developers are an endangered species. Meanwhile the world is full of turnkey solutions that need maintenance..

Their investor information is at least full of software, this is promoted as the glue that sticks everything together.

September 15, there is a investor conference.. maybe dail in… https://investor.ni.com/

(edit)

Cash Flow From Operations, Q2 report, again no financial expert but this looks like this thread. Last-time buy and canceled SSP. Anyone knows more about this stuff?

 

(edit 2) history from 2021 report.. 

Let’s hope they can fix the sign-bit issue…

[ConnerP]

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@beuvink wrote:

I’ve heard this before and don’t have that kind of business knowledge of NI. Are these turnkey systems based on LabView or some other platform?

if so, without a user base, how will they be able to keep this up. If LabVIEW is only used internally I don’t see how they can keep up the quality and get qualified people.

If these large turnkey systems are what is making their money know… I will be in for a great ride, the way things are going now. In ~7 years the skilled LabVIEW developers are an endangered species. Meanwhile the world is full of turnkey solutions that need maintenance..

Their investor information is at least full of software, this is promoted as the glue that sticks everything together.

September 15, there is a investor conference.. maybe dail in… https://investor.ni.com/

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I would imagine they are using LabWindows/CVI and TestStand. ANSI C carries a lot of weight in industry because it is standardized/normed.

[crossrulz]

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@ConnerP wrote:

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@beuvink wrote:

I’ve heard this before and don’t have that kind of business knowledge of NI. Are these turnkey systems based on LabView or some other platform?

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I would imagine they are using LabWindows/CVI and TestStand. ANSI C carries a lot of weight in industry because it is standardized/normed.

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I seriously doubt that.  Everything NI was doing was based on their NXG platform (LabVIEW using this platform was canceled), which I'm pretty sure is done in C#.  Judging from NI Connect 2022 keynotes, it seems the center of NI's platform is now SystemLink, which was part of the NXG platform effort.

[WavePacket]

In their official response to this thread, NI also wanted a "continuing conversation". We could all put in our signatures a link to this thread to help welcome more people into that conversation.

[BertMcMahan]

So for those of you wanting a hedge against LV's possible downfall, what are you going with? Python, C, Qt, etc? As much as I hate to admit it I really need to start transitioning myself off LabVIEW. If it survives this transition then great, but I'm not holding my breath. I personally have done a bit of coding in several languages, but haven't done GUI's or anything "interactive" in anything else.

Unfortunately I can't wait until LabVIEW's dead to start learning something new. Given the sudden increase in likeliness, I need to start the weaning process.

[WavePacket]

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@BertMcMahan wrote:

So for those of you wanting a hedge against LV's possible downfall, what are you going with? Python, C, Qt, etc? As much as I hate to admit it I really need to start transitioning myself off LabVIEW. If it survives this transition then great, but I'm not holding my breath. I personally have done a bit of coding in several languages, but haven't done GUI's or anything "interactive" in anything else.

Unfortunately I can't wait until LabVIEW's dead to start learning something new. Given the sudden increase in likeliness, I need to start the weaning process.

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The main options that I know of are c# or vb with .net, and python with some form of qt. If anyone knows other combos, please let me know too! I'm diversifying as well.

(As an aside/venting, I actually even feel sad when I code in LabVIEW now, it feels kinda like wasting my time. Other people feel the same?)