[ghaff]

In-app purchases (free-to-play) are largely a separate issue although they share some of the same ongoing "Is this worth it?" fatigue.

But I'm just super-wary of subscriptions. I mostly don't have the discipline to re-evaluate all my subscriptions every month and then have to agonize over those I get some value from but is it worth $10? And usage goes up and down. So my default is mostly to just say no.

[macjohnmcc]

If I find a product useful and a 1-year subscription is available and doesn't feel expensive I will subscribe, then cancel renewal on it. This forces me to reevaluate if it is worth it every year.

[ghaff]

That's a nice theory but a lot of subscriptions are decidedly not cheap on an annual basis ($100+) and there's a lot of potential for money leaks you aren't pro-active about. Though I actually agree that subscriptions as a principle often align developer and user interests.

[macjohnmcc]

There has to be a lot of value in it for me to pay that kind of money for temporary usage of software. The closest thing right now is Jetbrains all products pack. I consider every November when the renewal comes up if I am going to continue. Adobe Photographers subscription is a great deal because the total cost for a year is way less than the price it used to cost to buy Photoshop flat out.

[ghaff]

Adobe Photographers is actually a pretty reasonable subscription for me. I don't use Photoshop a lot. But I do use it and Lightroom I would do pretty much every upgrade anyway. If I just did the occasional Photoshop thing, I'd probably buy Photoshop Elements (Or use GIMP).

[macjohnmcc]

The only thing I dislike about it is you are committed to a whole year and timing on cancelling is painful.