Keeping your software up to date usually means getting the best performance. Companies add new features to help users as well as maintenance fixes to keep up with security issues and changes in the operating system.
Sometimes Software Companies Screw Up
Recently, the Adobe Lightroom team got into a bit of a tough spot. They released an update that majorly changed the functionality of the import window. It also contained a lot of bugs.
This all went down when I was leading a photography workshop in Cozumel. I wanted the update but knew the WiFi connection we had would make it almost impossible. I waited until we came back home.
I read fellow Photofocus author Brian Matiashs article Adobe releases Lightroom 6.2.1 Maintenance Patch + An Authors Rant. I thought twice about updating until I realized, what’s the big deal. I have my Lightroom catalogs backed up and I have my current version of Lightroom. If something goes wrong, I will just uninstall Lightroom and reinstall my current version and wait for a fix. No down time.
Adobe Admits their Mistake
Is Lightroom Stable?
I installed the new Windows version of Lightroom on my high-end desktop and an older, less powerful laptop; no problems at all. Speed and reliability is great. On the flip side, some of my Mac friends are reporting major issues with their updated version of Lightroom. So, what should you do?
If you are a professional and you make your living using Lightroom and you can’t afford downtime, you can either wait until Adobe works out the bugs or you can install the update after hours. When you decide to install the update, make sure you save a copy of your Lightroom catalog to a new folder and download a previous version. Adobe has great Instructions on how to roll back to a prior update version including links on where to find previous versions for Mac and Windows.
Bottom line, if you find major bugs in any software, it’s best to bring it to the company’s attention. Companies are not in the business to upset their client base. They will be happy you took the time to give constructive criticism.
*Feature image Adobe
I’m still using LR6.1. I’ll wait for a bit until jumping to 6.3.
Glad they got rid of the “Kindergarten” import interface of 6.2.
I’ve had a LOT of problems with the former updates, there are still a few bugs (like all the panels go black) but I can consider Lightroom as usable now.
Good to know. The goal of the article was to give advice when installing updates, not just for Lightroom, but for any software. Out of curiosity, are you on a Mac or PC?
I’ve had issues on both.
What a terrible headline for this article. Is it safe to install makes it sound like it’s a virus or is going to screw up your computer. Bugs and unwanted features are a different thing.
I put a lot of thought into the title especially after reading many negative article on Lightroom. The goal was to raise discussion and stop the doomsday rants. Out of curiosity, what title would you have suggested?
“My experience with the Lightroom 6.3 update”. That’s what this article seems to be about.
Good insight, that’s a great title too.thanks
It may not “screw up your computer” but if you lose the ability to get work done, then it’s not safe!
That’s why I gave suggestions on installing updates. If something goes wrong, downtime is very little. Are you on a Mac or PC
I’m using a PC (desktop and laptop). I have my entire Lightroom catalog (including presets, etc) on an SSD, which transfers between my desktop and laptop. It works seamlessly between both machines.
I guess I could technically update one machine and see what happens, and if it failed I could pull the drive and work on the other machine. But I heard so many bad things about the “new import interface” that I wanted nothing to do with it.
Great set up. They reverted back to the old import window. I haven’t heard problems from my PC friends
Cool. I’ll give it a try this weekend.
I use a 2010 Mac Book Pro, 8mb, with El Capitan. Initially I had problems with crashes during import and random crashes using the develop module. That was fixed with the next update along with a speed improvement. I am still working around the new import screen as I don’t find it intuative at all! I’ve installed the latest update and it seems to start a little quicker and soo glad the old import is back.
Thanks for the info, I had just started with CC and thought I wouldn’t be able to use lightroom at all because it crashed every time I tried to import.