35mm
Hell, the bible bashers have turned up now! I've been on the upgrade path too and paying my way. Last time I did that was when I bought the lifetime deal. I got 11 months out of that before Cakewalk went down.
 
Looking on the bright side, I don't have to pay for an update again so in a kind of mystical way I got my free lifetime deal after all. Meng doesn't seem to be a slouch in the Business world so I imagine there is a good reason he is making it free. Of course, if this multiplies the user base by a magnitude which it is likely to do, development will scale up too which means that it will improve at a faster rate than before. This all seems very advantageous.
 
In a nutshell, Bandlab has every right to do as they please with all the Cakewalk property that THEY PAID FOR. You don't get to dictate or complain about what they do with it. You do get to choose whether you use it or not - for free.

I may have missed it but I didn’t read any bashing. If you are going to use a philosophical or an authoritative reference to justify a comment then that comment should be justified by that reference in this case the insulting of someone’s maturity and intellectual capacity did not seem to be justified by that reference. But I believe we all got the point.
 
In reference to the OP and the thread, people who buy things get to do as they will with them. The buyer of this product decided to give it away for free. How cool is that. I can now collaborate with all my musician friends who could not afford Sonar in the past. BandLab and I'm not a social media person at all has proven itself to me as being the most incredible thing of the 21st century. I found a harp player in Iran and a vocalist in Singapore in the first few minutes of looking, how unexpected was that. Hugely unexpected from my perspective. I'm sold on this company and BandLab. 
 
edit...the search engine in BandLab could be improved

jeffpayne170
Electronic calculators that sell today for $6 or $8, or even for free as an app on smart phones used to have fewer features and sell for $75 - $100. By your lack of reasoning, all of us who purchased calculators in the seventies should suck our thumbs and throw hissy fits.
 

I still miss this baby. Plugged straight into the wall. Oh yeah 
 

dappa1
BMOG your jealousy is outrageous. The fact that you are saying it openly really shows how ignorant you are. In fact, your mindset is an embarrassment. I don't expect a moderator to shut down this post. I would expect you to fall on your sword. 

Now I have read every comment and like someone earlier stated that this is the internet so everyone behind a keyboard can say what the wish, BUT you DAPPA1 are crossing the line! Your opinion of my thoughts is one thing but to call me ignorant and jealous are direct shots at me now my opinion on a piece of software. There countless number of post who disagree with me and gave valid reasons why without making things personal. So what I am in the minority that see this as a glass half empty, most of the people who see the glass as half full are not saying I am wrong in my way of thinking but  they just choose to look what the free opportunity can do for others.  Does not make my perspective wrong either.  Their is no wrong or right here, this was a vent of how I felt about being a life time member of this product. DAPP1 be very careful of your comments, keep it about software and not about me personally because know one on here knows me personally!  Why would would a moderator shut this down, so much good information has come from this, internet tough guys like yourself are the reason there should be some form of a vetting process before allowing people like yourself to post. 

slyman
They're offering the same software we currently have. 
Why install it? 
Just wait until they make major fixes and improvements.
Most likely they will charge us for future updates anyways. If not, then...well...it'll still be free.... 

+1

Jeff Evans
Something similar happened around the time that Apple took over Logic. Up until that point I had spent thousands on the program itself plus I bought all the instruments one by one and paid a high price for all that.  Even so I was happy with what I had.  Then Apple took it over, removed it from the Windows environment, put the whole program out for $200 and included all the instruments free of charge at the same time! I was a bit annoyed at the time as well.
 
What can you do? Not much really apart from move on I guess. So it's not the first time something like this has happened. 

Good point it seems this happens when the software is sold!

dubdisciple

slyman
They're offering the same software we currently have. 
Why install it? 
Just wait until they make major fixes and improvements.
Most likely they will charge us for future updates anyways. If not, then...well...it'll still be free.... 

Because updates and future plugins will be based on this version rather than the previous one.

That's what he kind of what he said though. Install it when they update it. 

Kamikaze... I get what you are saying.  My point was not that one needs to install it with any urgency. It was more so the point that the product will continue down the line of this version instead of anything previously installed.  Also, you never know when free status may change

BMOG I feel you and I understand why you feel the way do. I give you credit for being open to other points of view and maybe even leaning at bit more to the center because of it. I'm really hoping this works out for everybody in the long run. I can see many benefits to this plan of action by Bandlab but...my biggest fear of this that people will look down at it because of the stigma of the freeware label. Sometime people perceive things as less than because they are free or inexpensive. Or the "if it cost more it must be better" camp. Flstudio aka Fruityloops had that stigma for a looooong time. One for it's very humble beginnings and two for seeming cheep. What saved it was it's ever increasing user base (very huge now) and its constant development. I'm hoping Bandlab can do the the same for us. As a consistently top 10 DAW around for over 30 years we already have a head start.

dubdisciple
Kamikaze... I get what you are saying.  My point was not that one needs to install it with any urgency. It was more so the point that the product will continue down the line of this version instead of anything previously installed.  Also, you never know when free status may change

Yeah I just think you were actually agreeing with the other poster, but it looked like you weren't.
 
This is an 'Early Access' Bandab have called it that. I never adapted the early access versions when Sonar adpoted it in the last couple of years, so I see no difference hear. Already there have been concerns with the installer, and BandLab have said they will address that next release. So I'll at least wait for that.  
 
I don't think BandLab have any plans t change the free model soon, it's not really up and running, s there is 'urgency' as say. 
 
(not responding to you here)
 
---------------------------------------------
Regards Bmog, he's made his point, he has his feelings, and feeling are feelings, you can't escape that. And he responded positively to the constructive criticism about his viewpoint. But some have acted like he's throwing a continuous hissy fit, which he hasn't.
 
 

I wasn't mad at Roland when they sold it because they made some pretty cool changes and when Gibson bought it and a host of other brands along with it they made some great changes to Cakewalk as well. I guess I could be mad at Gibson but what purpose would that serve they will have to answer to many for much and it doesn't forward my music making. Now many people that couldn't get a copy to use will and that will create a gigantic user base keeping people connected to making music how awesome is that and we all get to be a part of it if we choose. I dig it, I'm in with no regrets.