Horrible Customer Support

[bootlegend]

I have had two subscriptions to Mathcad Prime for the past year. Prior to that I had a standalone version. I needed to add a license and they were advertising the subscription model and essentially phasing out the standalone license so I was essentially "herded" into the subscription.

One year goes by and I get an email that the auto renewal went through and I'll need to log on to PTC and download a new license file. So I follow the instructions provided but I can't find the files I'm supposed to download. No big deal at this point I'm thinking. It's still a couple weeks before it expires. I send them a reply asking what to do. I get a reply a few days later that says I'll get an email with the files on my expiration date. Foolishly I assume that to be true. I received no email with the files. In fact, I received no emails at all. My program is now locked and I can't use the premium features.

I have not received a return email after emailing several contacts. I have not been able to reach ANYONE by phone. I have waited on customer support, left my number in their queue, and tried any number I can find related to PTC Mathcad but I get no response. All of the numbers have a generic message after a few rings that just says the person is unavailable. No message service or information. I've used their case logger online with no response. I've tried their chat service but it always says no reps are available.

At this point I am having a coworker transfer the Mathcad sheets over to SMath Studio while his license is still active. We'll have to wade through and see what problems arise from that but it's our best shot at this point.

Consider this a warning if you deal with PTC. PTC took money for software renewal and will not respond to communication.

Anyone else have any issues with them lately?

 

[dik]

I have an old standalone license for MathCAD 2000, but, for the last year or so have been doing everything in SMath and Excel. I've never needed their customer support.

Dik

 

[swertel]

The only contact I get from PTC is actually from their accounting firm (MRC or MCR or something like that) asking for more money when my renewal is due. Most of that communication has been to try to convince me to switch from a perpetual license to their subscription service.

The day that they move to subscription only is the day I cancel my maintenance contract and move to SMATH or another program.

--Scott
www.aerornd.com

 

[IFRs]

Sorry to be contrary but

Curiously, I have had very good results asking for license files periodically, like when I swap computers or hard drives. Been this way for years. I have a permanent license for M15 and a subscription to Prime. I resist all their efforts to renew until the last few days, then seem to get a decent low price for another year of Prime. I'd like to move to Prime some day but not until they get it working like I need. Each version of Prim I try to import my most used M15 worksheets and have so far not been satisfied with the results. This takes an hour or two.
Meantime, I am so invested in M15 and am so used to it that I'm really reluctant to try another like SMath etc. As a single practitioner, I really don't have time to learn SMath only to discover that it does not quite match Mathcad in some way - units, output, visual appeal, etc.

Maybe some day when work slows down...

 

[bootlegend]

IFRs,

Do you happen to have a contact that actually responds? Or a number that someone answers? It is extremely strange that all the numbers I have tried have the same "unavailable" message.

 

[bootlegend]

Update:

Received a generic email today that Prime 5.0 is ready for download. I download it and point it to the emailed license that was supposed to work for Prime 4.0 and to my surprise, I am in Prime 5.0. I guess they sent the license for 5.0 before the program was even available for download. Whatever. It appears to be working now. I still haven't heard from anyone on PTC's end though.

 

[IFRs]

What do you think of Prime 5?

 

[bootlegend]

IFRs,

It looks the same as 4.0, which does what I need. I don't think the updates they did provide would warrant a whole new number. I think it may have been so long since 4.0 that they opted for 5.0 instead of 4.1 or 4.2.

From the email:

PTC Mathcad Prime 5.0: Plotting Your Success

PTC is proud to announce the latest release of PTC Mathcad Prime, the industry’s entrusted choice for their engineering calculation tool, Mathcad Prime enables you to solve your most complex problems and instantly share your calculations with colleagues. With the latest release of Mathcad Prime 5.0, you can now customize the look and feel of your 2D plot charts, that will enhance the way you annotate and deliver your engineering data.

What You Can Expect
• Embedded 2D Charting App
o Full Axes Formatting: Choose the colors and styles that best represent your data’s axes
o Titles and Legend: Give your charts with the professional look and feel that adds context to your data
o Second Y-Axis: Now you can have multiple traces, and format a 2nd Y-Axis
o Gridlines: Add optional major or minor gridlines with varied color, style and thickness options
o Overall customizable plot look and feel
• Online Help
o Help is now at your fingertips, and online, allowing you instant access to what you need, when you need it