Official PTC Mathcad 15 and Prime 1–6 End-of-Sale Announcement

Andy, so when my hard drive just crashed and I no longer have my license file for an already purchased and licensed and used product (Mathcad 15) for many years, you are saying I am out of luck? No Prime version does what Mathcad 15 does, so my documents cannot be ported into Prime nor even opened in Prime, so what you are saying is that I am out of luck totally with your product?

If so, I obviously will NOT be buying worthless Prime, and cannot recommend PTC ever again.

Helllo,

   I am 84 yrs old and have (or rather had) a student subscription to PTC Mathcad prime 6 with mathcad 15. I worked for 33 years 

in remote sensing at ERIM in Ann Arbor and after retirement I volunteered a full 30% time as a tutor at Washtenaw Community College in Ann Arbor Mich in their Learning Support Services department.

   I have a version of Mathcad 7 for windows that I limped along with since retirement from ERIM on a windows 7 computer

with an XP emulator until a year or two ago when I purchased a windows 10 computer. Now, fully retired, I like to keep busy

studying and using my student Mathcad 15...but the license expired. I have no interest (or time left) to upgrading my software skills

with PTC Mathcad prime.

    Is there any way you can help me in updating, purchasing a license for Mathcad 15? 

thank you, 

Jrmaxwel@umich..edu

This really is depressing news. I started using MathCAD in 1999 when the power supply engineer we interviewed and hired informed me he used it for his designs. Indeed, with that knowledge, I began to notice MathCAD was the dominant software used in many IEEE papers on power supply design topics. Graphs with log-log and log-linear axes clearly revealed everything from complex impedance to stability curves; very basic information but essential to understanding. A few years later I was fortunate enough to be hired as a power/analog engineer for design of scientific instruments intended for satellites, a position that greatly benefits from MathCADs ability to convert between engineering units with ease.

 Over time computers were upgraded on a regular basis of 4-6 years depending on funds and the condition of the computer. Each upgrade request was submitted with a new request for MathCAD. When Prime came along, I was in the middle of an involved design, and the results of the conversion tool suggested this was not the time to change. Later in less stressful times I tried again, fixing all the remaining conversion errors until I got to the first graph and discovered there were no grid lines. That's when I knew, Prime would not work for me. Fortunately, the perpetual license for MathCAD 15 could use the license for those early Prime versions and nothing more was needed.

This last week I got my latest updated computer with MathCAD Prime 8 and discovered it was no longer possible to use the new license to access MathCAD 15. As is typical I'm in the middle of a new design of a pair of power supplies, the input filter and several sensitivity analyses that were all started with MathCAD 15. I believe I'm just over 3 years from retirement and have been encouraging the younger engineers I mentor to get and use MathCAD - and now I wonder why.

I will make an effort to submit a request through the sales contact link and see if there's any way to maintain access to MathCAD 15 using the license for Prime, but based on the posts above I don't have much hope.

For those making decisions at PTC it should be informative to have them review decades of technical papers that displayed data obviously created using MathCAD, and then to search for newer papers to see if that's still the case. I believe engineers are a creative group of people, and when their tools disappear the collective looks for the best alternatives and start adopting them. I have no doubt that if Prime can't deliver on the basic essential needs of their users, other tools will be adopted. It might have been 10 years ago when I was struggling with licensing issues, someone from Mathmatica reached out to encourage me to try their tool. At the university, we have access to both Mathmatica and Matlab. Yes, I would need to recreate all the tools I use for magnetics design, but in the end, my goal is to ensure the next generation of engineers can be as successful as I have been - a small payback for years of satisfying work with truly exceptional peers.

Regards,

Chris Belting

belting@lasp.colorado.edu 

Thank you for the letter from Andrew McGough, the product manager for Mathcad at PTC announcing the end-of-sale for the following versions of PTC Mathcad, effective December 31, 2021:  

• Mathcad 15 
• Mathcad Prime 1.0 – Prime 6.0

  That clarifies it that the owners are out of luck for above Mathcad versions.  It would save great deal of time for Users if PTC would show this message during the Setup wizard process of CD installation. 

I did try to use the "Contact us" link described above and found it very circular with all paths leading to failure - something I'm certain the programmers must be proud of. In the end, it is as I expected, offers to help are empty.

So there is no way to transfer a license from Prime 4, which permitted use of Mathcad 15, to a new computer, regardless of whether the license for both are perpetual. And since my new copy of Prime 8 has all the same problems graphing as all previous Prime versions, I see no reason to proceed with any new version of Mathcad. If I'm fortunate I'll be able to keep the old computer running Mathcad 15 and finish my current design, then invest the time and energy in creating a new set of tools on a new software platform that respects users. Good luck to all.

Dear @amcgough,

I would like to download my PTC Mathcad Prime 3.1 Student Edition – Perpetual License but unfortunately the 'BEGIN DOWNLOAD' button does not work. Please, forward me the instalation file. I would like to install application on the another computer. I paid for the perpetual license, so I do not understand why I cannot use my product. I am aware of Official PTC Mathcad 15 and Prime 1–6 End-of-Sale Announcement but it is not my problem. I bought perpetual licence. I have a right to the Mathcad Prime 3.1. Please forward to me from your archive Mathcad Prime 3.1 or newer with a suitable perpetual licence.

It is impossible to contact with your technical support. I can only to contact with you via forum or something like this. It is unacceptable. What I should do to use Mathcad  Prime 3.1 or newer? Please remeber that I paid for PTC Mathcad Prime 3.1 Student Edition – Perpetual License and I have a right to the Mathcad. If you are not deliver fully version of Mathcad Prime 3.1 or newer with a suitable perpetual licence I will claim receive my money for Mathcad Prime 3.1. Please be aware that the Mathcad has to have unblocked all of the option because I have fully option in Mathcad Prime 3.1.

@amcgoughplease help me and tell me what I have to do step by step do use my product Mathcad Prime 3.1 or newer. Plese contact with my via email wojtek012795@wp.pl because it is suitbale way to resolve this case. I do not want to deliver more information here because it is emabarassing and uncomfortable.

Order Number: 9158813572

With my best regards
Wojciech Sawicki

So I have a permanent MathCad 15 license, but when I launch MathCad, it now says that my license is no longer valid. I have rebooted and reloaded the license with no success. I guess it may be time to convert to some other platform. However, I would like to at least print out the source code of my thousands of MathCad files. Can anyone help - the Prime conversion is just not adequate for complex program. I simply want to review the MathCad source code.

Hello,

I have a perpetual license for MC15, but my old PC is no longer working and installing MC15 on the new PC is not possible since I can not download a new license file anymore.

How can this be acceptable? I paid for a preputial license, and now its not possible to migrate this license to a new PC?

Please tell me how to get a new license file so I can continue to use the SW I  paid for - thank you!

\\\Jens

Clearly  no one is moderating these posts.

Can someone please help!

I agree, would be nice if ptc would reach out in person.

\\\Jens