I just read within a year or so (2027) support and access to files? Will stop for Adobe Animate.
I think the worst part is that Adobe won’t go open source with abandoned software which is sad. Animate has a rich history spanning back to Macromedia Flash.
That’s the issue with proprietary/closed source software that are available as a service.
You are tied to their good will, you don’t “own” the software and your productions are used as hostages.
You can export them but to which format?
People prefer to pay each month for their dependance, crossing their fingers for not to stop, instead of focus in open-source initiatives.
They start small but with a bit of interest and help, it grows.
Think about Blender or Godot.
Toon Boon Harmony doesn’t sell perpetual license anymore either, surely not a coincidence!
Indeed, I own various Versions of Toon Boom, but, if my computer crashes without me de-registering the license, I have to reach out to them to release the license so that i can activate it on another pc. If they upgrade and discontinue support, I get no help whatsoever, which actually did happen with the oldest version I had, back when it was called Animate before they changed it to Harmony. I had to call and argued that I would stop using their services if they didn’t release the license so that I could use it again. I only have them now because I invested early on and it would be a waste of money if I just delete them. Anyway, I will always promote open source. There are only few software that I would actually spend money on these days, and that’s because of specific needs.
Oh, also, I have to remain familiar with Harmony since my supervisor requires it, and I do have Moho because I think it should be in the spotlight over Toonboom for the value it offers. That said, you won’t see me promoting them. As much as I get irritated when Synfig crashes on heavy projects, I just have so much FAITH that one day it will become to 2d animators, what blender is to 3D artists.
One reason of crashes is reentrance in some functions (called twice in red in the console) when you play with converters like to disconnect them with right-click while another line is selected, it can be a direct crash.
About using closed source software, animation takes a lot of efforts and time, and if you want to produce to make a living, you need a ready solution and that’s why people prefer to pay, they have return on investment when they sell their product, we can’t blame them.
By luck some hobbyists/pioneers are still interested in open-source alternative to permit them to live and grow 
I have a Moho license and been using Toon boom studio since way back. I forced myself going open source a few years ago since I needed to leave Windows for Linux. It just felt the right thing to do.
Today I’m using inkscape with jessyink so I can do key poses frame by frame (using layers+groups) then preview in web browser by opening svg file in ex. Firefox using keyboard f/b arrows to pencil check. Then I import to synfig for inbetweens, comp etc.
It does work very well since inkscape is a very capable vector software. There is no going back and subscription models is not an option for my personal work.
Could you elaborate more, @BobSynfig ? I could try to check this issue.
Hm… You could try to add an ‘live’ SVG import in Synfig (like it does with raster images): you import the file and, if/when the SVG file is changed, it is reloaded/updated in Synfig side. So you could already test it your key poses and maybe the interpolation… hm….
I’ll check it out. A svg file has many capabilities that is worth exploring.
Update:
For several separate svg files or keys using “import sequence” works in synfig and will update linked svg files if edited in inkscape. The problem is I work with only one svg file with all keys in the same file. Jessyink can play back these layers in the svg one by one in the browser but I dont think Synfig does this.
How are they defined? One key (keyframe/pose?) per layer or anything else?
In this case an inkscape “Layer” = 1 keyframe and in that “Layer” there can be “Groups” of ex. Lineart group, fill color group, reference drawing group.
Jessyink plays all inkscape “Layers” in svg document in browser. “Group” are ignored it must be “Layer” for playback but a “Group” can be inside a “Layer” and be visible in playback.
Svg doc structure:
Cel3 layer
::::outline group
::::fill group
Cel2 layer
::::outline group
::::fill group
Cel1 layer
::::outline group
::::fill group
Link:
