Old version of Photoshop vs. Windows 7 operating system

To qualify for the upgrade pricing for Photoshop Elements you would need to have a previous version of Photoshop Elements.

I have a similar problem.  I had Adobe Photoshop 5.0.  I upgraded to CS3 all on my old machine.  Now I have a new machine with Windows 7.  I can't install the CS3 upgrade because it asks for the serial number of my previous version which I have, but it doesn't allow me to enter a serial number for Photoshop 5.0.  So I figured I would install 5.0 first, then install the CS3 upgrade.  I can't install 5.0 on Windows 7.  There has to be a way for me to use the CS3 that I purchased.

Ann-Marie this is likely because Photoshop 5.0 did not qualify for the upgrade to Creative Suite 3 unless there was some type of a special offer at the time.  You are welcome to contact our support team though and they can determine if you qualify to have the requirement to enter a previous version serial number overridden or not.  For the best assistance, I recommend our chat support at http://adobe.ly/yxj0t6.  Our chat representatives can provide a personalized experience to resolve the issue you have described.

Thanks.  I don't know how I did this the first time around though.  I don't see any record on my account for another upgrade prior to CS3.  I'm pretty certain that I went directly from Photoshop 5.0 to CS3.  Do you think it worked because I had 5.0 already installed?  I don't want to go through the pain of gettig some sort of 32-bit emulator on my machine to install 5.0 if it isn't going to even work.  What do you think?

I would just contact the support team.  They can look at your previous records and see if/when we provided some type of an exception to allow the CS3 installation to be completed.  Even if you had Photoshop 5.0 installed Creative Suite 3 would not see it is an eligible product. 

If I recall properly from that time period you would need either Photoshop CS or possibly Photoshop 7.  We typically provide upgrades for up to 3 versions back.  This allows our customers to have time to consider when they are ready to upgrade their product.

Unfortunately they wouldn't help me because I was calling about an old product.  Maybe I'll try again.

Yea they might possibly deny your unlocking request but assuming they can locate a qualifying version or reason they should provide support for CS3 for this type of issue.  You will want to ask to have your copy of Creative Suite 3 unlocked.