Industry managers, supervisors and prepress operators braved the January cold to join sponsors, Digital Imaging Association and PaperlinX for firsthand insight into the brilliance of Adobe CS4.
The Creative Suite
Sebastian DiStefano, Canada’s “Guy from Adobe,” provided an in-depth look at Adobe’s second release of the Creative Suite since the merger with Macromedia. DiStefano also showed examples that instantly demonstrated the robust features that augment productivity and premedia workflows.
This is more than a software upgrade. Attendees learned first hand how imbedded tools and revamped menu access will change your workflow. Everyone can benefit from this enhanced workflow and increased productivity!
Content creators will appreciate the integrated software and services that will enable them to produce richly expressive work purposed for print, Web, interactive, video, audio and mobile media. And, the tools render a common look and function throughout all your media choices. The full suite delivers the robust provisions to design across media more efficiently using simpler ways to complete common tasks and innovative new approaches moving from one medium to another. The new tools also facilitate real-time client approvals and will enable collaborative discussions with service providers, like printers, to ensure reproduction fidelity. DiStefano’s demonstrations of the ability to review graphically rich files on the fly and in shared environments were extraordinary.
Tip to users – take a look at Adobe Bridge – it was part of CS3 as well – use it once and you’ll use it forever. It bridges you to a file without actually having to open it. Content creators and prepress production operators, just think of the time this will save you.
Improvements to all applications within CS4 address many of the things users have requested – and some that they didn’t even imagine to be possible. Things like increased speed in Photoshop as well as features in curve adjustment that allow on-image correction and an application called content aware scale are just some of the improvements. In Illustrator, Adobe has added multi-page support as just one example of this software’s enhancements. Functionally, Illustrator is still recognized as an artist’s tool – and artists will still find that they can use it in the same way they have been accustomed. With the launch of CS4, InDesign is now the well-designed layout look Adobe set out to provide. Said DiStefano, Adobe has added all the features that Quark is lacking.
Printers will appreciate CS4’s preflight panel. They can advise their clients on what preflight selections they should choose. The report identifies errors, and with a single click, you can go to each error and fix it. The demo showed how the notification disappears instantly once the error has been fixed. The panel then travels with the file so printers can check to see if everything is okay with the file – instantly.
Part of the Family – Acrobat 9
Mark Lewicki, Adobe Canada’s PDF product manager, talked briefly about Acrobat 9, which continues to be a standalone software option, but is also included as part of many of the versions of CS4. Adobe Acrobat has become the de-facto cross platform resource to dispense documents.
Lewicki highlighted the new and enhanced options. Among those is an embedded audit trail to enable all file recipients to check profiles. Acrobat 9 also addresses the digital print space, both static and variable. Additionally, this latest version includes robust security features. But, the real breakthrough is the PDF Print Engine. It was introduced at IPEX in 2006 and sold through OEM partners. It is now shipped with all platesetters. And, what this means to the print workflow is that it’s no longer necessary to convert to PostScript at the RIP. While this is indeed a breakthrough, it does not mean the end of life for PostScript because there are still a lot of PostScript devices.
Summary
Adobe CS4 will appeal to many different types of people from those who just like cool new software to industry leaders who are seeking quantifiable workflow augmentation to service providers who continually demonstrate to their clients that they are in the forefront of technology.
To top off the evening, Adobe donated a free copy of CS4 for an attendee; Congratulations to Russ Graham.
