Acrobat CC

[kaiserwilhelm]

OK, I know I will be lambasted for this - but, we have not updated our Acrobat since 9.54.
Why? Because to be quite honest, me and my team all think that 10 and 11 look like something that a child designed.
IE, I really think that Adobe played to the "secretary has a copy of Acrobat" mentality. Instead of leaving my buttons and advanced features where I can find them, they hid them all.

So, I got my CC download the other day. I was going to try it out, but it claims it will not allow me to keep 9.54 on my machine when it installs.
The simple question is this - does Acrobat CC still have that neophyte look, or have they gone back to the days of 8 and 9 - playing to the people that actually use the product?

3.....2......1....until I flamed...

 

[schenkadere]

I'd never flame you for this opinion. I hate change for the sake of change. These are production tools, and for people in the printing industry to re-learn an interface every time they feel like creating an update is a waste of time. I wish they had made different versions of their products geared towards a particular industry. They glop every tool known to man in each version and it just gets cluttered. Yes, I know there are workspaces, yet they don't even make those compatible from version to version. Now the whole CC thing and forcing users into that...it's industry bullying. Well...there's my rant...now I can get flamed, lol. BTW...looks the same as 10 and 11...sorry dude.

 

[kaiserwilhelm]

That is what I was afraid I would hear. I know that I can go in and put all of my tools up on the bar. I just don't like the look. It seems so strange to me that INDD and Photoshop have worked so hard to look professional. Then, Acrobat looks like "Paint" or something from 1998?

 

[leonardr]

OK, I know I will be lambasted for this - but, we have not updated our Acrobat since 9.54.

About time, since we aren't supporting that version any longer.

IE, I really think that Adobe played to the "secretary has a copy of Acrobat" mentality.

Given that there are millions more secretaries using Acrobat than print professionals - that is EXACTLY what we did!

So, I got my CC download the other day. I was going to try it out, but it claims it will not allow me to keep 9.54 on my machine when it installs.

That is correct. We only support one version of Acrobat installed at any time. (along with one version of Reader)

does Acrobat CC still have that neophyte look, or have they gone back to the days of 8 and 9 - playing to the people that actually use the product?

Acrobat XI (there is no Acrobat CC) has the same look as Acrobat X, but with much more customizability including a form of Workspaces (called Tool Sets). And, as noted above, we ARE designing our product for the vast majority of our user base.

It seems so strange to me that INDD and Photoshop have worked so hard to look professional

InDesign and Photoshop are targeted at the Creative Professional. Acrobat is not.

 

[mattbeals]

Give it a shot. It's not as bad as you think. Once you learn where everything is you'll be fine. Nature is calling, time to evolve.

 

[almaink]

"So, I got my CC download the other day. I was going to try it out, but it claims it will not allow me to keep 9.54 on my machine when it installs.
That is correct. We only support one version of Acrobat installed at any time. (along with one version of Reader)"

Is this on a windows PC? On my Mac I have 5 different versions of Acrobat installed and I use them all for different reasons. I do not, and most likely never will install, if it makes my old versions no longer work, this CC crap Adobe wants to hold us all hostage with.

 

[rich apollo]

I have version XI installed with version X. Not only are they installed, but I just tested and I can run both at the same time. This is on a mac. Can't comment on Winderz (that's what it would be called if Bill Gates had grown up in Alabama).

 

[kaiserwilhelm]

Yeah, it scared me to state that I could not have multiple versions on. I hit OK anyway. Sure enough, I have 9, 10, and 11 all running.

 

[kansasquaker]

About time, since we aren't supporting that version any longer.

And right here, summed up in 10 words is what Adobe thinks of it's customers. Can any printer here imagine taking that tone with one of your customers? We'd be fired on the spot. There are too many other choices . . . but of course there's the explanation for their attitude.

And for the record the UI in all the CC apps (yes I know it's Acrobat XI, way to keep things simple) are rubbish. I spent the first hour I had CC running trying to make it look as much like CS 5 or 6 as I could.

 

[leonardr]

That is correct. We only support one version of Acrobat installed at any time. (along with one version of Reader)"

Is this on a windows PC? On my Mac I have 5 different versions of Acrobat installed and I use them all for different reasons. I do not, and most likely never will install, if it makes my old versions no longer work, this CC crap Adobe wants to hold us all hostage with.

Adobe only supports a single version of Acrobat installed on a computer (Mac or Windows) at any one time. If you choose to install multiple versions on your system, you do so AT YOUR OWN RISK and w/o any help or support from us.

 

[Amer]

Given that there are millions more secretaries using Acrobat than print professionals - that is EXACTLY what we did!
InDesign and Photoshop are targeted at the Creative Professional. Acrobat is not.

I remember when you could get Acrobat 4 as the "Inproduction" version.
I had no idea we are so vastly outnumbered by secretaries.
So what are we supposed to be using for the deluge of wonky PDF-s we get from our clients everyday?
Anyway, shouldn't we be all striving for excellence instead of catering to the lowest common denominator?

 

[leonardr]

So what are we supposed to be using for the deluge of wonky PDF-s we get from our clients everyday?
Anyway, shouldn't we be all striving for excellence instead of catering to the lowest common denominator?

Acrobat XI is an excellent product for use by print professionals. We added a number of new features and improvements specifically for this segment.

But your not our primary target.

 

[almaink]

"But your not our primary target."

You like taking our money tho don't cha Adobe? It's a shame every print shop, and Designer in the world can't get together and tell Adobe to shove it.

 

[MacTwidget]

Adobe only supports a single version of Acrobat installed on a computer (Mac or Windows) at any one time. If you choose to install multiple versions on your system, you do so AT YOUR OWN RISK and w/o any help or support from us.

That statement confirms the common sentiment that Adobe has become the arrogant 800-lb Gorilla and that they have forgotten about customer service.
This is the same mentality that doomed Quark back in the day.

 

[mattbeals]

Personal opinion here.

Do you really think Adobe can be all things to all people? What is it that you expecting that is making you so indignant? Where's the outrage with Apple and their shifting fonts and color management changes? Relax, there's plenty of functionality in Acrobat Pro XI for print production. We are not the center of the PDF world as much as we would like to think we are.

 

[tommrz]

If a piece of software is called "Pro" it should look, feel and act like a product targeted for Professionals. The vast majority of secretaries are most likely not using the $199 "PRO" version so why make the UI so streamlined that its difficult to find tools. Reader is perfect for that, its a reader.
Apple tried to do this with FinalCut Pro but at least they removed the PRO from the name when they did.

 

[mattbeals]

It is a Pro app. It takes a lot of resources to tailor a UI let alone a UI for a small market segment. There's a bigger picture out there. We're a small part of it. We at least have the features that we need. Isn't that enough? Everyone has to adapt to new software. Imagine how the industry would be if the vendors only kept things the way they were "way back when". It's a "pro" app with a different look and some better features. Paraphrasing Charles Darwin "It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but rather the one most adaptable to change." Change happens.

 

[kansasquaker]

I don't see anything wrong with expression frustration and dislike towards a product that you use on a daily basis. There's no reason that we have to accept what Adobe does with CC apps. Apply your logic to food service and it doesn't really hold up. "well, yes the steak is burned and the baked potato is cold, but it's still edible so it's ok."

I'm all for change and adaptation, but Darwin was referring to species in an ever changing, uncontrollable, natural world. Adobe changes the apps intentionally. I can't imagine what is the purpose of rearranging the menus and changing the UI in each release of CS. I see no logic to how and why they do it. It's hasn't made using the apps any easier since at least CS4.

 

[leonardr]

That statement confirms the common sentiment that Adobe has become the arrogant 800-lb Gorilla and that they have forgotten about customer service.

FWIW: This has been the position of Adobe concerning Acrobat since version 2.0 (aka the first time you could have two different versions - almost 20(!) years ago! NOTHING has changed here.

 

[leonardr]

If a piece of software is called "Pro" it should look, feel and act like a product targeted for Professionals.

It is targeted at professionals - Print Professionals, Legal Professionals, Government Professionals, Engineering Professionals, Education Professionals, Geospatial Professionals, and dozens and dozens of other professionals for whom we have added features to the product over its 20 year history!