Claudia McCue

On Monday, May 6th, in the AdobeMAX keynote prefaced (somewhat ominously) by a driving instrumental snippet from the Allman Brothers’ “Whipping Post,” Adobe announced that the next versions of its creative tools will be designated “CC” — and will be available only via Creative Cloud subscriptions. This means the end of perpetual (conventional) licenses. Adobe will continue to sell perpetual licenses for CS6, but only by download — no boxed software. The new CC tools will become available on June 17th.

There are compelling new features in CC:

Photoshop

• Camera Shake Reduction
• Camera Raw as a filter
• Intelligent Upscale
• Smart Sharpening

Illustrator

• TouchType
• On-object transform controls
• Area Type to Point Type conversion (and vice versa)
• Images in Brushes
• Auto-generated corners for Pattern brushes

InDesign

• Greatly improved EPUB export
• 64-bit native (and this was a ton of work)
• De-Carbonized for future enhancements on Mac (another ton of work)
• QR Code generation

As for other applications, you’ll have to consult www.adobe.com: I’m a stodgy old print person, so I confess that I’m ignorant of what’s going on with the Web and video applications.

Pricing and Installing Nitty-Gritty

• You can now buy a year of Creative Cloud with one payment.
• If you own Creative Suite 3 or later, you can join the Cloud for $29.99/month for your first year. After that, the price goes up to $49.99/month.
• If you own a perpetual license for Creative Suite 6, you pay $19.99/month for your first year (and then $49.99/month in subsequent years).
• As with perpetual licensing, you can install on two computers (yours—not yours and your brother-in-law’s). And since the software is downloadable, one could be Mac, and one could be PC (no crossgrade charge). While the licensing implies that only one computer can be used at a time, I have CS6 running on my laptop and desktop at this very moment. InDesign and Photoshop are open on both, with no yellow terror alerts warning me that I’m going to Software Hell as a result. In my heart, I don’t think I’m violating the spirit of the license, since I’m one person. [suddenly, there’s a knock at the door...] Realistically, though, my arms aren’t long enough, nor am I sufficiently ambidextrous to truly be using both computers simultaneously.
• If you need Cloud applications on more than 2 computers, you’ll need another Cloud subscription, and another Adobe ID for additional subscriptions (no big deal; I have a bunch of Adobe IDs so I can test DPS stuff).
• As with the current version of the Cloud, you have to be online only to download and install the software. The software is installed on your computer, just like any other software. Once a month, it silently “calls home” to ensure that your credit card has been successfully charged; that’s the only time you have to be online. (There’s talk of more lenient arrangements, requiring the computer to check in over longer periods, and even more “conventional” arrangements possible for government agencies.)
• If you end your subscription, you’ll still have any files you’ve created, of course, but your software will stop working after a 30-day grace period.
• Don’t need all the programs? You can subscribe to individual products. But if, like most of us, you use more than one program, it makes more sense to just do the Cloud subscription. It gives you access to all the applications, plus numerous services, such as 20GB of Dropbox-like online file storage, free (basic) Business Catalyst hosting for a site created with Adobe Muse, and a free Behance ProSite account.

How do I feel about this change? I’m not utterly surprised — it does mean steady revenue for Adobe, and they swear that we will be given frequent new features to “sweeten the pot.” But I thought we’d be given a one-version warning before they pulled the trigger. I gather that Cloud adoption has been faster than Adobe anticipated—perhaps that hastened this move.

What should you do?

Well, it depends…
Stick with a perpetual/conventionally-licensed copy of CS6 if:

• You work alone, and submit finished files to print providers.
• You don’t anticipate creating EPUBs (or you’re happy tweaking the exported coded)
• You aren’t interested in Muse or the Edge family of products
• You plan to keep this computer and current operating system forever

What might force you into the Cloud:

• The need to collaborate with Cloud subscribers using newer versions
• The need to buy a new computer with newer operating system that doesn’t support your copy of, say, CS3.
• The need for Cloud-only applications such as Muse or the Edge products
• The need for features available only in Cloud versions of applications

I’m in an odd position: because I’m a trainer and writer, I have to keep current. But even when I was in prepress, I always upgraded my own software immediately, just because I loved playing with new stuff (and I had to stay ahead of the jobs coming in). So my natural bent would probably drive me into the Cloud. Mind you, I still have all my old versions, both for historical curiosity (“when did we get that feature?”) and to handle antique files in their native habitat (“It’s a PageMaker 6 file? How…quaint.”)

On top of that, I do freelance work for Adobe: I present at printer-sponsored co-hosts and at AIGA events. So I have no choice but to install the latest and greatest. So you might question my objectivity—fair enough. But I truly am trying to maintain my natural cynicism nonetheless. So, with that in mind:

Pros for Adobe:

• Steady revenue stream is good for bottom line (and that means that people I really like at Adobe get to keep their jobs)
• I’m trying to think of another, but that pretty much covers it. UPDATE: As someone remarked to me, maybe this means that the teams aren’t forced to exactly the same release schedule, since features can come “down the pipe” as they’re ready. That could benefit the development teams (and consumers).

Cons for Adobe:

• This could really piss off customers: the appeal of an optional Cloud may not carry over to the forced Cloud. If people don’t upgrade, revenue sags.
• Even if Adobe backs down from the forced Cloud, the bad taste will remain in the mouths of the disgruntled.

Pros For Users:

• Access to every application
• Cross-platform installation
• New features without additional upgrade costs

Cons For Users:

• You’re leasing software: stop paying, it stops working.
• Printers will either have to obtain multiple individual subscriptions, or use the (more expensive) Teams subscription.
• Government and other corporate agencies will have to make special arrangements for Cloud subscriptions, to accommodate firewall and other security concerns.

What About Compatibility?

The potentional for incompatibility with clients’ and collaborators’ versions isn’t new—I have numerous clients who are still using CS4 (especially on Windows). That’s why I keep all my old versions. Adobe has said that they will make every version from CS6 forward available, which implies that, even when “CC3” is released, subscribers would be able to download and install CS6 applications. So this sounds like we’ll have a continuum of versions available for those situations. How will any changes in file architecture affect us? Well, given that, for example, InDesign CC can export IDML that can be opened in CS4 or later, I don’t anticipate problems in the very near future.

I currently have CS4, CS5, CS5.5, CS6 Cloud installed on both my laptop and desktop computers. I used my AIGA 15% discount to purchase a PC version of CS6 Design Standard, and a Mac version of Design Premium, so I have “hard” versions of CS6 that I can install on both platforms if necessary. And if I wake up all my old laptops, I have everything back to the last century. Why, look—here’s my installer for InDesign 1.0.

Tell Us How You Really Feel

So, am I pro-Cloud or anti-Cloud? To quote an old coworker, “I feel strongly both ways.” Want to hedge your bets? If you’re not yet a Cloud subscriber, join AIGA at the Supporter level ($150/yr) or above, and take advantage of the software discount benefit to get a copy of CS6, and keep that on the back burner. Join the Cloud, see if you like it. If you don’t, you always have CS6 to fall back on when civilization collapses (which is imminent, given that elementary schools are not teaching cursive writing, basic grammar, or multiplication tables).

I’ll be frank— I don’t like the idea of leasing software. I know that software is licensed for use, not ownership, but it doesn’t evaporate when you have a conventional perpetual license. I don’t resent the fact that I “rent” my cellphone, cable, and internet services. But I wouldn’t want to lease a car, or rent my house. I can’t quite put my finger on what makes me uneasy about this, but I’m not fond of the idea. Despite the advantages (easy download, tons of features, the promise of constant improvements), the software now seems less real. Less mine.

Then again, it’s not exactly like leasing a car, since the software is not unchanging. If car leases were like Creative Cloud, I’d walk out to the garage one morning to find that I now had heated seats and a sunroof, without an increase in my monthly lease. I could get used to that.

I will soon have to present the new Creative Cloud model to groups, and I’ll be interested to see how they respond. Or maybe I should say “I’ll be steeled” for their reactions: maybe I’d better download “Whipping Post” to serve as the soundtrack.

It may be much like this:

http://bit.ly/11THKHL

What do you think?

I came across a very old ink drawing I’d done, depicting my segue from science to print. I happily abandoned my old Pickett slide rule for what was then the pinnacle of drawing instruments, a technical drawing pen. I always gravitated to the finest points, enabling me to render tiny details accurately.

I fear that, after years using a mouse, my drawing skills have atrophied completely. Those cerebral circuits have long since been reworked, so that I wield virtual pens in Illustrator and Photoshop, rather than real-world drawing tools. But I think that those sensibilities were repurposed successfully to the digital world.

This much.

New bike tag:

No, not me. The word “me.”

Apparently, it strikes fear in the hearts of many. For example: “Betsy called Bob and I.” Would you say “Betsy called I”? Of course not. It’s “Betsy called Bob and me.”

It’s helpful to put each action in its own sentence: “Betsy called Bob.” “Betsy called me.” Thus, “Betsy called Bob and me.”

And then there’s the irksome misuse of myself. “I was hoping you would collaborate with Mary and myself.”

“Myself” is only used when you do something to yourself: “I burned myself while frying bacon.” It would never be “Mary burned MYSELF with a branding iron,” for any number of reasons (grammar, as well as Mary’s psychotic behavior). So the correct construction would be “I was hoping you would collaborate with Mary and me.” Again, think of it in segments: “I was hoping you could collaborate with me.” It sounds wrong when you say “I was hoping you would collaborate with myself.” It sounds wrong because it is wrong.

And don’t get me started on whom…

Recently, I was out with a group of InDesign geek friends (yes, we travel in packs) having drinks after a day-long seminar. Mind you, this is a group of some of the brightest — and funniest — guys I know. We’d had a few rounds of debilitating laughter already, so we were primed to laugh easily. As we were sharing keyboard shortcuts (or something like that), a woman from a nearby table came over and struck up a conversation with one of the guys. Soon, she began handing out her business cards. In the dim light, we each looked down at the card she’d handed us, and apparently all had the same thought simultaneously, finally voiced by one of the guys: “Uh, I can’t pronounce your last name.” Loosened up by earlier laughing fits, we all started chuckling. Finally, someone said it aloud: “Well, I think she’s Polish. Or maybe Czech.” That was the last straw, and we dissolved in the final laughing fit of the evening (well, maybe you had to be there…) Let me explain. Here’s a recreation of the card, with the name and company changed to protect the kerning-impaired. Squint to replicate looking at it under subdued lighting.

The professional abbreviation, CITP.CPA, is so tightly set, and so close to the name, that a casual reader reads it all as one unit, seeing “CITPCPA” as the last name. Of course, a careful re-reading decodes it correctly. But after a couple of Bailey’s, it’s fairly hilarious.

Here, I’ve reworked the name and title to prevent such hilarity. The dual professional designations are separated by a slash, and generous kerning before and after the slash makes it unambiguous. See? Good kerning isn’t just a nicety—it’s a must.

Disclaimer: Any resemblance to the business card of a real person, living, dead, or undead, is purely coincidental. Professional driver on closed course. Your kerning values may vary. No offense is intended to Polish or Czech individuals, or any other vowel-limited group.

Remember when printing companies used to give out free tint sample books, showing combinations of cyan, magenta, and yellow so you could get an idea of what your CMYK combos might look? I haven’t seen one in a while, so I have created files so you can print your own. Of course, unless your printing device is carefully profiled, your output won’t necessarily match a commercial printer’s results. But if you print in-house, you may find them helpful. They show only combinations of C+M+Y —adding all the black combinations would result in over 400 pages, so I’m afraid you’ll have to imagine what adding 15%K might produce.

I’ve provided two versions:

Illustrator CS5 file: www.practicalia.net/tintblocks/ColorBlocksBy5.ai
Adobe PDF file: www.practicalia.net/tintblocks/ColorBlocksBy5.pdf

Hope you find them useful!

I love the concept of Kindle — and it’s not limited to the Kindle device. I can read a bit on my Kindle, then pick up my iPad and, with the Kindle app, continue a book. I can even crank up the Kindle app on my Android phone and continue to read. Let’s hear it for the Kloud!

A couple of months ago, Amazon notified me that my account had been compromised, and thus had to be shut down: I would have to create a new account and start over. The result was that all the Kindle purchases under the old account would be wiped out. While there are a number of books I wouldn’t want to buy or read again (that’s another post), some of them are important keepers. I had to deregister my Kindle, iPad, and smartphone, losing all the archived titles in the process.

How would I remember all the books that were held in archive in the Kindle Kloud? Well, Amazon was kind enough to send me a list of every book I’d purchased in the last two years. I blanched when I looked at the list — holy cow, I’ve been spending a lot on books! Of course, that’s the beauty (and danger) of the Kindle: It’s so painless to buy a book with a simple click.

I’d just resigned myself to the expensive prospect of repurchasing the books I wanted to preserve, or having to request that Amazon reinstate my purchases to the new account, when I received another email from Amazon customer service, informing me that they’d given me a gift card in the amount of all my Kindle purchases since the beginning! And it was not limited to the books I’d purchased: it’s just a blanket credit to my Amazon account.

Now that’s customer service with a smile! And a hug. I was stunned.

I would’ve just repurchased my favorite books anyway; it never occurred to me to ask for reimbursement. Now, with thoughtful customer service, Amazon turned bad news into a gift, and created a lifelong customer in the process.

You may not have considered this, but software has to be regionalized to accommodate multiple languages. As you might expect, translating technical terms and interface components can be a challenge. But it’s important to make it easy for end-users to interact with the software.

In that spirit, I propose this change to the Buttons panel in InDesign, to be deployed in the Southeast U.S., where I live:

(We don’t click buttons down here in Georgia. We mash ‘em.)

A number of my clients are construction-related groups who are planning to use InDesign for proposals and other company materials. Previously, they’ve used Microsoft Word and Publisher, and found it frustrating to be creative. If you’ve ever tried been forced to do page layout in Word, I’m sure you can sympathize!

Most of these clients want to keep the “look” of their new InDesign documents in keeping with previous materials. But it’s tough to create templates when you’re still learning the program, so many of these companies have contracted with experienced designers to create the templates for them.

Since I like to see typical client files before training (so I have an idea of what they need to know), I often have the opportunity to deconstruct these supplied template files before the client starts using them. And it’s a good thing I do. With only one exception, I’ve found that the designers are not giving my clients a very good start! Clearly, they need to be asking more questions before cranking up InDesign.

Some considerations when building templates for a client: Continue Reading »

InDesign allows you to create custom stroke styles. If you’re tasteful, you can create interesting dashed effects or multiple-stripe borders. If you’re willing to be tacky, you can use some of InDesign’s hidden Easter eggs to take it even farther.

To get started, choose Stroke Styles from the Stroke panel menu (or the Control Panel menu). Choose the Dash option (this won’t work with the Dotted or Stripe options). The settings don’t matter — what’s important is the name. Name your new custom style “Lights,” and click OK. Now you’ll see a little strand of Christmas lights at the bottom of your list of strokes. Whee!

Click OK again to exit the custom stroke style dialog. Now you can apply your festive new string of lights to a frame. While you can only apply a simple solid stroke to text, if you convert text to outlines, that restriction is lifted. Mwah-ha-ha.

Create some text (preferably bold enough to give your lights some elbow room), then select the text frame and choose Type > Create Outlines. Choose the Lights stroke style from the Stroke pull-down in the Control panel, and set the weight of the stroke sufficiently high to make the lights visible (probably somewhere in the 5-10 point range). You can apply a fill color, but your choice of stroke color will be ignored. If you choose a Gap color, it will appear behind the lights, filling the width of the stroke weight you chose.

I’m not saying it’s right. This may fall into the JBYCDMYS category (Just Because You Can Doesn’t Mean You Should), but that just adds to the fun. All we need now is Debbie Gibson Boone singing “You Light Up My Type.”

You can’t select bulbs and change their color in InDesign, but you can select the art and copy/paste into Illustrator and modify it there. Then just paste back into InDesign.
By the way, there are others: try creating stroke styles named Feet, Woof, and Happy.