Nov. 17, 2008—I had the opportunity this past summer to go to an Adobe conference in New York City, where I, along with a handful of others, got the opportunity to get hands-on training with beta versions of the new Creative Suite software from Adobe. I left that conference excited to get my hands on a review copy, eager to go a bit more in depth into the new bits and pieces this iteration brings to the collection.

This latest version, like previous ones, has even more improved integration between the programs, making it easier to move between them, and work in more than one at a time. This is especially useful for shops looking to get into producing full marketing campaigns that incorporate more than just print.

And the multimedia aspects of the suite, and the way you can flow between Photoshop to AfterEffects or Flash or Premiere is really where CS4 shines.

"Designers and developers are shaping the way that people consume information, share ideas, sell products, tell stories, and create memorable experiences—in print, online and via mobile handsets," said Shantanu Narayen, president and CEO at Adobe. "Whether you're creating a rich Internet application, a video, or a best-selling magazine, Adobe Creative Suite 4 delivers powerful cross-media technologies that have the ability to elevate products, brands and ideas above the clutter."

At the conference, each session, which covered one specific product in the suite, tackled a single part of a campaign for a fictitious movie. The campaign included everything from a mobile site to engage users on the go, to a print campaign, to animations and commercials. All done in the Adobe suite, using tools and interfaces that, if you're a long-time Adobe fan, you'll recognize. Even if you've never used one particular element of the suite, Adobe is making an effort to make it almost seamless to step in and use one part once you've learned another.

CS4 doesn't make a completely seamless transition in that regard, but it's closer than past versions have been, and it shows a strong picture of where the company plans to take it.

Pricing and Availability
In a strategy that is becoming familiar to users across the computer world, and Adobe users in particular, this version of CS4 is once more offered in several packages, each one geared toward a specific market.

The estimated street price for the Design Premium is $1,799, and includes InDesign CS4, Photoshop CS4 Extended, Illustrator CS4, Flash CS4 Professional, Dreamweaver CS4, Acrobat 9 Pro, and the newly integrated Fireworks CS4.

The price for Web Premium is $1,699, with new versions of Fireworks, Dreamweaver, Flash Professional, Photoshop Extended, Illustrator, Contribute CS4, Device Central CS4, and Acrobat 9 Professional. For the first time, it will include Soundbooth CS4 as well.

Production Premium, which is the version most print shops will be interested in, retails for $1,699. It includes After Effects CS4 Professional, Premiere Pro, Encore CS4, Photoshop Extended, Illustrator, Flash Professional, Soundbooth, and OnLocation CS4.

And if you can't stand not to have them all, the full Master Collection is available for $2,499.

Adobe does have a tiered upgrade pricing plan, so for shops using previous versions, the cost to upgrade will be slightly less than the street prices.
To Upgrade, or Not To Upgrade?

That is the question. If you're happy with your current version of the Adobe products, and you aren't planning to expand into multimedia options, waiting to upgrade isn't going to cripple you. There are some great productivity gains, and features that will add functionality and ease of use to your workflow, but they aren't absolutely necessary for most commercial print users.

However, if your goal is to expand into a media company, providing not just print, but ideas and campaigns, to clients, this version of the Creative Suite would be a fantastic investment. It makes this transition much easier, and will allow you to take advantage of skills and personnel you already have at your disposal.

I wish I had the space to go into every single feature and element of the new suite I enjoyed. But if I were to do that, we'd be here all day.

My suggestion then is for anyone who's interested, go to Adobe's Web site, where the company has a wide variety of materials ranging from spec sheets to demo videos, not to mention their robust user community group. There, you can bring your specific workflow and needs, and target your software upgrades to exactly what you need.