Creative Suite 6 was released earlier this month with much that’s new across the product line, and some other changes like upgrades now being available (only) from Adobe direct.

Last week we posted on nearly 18 hours of free video tutorials for CS6… But printed materials are also nice, to use side-by-side at your own pace. How about some free new e-books to go along with those, which you can instantly download and learn from whenever you want?

There are 169 chapters in total with over 1,000 pages for most CS6 products. Some tools receive more coverage than others, but the basics are reviewed for all. You can download in the ebooks in PDF format after signing in with your Adobe ID (which is easy to create if you don’t already have one).

If you don’t have the software yet, just download a free working trial for any CS6 product for Windows or Mac – then install, run, and start your training…

Here’s how the files break out. Click on the title to download the e-book, or the trial to get the free product tryout. The book file sizes range from 4-10 MB each, so shouldn’t take long to download. The contents of each volume are listed below the table:

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Creative Suite 6 is now available for instant download and direct shipping, and there are many important differences in this release compared to Creative Suite 5, including hundreds of new features added to the individual applications.

Here we’ve put together a complete set of direct download links for all the new CS6 products (Windows and Mac OS), for instant easy access and the ability to use your own download manager or download assistant if you have any difficulty with what Adobe normally employs and need to access the trials without it… Whether you’re considering buying a full version or upgrading from a prior release, you can always use these trials to install, run, and activate the software on your system.

Where available, we’ve also linked the free CS6 Extra Content downloads (aka Additional or Functional Content). Direct links for both the Adobe Muse 1.0 free trial and the Adobe Edge Preview are offered as well.

Below is a table for CS6 trials in major languages. These links go to the auth­entic and original CS6 files residing on Adobe’s servers, are guaranteed genuine and will not change. For Windows, each program consists of up to two files, an .exe and a 7-Zip file (.7z). The .exe file will only work once the .7z file is fully downloaded and resides in the same location. For the Mac, it’s just a single .dmg file for each program.

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[UPDATE (April 23rd) – CS6 is out!]

Creative Suite 6 is now available for instant download and direct shipping, and there are many important differences in this release compared to Creative Suite 5, including hundreds of new features added to the individual applications.

And after giving away CS6 Master Collection earlier this month, we now would like to focus especially on Adobe’s popular lineup of Digital Imaging Products. In particular, we want to give brand new copies of Photoshop CS6, Lightroom 4, and Photoshop Elements 10 to three of you, our amazing readers!

There will be one winner for each of these products, which are the commercial English versions for either Windows or Mac OS. The three winners will receive them in prize packages also containing Adobe/CS6 tee-shirts, pens, and other goodies. 1st prize is Photoshop, 2nd prize is Lightroom, and 3rd prize is PSE – with a total estimated retail value for all prizes of US$1000.

Sound good?  These are all brand new releases, so it may help to know what’s new in Photoshop CS6, what’s new in Lightroom 4, and what’s new in Photoshop Elements 10.

How to enter?  It’s easy to gain up to four chances to win…  The contest is open to residents of North America, U.K., Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa – and to enter just do one (or more) of the following:

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[UPDATE – Also see our new Photoshop CS6 Giveaway!]

There’s no doubt that Creative Suite 6 will be out sometime later this year… We have a pretty good sense of when, but we’d like to get a leg up on the release and give out a brand new boxed copy of Adobe’s forthcoming top-of-the-line CS6 suite to our amazing readers who have helped build our site to what it is today…

Yes, that’s right, this is it: the big enchilada, the numero uno, the biggest of the best Adobe premium suites – it’s CS6 Master Collection, containing nearly every great application that Adobe makes!  It includes Photoshop Extended, Dreamweaver, Acrobat Pro, InDesign, Illus­trator, After Effects, Premiere Pro, and many more – see all the applications it will likely contain when released.

We’ve given away a lot of software over the years, but this prize is our largest ever…  And it’s not an upgrade or an education version – this is the shrinkwrapped, full commercial English release of CS6, which has been generously furnished by Adobe.  Master Collection currently sells for $2,599 / €2,899 / £2,303 – and collectively the 15+ major programs within are worth $7,587 if purchased separately.

So what new features will be in CS6, compared to CS5.5?  Well, we have a good sense of Photoshop CS6 already through the free beta release download…  For the other products, Adobe’s CEO dropped some hints recently, in addition to nearly a dozen sneak peek videos, plus the inside scoop on the CS6 video products.

How to get it?  Well, it’s easy to enter.  The contest is open to residents of North America, U.K., Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa – and all you need to do for a chance to win is one (or more) of the following:

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[UPDATE – Also see our new Photoshop CS6 Giveaway!]

If you like Photoshop and want a free paid trip to Photoshop World plus a CS5.5 suite, check out Adobe’s Next Photoshop Evangelist contest…  All you have to do is create and upload a 1-2 minute video demonstrating your favorite “Hidden Gem” in Photoshop CS5.

What’s a hidden gem? Essentially, it’s just a lesser-known feature or workflow of the product that you find valuable – perhaps using a function or tool in a way that Adobe didn’t imagine… For some great examples, check out this helpful series of Photoshop Hidden Gems that Adobe produced.

Submit your video here »

The top 5 videos will be selected and voted on, with the winner receiving a $4,000-$6,000 prize package including a trip to the PSW Conference either in Washington, D.C. this spring, or in Las Vegas this fall – plus a full copy of CS5.5 Design Standard. The trip includes roundtrip airfare, lodging, event admission, and spending money – plus meeting Adobe’s Photoshop Product Team personally and the opportunity to demonstrate your hidden gem live at the show. Four runners-up will get a free $1,000 copy of Photoshop CS5 Extended.

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[UPDATE – Also see our new Photoshop CS6 Giveaway!]

Anybody interested in some free copies of new Adobe Lightroom 4?

We’ve got them. Adobe says the 4th release of this very popular photography solution is due to ship fairly soon – however if you want to try it out and get your feet wet before then, you can just download and run the free LR4 beta version, though this shouldn’t be used for production or permanent work.

In the meantime, did you know that Adobe just extended an unprecedented deal on the current full version – Lightroom 3 – for half off the regular price of US$300, save 50% worldwide? Yes, it’s true, and never been done before – but you can take advantage of that here.  And you’d still be eligible and welcome for the free giveaway of version 4 by entering below.

So, we’ve got two brand new boxed copies of the final official Lightroom 4 product all lined up and would love to give them away to our faithful readers…  It’s easy to sign up.  The contest is open to residents of North America, U.K., Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa – and all you need to do for a chance to win is one (or both) of the following:

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[UPDATE – Also see our new Photoshop CS6 Giveaway!]

Welcome 2012!  Last year we gave away a lot of software, so to kick off the new year right, we’re going to be giving away a brand new boxed copy of the Adobe Creative Suite 5.5 Web Premium suite. This is one of the top-selling CS editions and the second largest prize we’ve ever done…

Creative Suite 5.5 was officially released in May, and contains a large number of new product features and improvements over CS5.  But this giveaway is not an upgrade or an education version – it is the shrinkwrapped, full commercial English version of CS 5.5.

CS5.5 Web Premium sells for $1,799 / €1,999 / £1,429 and includes the popular applications Photoshop Extended, Dreamweaver, Illustrator, Acrobat X Pro, Flash Pro/Catalyst, Fireworks, among others… (see the complete list of products it contains)  If you want to try it out first and install it on your computer, that’s easy as the free trial is available for download for both Windows and Mac OS.

Owning Creative Suite 5.5 would also make you eligible to upgrade to CS6 when that product line eventually releases.

Read more…

[UPDATE – Also see our new Photoshop CS6 Giveaway!]

We’ve given away a lot of products over the past couple years, but haven’t yet offered Adobe Lightroom…  So here, now, we’re giving away Adobe Lightroom 3 (value US$300) with a new camera bag!  Second prize is the Photoshop & Premiere Elements 10 Bundle (US$150), and for third place we have an Adobe-branded prize pack with T-shirt, pen, lanyard, and other surprises.

Actually, all three winners will receive one of those prize packs, so much the better. The free copy of Lightroom is graciously sponsored by Adobe, and should do nicely until Lightroom 4 is released. Photoshop and Premiere Elements 10 are brand new, out five weeks ago.

The goal of the contest is to learn from our readers worldwide:
What would you like to see in the next release of your favorite Adobe product?

It could be any one – CS6 (any application), Lightroom 4, Acrobat 11, Photoshop Elements 11, and the rest.  What do you hope for, want Adobe to add/do/change, what’s on your wishlist?
Just share it in a comment below and/or on Facebook, and you’re entered.  Please be sure to include the name of the future product you’re talking about (for example, “In CS6 I’d like …”).

To double your power and effectiveness, then copy and paste the same comment into Adobe’s Official Feature Request form to let them know directly.  Here’s your chance to make your voice heard, and win some nice products doing it.

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Just back from Adobe MAX 2011 and it was sensational… The keynote presentations were larger than life and filled with news and demos of new Adobe software and initiatives. The hundreds of diverse product sessions were incredibly educational. The show floor was a buzzing activity of experts, partners, and vendors… And the renowned “MAX Bash” party did not disappoint.

But perhaps the best part for those who weren’t there is the majority of the sessions were captured on video and are now offered online for free… In other words, pick your favorite Adobe product(s) and you can learn the latest tips, tricks, and techniques from the top instructors in the field from the comfort of your desktop. There are three major tracks below (Design, Develop, and Envision) with scores of different topics; most sessions are about an hour long and the collection runs to over 160 hours of video in total.

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Summer is officially over and everybody’s gotten back to school… And with that, did you know that Adobe offers free full-year curriculums on print, web, and video design? The three yearlong, project-based programs are downloadable to anyone for developing career and communica­tion skills using Adobe’s industry-leading tools. The courses include presentations, instructor project guidelines, reproducible student materials and select media assets, and each project builds on lessons learned previously.

Adobe collaborated with a community of educators across the US and UK to develop the appropriate depth and breadth of each project. Additionally, Adobe co-developed the classes with the International Society of Technology Education (ISTE) to create standards-aligned, career-track, course materials that focus on the major fields below. They are recommended for use when preparing for Adobe certification (Adobe Certified Associate, or ACA).

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