One of the most common upgrade questions we see out there is asking what’s new, what’s different, what’s better, what’s changed between Adobe CS5 and CS4? Or more fundamen­tally, what are the key new features in CS5, versus CS4, or even CS3?

Creative Suite 5 contains hundreds of new or enhanced features and func­tions across the 15 point products that comprise it. So the easiest way to look at it is by major product… For example, Photoshop CS5 Extended con­tains 18 new features that CS4 didn’t have, plus a further 14 more that have been enhanced. The numbers are similar for other products and even greater over CS3 of course – although generally speaking CS5 has significantly more improvements and innovation compared to CS4 than CS4 had over CS3.

CS4 was certainly a capable release (we used it here every day), but some folks have com­mented that CS5 is really the release they wanted when CS4 came out and that CS5 is a game-changer over both previous versions… On that account, we haven’t seen a bad review of CS5 yet.

So for the breakout by individual product, here are the CS5 vs. CS4 vs. CS3 comparisons:

Read more…

[UPDATE (June 4th) – If you'd also like to download CS5 directly see our complete set of links.
If you want to buy After Effects CS4 or Premiere Pro CS4, see our recommendation here.]

Even though Creative Suite 5 is out and is a phenomenal release, some folks still need the earlier versions for various reasons: 32-bit vs 64-bit (e.g., After Effects and Premiere Pro), compatibility with other software or systems owned, the rest of your class or company is still on CS4, you need to reinstall but no longer have your original disks or download file, etc… But this older software is now hard to find – Adobe doesn’t publicize or provide a web interface for it. So if you’ve been searching high and low all over the Internet to find the official Adobe trial downloads for CS4 or CS3, well your search is over!

Below are two tables for CS4 trial downloads in major languages. These links go to the auth­entic CS4 files residing on Adobe’s servers, are guaranteed genuine and will not change. For Windows, each program consists of two files, an .exe and a 7-Zip file (.7z). The .exe file will only work once the .7z package is fully downloaded and resides in the same location. For the Mac, it’s just a single .dmg file for each program.

There are also optional “extra content” downloads included here for most products that consist of one or two additional files, which you can install separately after the main product is installed.

Read more…

Following up to our popular post Tuesday on CS5 release timing, an alert reader discovered a new site launched yesterday morning called the Adobe Creative Suite Buzz Hub… It’s a ‘Twitteresque’ destination where you can follow and see official tweets for the products or evangelists you’re interested in. Facebook connections are there too, as well as an initial set of videos.

Thus far there are presentations on getting started with the design tool Flash Catalyst, which is new for CS5, plus Introducing BrowserLab, which allows you to easily preview and test your web pages on multiple browsers and operating systems on demand, and new script development app Adobe Story, both of which are in limited free preview. There’s also a humorous performance from Photoshop guru Russell Brown.

Adobe expects the buzz site will be a focal point for Creative Suite updates and videos going forward…

You know all the usual reasons software makers give to register your software – to receive tech support, news, updates, offers, bugfixes, etc. Now Adobe is adding another reason – to get free gifts. They’re called “complimentary benefits.”

For example, if you register your CS4 product, you can choose from one of these bonuses: 30 days of free training at Lynda.com, free or discounted books or magazines, or access to download 16 free fonts.

Doing the same for Acrobat gets you similar choices, or a 5% discount coupon for anything at the Adobe store. CS3 users can qualify for benefits as well.

Note that to get these gifts you need to use “in-product” registration (the easiest)… Typically this is offered at the time of installation of the application, when a screen prompts you to register by completing just a few fields. Or, if your software is already installed, you can register at any time by selecting Help > Registration from your application’s menu toolbar.

Also BTW, with any product registration, you also get on the list to receive invitations to Adobe events. Just another reasonable benefit.

(It should be noted that complimentary benefits do vary by region and product and are subject to availability.)

Most people know that “CS4″ is both a version number for major Adobe applications (thirteen of them), as well as the given name for a number of suites or collections of those applications. But with six differing suite choices out there, what is less well known is what’s actually in each of them – and which one is right for what you want to do?

The CS4 collections come in several flavors – two for Web (Standard/Premium), two also for Design (Standard/Premium), Production Premium (which adds audio and video), and Master Collection (which includes every single CS4 app together in one big integrated bundle).

Now, as for exactly which applications are in each of these, the complete descriptions, and how much they cost, happily the answers are right here, all on a single page: www.CS5selector.com

Of note: The larger suite you buy, the more money saved. For example, with the Web Standard edition, you save 37% off the price of each of its products sold separately. But in going all the way up to Master Collection, you save over 60% off the individual components.