Adobe CS4 new features worth the buck?

I just wanted to get some more informed opinions, I am still waiting for the trials to be released before I spend my life savings so I am relying on you.

I read some of the features on google and they do seem attractive, very attractive but are they worth the buck even to upgrade from CS3? Thats a lot of cash...

 

get the demo and see for your self...
i got the demo, but i decided its not worth it over cs3

 

Trials are as yet unavailable for download mate but a bunch of people have it already and I dont know how they got it without buying it

 

The trials are on their websites.



Apparently Adobe hasn't made it too difficult to comb their website

 

It tells me to put in my email address so they can notify when the trials will be released...

 

Ive got CS4 Master worth every penny

 

No clue what you guys are on about, the full version has been out already for a bit now, so demos are available and piracy is not surprising.

The new Photoshop is not CPU-independent anymore, it actually utilizes the GPU as well now, making it a very fast graphics renderer. It even has the long-awaited canvas rotation feature, allowing you to digitally paint or edit at different angles. There's a whole bunch of new issues for photo-editors alike, so I do feel that the new PSCS4 is very worth it. Not sure of the Master Collection though, I don't know of a single person that uses every single program in there. Web-designers/companies usually use most of the programs in there.

I'd rather purchase the programs separately.

 

i still use adobe ps 7 at home... works perfect, seems to be basically the same as CS3 - not sure about CS4.

 

I find that its better to "purchase" them all together so that you can at least be sure that if you need to use a program that you will have it and wont need to "purchase" it separtely. Besides you get a good deal when you "purchase" them all together in the master.

 

"Purchase" in quotes = illegally pirate?

You're making yourself sound suspicious

 

No i like to "emphasise" words like that

 

LOL, yes.. "purchase."

 

If you have a discrete GPU and need to handle very large images and 3D stuff, then CS4 will worth every penny, because it has GPU acceleration. But not all GPUs are supported though.

 

True.

Might I add...Quadros are supported

 

GPU and OpenGL Features and Limitations in Photoshop CS4

http://kb.adobe.com/selfservice/viewContent.do?externalId=kb404898

 

Vista 64-bit is supported I love PS! Add that to my OpenGL card and we've got some heavy performance going on. Supported nVidia's:

geForce

nVidia 260 GTX 896MB
nVidia 9800 GTX 512MB
nVidia 9600 GT 512MB
nVidia 8800 GTX 768MB
nVidia 8800 GT 512MB
nVidia 8600M 256MB
nVidia 7900 GTX 512MB
nVidia 7900 GS 256MB
nVidia 7800 GTX 256MB
nVidia 7600 256MB
nVidia 6800 256MB

Quadro

Quadro FX 4600 768 MB
Quadro FX 4500 512MB
Quadro FX 4400 512MB
Quadro FX 3700 512MB
Quadro FX 3500 256MB
Quadro FX 1700 512MB
Quadro FX 1500 256MB
Quadro FX 1400 -128MB
Quadro FX 570 -256MB
Quadro FX 370 256MB

 

For the life of me I can not download the trials from Adobes website... is it just me?

 

I guess so

 

No I'm having the same problem. I've download there trials multiple times but i just tried it so see what was going on. I went to adobe.com click downloads/ trial downloads. Cs4 then i clicked try and it takes me to this page.

http://www.adobe.com/cfusion/mmform/index.cfm?name=cs4_notify&loc=en_us&promoid=DTELQ

I even logged in with my adobe id and still get the same thing.

this was the page i was on http://www.adobe.com/downloads/

if you click some programs like photoshop light room 2 it works but not regular photoshop

 

thank god its not just me

 

first login to adobe.com
then go to http: / / www.adobe.com/downloads/
choose to download lightroom, when the download started, just cancel it
after that, click the link below this
http://trials.adobe.com/Applications/Photoshop/CS4/Win/ADBEPHSPCS4_LS1.exe
http://trials.adobe.com/Applications/Photoshop/CS4/Win/ADBEPHSPCS4_LS1.7z

 

that doesn't do anything

 

As a web designer, most of the features aren't worth the price hike.

The GUI update is minimal and unintuitive from what I experienced in the trial. I wanted to move a layer over to another canvas so I did what any other person would do... drag the layer out of the layer palette and over to the other tab. What happens? Well in my case, absolutely nothing. While the initiative to implement the tabbing system was appreciated, I felt it was half-arsed.

 

I like the fact that it uses the GPU to help with rendering now, but will integrated GPUs work with it as well? I'm rather confused on the technicalities. I saw the list of what they've tested, but that's what it is, just a list of what they've tested. What's the criteria of the GPU in order to help with rendering? It seems like it just has to support OpenGL (no clue what that is >.>). So would say, an Intel x3100 or a 4500MHD even help, or would it just over look those? I'd say CS4 is worth it just if any GPU would help with rendering. That canvas rotation is also something really nice, probably more for convertible/slate tablet users though, and people with those nice Cinqt displays.

 

my mistake
last time I tried, it works, and now installed it already

 

You can torrent trials, lol...

 

Does Photoshop CS4 have the import GIF function?

 

What import Gif function? Ive got Photoshop CS4 and i dont see it

 

What I meant is to open GIF (animated) file. CS3 only able to open the first frame. Unlike ImageReady...

That means it still not there, eh. Adobe forcing the users to buy/learn Fireworks or Flash?

 

I miss IR too.

In CS4, can you open a .gif file and edit all the frames?

 

Ah fools.

You need not Imageready, Fireworks or Flash.

Launch Photoshop CS3 & Up > Window > Animation.

If you need a tutorial: http://www.mediacollege.com/adobe/photoshop/animation/

 

No, that's completely different.

If you're creating an animated gif from scratch, then it will work fine.

Now try to open an animated gif file, you can still only open a single frame.

And I know about the workaround of importing it as a video file, but that's not good at all.

We ain't no fools.

 

Oh, you're right. Guess you ain't no fools. Fireworks it is ='''(.

 

Grr. Waiting for the stupid trial to go up on Adobe's site.

 

its just soooo expensive, man i barely could afford cs3 now cs4 >_<

almost always the upgrade is worth it

 

Hm, from what I saw the new GPU renderer in PS can only handle a handful of images before it starts choking, so what's the point? I work with multiple 100MB tif files and psd files that go into the GBs range. I am on a PPC 2.5Ghz G5 and CS3 Photoshop can handle my workload fine. I like some of the new Masking features in CS4 as well as the upgraded RAW support (this should just be an update to current packages imo) but being an oldskool Photoshop guy, this is yet another money grab from what was once a great software company.

The tabbed windows in PS looks like a big PITA as well. Maybe it translates better in Windows than Mac (I actually use both Win and OS X versions). In software that manages documents like InDesign or Dreamweaver I think it works, but the last thing I need is to be messing with tabs when I want to be working on multiple images and creating composites. I want to see my work canvases not be hunting for them. Yes you can disable this "feature" but it just proves it is another gimmick in the suite to try and make it sounds like you need CS4, when really, CS3 is already plenty.

Personally I can't understand how a software package that is based on fairly "ancient" code, is packed FULL of more and more unnecessary features, and is released as a "new" version every year can cost as much as it does.

Sad but true but Adobe loses brownie points from me with each and every release. They are the new Apple. Controlling, overpriced and disappointing.

 

Just tried it no you cant. This is what the dialog window says when you try to open a GIF file in photoshop CS4, "This is an animated GIF. You can only view one frame. Saving over this file will result in a loss of information."

 

Hm. Aren't they completely rewriting CS5 for Macs? I would think the improvements would be zoom worthy. I totally agree with you otherwise, having seen the upgrades since CS.

 

^^ That's the idea but alas this new *cough* awe inspiring *cough* CS4, with all it's fantastically overpriced goodness does not support 64bit on OS X. That is totally lame and completely unworthy of the price tag right there. And this is very much the fault of the other completely overpriced, controlling and disappointing company in this industry, Apple.