SoKy Local Business or "SoKybiz"

As I prepared to purchase my new Mac and Adobe CS3 Design Premium, I brought up the old search engine and scanned the blogs and news sites for technical issues. Most of the issues I found were related to upgrading existing Mac's to the new Leopard OS X 10.5 from an older version. The "blue screen of death" issue seemed to be the most prevalent and most written about. It has also resulted in a patch from Apple in only 3 short days.

The issue that caught my eye was one that might affect my ability to publish my magazine. It's not an Apple issue per se, but it does present a problem between the new OS and Adobe Acrobat, the software we use to publish the electronic version of our magazine for the printer.

I posted an article from Adobe the other day "Compatibility with Leopard." This lists some issues with Acrobat that won't be fixed until next year. I was so concerned about this that I called Adobe sales and then technical support. After explaining my concerns to three different people, the answer I received had me more concerned than ever. "We are not sure." The last technical support person I talked to offered the least assurance by explaining that he had received many calls from people who were unable to create a PDF at all.

In my searches, I found a blog by Stephen Partridge, the BDM for Acrobat in the UK. (Don't ask me what BDN stands for.)  The blog is titled "Spartacus of Acrobat," and the most recent post was about the subject that concerned me the most, "Adobe Acrobat and Apple Leopard." Stephen writes:

However, the following CS3 applications will require updates for full compatibility with Leopard: Adobe Acrobat 8 Professional and our professional video applications, including Adobe Premiere Pro CS3, After Effects CS3 Professional, Encore CS3, and Soundbooth CS3.

We expect to publish free Leopard compatibility updates for the video applications in December 2007 and for Acrobat 8 Professional and Adobe Reader 8 in January 2008.

For more information, take a look at the FAQ we have produced, it can be found here.....

http://www.adobe.com/go/leopardfaq (the link I posted earlier)

Now when I read the FAQ at Adobe, I came away thinking that the issues with the software were related to motion video and sound. Then in the comments to that blog I read something that was cause for pause.

So let's be clear about this. Adobe has known about Leopard for a long time but professional users who need to create high res pdfs to print are going to have to wait three months for a compatibility upgrade - that doesn't sound very good.

Posted by: Alastair Nisbet | October 29, 2007 01:57 PM

To which Steve responded:

Hiya, well I understand the concern, but development cycles simply meant that Acrobat has had to wait a couple of months for the upgrade, I'm suffering too. Don't forget, if you're making your PDF's from our Creative applications then you can make PDF's now.

Posted by: Steve P | October 29, 2007 02:35 PM

After I read that, I started to get a little nervous. It's when I called my pre-press folks and left a voice mail and then I started calling the contact numbers at Adobe. Unfortunately, no one could assure me that I would be able to create the press quality PDF. So I did what any good blog reader would do, I commented on the blog and asked for clarification from Mr. Partridge himself.

I wrote:

"Hi Steve, I'm on the phone with Adobe now but no one seems to be able to answer the question.

I have been waiting to purchase a new MAC with Adobe CS3 design premium for two months in anticipation of Leopard. I publish a monthly magazine using InDesign as well as Photoshop and Illustrator. I am greatly concerned that the unresolved issues with Leopard will affect my ability to send the finished publication to my commercial printer.

I have asked the printer to check for other clients who are using Acrobat CS3 on a Leopard Mac... they are looking into it. I've been on hold with Adobe TS for some time and thought I would ask here.

Can you confirm that a brand new Mac Leopard with the latest version of CS3 will allow me to publish a press quality PDF?"

Posted by: David Francis | October 29, 2007 09:49 PM (UK Time)

I posted that right before I went home for the night for a nice quiet spaghetti dinner with my wonderful wife. As we waited for the sausage, onions and garlic to simmer we discussed the options.

What makes this issue so very urgent to us is the fact that I received a call from the person who has loaned me the Mac I have been using to publish the magazine. Mr. Andy Baker is also a publisher and had a "spare" Macintosh with Photoshop 7 and InDesign 2.2 installed. As a "spare," it wasn't the latest greatest machine or software, but it saved me some money as I started my new company.

Andy is experiencing growth and success in his business, "Bluegrass Advertising." He publishes 3 phone books for the local area and is in the process of expanding his staff. For this reason, he called and asked if I had purchased my own Mac yet. I explained to him that I had not because I was waiting for Leopard to release but had one configured in my shopping cart and could get him his computer back by Monday.

It was only after that call that I discovered the possible issue with Leopard and Adobe Acrobat.

My wife and I discussed possible solutions. We considered calling Apple to see if I could get a new Mac with the older OS on it, but thought that would be like asking General Motors to stop production and build us last year's model on the assembly line. We considered looking for a used Mac for sale, but the money would be wasted once this issue was resolved. I even considered publishing my magazine and then taking it to Andy's to create the PDF. Possible I guess, but not practical and I am not one to make my problems someone else's.

As we ate our dinner, I found some comfort in knowing that I could package the InDesign document and send that package to the press. I figured that for the money I'm spending for printing, I can require my vendor to accept the InDesign package instead of the standard PDF for 6 months. This solution offered enough comfort to get some sleep knowing that I could get my friend his computer back on time, order my new one and still get my magazine published.

Note, the press quality PDF for my 52 page full color magazine weighs in at 130 meg. I package each month's issue for archiving and it is almost 700 meg. The thought of uploading 700 mb to the FTP server made me uneasy because of the time and possible corruption of files. I figure I can give it a go and if it fails, send a DVD next day air to my press people.

Then this morning I checked Mr. Partridges' blog. He wrote:

Yes, I can confirm that a brand new Mac Leopard with CS3 will allow you to publish press quality PDF. Leopard (or any OS) is irrelevant to the CS3 apps that can create PDF natively. We create the PDF through the PDF Library rather than the print stream.

Posted by: Steve P | October 30, 2007 07:32 AM

Well now... isn't THAT interesting.

So, in the end, I worried for nothing. (?) I guess only time will tell. I will order my new Mac today. I will install Adobe CS3 and I will create a new InDesign document. Then, I will create the PDF. If Stephen is right, there will be no issues... if not; we at least I have a plan B. Yes, I will post an update this weekend.

Labels: Adobe, Macintosh

This was posted by SoKy : 7:53 AM  0 comments links to this post

My move from a Microsoft Personal Computer (PC) to and Apple Macintosh (Mac) has not been without some frustration; mostly due to literally 20 years using a PC. I started using PC’s when the biggest hard drive on the IBM PS2 was 10 meg and Windows had only been on the market for a couple of years. I have never regretted learning the PC in the days of MS DOS. The command prompt in not unfamiliar and those basic skill are still in use today; even if rarely.

My decision to publish a print magazine forced me into the world of commercial printing, professional print layout, graphics and Adobe software. I tried to hold onto my PC but due to incompatibilities, lock ups and slow loading of the large files, I was “encouraged” by a good friend to try the Mac. I did, and didn’t like it, but in the end, the Mac (and my friend), won out.

I am what you would call a fan of Microsoft (MS); and that’s not so popular in some circles, especially in the land of Apple, Adobe and even the web development community. I have been a professional web developer since 1998. My first and biggest client was a large international organization whose entire information technology infrastructure was based on Windows NT servers, Windows PC’s and Microsoft Office.

I developed a web structure that would work well in their environment and would be easy to train editorial staff to contribute. I defaulted to Windows IIS and Microsoft Front Page compatible web services to shorten the learning curve of staff who were already familiar with MS Word and other MS software.

Since that time, I’ve focused on MS Active Server Pages, MS SQL database servers and Windows based software for development. I was so entrenched with MS that I became a partner per se and have promoted and sold their technology quite loyally. Even considering the move to a Mac made me feel disloyal to all that I had recommended over the years.

It’s my opinion (now), that the combination of the Mac hardware and Adobe software is more productive in a graphics environment. My impression was, and still is that the graphics and print industries are typically devoted Mac users. This also weighed on my decision to move to a Mac because as I work with my commercial printer and pre-press departments, having compatible files is important. Also, as I consider expanding my own creative staff, I cannot deny that they are typically trained and experienced on the Mac and Adobe software.

My best friend brought me a Mac and gave me some pointers. I struggled a good deal with menu items and terminology. Even after 3 issues of my magazine gone to press, all created on my friend’s “spare” Mac, I still have trouble finding some of the tools I’ve grown accustomed to on my PC and Windows software.

The need for the capabilities of the Mac outweighed my frustration and persistence has paid off. Now I find myself shopping for a Mac Pro and the CS3 suite from Adobe. It’s a very expensive combination; but it is one of those necessary expenses of business.

The new Intel based Mac computers have been promoting the fact they can run Microsoft and Mac software. I’ve always avoided a duel operating system environment due to conflicts, but my needs for more speed and power have me reconsidering my old dog rules once again.

This morning I stumbled upon a website that has eluded me for the past 4 months. I was reading a blog by the creator of SimpleViewer where he described is move to Yahoo and the need to change from a PC to a Mac. Apparently, Felix Turner was hired by Yahoo and moved to CA where their creative department was all Mac and he has been in the throes of switching to a Mac environment.

In a comment on his blog post, someone offered a link to myfirstmac.com. I clicked it and wondered where the heck this had been hiding for the last 4 months. It’s an informative and entertaining website that helps people get started on the Mac.

I’ve book marked the site and would recommend it to anyone considering a Mac computer.

(Note: I am not affiliated with nor compensated by My First Mac in any way.)

Labels: Adobe, Macintosh, print publishing, software, tips and tricks

This was posted by SoKy : 9:17 AM  0 comments links to this post