Flash Catalyst on the hand is a new tool aimed at designers to allow them to transform Photoshop and Illustrator file documents into rich internet applications using a number of actions and user interface elements.

You can download both betas from Adobe Labs. You can get a quick start with these tools by checking the introductory tutorials for Flash Builder 4 from Adobe and the new video tutorials on both Catalyst and Builder from gotoAndLearn.

The web based creative suit provider Aviary, has released a new web tool called “Raven” for creating vector based graphics. Raven is not as powerful as Adobe Illustrator, but it provides all the basic requirements needed for creating a complete vector graphics piece as can be seen from the demo video below.

I tried using Raven and I was surprised by how smooth it runs. The entire Aviary suite is built on Flex, so it is very snappy and responsive. Working on the browser means that you might not be able to create heavy graphics though. Raven also does not import or export AI or EPS file formats and only supports the open vector format SVG.

Raven is currently in public beta and will probably be a pro paid-only service when it officially comes out. You can try it out for free now at Aviary. Make sure you check the really nice video below to see it in Action.

[via TechCrunch]

Aviary has also uncovered its paid Pro service which lets users have unlimited storage space and access to additional applications such as Raven (Vector drawing tool).

I have tried Aviary in the past, but I thought that was too much of a hassle for doing simple tasks such as cropping an image and adding some text to it to use for a blog post (I prefer Picnik) , yet it was not powerful or fast enough to replace my beloved offline Fireworks application. However, some of your might still have a place for it in your workflow. You can try out Aviary and use its basic service free of charge by visiting their official website at Aviary.com.

Artweaver is a Freeware application that includes most of Adobe Photoshop’s basic tools and a similar interface that previous photoshop users can easily become accustomed to. If your looking forward to using a lighter photo editing application, Artweaver offers various selection tools, brushes, shape tools, color palettes, filters, tablet support and much more. You can download Artweaver for free, the installation file size is only 8.8 MBs in size and different language packs are available for download as well.

[via DownloadSquad]

 Adobe has announced that the unveiling of the new Creative Suite 4 will be on the 23rd of September (Or on the 24th if you are on our part of the world). Creative Suite is Adobe’s collection of design, print, and web application that includes Photoshop, Illustrator, Flash, and Dreamweaver among others.

The new suit is expected to have a new UI for all its application as seen in the public beta of Fireworks CS4 and Dreamweaver CS4. The new Creative Suite will also have the new Flash authoring tool (Flash CS4) which will be capable of generating Flash Astro movies.

You can register for free to view the unveiling webcast at iStreamPlanet. ]]> http://www.republicofcode.com/2008/09/03/adobe-cs4-webcast/feed/ 1 http://www.republicofcode.com/2008/07/23/photoshop-vs-fireworks/ http://www.republicofcode.com/2008/07/23/photoshop-vs-fireworks/#comments Wed, 23 Jul 2008 11:29:00 +0000 Blue Chi http://www.oman3d.com/?p=1464 Digital Web Magazine posted a nice article comparing Photoshop to Fireworks through a debate by two groups of designers each supporting one of the programs. Photoshop has always been the industry standard for digital image editing, even though it was primarily made for creating print material, while Fireworks on the other hand was specifically made for creating web friendly graphics. It is possible in theory to do almost everything you do in one of these in the other, so which one should you use?

I have personally been a Fireworks user for years, I had never gotten into Photoshop and Fireworks never gave me a reason to force myself to go and try and learn Photoshop seriously. Fireworks was in fact made just for web design and it does that one thing extremely well. In addition to this, the introduction of CS3 has provided tighter integration between all of Adobe’s Creative Suite, so it is now easier than ever to juggle from one program to the next so you do not need to use Photoshop just because you are working on a project with other people using Photoshop.

What about you guys, do you use Photoshop or Fireworks, and why?

Red Gaint’s the producers Knoll Light Factory has developed a new software called Radium Glow which produces sophisticated glimmer and glow on a whole new level, unlike the normal blur glow filters. Radium Glow 1.0 gives its users pinpoint control over the glow, with editable shapes that can generate precise outlines or create glimmering points. Its highlight features include Intelligent area selection, Genuine glow plug-ins and Shape library. You can read more about Radium Glow here. It is also up for sale here for $99.99.

[Via CGIndia.org]

These beta applications can be downloaded at Adobe Labs, holders of CS3 licenses can use the beta versions indefinitely until the official version comes out while non-CS3 license holders can try the applications for two days only. Check out Adobe Labs for more info.