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Participant
April 23, 2023
Question

download cs4

  • April 23, 2023
  • 3 replies
  • 847 views

i bought fireworks long ago. they forced us to upgrade to cs4.  all ok.  computer died and need to move to new computer.  have serial number.  am 74 and do volunteer work at local high school in geography.  taught geography in college for 10 years.   now i need scan and adjust from this softeware.  please help

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    3 replies

    Nancy OShea
    Community Expert
    Community Expert
    May 1, 2023

    Tell us more about your new computer.

    Which operating system and version does it have?

     

    Most Creative Cloud apps work on:

    • Windows 11 (64-bit), Windows 10 versions 22H2, 21H2, 21H1;
    • MacOS 13 (Ventura), 12 (Monterey), macOS 11 (Big Sur).

    - https://helpx.adobe.com/creative-cloud/system-requirements.html

    However, legacy Creative Suite apps can't be installed on modern Macs.  They are not compatible.

     

    Nancy O'Shea— Product User & Community Expert
    Nancy OShea
    Community Expert
    Community Expert
    May 1, 2023

    I'm afraid you've reached the end of the CS4 road.

    • CS4 activation servers don't exist anymore. 
    • CS4 won't install on most modern computers. It's too old.

     

    OPTION 1: Buy a 1 month subscription to Creative Cloud All Apps plan for USD $82 + tax.

    See screenshots below.

     

     

     

    Install Creative Cloud Desktop App and under Preferences, select the option to Show older (previous) versions.  Assuming your computer supports legacy CS6 software, you'll be given an option to install Fireworks.  See screenshots.

     

     

     

    OPTION 2: Use other graphics apps.

     

    ADOBE TOOLS:
    ===========
    - Illustrator CC: https://www.adobe.com/products/illustrator.html
    - Photoshop CC: https://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop.html

    OTHER TOOLS (raster & vector):
    ===========
    - Affinity Photo & Affinity Designer: https://affinity.serif.com
    - CorelDRAW Graphics Suite: https://www.coreldraw.com/
    - GIMP: https://www.gimp.org/
    - Gravit Designer: https://www.designer.io/en/
    - Inkscape: https://inkscape.org/
    - Krita: https://krita.org/
    - Paint.NET: https://www.getpaint.net/
    - PaintShop Pro: https://www.paintshoppro.com/
    - PhotoPea: https://www.photopea.com/ opens layered PNG files.
    - Photo Pos Pro: https://www.photopos.com/PPP3_BS/Default.aspx
    - Pixlr: https://pixlr.com/
    - Vctr: https://vectr.com/

    Hope that helps.

     

    Nancy O'Shea— Product User & Community Expert
    rayek.elfin
    Legend
    April 29, 2023

    Unfortunately Adobe turned off the CS4 activation servers years ago, and that makes it impossible to activate your Fireworks even though you have a serial number.

    It is also no longer possible to download the Fireworks CS4 installer from Adobe.

     

    If all you need to do is scan images (maps? Geographical surveys?) and make adjustments, great free alternatives for Fireworks would be:

    - Krita (www.krita.org)

    - (if on Windows): Paint.NET (https://www.getpaint.net/)

    - Gimp (https://www.gimp.org/)

     

    Paint.NET is possibly the most accessible of the three.

     

    Commercial alternatives are PhotoLine and Affinity Photo. Both are very affordable.