InDesign & Photoshop "Viewer"(?)

Background:  retailers

·         I’m a field sales rep for a large print distributor; my official title is Retail Solutions Specialist.

·         My clients are exclusively national retail companies, and most of what I do at work involves helping retailers make money.

·         Sorry, but yes – while I sincerely appreciate all things Apple®, I personally prefer the PC platform.

o   Talented individuals proficient with Macs essentially enable my industry.

o   I use my wife’s Mac often and it’s undoubtedly the best tool for specific applications.

o   My reality is the majority of what Macs do best is wasted on my overall computing needs.

Situation:

·         As resources become scarcer I am more often the first point of contact for client’s art files.

o   Clients used to send art directly to Mac operators on our pre-media team, who would pre-flight, and help me confirm inks, construction, size, versions, etc.

o   Now that we’ve many less of those valuable individuals, I’m often the one who ends up transferring client’s files.

Issue:

·      I’ve resisted investing in Windows versions of graphics programs – primarily because the investment is obviously significant, but also because I know I won’t use most capabilities of such software.

·         However…

o   While it’s unlikely I would use creative software to actually create; more than ever I do need to be able to view native InDesign, Illustrator, and Photoshop files.

o   Confirming accuracy of info upon which I’m basing proposals, setting delivery expectations, and sending production instructions is basically impossible - if you can’t visually review to make sure what they actually sent matches what they say they sent.

Question:

·         Is there a “viewer” that I can use for nothing more than viewing native Adobe files on my PC?

o   I’m willing to spend a reasonable amount of money relative to the limited capabilities I need, and I did purchase Acrobat 9 Standard.

o   But to my knowledge Acrobat alone won’t view .ai, .indd, and .psd files.

·      If anyone knows of PC-compatible software I can use to simply view these native Adobe files – that doesn’t cost $700-$999, I would very much appreciate you letting me know product name and developing company, as well as the best place to purchase.

Thanks,

Dan