Acrobat - 2023 Changes Are Beyond Awful... Or Is It Just Me?

[davidk5418443]

Who thought it a good idea to change nearly everything at once?

Guess what - most of us are working for a living and don't have time for hours of tutorials and having to sift through support forums to find out how to use software that has been one of the back-bones of our work-flow.

As a designer working in the construction industry, along with being a skilled graphic designer, (you name the Adobe product, I have probably used it)  I have found Acrobat to be an excellent, can't live without tool over the years, but this new version has hidden every bit of functionalityy that I personally need.

Am I asking for help here? No. I simply don't have time to mess around while some hotshot new designer celebrates his/her/it's new internal slaps on the back for a job 'well done' at Adobe, and the team scrabble around to answer some of the complaints. 

To say I am dissapointed, is an understatement. 

Before anyone says it, there are always complaints when software interfaces are changed. But mostly these are rolled out as minor changes, that after a bit of grumbling, people learn and accept, and everyone understands why software must develop.  Not wholesale changes such as these..

I have been using Bluebeam Revu recently in tandem with Acrobat, and I am gutted to find myself having to turn to it rather than the Adobe that I have used and loved for decades.

So here are just a few gripes...

No longer can I automatically zoom in and out using a mouse wheel. Presumably there is a way of 'turning this on' hidden away in the depths of the many sub menus. Or does the sdesigner only use a tablet?

It's a basic function that makes it a useable tool, so why is it turned off. Now I have to look in opposite corners for the Pan tool and the Zoom functions. What was wrong with the hovering menu at the foot of the page with all the tools to hand? The select, zoom and pan tools are the three most useful tools to have readily available. It is almost as though the person / peeps who has/have re-designed it, doesn't use it personally. Except perhaps to read a copy of their latest comic.

I can't be bothered to continue and resent needing to.

The question is... do I stay or do I go?

Give me a really good reason to stay Adobe.. Please.

[DCstinks]

I'd be greatful if they didn't activate all the "features" that cause it to work like a pig, such as that upload to cloud virus they add to Outlook.

[Tiger_words]

You definitely have my vote.  I find that the geniuses at Acrobat love to change things.  I get used to one way, and now I have to re-learn what some software engineer decided would be better.  I think Adobe is notoroious for needlessly "fixing" things.  It's super annoying.

[Tiger_words]

@netstv Here's the more recent forum per your suggestion.

[Photoarchitect]

I totally agree with you that the new updates with Acrobat make it a complete waste of time.  and time is important especially with the many distractions the internet offers.  but paying hundreds of dollars a year to get bombarded with useless updates and confusing menu changes makes it all the more useless.  i find myself going back to an old version of Acrobat that is probably more than 10 years old that i have on an old computer when i really need to get things done.  and as far as i am concerned, the "AI" features are a total waste.  i expected when i searched and asked a question i would get an answer but not possible.  i guess it is useful for people who dont want to read the contents of the PDFs they are creating.  I alwasy used to like Adobe products but now the company seems to be run by idiots trying to keep up with tick tock.  

[Bevi Chagnon - PubCom.com]

You can revert to the "classic" interface in the 2023 version without reinstalling an old copy of Acrobat.

Windows:

1. File (or the hamburger 3-bar menu icon)
2. Disable New Acrobat

Mac:

1. View
2. Disable New Acrobat

[Christina32474758ywo2]

I couldn't agree more! I wish that there was an alternative program I could use instead! If I had any choice I would run from Adobe and never look back. I spend more time trying to figure out how to use the program than actually using it.

[Tiger_words]

@Christina32474758ywo2- it's silly, isn't it?  What most people don't realize is this:  Companies pay "software engineers" to work and write programs.  But if they say, "Okay boss, the program is good" they'll be out of a job.  So they have to keep working - just like how rodents have to keep gnawing on things or their teeth will kill them.  Get this:  Years ago I bought Adobe Pro 9 for $100.  I have used it for years.  It's no longer supported so there are no updates and guess what?  NO CHANGES.  It still works great and I have had it for about 15 years.  I even have it on a DVD so if I ever buy a new PC, I just install it on the new machine and good old #9 is up and running.  🙂
But there are alternate programs.  Google it, you'll find them.  Good luck!

[Omer28760655megj]

This is the worst thing I have seen happen to software. I have been trying to use Adobe for hours, and the upgrade thing just never stops. Wtf is going on???

[Bevi Chagnon - PubCom.com]

Wish List

Fellow Acrobat users!

I want to turn our complaints into something useful for Adobe's development team, so I wrote up some key fixes to the new interface that will help us get the tools we need while giving Adobe a better interface for Acrobat's future features.

Please take a minute to review my wish list.

And please add your ideas to it!

• Keep it positive and helpful. (They already know how much we hate it, they got the message.)
• Suggestions on what you want to see changed or restored.
• Just address the interface, not what features you want (that's for another post).

And be sure to describe what you use Acrobat for, how it's used for work or your personal computing. It's clear that the Adobe design team may have missed how various industries rely on Acrobat, so here's your chance to let them know what you need in the interface.

I believe it's our last chance to get the Acrobat we need before Adobe carves the new interface into stone.

The wish list is at:

https://acrobat.uservoice.com/forums/590923-acrobat-for-windows-and-mac/suggestions/48153893-new-acr...

Add your "wishes."

And don't forget to click the VOTE button in the upper left.

—Bevi Chagnon

One of the original Acrobat trainers since the original beta version 30+ years ago.

This is not my first time encountering a new Acrobat interface.

And no, I don't work for Adobe.

[Paul26602033ex8m]

I agree the latest changes are beyond aweful.

[Teresa36409784s6ol]

I do not like the new Adobe, the little right rail is a nuisance and the large tool bar on the left, you have to go through more than usual steps to insert or delete pages and the pasty white background of everything is very annoying.  I miss my darker background because the pages of the document stand out, now they just blend into oblivion.

[MindfulMountain]

I LITERALLY CAN DO NOTHING USING ADOBE ANYMORE!!! I have Adobe Pro AND had to also get Adobe Premium, I guess... plus I have Adobe Photoshop and LIghtroom, etc. But I have NO IDEA why NOTHING works!! I used to be able to easily take a PDF form that I use for legal filings, and change a couple of things (even if I had saved it as a scanned image) and quickly delete words and change to a different word and now I can do NONE of that! Instead of deleting, I get a red strike-through - NOT HELPFUL. The OCR scanner used to be excellent and now it does not work at ALL on some pages for no good reason. I have just extracted a page that will NOT OCR to see if there is some way to convert it and then add it BACK to my document... I mean.. WHAT AM I PAYING MULTIPLE DIFFERENT MONTHLY PLANS FOR??? And I have a brand new PC where I just uninstalled and reinstalled Adobe, to no avail. Also, sometimes if I could not do something on my PC, I could do it using my ipad adobe app... well can't do THAT anymore either!!!

I am seriously over this. Adobe must have some other HIGE niche area (maybe government contracts or something?) that has made it just not give a flying F about its regular users who have relied upon its products for their livelihoods for many. many years. Funny, but I had avoided adobe for so many years previously, using a different PDF editor program, but because so many things were intertwined with Adobe I eventually got ALL the different plans I needed...but this is ridiculous. I can actually still use my very old different PDF editor program with absolutely no problems whatsoever. And that is what I am going to have to do again because I just CANNOT waste the amount of time I have had to waste with Adobe anymore!!! I am literally so frustrated I am about to CRY.

[Tiger_words]

Sorry to hear this. I wish I could help you. It's ridiculous. And keep in mind, programmers are paid to do this nonsense. If they don't constantly "improve" things, they'll get laid off. It's literally one of the dumbest dynamics in the 21st century.

[default82lzf1bt94lx]

You can revert to the classic GUI interface by following the instructions here:

https://community.adobe.com/t5/acrobat-discussions/revert-to-classic-interface-from-new-acrobat-gui/...

[Graphic36505284i4]

Hi @MindfulMountain ,

There's no such thing as Acrobat Premium. Adobe gives us 3 different versions to choose from:

• The free Reader (and that's about all it does -- read and print PDFs, put comments on them, fill in PDF forms. Very basic...and very free.)
• Acrobat Standard
• Acrobat Pro, which has the scanning/ocr tool. Complete list of features is at adobe's website, https://www.adobe.com/acrobat/pricing.html?

I agree that the new design is awful! The icons are insane and some look the same but do very different tasks. Who designed this mess?!

Revert to the old classic interface and I think your familiar tools will be there.

Here's an interesting take on it and some ideas for other programs to consider.

https://pubcom.com/blog/acrobatnew/

[MindfulMountain]

See? I've been using and trying to avoid Adobe for YEARS... for so long in fact that you aren't even aware of plans that I have been paying for for YEARS despite the fact that they were, in fact, apparently completely replaced, but I DID NOT KNOW THAT... so... I've been paying for BOTH Acrobat Premium AND Adobe Acrobat Pro!! SO... don't you think Adobe should have informed me that the new Pro plan I had to buy was the same as my Premium but added a few services?? And not hidden this fact from me and forced me to buy another plan, but did NOT make it clear that it included everything in premium too? See... I am never quite sure, sometimes, which tool is covered by which plan and so I am afraid of cancelling one for fear of losing something I DO rely on, but just not sure which plan it was covered under... and I just have not had time to sit down and sift through which tools went with which service... but HERE, as PROOF that Acrobat Premium DOES exist, is the screen shot of my account...

[Jennie36703268lhkw]

I have to agree. The new adobe is absolutely HORRIBLE. I literally get a pit in my stomach when I have to use it. It isn't user friendly, it is completely counter intuitive and absolutely the worst program I use in my job. I'm an electrical designer and use complicated programs on a daily basis with no issues. Adobe should be easy for anyone to use. It isn't anything like the engineering tools I use. But I couldn't be more disappointed with adobe. As we speak I am editing a pdf. It errors out and closes on its own. Lost hours of work, and those hours of work should've been a simple half hour job. Yet adobe has seemed to make it take three times as long to complete. Absolutely horrible program. I will make sure to inform EVERYONE that works in the industry to stay away from the new adobe. My coworkers also

complain about it and state it takes them twice as long to complete jobs that use pdfs because of this horrible horrible program. Whoever created this design absolutely is out of touch with what people need and want. Couldn't be worse. It is the worst program I use on a daily basis.!

[Hannes37307842ojvo]

I honestly can't believe I pay for this program. Acrobat is the worst tool I have and crashes all the time, UI sucks and just causes endless delays. 

[maura_2524]

Agree. The new version is also freezing the entire system everytime I try to search or to leave a comment. It's pretty miserable to work within. It was much better functioning before the new updates and changes. These are probably all glitches, but as a CPA, it's making it almost impossible to review tax documents timely and efficiently. I'm having staff print the pdf so that I can make comments mannualy so that we can make the tax deadlines.

[ShilohJSBI]

This is the worse upgrade ever. I have used Adobe for years in the construction industry. The old version was great, not sure why they changed Adobe to basically useless software. I have to go to Canva to fix my pdfs. I miss the old version. I spend so many hours fixing things that would have taken seconds to fix in the previous software. Hope they fix all these issues. 

[sandy_3174]

It's not just you!  It's the worst, it not just that the right is on the left (I mean give us the option, some of us are working with three monitors here) but the old features no longer work.  E-signature is maxed at 10mb and everything takes five clicks to initate.