Adobe, Linux Support, and the Linux Foundation.

[gai.ra.III]

While generally I've only lurked the Adobe forums I've finally worked up guts to post this. I also know that about every 1-2 months this question is asked but I think it deserves a another go around.

My premises is this:

Adobe joined the Linux Foundation in 2008 for a focus on Linux for Web 2.0  Applications like Adobe® Flash® Player and Adobe AIR™. Currently Adobe holds a silver membership status with the Linux Foundation. So why in the world do they not have any Creative Cloud Programs available in Linux without the need for WINE and other such workarounds. I think it's a sucky move to support the Linux Foundation and use Linux in the back-end while not doing anything to support actual Linux users who have for at least a decade requested Adobe desktop products on Linux. Sure it's going to take a lot of manpower, financial resources, etc. But to truly support Linux and the Linux Foundation I think it's necessary that y'all do make things like Photoshop and Lightroom available for the Linux desktop. In any regards the wider Linux community would most likely help with testing and debugging programs. We're used to it.

[cyberfab007]

Here's one if these people refuse , whey don't we just do what we always do? crack it and make it work on our own on linux systems/

[Guest]

I use linux and only legally accuired software. Love is more important.

[filmographie]

Ethics aside, that negates one of the reasons why CC products are useful - the ease of pushing out new upgrades. A look at the history of running Adobe products under Wine on Linux will show that some versions of some products would work fairly well while others would not work at all. It isn't so much about the stability of Linux, X, KDE, Gnome, Unity, Xcfe, etc.(although that enters into the equation) so much as the difficulties of maintaining bulletproof GUI code across multiple GUI platforms - even if the assembly code underneath is always x86 based.

One way around this that others have used is to only certify operation under a modified version of Wine running on a specific distribution of Linux running a specific GUI. As an example within the Linux community, the flavor of Ubuntu that is optimized for graphics and video (Ubuntu Studio) runs Xcfe instead of Unity primarily to lock down the GUI structure so users don't have to relearn the GUI every time Ubuntu tweaks Unity.

[pete_mann]

As a front end web developer, I spend 20-30% of my time editing imagery using apps Photoshop, Illustrator and Fireworks all within a VM.

The essential Windows VM for Internet Explorer and Adobe Creative Cloud waste (for want of a better word) a valuable 25GB of HD space.

The alternatives are there, I use Adobe Brackets, GIMP, Inkscape all within Linux. I am using these applications more and more - as an alternative to using Adobe Creative Cloud via a VM. Adobe Flash remains the only application for which I can not find a Linux equivalent.

At the end of the financial year, I will evaluate the cost and benefits of continued Adobe Creative Cloud membership. I can produce the same results with the aforementioned alternative applications.

[TJLMedia]

Just my two cents, but maybe Adobe should run a crowdfunding campaign - And funders get a few months subscription of Adobe CC including Linux. Would probably make more money than they do now selling Windows and Mac due to all the piracy around the product.

[gogofletch]

I would love to see CC on Linux, (and android!) I will not be renuing my CC subscription because my next hardware upgrade will not be loaded with windows. so  adobe better hope my December bonus won't cover my newegg wish list.

I own a small (hobby) photography studio with my wife and I am sure my monthly contribution to adobe goes mostly unnoticed. in fact, I hardly notice it, which is the reason I signed up in the first place. The value to cost ratio is unparalleled in my opinion. BUT I do notice M$. So much time and energy lost to windows nonsense. I am done with that. I have tried other options and they are far from as elegant as PS and LR, but if they free me from Windows it will be worth it.

Adobe, you will be loosing an otherwise happy customer. I will gladly come back (even pay more) if I see you available on Ubuntu and android. Auto-renew: canceled.

[mytaxsite]

my next hardware upgrade will not be loaded with windows 8

What time frame are you talking about? 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 12

months or about 60 months?

> if adobe values this customer

Adobe values all its customers but it is impossible to satisfy all of

them. So it has to be selective in who is worth bending rules for. I

don't know what sort of business you have with Adobe but if you are

wasting your time trying out all sorts of things in Linux then perhaps

you are not the sort of customer worth wasting any time for.

Perhaps you can check this out in 5 years time to see if there is any

progress towards your Linux operating system. I am sure there must be

something either way by December 2019.

[TysonB]

I don't know... This thread is already many years old and Adobe was

"working on it" when the thread began...

[Guest]

dont care, things exist. What was the chance of THAT happening?

[DesignerJozsef]

You are not getting it guys Adobe is getting a lots of money from Microsoft, maybe even from Apple, to not release their software for Linux. Why? Coz half of the world would switch to Ubuntu. Malware and viruses on Windows are pain in the ass. And Apple hardware price is insane too. It's all about money.

[gogofletch]

I am a part-time photographer, I use LR and PS. I don't think I alone will ever produce enough revenue loss to affect Adobe's decision. I just wanted to make sure my one vote for Linux compatibility is recorded somewhere.

My hardware upgrade will be either this month or March 2015, depends on how much of my quarterly bonus my wife wants to spend on Christmas and how much she will leave for me and my "hobbies".

I will regularly check in for when Adobe embraces Linux which I am sure is just a matter of time. Every year Linux is closer and closer to closing the gap with Microsoft and Apple on the consumerability front. I'm pretty sure they are ahead already in the tech world. Most programmers and designers I know and work with are Linux based, and only cross over for compatibility issues (like Adobe). I think that is the future.

[mytaxsite]

I'll be straight with you. At present Adobe is not developing anything

for Linux and it has no concrete plans to do so unless people start

using Linux and Colleges and Universities start using Linux in their

computer labs.

I can't speak for US colleges but in UK all colleges and Universities

that I know of are using Windows 7 and Windows 8.x systems. Now

students from these universities are not likely to use Linux ever in

their lives even after graduating.

[gogofletch]

I'm not surprised, they will go where the market takes them. I don't think it is that far away. I know my local university has some classes crossing over. The physics department recently abandoned MATLAB and started teaching Octave and python, both Linux based. They just pass out thumb drives with an operating system loaded. It is pretty slick.

[mytaxsite]

Yes Universities and Colleges have to take a stand against Microsoft

products and then we'll see some changes. As Colleges are still

"financed" by Microsoft, we are not likely to see any significant

changes towards Linux in the near future. Unfortunately, Colleges are

short of funds and so they take money from any companies that is

prepared to give them. Microsoft is a big donner of computers and

software to UK universities and colleges. Linux has no chance to get

into these Universities.

[krish_fire2003]

I think Microsoft is bribing Adobe to not to release any Adobe's software to Linux. As such Win 8 and 8.1 is a big failure..

[filmographie]

Microsoft does not need to bribe Adobe...

As far back as the decision to tie the Premiere Pro beta to the Windows kernel microcode (around 2000, if I recall) Adobe had committed their efforts to plug & play on the Microsoft bandwagon. In case this is ancient history, that's when Apple & Adobe had a falling out - Adobe had pushed the old Premiere as far as the legacy code would allow, Apple decided to build their own "Better cause it's Apple" video editing software (aka Final Cut) and Adobe could see the desirability of offloading system level stuff so they could focus on "features & functionality".

If the Linux community were to focus and develop only  one (1) GUI and one (1) standard API, then Adobe might seriously consider implementing a Linux solution. But there are so many Linux flavors to choose from... X, KDE, Gnome, Unity, etc. Realistically it ain't gonna happen.

My only hope in this direction is that a cloud hosted solution using a browser interface running on a gigabit end user Internet link might become the new standard - but that's at least 5 years out, as it means a substantial percentage of the end user Internet connections must be upgraded to gigabit fiber before the numbers will begin to make sense, and it means Adobe will have to build out the cloud infrastructure engines to handle the number crunching.

[krish_fire2003]

These are all excuses..then how come Corel Aftershot Pro has a Linux version , Blender has a Linux version,?? All runs across different distro's If it has to be done it can be done..

[mytaxsite]

how come Corel Aftershot Pro has a Linux version

Did you try asking this to Corel?

>

Blender has a Linux version,

This particular product is distributed by somebody who is writing

programs for fun and therefore free of charge. This particular blender

is not the same as Microsoft's Blender product.

In any case, anybody can create products for Linux but a corporation

like Adobe has to concentrate on something that is already a successful

formula. At the end of the day, Adobe has to protect people's jobs and

so it can't start doing something that is not tried by anybody who is

their competitor.

[krish_fire2003]

In any case, anybody can create products for Linux but a corporation

like Adobe has to concentrate on something that is already a successful

formula.  At the end of the day, Adobe has to protect people's jobs and

so it can't start doing something that is not tried by anybody who is

their competitor.

This sounds little insane to me.. Are you an Adobe employee or a Microsoft fanboy?

[filmographie]

Have you ever brought a software product to market?

It is a lot of work by people who want to be paid the big bucks - the risks are also rather high that the product will bite the dust. Look at all the VR companies that were going to make a killing and went belly up. There is a reason why the very few software giants who survived long enough to actually make money (rather than lose money for the investors) are called unicorns. (ie. magickal creatures that are exceedingly rare)

The odds on your average startup succeeding are about as good as winning the lottery...

It isn't enough to have a great product - you need fantastic marketeers, a huge market opportunity and deep pockets to make it past the early adopters to the sweet spot where CAGR flips to maximum market share.

There is also a real big difference between a commercial product and the typical linux project - software support. The only linux tools that have made it big in the visual effects arena began as in-house tools at companies like ILM, Digital Domain, WETA, etc. where the company had a large programming team who were paid over a long period of time to develop that tool and support it in actual production. This isn't something a college class project is capable of doing.

[gogofletch]

I think this is exactly why a company like Adobe could change the market, and should. Adobe has, hands down, the best software in the business. They could literally release Linux-CC as a stand-alone distribution and be free of all apple and Microsoft nonsense and their customers would transfer over. How many of their customers have dedicated machines to run only Adobe software anyway? Probably most. If the operating system worked for their software instead of the other way around it would be a huge win on every front. They have the resources, knowledge and customer/fan base to do it. I'm not sure why they are so scared of being that innovative when they're in the business of cutting-edge technology. The only reason I can think of is they are just getting use to being the leader so they don't feel like they need to take the risks (even though because they are by far the best the risk would be very low).

[krish_fire2003]

Anyways whatever I use in Ubuntu:

Best Replacement for Photoshop: GIMP

Best Replacement for InDesign: Scribus

Best Replacement for Illustrator: Inkscape

Best Replacement for After Effects: Blender

Best Replacement for Premiere: DaVinci Resolve

[alfiananshoriLinux]

Mr MVP, Mr Staffs yang terhormat.

this is the very very big faulty of adobe. IS THEY EVER THINK WHAT THEIR SERVER IS RUNNING?, APACHE IS RUN UNDER A BUNCH OF OSES, BUT WHAT THE MOST EFFICIENT?, LINUX COK (DON'T CARE ITS UBUNTU SERVER, OR ORACLE SOLARIS(LINUX'S SISTER)).

and do you know fedora and opensuse, they are based on THEY ARE BASED ON THE MOST SECURE REDHAT LINUX AND NOVELL SUSE LINUX ENTERPRISES!.

also linux is already GROWN UPS COK AND NOT ONLY USED BY HOBBYIST, ITS ALSO USED BY ENTERPRISES, FREE-LANCERS, LANDWORKERS WHO NEED POWERFUL AND SECURE OPERATING SYSTEMS COK JANCOK.

even now in my class here in indonesia, there's 30 of 30 students who use linux, 10 of them including me fully install their os with linux distro they like, and another of them dual-booted ONLY FOR GAMING. but i think they'll moved to fully linux this holiday.

oh, and remember mr MVPs, WE CAN SUE YOU WITH CASE OF POOR QUALITY SERVICES ALSO LIED ON CROSS-PLATFORM APPLICATION!

live from surabaya cok!

[mrhillsman]

After reading your statement:

In any case, anybody can create products for Linux but a corporation

like Adobe has to concentrate on something that is already a successful

formula.  At the end of the day, Adobe has to protect people's jobs and

so it can't start doing something that is not tried by anybody who is

their competitor.

I am not trying to be facetious but an average person with average intelligence and common sense can see this is a problem if such philosophy exists at Adobe. Adobe became popular because it was, at least in my opinion, trendy and thinking outside the box. Buzz in the forums I would traverse always talked about how Adobe was the 'next big thing' and the power of Flash, etc, etc. A corporation, especially one that wants to protect people's jobs in the technology sector, should always have a R&D department that not only focuses on current product(s), but future product(s), and the propagation of such product(s) into any relevant area; in this case, operating systems. Adobe is a product company. Want sense does it make in today's world to not have your product work on all three major operating systems if you are really talking about gain.

It is, again in my opinion, only a matter of time before the playing field of levels out or proves the importance of including Linux and why not be ahead of the curve? Adobe's product model does not just target the desktop and as mobile devices are becoming larger and including more than just cellular phones and tablets, Linux should be even more so considered a viable platform for desktop functionality. I believe there is a lot more that can be said and for this thread to still be around after 3+ years and active should speak volumes. I know some folks have given up on Adobe stepping up and making their mainstream applications available to the Linux desktop, however my hope is that Adobe has not given up on its customers, employees, and culture, and sees the potential and invests, like any other investment, in developing for Linux desktop.

[cocoknightcom]

"adobe will never develop for linux" then what's this: Adobe Education Exchange

mytaxsite.co.uk are you just a troll or are you adobe's official voice?