[TriLUG] Adobe Photoshop going online

[Ryan Leathers]

Adobe, and a lot of other folks, are using Flex to great effect for 
applications like this one. Of course Flex isn't the only game in town, 
but I'm a huge fan if for no other reason than the  one you're pointing 
out Douglas:  there is stuff being written in Flex that is useful, cool, 
and platform independent. Thats great news for Linux users.


Douglas A. Whitfield wrote:
> Big news for desktop Linux???  Emphasis added if you're not reading in plain
> text. :)
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> *Associated Press*
> March 27, 2008; Page B7
> SAN FRANCISCO -- The maker of the popular photo-editing software Photoshop
> on Thursday launched a basic version available for free online.
>
> San Jose, Calif.-based Adobe Systems Inc. says it hopes to boost its name
> recognition among a new generation of consumers who edit, store and share
> photos online.
>
> While Photoshop is designed for trained professionals, Adobe says Photoshop
> Express, which it launched in a "beta" test version, is easier to learn.
> User comments will be taken into account for future upgrades.
>
> *Photoshop Express will be completely Web-based so consumers can use it with
> any type of computer, operating system and browser. And, once they register,
> users can get to their accounts from different computers.
> *
> Web-based software is increasingly popular, and Adobe knows it's got to get
> on that train, said Kathleen Maher, an analyst at Jon Peddie Research.
>
> Many kinds of software are available for use online in a trend known as
> "software as a service," or "cloud computing." The earliest were e-mail
> programs, but they now include services to create and manage content and
> even whole operating systems. And they don't require time-consuming upgrades
> because they're maintained by the service provider.
>
> Google Inc. provides a host of such services, as do Microsoft Corp. and
> others.
>
> "This is the battlefield where Adobe and Microsoft and Google are going to
> fight some pretty big battles," Ms. Maher said.
>
> Photoshop enters the online photo-management arena many years after such
> services first appeared. Some companies have already made a big name for
> themselves, like 9-year-old storage solution Shutterfly Inc., photo-editing
> service Picnik or image-sharing site Photobucket Inc.
>
> Adobe says providing Photoshop Express for free is part marketing and part a
> strategy to create up-sell opportunities. It hopes some customers will move
> from it to boxed software like its $99 Photoshop Elements or to a
> subscription-based version of Express that's in the works.
>
> Ron Glaz, a research analyst at IDC, says the move was necessary for Adobe
> to keep pace. Users are less likely to switch to a software they aren't
> familiar with, he said.
>
> "They have a whole market that they are missing out on, and they need to
> make sure that the market is aware there is a Photoshop solution for them.
> As that market grows and becomes more sophisticated, hopefully it will
> generate money," Mr. Glaz said.
>
> "It's one of those things, if you can't beat them, join them," Mr. Glaz
> said. "If they don't join them, the long run could be really painful."
>
>