Macromedia and Adobe Update Products

Macromedia and Adobe today separately announced the
release of upgrades for their flagship products, Macromedia FreeHand and
Adobe Illustrator.

Macromedia announced FreeHand 8.0.1, a free update to the company’s
FreeHand design software, and Adobe announced Adobe Illustrator 8.0, a
powerful, innovative upgrade designed for professional designers and
business users.

Macromedia FreeHand 8.0.1 enables designers to multipublish their content
to the Web and print by supporting the open Flash 3 file format
along with full Photoshop 5 compatibility. New Flash 3 support in
Macromedia FreeHand 8 allows designers to utilize striking FreeHand effects
including editable vector transparency, and “clipping paths” are preserved
when the files are transferred to the Flash format. The new Flash exporter
also reduces the size of Flash (.swf) images and animations.

Adobe’s Illustrator 8.0 combines the control and precision of
computer-based drawing with results like those a developer would expect
using standard traditional methods. The new release also features improved
productivity and ease-of-use. Illustrator 8.0’s new productivity features
enable users to meet deadlines without compromising the results. Over 100
productivity enhancements have been added to the tool, including Actions
palette, a Text Eyedropper tool, and Smart Guides.

Adobe Illustrator 8.0, will be available in September for registered users
of Adobe Illustrator as an upgrade for $129. FreeHand 8 will be available
for registered users on September 1 as a free download from the Macromedia
Web site.