Newbie needing advice.... CS2 or CS3 Suite

[Lil Judd]

Hi ,
I'm testing CS2 right now for my daughter & I. She's a college student as a state university. She needs it for school & I can then use it as well off her computer now & then . Anyhow, we're both testing CS2 just now & as CS3 has just been released & so now the question is. I can buy PS CS3 suite for her for $ 389.98 or I can try to get a CS2 through Amazon.com for almost the same amount of money. What should I do?

Thanks,

Lil

[Swampy]

Lil.. At this point, get out as cheap as you can. If you both are just starting to learn, CS2 is sufficient. You'll have your plate full. There are some issues with CS3 running on a PC (both Win and Vista) so if you are not a geek, CS2 is pretty solid in Win XP.

[Lil Judd]

Thanks Swampy....

What kind of issues do you know of, if you know? I'm presently running XP. I know you're on a Mac... But you may have heard or read.

Lil

[Swampy]

Been reading about how crashy Bridge is, some strange brush behavior with certain colors, especially green and cyan. Loss of scan functions (Twain acquire issues). Printer driver issues and loss of certain functions such as setting custom paper sizes. Installation and authorization problems (even for folks who never installed the PS Beta).

I hang out over on the NAPP (National Associaltion for Photoshop Professionals) and see problems with CS3 posted daily. Of course there are always people with problems and often they are associated with a specific user's setup, but I'm seeing a lot of general complaints about CS3 and especially the Bridge.

[Lil Judd]

OK, good to know. So I'll talk with her. If CS2 is good enough, which we can't get through her school, then that's the way to go.

Thanks for being so helpful.

Lil

[arphot]

CS2 is going to be fine as a lot of schools are even behind in PS versions. Until CS3 is tuned up, CS2 is a great version. Kirk

[Lil Judd]

Thanks for your input Kirk. I tested CS2 & could not get it to do what I wanted the way I wanted & got frustrated. Downloaded CS3 & started it up yesterday & seem to be communicating far better with it for some reason. Makes no sense really, but I seem to....

I've sound an online place we can order it for her at a good deal, so based upon how I communicated with CS2 I am more inclined to order CS3.

Is it just me???

Lil

[DannyRaphael]

I tested CS2 & could not get it to do what I wanted the way I wanted & got frustrated... Based upon how I communicated with CS2 I am more inclined to order CS3.

Is it just me???

The CS3 interface is somewhat different. Is that what you mean my "communicating with CS3"?

CS3 = CS2 + some added features, plus the upgraded Bridge and RAW converter. Unless there is a need for CS3-specific features, then CS2 should be fine. But it will be harder to get.

If Photoshop is being used for specific courses, the instruction may be version specific. That might or might not be an issue, depending on what's being taught, and may warrent inspection of course syllabus.

The CS3 suite is fine if the other applictions will be used at some point. If she just needs Photoshop CS3, it can be had for ~$275 (academic), perhaps less from her school's student store.

[arphot]

I can't say for sure as I'm not familiar with your challenge with PS CS2. It seems like an isolated incident. But, I can't be sure. I'm no pro. Sorry

[Lil Judd]

Hi Danny,

it might well be that it's the interface which agrees with me more. She seems to agree. We're trying to find out if she'll need the suite or just Photoshop. Right now it actually seems to be just Photoshop. We're also trying to find out if she's supposed to have CS2 or CS3 from her teacher. I guess ultimately it'll come down to which version her class will cover.

Thanks, Lil

[Lil Judd]

Originally Posted by arphot

I can't say for sure as I'm not familiar with your challenge with PS CS2. It seems like an isolated incident. But, I can't be sure. I'm no pro. Sorry

Thanks Arphot,

maybe it's just me. ;-)

Lil

[dmrdm]

If you can get CS 2 or CS 3 for the same price....I'd just go for 3. I've been runing CS 3...and yes, it's a little crashy with Bridge...I downloaded the update yesterday, but this morning, still encountered problems that got sent in to Adobe. It's Adobe...they will work it out. More updates to come I'm sure.

I guess I wouldn't start out a version behind...especially if I was just learning it. If you find out you love it and you're going to stick with the program, you're just going to have to shell out more money for CS 3 down the road.

The update in CS 3 for smart objects alone is just too cool!

Have fun.

[Doug Nelson]

The only possible downside I can imagine for going with CS3 is that CS3 users can't really share files with CS2 users, even with Maximize Compatibility turned on. CS3 can read CS2 files just fine, and my info is for Photoshop only, I have no idea how the other suite apps behave. You also can't use actions from another version, but that's usually the case between versions. If that isn't a deal-killer, I'd go with CS3. The toolbar and palletes can be made to match CS2 if it helps her learn in class, and all procedures for older versions can be used.

[Lil Judd]

Hi dmrdm,

I did some PP in CS3 with a friend yesterday - I'm making an ad for her for horse massage. I like it.

I like it's interface as it doesn't make me frustrated at all.

My daughter seems to agree so I'm buying her CS3 & will borrow it when I need it.

I'm with you, why start out a version behind, especially after having tried them both & found CS2 didn't work with me, but CS3 does.

Thanks for the feedback.

Lil

[Lil Judd]

Hi Doug,

was Adobe originally a Mac program? In PCs I have not ever run into the problem of a later version not reading an earlier version, but programs which originated in Mac I've run into this before.

Lil

[Doug Nelson]

Photoshop did start out on the Mac, but that's not the problem. CS3 is the first version in recent memory that generates files not easily readable by older versions. There were just too many changes, particularly with adjustment layers. With max. compat. on anyone will still be able to open the file, but they might only see a flattened version of the image (depending on what the file contains).

[Lil Judd]

Well, that won't matter to us as we have no earlier version. Then I would also guess that the CS3 version will reflect the future, so that would be another good reason for buying it. Thanks

Lil

[dmrdm]

The interface doesn't bother me either. Been getting along with it fine.

If you get CS 3, don't forget to register it - when you register it, they give you an option to pick a free item. I took the 31 day free on-line classes at Lynda.com. Making my way through all of the photoshop tuts. (assume Adobe gives this for the academic version, but don't know that for a fact).

Have fun!

[arphot]

I, too, got a freebie choice when I bought CS2 (Academic Version). You could get some of their video tuts, a couple of free mags (either Layers or Photoshop User Magazine). I chose the magazines and subscribed to Layers.