macOS 12 Monterey: Will Adobe software work?

With the release of macOS 12 Monterey, you’re probably wondering if your Adobe software will work in this macOS upgrade.

Compatibilty information emerges over time, as Apple, Adobe, and other software developers test with the final public release and produce updates with fixes. I’ll update this article as new information comes out.

The good news is, if you are upgrading from macOS 11 Big Sur, the differences between it and macOS 12 Monterey are relatively minor, so software that is running well in Big Sur may run well in macOS 12 Monterey. But if you are upgrading from macOS 10.14 Mojave or earlier, Apple changed macOS in ways that may prevent older applications from running in macOS 12 Monterey. If you have applications you must use, but you have older versions that aren’t compatible with macOS 12 and you choose not to upgrade them to current versions, you should delay upgrading to Monterey. If you decide to upgrade to Monterey, expect to run only recent versions of software, including Adobe Creative Cloud applications.

This time there is a new wrinkle. Apple is releasing 14″ and 16″ MacBook Pro computers using the M1 Pro and M1 Max processors that bring an unprecedented increase in performance and efficiency, creating more than the usual amount of interest in upgrading from an older Mac. Like all new Macs, they won’t run a version of macOS older than the one they shipped with, so you don’t have the option of installing an older version of macOS on them. If you are one of the many Mac users who will replace a much older Mac with a new Apple Silicon Mac that runs only macOS 12 or later, you may have no choice but to update some of your software, including older Adobe software.

For more details, or if you have questions about Adobe Creative Suite (CS) software, read on…

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Printer profiles missing on macOS: A permanent solution

Many Mac users find that the ICC profiles for their printer stop appearing in applications such as Adobe Lightroom Classic and Adobe Photoshop. They’re often advised to delete and reinstall the printer, or to reset the macOS printing system, but in some cases the problem comes back and they have to delete and reinstall the printer again. That gets old fast, so I worked out a way to resolve this issue permanently.

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Photoshop 2021 Classroom in a Book now available

Working together with co-author Andrew Faulkner, I have revised the Adobe Photoshop Classroom in a Book for the 2021 release for Adobe Press, and you can now order the book! This is the sixth edition of the Photoshop Classroom in a Book that I’ve updated. A 35% discount code is available later in this article.

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macOS 11 Big Sur. Image courtesy Apple Inc.

macOS 11 Big Sur: Will Adobe software work?

With the announcement of macOS 11 Big Sur, you’re probably wondering if your Adobe software will work in this macOS upgrade.

Here’s the short version: As with most macOS major upgrades, it’s best to wait until all of the software you use is properly updated for it. If you decide to go ahead, you’ll want to run the most current version of Creative Cloud applications on the new system. Because of changes and tighter requirements by both Apple and Adobe, a much smaller number of old applications are going to run in macOS 11 Big Sur than in past upgrades. If you can’t or don’t want to upgrade your applications to current versions, you should delay upgrading to Big Sur.

With every macOS upgrade, full information about compatibility is typically not available on the day the new system is released or even shortly after. More information emerges over time, as Apple, Adobe, and other software developers test with the final public release and produce updates with fixes. I’ll update this article as new information comes out.

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Most Valuable Plug-Ins: Cover story for InDesign Magazine

The cover story for the September 2020 issue of InDesign Magazine is my article InDesign MVPs: Most Valuable Plug-Ins. InDesign Magazine asked me to highlight the winners of a survey where they asked InDesign experts about their favorite plug-ins, scripts, and other third-party tools for Adobe InDesign. How do these add-ons extend what’s possible with InDesign?

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