ericondaits mentions some good reasons. I'll Add:
If all you ever use Photoshop on is a WIN platform nothing. But if you wanted to take you PS skills and work in a shop that ran all MACs, you'd be a lot slower at first trying to get used to the way the MAC UI controls work.
How much would be worth to you if Photoshop behaved and looked the same regardless of which OS it was running in?
Say you are meeting with a client on a web redesign. They pull up their webpage, and say they want an image changed on the page. How much would it be worth to you if you could pull up the image on the desktop, slide it over top of the browser to the spot on the page, and start resizing it right there - without the OS application chrome around the image? Then be able to tinker with the settings right there while this candidate image sat on top of a live webpage running in a browser?
What would it be worth to you - to write an application one time in Flash and ActionScript, and be able to deliver it to any user on any platform? Oh, and you get to write only one user manual?
What would it be worth all the Quicken users to finally have a MAC and WIN version that worked the same, had same features?
"Imagine".
Now the question becomes - Can Adobe deliver? I've seen a lot of good stuff from them, on the web, at the MAX conferences (both when it was Macromedia and now Adobe). But like they say, "It ain't over till the fat lady sings!"
Cheers.
The developer only needs one set of skills: Flash or Flex, or XHTML/Javascript.
Speed?
I don't know the specifics of the architecture. That said, the Flash runtime has steadily been getting faster. They demo'd a 3-D Polygon at the 2006 MAX that you spin in real time. No lag. And if the one Sneak-Peek from this year's MAX in Chicago on Photoshop in AIR is any indication, The features demo'd ran as if it was running from a "native" coded Photoshop, saturation levels in realtime, a tray image thumbnails of history, roll-backs, changing the color of a car in the image! All worked as if you were running a full version of Photoshop.
It's software that runs on your machine, man! Haven't you downloaded an install program from the net before? Paid the fee using your credit card, gotten an activation code, installed the software, then inserted the code, and now you can run the software?
With AIR, you install the platform specific version of AIR (the runtime - it's free)... Mac, Win, Linux, etc... Once AIR is installed, then any FLEX, Flash, XHTML/JavaScript Developer can develop software for AIR, put it up on their site, you pay with a credit card (or they make it free, but with a panel that shows ads?), Download starts, and now you have the software on your machine of choice. No choosing Win/MAC versions to download.
The developer can code for subscription checking. If they do it right, you can still work offline without it needing to run and check evertime you fire it up. After some time it could require you to connect online to check your subscription and any updates. But while you work on or off-line, it works just like a regular program. In windows you can even go to add/remove programs and remove the program or the Adobe Integrated Runtime (AIR) if you like.
Cheers.
All the comments I see are from a bunch of uninformed Adobe bashers.
The software will be delivered to your desktop via the internet, and will most likely be a flash application running in the AIR (Adobe Integrated Runtime). That means, even if you are offline, you will still be able to edit your photos or do whatever. The online connectivity will be needed to download the software once, periodically check to see you are still subscibed, and to update your local copy of the software when there's a update.
If you care to pull your head out of the sand for a while to go and find more:
You'd see how uninformed your petty comments are. Install the AIR runtime, download a couple of the application, try them out, then come back and complain when you know something.
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ericondaits mentions some good reasons. I'll Add: If all you ever use Photoshop on is a WIN platform nothing. But if you wanted to take you PS skills and work in a shop that ran all MACs, you'd be a lot slower at first trying to get used to the way the MAC UI controls work. How much would be worth to you if Photoshop behaved and looked the same regardless of which OS it was running in? Say you are meeting with a client on a web redesign. They pull up their webpage, and say they want an image changed on the page. How much would it be worth to you if you could pull up the image on the desktop, slide it over top of the browser to the spot on the page, and start resizing it right there - without the OS application chrome around the image? Then be able to tinker with the settings right there while this candidate image sat on top of a live webpage running in a browser? What would it be worth to you - to write an application one time in Flash and ActionScript, and be able to deliver it to any user on any platform? Oh, and you get to write only one user manual? What would it be worth all the Quicken users to finally have a MAC and WIN version that worked the same, had same features? "Imagine". Now the question becomes - Can Adobe deliver? I've seen a lot of good stuff from them, on the web, at the MAX conferences (both when it was Macromedia and now Adobe). But like they say, "It ain't over till the fat lady sings!" Cheers.
Portability.
The developer only needs one set of skills: Flash or Flex, or XHTML/Javascript.
Speed?
I don't know the specifics of the architecture. That said, the Flash runtime has steadily been getting faster. They demo'd a 3-D Polygon at the 2006 MAX that you spin in real time. No lag. And if the one Sneak-Peek from this year's MAX in Chicago on Photoshop in AIR is any indication, The features demo'd ran as if it was running from a "native" coded Photoshop, saturation levels in realtime, a tray image thumbnails of history, roll-backs, changing the color of a car in the image! All worked as if you were running a full version of Photoshop.
It's software that runs on your machine, man! Haven't you downloaded an install program from the net before? Paid the fee using your credit card, gotten an activation code, installed the software, then inserted the code, and now you can run the software? With AIR, you install the platform specific version of AIR (the runtime - it's free)... Mac, Win, Linux, etc... Once AIR is installed, then any FLEX, Flash, XHTML/JavaScript Developer can develop software for AIR, put it up on their site, you pay with a credit card (or they make it free, but with a panel that shows ads?), Download starts, and now you have the software on your machine of choice. No choosing Win/MAC versions to download. The developer can code for subscription checking. If they do it right, you can still work offline without it needing to run and check evertime you fire it up. After some time it could require you to connect online to check your subscription and any updates. But while you work on or off-line, it works just like a regular program. In windows you can even go to add/remove programs and remove the program or the Adobe Integrated Runtime (AIR) if you like. Cheers.
All the comments I see are from a bunch of uninformed Adobe bashers.
The software will be delivered to your desktop via the internet, and will most likely be a flash application running in the AIR (Adobe Integrated Runtime). That means, even if you are offline, you will still be able to edit your photos or do whatever. The online connectivity will be needed to download the software once, periodically check to see you are still subscibed, and to update your local copy of the software when there's a update.
If you care to pull your head out of the sand for a while to go and find more:
http://labs.adobe.com/technologies/air/
You'd see how uninformed your petty comments are. Install the AIR runtime, download a couple of the application, try them out, then come back and complain when you know something.