And did you read the FAQ?
I am saving on local drive then either transfering over network or emailing to other machine.
I briefly scanned the FAQ but couldn’t find anything on this exact issue so I’m looking for maybe more insight from the Forum members.
Chris Cox "Some images saved in Photoshop CS will not open in Photoshop 6" 2/13/04 3:46pm </cgi-bin/webx?50>
Thanks for finding that link Chris. That’s not reassuring that the issue is PS6 only. Especially as there are no details as to why or what you do to an image in Photoshop CS that causes some files to not open in Photoshop 6.01.
Any knowledge of interim tips on how to work with what I am using (like don’t create more than x number of layers in CS, or keep files under xMB in size, or something ridiculous like that)?
That’s because we don’t know.
PS 6 is too old for me to debug adequately.
No idea how to work around it – I got the problem to reproduce with even a flat blank image (after deleting some layers).
As the FAQ states: the way around it is to upgrade.
This is the craziest thing I have ever heard. I upgraded to CS because I am the primary user of photoshop in our office, however I have other users that need to do updates and development with these images. I had NO intention of upgrading the entire office to CS at this time. Due to CS supposedly being compatible I made the change. Now I’m being told that Adobe is making their problem – MY problem because they don’t care enough about their customers to fix the problem!
Your solution is to make more money for your company by forcing me to upgrade the rest of the desktops in my company!
If I provided service like this I wouldn’t be in business any more. It must be nice to be so secure with your company status that you don’t care about your customers any more! On the other hand, I wouldn’t want to be that type of company!
Read what was already posted, and what is in the FAQ.
Then you already know that we can’t update Photoshop 6, and it is unreasonable to expect that we would.
I don’t agree. You could write an update for Photoshop 6, but you chose not to. Instead of paying for the mistake internally you expect your customers to pay for your mistake. I’m sorry you feel I’m being unreasonable for feeling this way. Either I have to return to version 6 (losing the money spent on CS), my staff has to return to version 5.5 or I have to come up with over $1000 to buy all the upgrades . . . . I hope you are at least warning others of this compatibility issue before they purchase the upgrade.
No, we can’t write an update for Photoshop 6 (older compilers, older OSes, etc.) — and it wouldn’t make any sense to spend our time testing an obsolete version when more recent versions work just fine. (Does Ford update the 68 Mustang just because the 2004 Mustang uses different spark plugs?)
Yes, you are being unreasonable.
No, but Ford doesn’t force you to buy a 2004 Mustang, you can still get the parts for the 68 mustang.
If you truly can’t update the product then warn people before they make the purchase. That would at least show some concern on your part for your customers.
I’m not sure the automobile analogy really carries well here. Rather than haggling over modifying PS6, I believe we should be looking for a patch to CS that will fix it’s ability to save files backwards like it claims it should. That one, I believe is reasonable.
Thank you Clay, I agree 100%. However by reading the previous posts I was under the impression that was not possible. Anything they could do to make the two compatible would be great in my book 🙂
Adobe could always provide free upgrades to 7 as a "Patch".
Clay – the bug is in PS 6. Changes to CS aren’t going to help.
AGAIN: read the existing posts and FAQ.
So you are saying that PS 6 has always been broken this way, even before CS came out?
I like the idea of free upgrades to 7. If 7 will read the file then that sounds like a good answer.
It would be nice to see Adobe at least trying to find a solution.
Gosh, what a mess. My thought was, if they open fine in 5 and 7, will re-saving them in those versions straighen out the bug?
If so, might Adobe consider a conversion utility or something that a user can download, and all it does is save it in a particular PS Version or convert it to a format like a tiff?
It would require a BIT of testing, but that with a disclaimer about what may happen would be at least a step forward, I would think.
Not sure if it’s possible, just a thought.
Peace,
Tony
Clay – yes. The bug is in PS 6 and some part of the way it reads PSD files.
But I can no longer compile or debug PS 6 (the old compilers don’t work on newer OSes), and we haven’t been able to figure out _where_ PS 6 is broken.
Tony – there is no PSD version, it’s all the same. Again, the bug is in PS 6, but we don’t know what the bug is, so we can’t work around it. And guesses about how to work around it have all failed.
Kierstin – READ the existing posts. We tried to find the bug (I spent several days on it myself) and could not find it. All we know is that it is something in PS 6.
Sure Chris, I understand. Perhaps users that are having the problem, can download a utility like Graphic Converter – Convert more than 30 image formats <
http://www.graphic-converter.net/> and see if the conversion to Tiff eliminates the "bug" in the file while preserving layers.
I don’t have the issue so I can’t test it to see. Maybe it won’t work, but I’m thinking it’s at least a try.
Peace,
Tony
The natives are finally getting restless.
It had to happen – this expectation from both hardware and software producers that it is perfectly acceptable for end-users to have to continuously fork out bucketloads of cash every 2-3 years just to keep working whilst in reality only funding the manufacturer’s R&D and CEO payouts is being seen for the arrogance that it is. Though Adobe is nowhere near the worst offender (M$ would have to be far and away the leading contender for that title), it is more than annoying when things are "broken by design" or released prematurely, and we are supposed to consistently and regularly pick up the tab through money and lost time.
Kiersten is quite right to point out that parts for the ’68 Mustang are still available. In the current analogy, though, it would be fairer to use a 1999-2000 Mustang as the comparison with a 2003-4 car.
If any other industry behaved like this there’d be hell to pay. It is not being lost on the proletariat that the richest people on the planet are disproportionately represented by the IT industry, either. The honeymoon may finally be coming to an end.
My 2c.
Fred.
It’s not broken by design – we’d work around it if we could.
Other industries do far worse than this…
Well, I’m a huge admirer or yours Chris and respsect Adobe a great deal. But as I tell my kids, there’s a big difference between "can’t" and "won’t".
I know I should just stay out, but…
I don’t believe for one minute that you can’t solve the issue. I think it’s too expensive and time consuming to solve, and users have to live with the fallout of that decision.
But man, if you paid 200+ bux for software (erring on the side of conservatism), that makes you activate so that you don’t cheat on your license, and you found out that some of your images were "buggy" (whatever that means) from a previous version that you spent money on, and would only open in previous versions of the software, that didn’t have the same restictions, including but not limited to, not being able to scan in current currency… man, you can’t tell me you wouldn’t be a bit miffed that you upgraded.
Here’s a company telling it’s user base that, basically, it can’t be trusted to do the right thing morally, and in the same breath says that they know of a bug in a previous version that may affect users ability to work and it’s just too expensive to really fix, and don’t tell anyone BEFORE they upgrade.
Okay, if you feel it’s better to say "it’s not that we don’t trust the user base, it’s that a small number of pirates have gotten the attention of the company and we have to do something about it", fine.
Point is, c’mon man – don’t TELL me you wouldn’t be pissed. You moved heaven and earth to see that HP’s product didn’t marr the product perception (ZD Laptops). I KNOW you were shaking your head (and possibly finger) at them.
And in regards to other industries, it doesn’t do much good to compare yourself with other theives. That’s like saying "everybody steals a little, we do it less". Frankly, Adobe is held to a higher standard, as it should be, no?
However in this issue, personally, I don’t think its fair to put you personally on the hotseat. You do "missionary work" here and you can bet that I and many like me are grateful. I wouldn’t be the interface on this issue if I were in your role.
I think this is a marketing issue and marketing needs to solve it – whether that means fund it or take the flak for it, they didn’t tell anyone this risk before users forked over dough, and they knew about it and should have.
Sorry to put fuel on the fire, but marketing needs to deal with this.
<shrug>
I might be angry – but it’s still unreasonable to expect a fix to something that old.
There’s always a risk that older versions won’t read newer files, or vice-versa for that matter. We go out of our way to keep things working as much as possible. In this case it wasn’t possible.
Fair response.
I feel a bit remorse about speaking out like that. Hope you understand.
The good thing is that since I’m a "late adopter", I’ll make sure there are no PS6 images on my system when I upgrade <smile>.
Speaking of that, if they open in previous versions, and then are re-saved, does it straighten the image out at all or is the bug persistent/permanent?
Yet one more reason for many of us NOT to upgrade from V7.01…At this rate, I’ll be stuck with PS7 for years…since some shops are still using 5.5, I guess that’s not so bad a thing.
YrbkMgr: It’s actually the other way around, for me at least. If I create a file in photoshop CS, the rest of my staff can’t open it because they are still on 6.0 – It opens, I don’t get the error as the others have mentioned, but all I get is one flat layer – no editing capabilities.
I agree that many other software manufacturers have errors in their software, but I have never dealt with one that doesn’t at least say "we are working on a solution for the problem". I’m still in shock that Adobe’s only solution is to pay them more money.
Right now I am having my staff un-install 6 and re-install 5.5 so they can open my files. BUT this means now they can’t edit text between any of our old 6.0 files because of the compatibility issues there were with that release.
I skipped the upgrade to 7, CS seemed to come out so fast after 7 that I just made the jump – seriously regretting that decision now 🙁
Why uninstall 6? Two (or more) versions can co-exist quite nicely.
Bob
Kierstin,
Uninstalling 6 and installing 5.5 in it’s place is very bad advice on your part. If you really want 5.5 on the systems, install it, but don’t remove 6. If it were me I would install 5.5 on your system so you can open and resave the files you wish to share with co-workers. Why burden the other employees when you can correct the problem in a way that is seamless to everyone else.
I appreciate your advice, and agree:) But the first employee I was working with on this issue was not able to do that for some reason. The installation gave her an error, so we had to start from scratch. Not that 5.5 is installed I will have her try to add 6 again . . . not sure if it will work that way or not though.
I still like the idea of them offering a 7 upgrade . . . but all Chris can seem to say is "READ" the posts. Maybe he should start taking his own advise.
Thanks again everyone for your tips and comments on this issue:)
Kierstin,
Make sure you are installing to a different folder. You don’t want to overwrite the current installs.
Kierstin,
If I create a file in photoshop CS, the rest of my staff can’t open it because they are still on 6.0
Ah, I was referring to another issue – the bug. Your issue, in particular, is a matter of "tribal knowledge". The regular visitors to this forum, and indeed most graphic editing professionals understand that when new features are added to software via upgrade, that those features may render existing images unusable in previous version.
For example, in Photoshop 6, they added "Warped Text". Previous versions didn’t have this feature, so PS 5.5 will either flatten the image or convert that layer to raster instead of its native vector.
So for some features implemented in PS CS, it may not be reasonable to expect that older versions, especially those written for Win95 compatability (a testament to the age of the version) would know how to handle the new features. In my example above, sure, it’s easy. But with the new nesting of layers in PSCS and other advanced features, I’m not surprised at all that version 6 wouldn’t be able to read it.
Bob Levine and Photo Help are proposing solutions that, frankly, work. So at some level it becomes a matter of "expectations".
<shrug>
I do see your point, but it does work with older version then 6, so the age of the version is not the issue. My strongest point is that they don’t seem to care:(
They say its compatible, you just won’t have use of the new features which is perfectly understandable. But if 5.5 and lower doesn’t flatten the image then I wouldn’t expect 6 to.
If they had been nice and said "We understand there is a problem, we have posted this information to the CS product page so that others are aware of the problem before they purchase the upgrade and for your troubles we will . . . . do something" I would have been a lot less upset. But to simply say "We won’t solve the problem, it is now your problem, so please give us money to solve your problem – oh and by the way READ what you have already read 5 or more times"
I just feel their answer is rude and shows a lack of appreciation for their customers.
Tony, Chris stated that a simple white bg layer created in CS had problems opening on V6… it it not just because of the new features…
Update:( Well, it doesn’t open in 5.5 either, so I guess it is a global issue. Looks like we will all be upgrading to CS after all.
Once again, thanks to all that tried to help with my issue:)
I knew there was a reason I had stayed on 6 as long as I had, I just couldn’t resist the spell check! 🙂
I understand exactly how you feel, and please don’t take this as patronizing.
Chris Cox’s name is on the splash screen of Photoshop. He comes here pretty much as "god" to help folks or get sticky issues straightened out. The guy’s a genius, and PS is, at some level, his "baby". The regulars of the forum know that while he’s not infallable, pretty much when Chris says, this is the way it is, that’s the way it is. And he’s usually quite direct. Most of us appreciate the lack of smarmy marketing-speak that so many companies lay on you.
So the long and short of it is, IMO, for your situation, while not pleasant, there ARE workarounds that will allow you to get your work done, and realistically, I would rather Adobe spend time on addressing issues with current versions than versions that are no longer shipping.
Chris (and others).
I have to apologize for my earlier diatribe. I TOTALLY misunderstood the problem. I thought the problem was that some files created in version 6 would not open in PSCS, when that’s apparently not the issue.
I’m an idiot. Sorry.
<hanging head>
Peace,
Tony
Tony,
I ended up on this forum due to the issue I was having, because I could find no mention of it on the product pages. Based on what you have said about Chris, I commend him for his good work and efforts.
I have used Photoshop for years and have always done every upgrade (except 7) – I have never had this issue before, except with editing text. All the layers would still be there. I also work with many clients who I send files to and the reverse. I am obviously not always working on the same version as them and it has never been a major issue. . . .
Thanks again – and don’t feel bad about your comments – you might not feel they were appropriate in this situation, but there are many instances out there where you were right on! 🙂
I’m an idiot. Sorry.
We’re sorry you’re an idiot, too. <g>
Bob
Kierstin,
Thanks for the kind remarks.
Bob,
You know, only friends really know how to ease another friends’ pain. I knew I could count on you Bob <grin>.
Ok, it is my turn to say I’m an idiot – for not thinking of this sooner. I have fixed my CS and 6 issue, and I thought I would post this solution in case anyone else out there reading this could benefit from this as well.
It had to do with the depth value. CS has the new depth value settings. If I save the file with the standard depth value then it opens in Photoshop 6 with its layers:)
Hope this might be of help to others out there.
16 bit layers. Sigh. I guess I didn’t put in enough warnings….
(Note to self: when I put in 256 bit layers, put in 256 warnings. 😉
Tony – yes, there are some files saved by CS that PS 6 will not open. Just PS 6. We don’t know why, and we couldn’t work around it. So far it’s been like 1/50 files (maybe it’s the date… no, wait, I tried that already) that fails.
yes, there are some files saved by CS that PS 6 will not open
Yeah, I thought it was the other way around. Files created in 6 wouldn’t open in PSCS.
<slaps forehead>
No, _that_ sort of thing I could have worked around in CS.
For the record, around the office here, it’s more like 1/1 files. I’ve had zero success opening CS files in PS6. It’s a bit of a pain since we only have PS6 and CS at the office, but we just have to be careful to use only a single version of Photshop per resource/per project and things usually run smoothly.
Chris,
To qualify my previous remarks – I did not seek to infer in any way that you or your colleagues are deliberately engaged in subversive or inadequate design practices. I thought I clearly identified M$ when talking about "broken by design", being that it is one of the phrases they use in their own support pages to explain away their own programming faults, after all.
I am indebted to you (and Scott) in particular for finally turning on the lights in my brain as to the interrelationship between the OS & PS (and other programs, for that matter). Though it didn’t cure the nightmare ride I have had with "not enough RAM" or similar halts (not only in PS, btw) with my by now not-so-new computer (illustrating my point, here – 10 months old and already virtually obsolete), I am at least by now resigned to the fact that despite following exactly all requirements of the various software and hardware manufacturers when putting the machine specs together, I am stuck in dudsville with no exit until I can earn enough extra money to buy my way out with a new machine, new software, etc etc etc.
That’s the real source of my venom, not to mention the diabolical waste of time and money – but particularly the time – that this has cost me. When you are in your mid-fifties, with more than a few of your contemporary friends already dead or dying from non-accidental causes, you become increasingly aware of the fact that there is way less time to go than what you’ve already had. As such, mindlessly wasting it chasing your tail because of poor product, unsound spec advice and general indifference of an industry that rates with politicians, car salesmen and real estate vendors in the morality stakes IMO is absolutely infuriating.
One more time – I am not singling out Adobe or PS here, particularly not the workers at the coal face such as you, Scott and Steph. I am genuinely grateful for your participation and advice as I have benefited from it perhaps more than most, as it is still the only worthwhile help I have obtained. The rest of the manufacturers involved have left me to rot.
Let the record show that as a program I think PS is without peer, I just wish that such products could be better sorted to work properly in a more representative mix of hardware and work environments (and vice versa) before being forced onto the market by numbskull bean counters and greedy shareholders and management. Again, let the record show that I think M$ is by far and away the most flagrant and morally bankrupt abuser of the consumers’ dollar in this regard, and unfortunately some of the mud sticks to the rest. This is not helped by the "me too" crowd, who think Bill’s path to nirvana is the best one and hang the service, backup or morals.
4c this time….. 🙂
Fred.
Fred, it sounds like you need a Root Beer Float. They always make me feel better. Make it a tall one with a double scoop of ice cream! 🙂
sure kierstin. Gar-scon! A&W RB Floats all around! On Chris! 🙂
Just take the Roots and the Float outta mine please.
"Boston Cooler"
a half-full (this is important or it will overflow!) glass of Vernors Ginger Ale (in my opinion, the BEST!) and a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
YUMMMY! 🙂
Right-O, Dave, will do – just as soon as I get through arranging the meeting between my computer and the 12-gauge………
