Adobe Fireworks Beta - What’s with the UI?
Adobe Fireworks (formerly Macromedia Fireworks) happens to be my favorite web design application. Some would say that there are better applications, such as Adobe Photoshop, but I have always preferred Fireworks due to it’s powerful features a simple user interface (UI).
After Adobe’s acquisition of Macromedia in 2005, the future of Fireworks seemed bleak. However, as of May 27, the future seems promising, although a bit odd. Two days ago Adobe posted the public beta release of Fireworks CS4. Along with the beta, is a partial screenshot of the new UI. The new interface is vastly different with custom buttons and unconventional toolbars. The design does not seem to follow traditional OS X or Windows conventions. While I’ll wait to draw any conclusions on the usability of the new UI, some users are already complaining on Adobe’s forum.