Adobe has unveiled Creative Suite 4, its latest update to the high-end line of applications aimed at print, web, and video professionals. Adobe CS4 will feature updates to all the main Adobe apps like Illustrator, Flash and more — see our in-depth look at Photoshop CS4 — as well as its integration apps, like Bridge and Version Cue. Creative Suite 4 will ship in October 2008

Among the most obvious changes are the new suite-wide tabbed interface and (finally) a unified look for all the applications.

But the new look isn’t the only change. Behind the scenes you’ll find Adobe has been focusing on tighter integration between apps — nearly all the CS4 apps now support smart objects and most can directly export to other apps in the suite.

Here’s an overview of some of the more significant changes and new features in the apps of interest to web developers:

Dreamweaver

Adobe’s flagship web development app now has a “Live View” mode, which allows you to see code changes auto-update in a live preview. Although Dreamweaver has long offered a “Preview in Browser” feature, the new Live View offers real-time updates without needing to leave Dreamweaver or refresh the page (Dreamweaver uses WebKit to render the page, so you see what you would see in Apple’s Safari browser).

Also new in Dreamweaver CS4 is Code Navigator, a pop-up window that shows you links to all the CSS styles that affect your current selection. When you click on a particular rule in the Code Navigator pop-up, Dreamweaver will automatically open up the stylesheet in question and put the cursor focus on that rule.

Other changes include much better integration with other CS4 apps. For instance, you can now bring Photoshop PSD files into Dreamweaver as Smart Objects. If you then change the source file in Photoshop, Dreamweaver will update as well.

Dreamweaver will retail for $400 with upgrades for Dreamweaver CS3, Dreamweaver 8 and Dreamweaver MX users going for $200. Adobe is also offer cross-upgrade options for owners of the now defunct Adobe GoLive app. If you have just about any version of GoLive since the 5.0 release, you’ll be able to pick up Dreamweaver CS4 for $200.

Flash

The big news in Flash is the new XFL file support, which means you open content from After Effects CS4 and InDesign CS4 directly in Flash. To go along with the new importing tools, Flash now supports object tweens.

The Object Tweens work just like timeline-based tweens, but rather than requiring keyframes to create an animation, the tweens are applied directly to your object. Using the new tools the process of animating is no longer a time-consuming and tedious process of selecting and deselecting keyframes.

Flash CS4 also features some new 3-D transform tools which offer you the ability to animate 2-D objects in 3-D space (which was possible before, using ActionScript, but the new features should be welcome news for those of you who don’t remember your high school trig class).

A standalone copy of Flash CS4 will set you back $700. Flash CS3, Flash 8 and Flash MX users can upgrade for $200.

Illustrator

Adobe’s oldest app in the creative suite also sees some nice upgrades including a new “Blob Brush” which aims to make vector sketching a big easier. Using the Blob Brush designers can sketch objects without worrying about broader overlaps since the brush will automatically merge your paths into a single object.

Illustrator CS4 also adds support for multiple artboards, as well as the ability to create transparent gradients (which can be exported to other CS4 apps like Photoshop, Flash and more).

Illustrator CS4 will retail for $600. Illustrator CS3 and CS2 users will be able to upgrade for $200.

The Confusion

The main downside to the CS4 release is the Adobe has once again managed to come up with an array of app bundles and standalone products that surpasses even Windows Vista on the confusion scale.

The bundles are as follows: Creative Suite 4 Design Premium ($1800), Web Premium ($1700), Production Premium ($1700), and the Creative Suite 4 Master Collection ($2500). There’s also Design Standard and Web Standard, but Adobe has not released price information for either.

As for which apps you get with which bundle, the set up remains the same as the previous Creative Suite 3 lineup [Correction: both Web Premium and Production Premium now include Soundbooth. For more info, see our updated coverage. The other suites appear to be the same as CS3.]

See Also:

• First Look: Photoshop Creative Suite 4 Is Faster, More Refined