{"id":577,"date":"2026-05-05T11:54:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-05T10:54:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.goesselgold.de\/blog\/?p=577"},"modified":"2026-05-05T12:24:35","modified_gmt":"2026-05-05T11:24:35","slug":"babylon-adobe-2017","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.goesselgold.de\/blog\/2026\/05\/babylon-adobe-2017\/","title":{"rendered":"Babylon Adobe 2017"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This article from 2017 is the third out of four that I wrote on this topic over ten years. For the other three, see the links below.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Adobe, what\u2019s up? In two articles I complained about the fact that you could not design a simple standard dialogue box consistently in your apps. Last time I checked, not two dialogues looked the same\u2014and I wondered if that can explained other than with deliberate intent that you, as the design experts that you like to call yourself, created a dialogue that looked differently in InDesign than in Illustrator and differently again in Photoshop. And so on, in all the apps of the suite. While every interface designer has learned how helpful design systems are in which similar features look and behave the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, how are things now? There have been some changes recently: The suite apps are only available as a subscription, fairly regular updates included. Some apps like Muse and Reflow are gone, Flash is called Adobe Animate and Fireworks still runs on Sierra, but has long been unsupported. There are new apps like Experience Design (Adobe XD). MacOS has moved on by several versions and has also parted ways with the last \u201cAqua\u201d elements. That should show in updated system dialogs as well. How about it, Adobe?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s a selection of Save dialogues on MacOS, 2017 edition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Sichern-Dialoge<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What. The. Fuck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Seriously, Adobe. I could not have imagined that you could do worse, but you can, obviously. Now it is difficult to even find two Save buttons that are the same. (There are, can you spot them?). And there are new variables: Take the gray shade of the title bar (what?), the stroke weight and color of the pill-shaped buttons, and the overall shape of those knock-off system buttons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s so much going wrong here that I can\u2019t even list it all; you can try spotting all the differences for yourselves. My personal favorites are the Fuse dialog, which breaks every system convention (right column, fourth from the top), and the Fireworks one, which hasn\u2019t been updated for Retina (why would it?), but at least addresses me on a first-name basis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The one bright spot can be found in one of the suite\u2019s newest members, Adobe Experience Design. Here, as far as I can see, Adobe respects all of Apple’s interface guidelines, right down to the ellipsis (\u2026) in the Save button.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So is there hope for an Adobe app interface that\u2019s consistent, sticks to system standards, and isn\u2019t reinvented for every single program? I\u2019m afraid not. Because even in Adobe XD, cmd-clicking the title of a document window doesn\u2019t reveal the file path, just to give one example.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But it\u2019s still in beta. Get cracking, Adobe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Adobe\u2019s save dialogues through the years:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n