To make a beautiful website in Sparkle, we all need applications for creating and editing photos, logos, images, icons, etc. I suppose many of us use the Creative Suite from Adobe for this. I use CS6 myself.
With the arrival of macOS Catalina, CS6 is no longer supported because the Adobe CS6 packages are 32-bit as opposed to 64-bit what Catalina needs.
Unfortunately, even Photoshop CS6 (64-bit) also has serious problems with Catalina. Consequently, it is not a good idea to switch to Catalina when working with Adobe CS6.
There are 2 options for solving this. Either switch to Catalina and Adobe CC (rental price around $ 60 per month), or search for an alternative to Adobe CS6.
Affinity could be that alternative. I have tried the Affinity Photo and Affinity Publisher demos and have to say that they are not too bad. But that is something else than going into full production with Affinity.
Therefore my question: does anyone have experience with Affinity Photo, Publisher or Designer? How are the results in speed, stability, hi-end output, print, …? And what to use instead of Acrobat Pro for checking PDF?
Your answer can help many of us to create a pleasant workflow.
I used the Adobe suite for about 10 years and when they dropped us web designers like a hot potato and continued to increase their subscription here in Australia I went for a hunt… and like you I came across the Affinity Suite. I have been working with the Designer & Photo for a year and Publisher also that time because it was in Beta but now it is a consumer product.
Other then getting use to the idiosyncrasies of all three (and I am now use to it) the affinity Suite is the best contender that Adobe has ever had! and I say good!
I use all three for commercial use including moving print jobs off to our local print houses with Publisher and no complaints! So I can say that I have gotten very comfortable with the Affinity Suite and it gives Adobe a good run for its money!
The speed of all three applications are fast when compared to Adobe’s and stability is fairly good. The output is of similar quality to what I got from using Adobe. I don’t really use Acrobat Pro because of my print-house liaison, but there are alternatives that maybe some of the others have used. Here is a link to some good contenders - https://www.madestuffeasy.com/adobe-acrobat-pro-alternative/
There is another option. I have partitioned my Mac so that I have the choice of two start up discs. I run CS6 on an older operating OS and everything else on an up to date OS
In the meantime I am testing Affinity Publisher. Finding the right print output was a bit difficult, but in the meantime it is getting close to my expectations.
But making the switch to Affinity has one major disadvantage. And that is Acrobat Pro. Acrobat has 1 powerful feature! The ‘output example’ for checking the print profile and color separations. Indispensable for checking PDF intended for hi-end print.
@FlaminFig
thanks for the link to Acrobat replacement
I have tried all the demos, but nowhere can I find this feature. I spent a whole day searching the internet. Unfortunately.
@all
does anyone have a PDF editor with this function?
@RPX, In part Publisher has this already built in and Affinity knows it is an important feature we need and it is now a top priority for them to get ready and introduce in an upcoming iteration!
I’ve been using Adobe software since 1993. I have been using Adobe Creative Cloud for the last 5 years, mostly I have been tethered to CC because of Adobe Muse, and my experience with Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign.
I have been shifting my work over to Affinity Designer and Photo of recent - I basically set myself tasks of not using Adobe products to complete jobs. There was a learning curve but usually I would just type a question into Google and follow along with a video tutorial - usually from Affinity. In my experience, Photo and Designer are superior to Adobe Ps and Ai. And I also think Sparkle is on the precipice of being superior to Muse - in many ways it already is. Enjoy.
@Chris, Ha the Muse scenario was also my reasoning for keeping Adobe Creative Cloud for far too long, but in dumping Muse they set me free! And I totally agree that Sparkle is already there and with the next couple of iterations will surpass Muse by far!
Have your tried Affinity Publisher and how it inline supports Designer & Photo? It craps all over InDesign when it come to workflow and I’m sure Adobe is already copying it! And the outright speed - it is lightening fast when I compare the frustration I use to have with InDesign!
@Chris
thx for your input. Glad to hear you are very satisfied of Affinity. More and more I’m convinced to make the switch from CS6 to Affinity. I’m on day 5 of the trial version and must confirm your experience. It’s really good.
@FlaminFig
Publisher does great things. I have hundreds of Indesign files. When I need one in Affinity, I just make a hi-end PDF and place it in Publisher. Then I edit the document. Images, colours, fonts, etc are exactly the same in Publisher. Unbelievable. Fantastic.
About the Acrobat. Well, I found a solution. It was right under my nose. Right here in Belgium. For me it’s just fine to check print PDF.
Just upload your own PDF and wait a moment for the results by email. In the settings, you can choose your own language. Enjoy!!!
Glad to hear you are very satisfied of Affinity. More and more I’m convinced to make the switch from CS6 to Affinity. I’m on day 5 of the trial version and must confirm your experience. It’s really good. 
Images, colours, fonts, etc are exactly the same in Publisher. Unbelievable. Fantastic.