Adobe Systems Version Cue CS4

Two editions of Creative Suite ago, Adobe introduced a confusing technology called Version Cue that promised to do two things: let you track and manage versions of your files so you could revert to earlier versions if desired, and provide a shared workspace for all participants in a project to work on the files.

Adobe Version Cue CS4 is included in the following Creative Suite 4 editions: Adobe Creative Suite 4 Design Premium; Adobe Creative Suite 4 Design Standard; Adobe Creative Suite 4 Web Premium; Adobe Creative Suite 4 Web Standard; Adobe Creative Suite 4 Master Collection.

Before CS4, if the Version Cue feature was enabled, Creative Suite applications had a second set of Open and Save dialogue boxes meant to provide a unified experience across Windows and Macintosh, but one that didn't work like the rest of your application's Open and Save dialogue boxes.

In Creative Suite 4, that parallel universe of dialogue boxes is gone. Version Cue is now much less visible to users of individual CS4 programs. Now, Adobe Bridge is where you manage Version Cue projects, creating virtual servers that appear on the Mac and Windows desktops like any other network drive.

In programs such as Photoshop and InDesign, you simply open Version Cue files from those network drives, and the programs understand that you are working in the Version Cue environment. That means the applications' commands to check files in and out become available, and when you save your work by checking the files back in, the programs create a new version of the file, not replace the original.