Adobe® Creative Suite® 5 Bible

Chapter 3. Understanding User Interfaces

IN THIS CHAPTER

• Understanding tools

• Working with panels and workspaces

• Identifying common user-interface features

• Using keyboard shortcuts

Working with several programs developed by a single software manufacturer has great advantages: The programs support a common user interface, and access to tools, menus, panels, and preferences is handled similarly among the programs. Even if you've never used a particular program in the Creative Suite, you can explore a program that's new to you with an intuitive sense of knowing how to perform one function or another based on your experiences with other CS5 applications. The common user interface, knowing where to look for tools and commands to execute actions, and familiarity with the methods help shorten your learning curve.

Each of the Creative Suite programs obviously has unique features, but many aspects are exactly the same from one program to the next. In some cases, you can customize a program to suit your individual needs or a standard implemented for your workgroup. In this chapter, we cover tools, menus, commands, and customizing options to bring the programs close together.

Accessing Tools

Certainly, anyone who opens one of the Creative Suite 5 applications is aware of how to use tools nested in the Tools panels. Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign, Fireworks, and Flash have many tools in common. Dreamweaver and Acrobat have fewer tools in common with these three programs, and Adobe Bridge has its own ...