Running Adobe CC
 

Hi!

We're a video production company in the UK and rely heavily on a mac edit suite, but someone mentioned changing to a linux system. We use several of the Adobe CC programmes, including Premiere, After Effects, Audition, Illustrator and the like. I was wondering if anyone had any experience using these programmes on both Mac and Linux, and which one you found performed better.

Many thanks!

If you're dependent on those Adobe programs, then you're stuck, period. They don't support Linux, at all, and probably never will. People have been asking on their forums for years (did you check their website?)

That said, if you re-phrase your question as "are there programs in Linux that perform the same functions as these?" then the answer is "yes". But, you will have to learn new software...choice is yours. Honestly, if you're already invested in the Mac ecosystem, and have software that you're comfortable with and run your business on, migrating to something new 'just because', won't get you much.

If you have an interest because of lower TCO of Linux, cheaper hardware, etc., then I'd strongly suggest you spend a FEW dollars, providing you don't already have a spare PC/laptop laying about, and load Linux on it. Try out those programs, and see if making a move is even feasible. All of the software mentioned above has Linux equivalents, and all of them are free. Won't cost you anything but the hardware to try it out.

Adobe's current way to protect their software has a few hurtles that may involve both technical and legal. There are web sites that offer clues on how one might move a windows install to Linux but it may not work as expected.

I like the Adobe stuff but you really have to install it on the OS they support.

As noted already, you may have other Linux supported software that may be used.

I think they have a web service you MAYBE able to use through a web browser. Or google there counter parts that other have written to take the place of there software. Blender is one of them. Best to research Linux equivalent of these. There are I few out there that are free as well as paid software that I have seen from time to time. When I was researching video editing and special effects for Linux.

https://filmora.wondershare.com/vide...eo-editor.html

Linux Alternatives To adobe_illustrator

10 Best Alternatives to Adobe After Effects

I work in VFX and we are 100% Linux, but our workflow is highly customised. You wouldn't want to retain Adobe if you're running Linux. The support just isn't there (as in, they don't offer Linux binaries, and if you were to be insane enough to try to "hack" around that for mission-critical production, they wouldn't support you anyway).

However, Adobe isn't the only end-to-end off-the-shelf vendor. If you want to use Linux like the major studios, then you're looking at these companies:

https://www.thefoundry.co.uk - this should be your first stop; they have almost a full production suite. There are studios out there that are practically Foundry shops from end to end.

https://www.lwks.com - next stop; lightworks replaces you Premier seats, and if you buy the year or outright license, you get Boris FX additionally, so your editors will even be able to do some fancy After-Effect-Lite type things.

https://www.sidefx.com/filmtv/products as needed (looking at your site, this doesn't look applicable to you)

http://autodesk.com as needed (looking at your site, this doesn't look applicable to you)

http://ardour.org replaces your Audition seats. Support is fantastic; buy a license (it's not per seat) and you'll have a direct line to the developer. Well worth the investment.

http://gimp.org replaces Photoshop seats, unless your *shop artists are painting, in which case you want http://krita.org

http://inkscape.org replaces Illustrator seats.


That's the most "drop-in" solution available, in my experience. If you have a dedicated CTO, then better / more open solutions can be constructed from the stuff most people will mention: Blender, Kdenlive, Natron, and so on.


I do this stuff for a living as well as for a hobby; feel free to email me privately with further questions, clarification, use cases, IMDB credits, etc. Most of my knowledge gets posted on my site, Slackermedia.


Best of luck.