Hi! We’re the product team behind Adobe’s Comp CC, a mobile app for designers on the go, and we want to share the cool things we’re working on.
It’s 2016, and scraps of paper and hand-dashed notes are still a go-to for ideation on the go. In some ways, it makes perfect sense; these are the tools that creative types have been brainstorming with since… forever. They endured through the desktop publishing boom in 90s, which marked a major turning point for designers. Now, we’re smack in the middle of another revolution; this time it’s a shift towards touch — both in the way we consume design, but also in how we create it.
Smartphones are ubiquitous and tablets — once perceived as leisure gadgets for gaming and browsing the web — are evolving into powerful, viable devices for design pros and enthusiastic newbies; look no further than the latest iPad Pro, which is slightly lighter with an even more compact profile, while maintaining the same power and versatility as the original. We’re both completely untethered and connected everywhere, but we’re really only just grasping the potential inherent in using these truly mobile machines for professional design work.
Imagine being able to do wireframes on the fly without lugging around a laptop, just by making a few swipes on your iPhone in between catching up on Twitter during your morning commute? Or mock-up something with a client that’s ready for desktop editing when you’re back at the office? What if these first-mile files could be seamlessly synced with your existing Creative Cloud account, to be accessed and edited on any device, immediately?
It’s not that these concepts are far-fetched. They’re all possible, right now, with Comp CC (yes, really!). But if you haven’t yet made the move to actually work on mobile yet, it can be difficult to know where to begin.
So let’s start here:
Comp combines modified elements from Photoshop, InDesign, and Illustrator, made touch-specific with intuitive gesture controls.
You want a square? You draw a square, right there on the screen, with your finger or a stylus. It’s ideal for layouts, both print and online; for app UX and UI; for fast compositions — with the added bonus of pixel-precise formatting.
Over the next several months, we’ll be doing a deep dive into how to maximize those touch tools you already have access to; following workflows from mobile to desktop and back again; showing cool projects that cools folks have pulled together using Comp; and giving sneak peeks behind the scenes at Adobe, where we’ll share insight into how our process and product can help evolve your own processes and products.
We’ll also be maintaining a dedicated tumblr with visual how-tos for at-a-glance guidance on navigating Comp, along with examples of awesome and unexpected things that people are generating with it.
Throughout this series, we want to hear from you about how you’re using Comp: What works? What doesn’t? What feature/s do you want to see in future updates? In addition to the next Comp release coming at the end of this month — which will incorporate a handful of the most requested updates from our users — our team of designers, developers, and testers are always interested to know how we can make the mobile experience better for you, and are continually refining functionality and adding features. We read everything you share with us, whether it’s through the app, via email, on our forums or in the comments below — and your input makes a genuine difference.
Comp was created because our creative opportunities are evolving. We believe that change is good — and we’re going to make it fun, and effective, and more exciting than you can possibly imagine.
Comp is free (!) for Creative Cloud subscribers* — download it now for your iPhone or iPad. Not yet a Creative Cloud member? Sign up for a FREE Adobe ID today and try out the latest CC apps too.
*Android users, hold tight — we expect to have a beta release for you this summer.