Illustrator CC has focused heavily on performance and integration with the broader digital ecosystem. The introduction of the "Touch Workspace" acknowledged the rise of touch-screen devices like the Microsoft Surface, while features like "Asset Export" streamlined the workflow for UI/UX designers creating assets for the web and mobile apps.
The rivalry between Illustrator and FreeHand drove rapid innovation. While FreeHand was initially praised for its speed and multiple-page capabilities, Illustrator fought back with superior feature integration. Version 3.0, released in 1990, introduced the ability to edit patterns and support for the then-new System 7 operating system. adobe illustrator release history
Adobe Illustrator was officially released in for the Apple Macintosh. It was originally developed from Adobe’s in-house font-development software and was instrumental in popularizing PostScript-enabled laser printers. Illustrator CC has focused heavily on performance and
The turn of the millennium brought a consolidation of the industry that would define the next decade. In 1994, Adobe acquired its rival, Aldus, and while they were forced to sell FreeHand to Altsys to satisfy antitrust regulators, the eventual acquisition of Macromedia by Adobe in 2005 sealed the deal. FreeHand was eventually discontinued, leaving Illustrator as the undisputed king of vector graphics. While FreeHand was initially praised for its speed
The controversial one. Adobe completely rewrote the code to unify the Mac and Windows versions. The result was faster but riddled with bugs and missing features (no gradients, no masks at launch). Many users stayed on 5.5. It took three free updates to fix. This stumble opened the door for Macromedia FreeHand, which many pros defected to.