Using Version Cue

Version Cue doesn't have an actual user interface itselfnor is it a program that you actively launch to use it. Instead, Version Cue functionality is accessible through the user interface of the applications that support it. You can access projects and work with files in Version Cue directly from Bridge (see Figure 11.4); via the Open, Save, and Place dialog boxes in Photoshop, Illustrator, or InDesign (see Figure 11.5); or via the Site Management window in GoLive. You can also access Version Cue by clicking on the Version Cue button when opening or saving files from Acrobat (see Figure 11.6).

Figure 11.4. Accessing Version Cue from the Favorites panel in Bridge.

Figure 11.5. Accessing a Version Cue project via Photoshop's Open dialog box.

Figure 11.6. The Version Cue button, as it appears in Acrobat's Open or Save dialog box.

By the Way

To take advantage of Version Cue functionality within the Open, Save, and Place dialog boxes in Photoshop, Illustrator, or InDesign, you have to click on the Use Adobe Dialog button (see Figure 11.7).

Figure 11.7. The Use Adobe Dialog button, as it appears in an application's Open or Save dialog box.

Additionally, you can make changes to Version Cue's settings via an advanced administration feature using your web browser (such as Internet Explorer or Safari). We talk more about advanced administration features later in this chapter.

Creating Projects

The easiest way to create a new Version Cue project is directly in Bridge. You can either click on the New Version Cue Project button in Bridge Center (see Figure 11.8) or choose Tools, Version Cue, New Project (see Figure 11.9).

Figure 11.8. The New Version Cue Project button, which is found at the bottom of the Bridge Center screen.

Figure 11.9. Creating a project from Bridge via the Tools menu.

Alternatively, you can create Version Cue projects from the Open, Save, or Place dialog boxes in Photoshop, Illustrator, or InDesign. From the Project Tools pop-up menu in the Adobe dialog box, choose New Project (see Figure 11.10).

Figure 11.10. Creating a project from Photoshop's Open dialog box, via the Project Tools menu.

By the Way

You can also create new Version Cue projects from the Advanced Administration utility, covered later in this chapter.

Name your project and enter as much information about the project as you can (see Figure 11.11). Don't worryyou can always update your comments later by choosing Edit Properties from the Project Tools menu. Finally, choose whether your project should be public. Version Cue lets you decide which of your projects other people can see and which they can't. Click OK to create the project.

Figure 11.11. Adding project info can help you (and others) easily identify the contents or use for a Version Cue project.

Adding Files to a Version Cue Project

You can add files into a Version Cue project in two basic ways. The first way is to simply save a file from any supporting application into the project directly. Choose File, Save (or File, Save As for existing files), and click on the Use Adobe Dialog button, if it isn't already open (see note). Enter a comment for the file, navigate to your project file's folder, and click Save.

By the Way

Your application's Save and Open dialog boxes are "sticky," meaning that they remember if you were last using Version Cue and automatically open the Adobe dialog box instead of the operating system's dialog box. You can access any filefrom within Version Cue or anywhere on your hard driveusing the Adobe dialog box, but if you prefer, you can always click on the Use OS Dialog button. You can access Version Cue project files only from the Adobe dialog box, though.

The second way to add files to a Version Cue project is to manually add them in Bridge. You can drag just about any file into a Version Cue project this wayeven entire folders of files. This method is perfect for when you need to add several files at once to your project or if you want to add non-Adobe files to your project (such as Word documents and Quark files).

Finding Files in Version Cue

One of the most powerful features in Version Cue is its capability to quickly search for and find the files you're looking for. Unfortunately, you can't search across multiple projects, so make sure you've navigated inside a project file and then click on the Project Search listing on the left side of the dialog box (listed under Version Cue) in the Adobe dialog box. You can then specify what kind of data you're searching with and enter any text to search for (see Figure 11.12). Version Cue looks at a file's name and its metadata for anything that matches and provides you with a list of files. You'll also notice that as you hover your mouse over each of the files, a tip window pops up showing some of the metadata of that file (see Figure 11.13). All of this makes it easy to find the files you're looking for without having to open themwhich can save huge amounts of time.

Figure 11.12. Performing a search in a Version Cue project in the Adobe dialog box.

Figure 11.13. A tip window pops up to display metadata, giving detailed information about a file without having to open it.

How Version Cue Works

Version Cue basically exists in any of three different environments: an individual user who works alone, a group of users who share files among their computers in an ad-hoc environment, and a group of users who have a central server where all of their files are stored (see Table 11.1).

Table 11.1. The Three Different Version Cue Environments

Individual Setup	Ad Hoc Setup	Server Setup
Version Cue Workspace	Version Cue Workspace	Version Cue Workspace
Located on the user's computer	Located on each user's computer	Located on a central server
	Users can see co-workers' workspaces and access project files within them (where allowed).	All users can access the workspace on the server.

Whether you have your workspace set up to run on a server or on your own machine, it's important to realize that Version Cue acts very much like a server itself. When you open a file from Version Cue and work with it, here's what's really happening:

• The file is copied from the Version Cue workspace to your Documents folder (My Documents on Windows). The original file sits untouched in the Version Cue workspace (allowing others to access it as well). This working file exists locally on your machine now, so you're not working on a file over a network connection (usually a bad thing anyway), and you get better (read: faster) performance.

• The application you're using opens this local working file. In the document's status bar (at the bottom of the document window), the word "Synchronized" appears (see Figure 11.14), meaning that the working file you have open is identical to the file that's sitting in the Version Cue workspace.

  Figure 11.14. The status of the file is displayed in the document's status bar. In this case, you can see that the file is "Synchro-nized."

  
  
  

• When you make an edit to the file, Version Cue changes the status of the file to "In Use by Me." Your working file is now newer than the file that's in the Version Cue workspace. Others can open and view the (now outdated) file and will see its status as "In Use by Your Name" (see Figure 11.15).

  Figure 11.15. Others who try to open the file are alerted that the file is currently in use by you.

  

  
  

• When you save your file using the File, Save command, the working file is saved to your local machine. The file's status is still in use by you, and the file is not copied back to the Version Cue workspace. The working file on your computer is newer than the file that's in the Version Cue workspace.

• When you choose File, Save a Version, you're prompted with a dialog box to enter comments for this version (see Figure 11.16). The working file is saved on your computer and also copied back to the Version Cue workspace. The new file now becomes the latest version of the file (older versions can be accessed at any time). The file is now shown as "Synchronized" again, allowing others to now edit and save newer versions of the file.

  Figure 11.16. Entering comments while saving a version of a file.

  

  
  

Working with Historical Versions and Alternates

Version Cue keeps track of all the historical versions of a file that you save with the File, Save a Version command. For example, if you save a version of a file five times, your Version Cue workspace will have five separate and complete files, each saved in a different state (Version Cue keeps track of which is the latest version). You never see those versionsyou just work with one filebut those versions are available to you at any time.

You can access previous versions of a file in two ways: from Bridge directly or from within an Adobe application. Within Bridge, just choose View, As Versions and Alternates, and click on the Versions View button at the top of the Bridge window to display the different versions of each file (see Figure 11.17). From Photoshop, Illustrator, or InDesign, choose Versions from the status bar menu of any file (see Figure 11.18); you're presented with the Versions dialog box, listing all the previous versions of the file (see Figure 11.19). Select a version. You can either click the Delete button to erase that version or click on the View Version button, which opens that version of the file. Additionally, you can click on the Promote to Current Version button to make an older version of your file the current latest version (great for clients or managers who love to change their minds).

Figure 11.17. Viewing the different versions of a file in Bridge.

Figure 11.18. Choosing Versions from the status bar menu of a Photoshop file.

Figure 11.19. The Versions dialog box lists all the past versions of a file.

By the Way

As you probably figured out on your own, saving a lot of versions can eat up file space on your hard drive (or your server's hard drive). That's why it's important to use the Save command to make smaller incremental changes, but to use the Save a Version command only when you need to create a new version of the file itself. Deleting unnecessary versions helps, too.

In addition to historical versions, Version Cue helps designers manage different design ideas using something called alternates. Maybe you're creating a few different design ideas to show to a client, or maybe you are creating a campaign that uses a range of different photographs. When working on such projects, it might be difficult to track all of the different files. When you modify any existing file in an Adobe application, you usually choose File, Save As. With Version Cue, you can choose to save your file as an alternate (see Figure 11.20). Alternatively, you can select several different files in Bridge and specify them all as alternates of each other (there's always one file that becomes the primary alternate). When you have the files selected, choose Tools, Version Cue, Make Alternates (see Figure 11.21).

Figure 11.20. Saving a file from Illustrator as an alternate.

Figure 11.21. Specifying alternates from Bridge.

Using the Versions and Alternates view mode in Bridge, you can click on Alternates View to see all of the alternates for each file (see Figure 11.22). Bridge also indicates which file is the primary alternate.

Figure 11.22. Viewing the alternates of files in Bridge.

Illustrator and InDesign also track alternates for files that are placed into documents via the Links palette. Different icons indicate whether a file has alternates and also identify which of the linked files is the primary alternate (see Figure 11.23). From the Links palette menu, you can also easily swap one alternate for another.

Figure 11.23. InDesign's Links palette indicating that a file contains alternates.