As a general rule, Adobe is the dominant provider of software and design tools to the creative industries. While numerous firms have challenged this dominance, many have either failed (as in the case of Macromedia) or simply emerged as niche providers of enterprise document layout software. This has left Adobe as an almost Omnipotent force, with just a select few external tools being able to coexist alongside it.
The occasional tool truly shines, however, with the popular Sketch tool providing a relevant case in point. This remains a preferred design tool among website and app designers, especially when it comes to wire-framing, completing interface design and even undertaking visual brainstorming. In fact, a 2015 Design Tool survey confirmed that Sketch is more popular than Adobe, Illustrator, HTML and Photoshop.
How Project Comet will alter the Landscape
Introducing Project Comet: a new tool for designing and prototyping user experiences
Despite its dominance elsewhere in the creative industries, Adobe has sought to respond to this data and develop a much improved UX design application. The result of this is Project Comet, which will be integrated into Adobe’s design template in 2016 and is expected to combine wire-framing and interface design tools. This is a direct challenge to the enduring popularity of Sketch, and as a software application it underlines the aggressive approach of Adobe as a brand.
The project, which was initially announced on 5th October, was launched alongside other Creative Cloud updates and will also build on the basic offering of Sketch. More specifically, users can look forward to prototyping and will have the option to access live-on-live mobile previews in a similar manner to Marvel tools. The primary focus is UX design, as this is the feature that wows Sketch users and remains integral to the contemporary design process across multiple markets.
Historically, there is a sense that Adobe might have built features of Project Comet into an existing tool such as Illustrator or Photoshop. They have eschewed this logic, however, primarily because the reason for Sketch’s popularity is the fact that it is an efficient and easy to use tool designed specifically for UX work. With dual Design and Prototype workspaces, Adobe’s new addition to the Creative Cloud will offer a more comprehensive UX tool to users while also augmenting the existing features available.
The Last Word
Meet Project Comet
If you look at sites that sell products such as Amazon, you will set that the UX design process is key to the enhancement of consumer satisfaction, accessibility and usability. It is therefore a crucial area in which Adobe can improve its Creative Cloud offering, while also overcoming major competition from remaining rivals and competing products such as Sketch.