Adobe released the first public beta of its new web design application, Muse. Created by the team that developed InDesign, this tool promises to free designers from the hassle of code and return them to the joy of pure design. From the sound of it, these guys really love designers and understand that they’d rather not mess with pesky HTML and CSS. Well, that’s what they’re saying (over and over) in the promotional video.
Christina Warren, posting at Mashable earlier this week, notes, “Adobe says that the majority of users who identify themselves as graphic designers — i.e., not web developers or interaction designers — still primarily work with print. Muse is for these users.”
Graphic designers will essentially cut out the coding when they no longer have to pass off native AI or PSD files. For basic or flat sites — those that are not particularly dynamic in nature or requiring highly interactive components — these designers will use Muse to create layouts and generate code with a single application.
The public beta is free to users and will be until its official release early next year. Once launched, it will be available via Adobe AIR and subscription ($15/month for one year, $20/month on a monthly basis). This will be the first Adobe product with subscription-only pricing.
Warren’s is not the only online review and many user-generated review and tutorial videos have been made available. What’s interesting is the commentary — most of it neutral to negative — from developers concerned about the quality of the source code, effects that this code will have on SEO, and the apparent “back to the future” nature of software that mimics everything from 1990s-era FrontPage, Publisher, and GoLive. Many share a feeling of déjà vu and wonder if this is simply Adobe’s attempt to resurrect GoLive as a dumbed down application for print designers that want nothing more than a translation device for layouts they’d rather create once.
What do you think? Have you tried the new Muse? Are you a designer looking for easy and intuitive solutions? Are you a developer wishing for clean code and disappointed with what you see? And what of the flexibility to design beyond the desktop — could this be the beginning of a device-agnostic tool?