“Can’t open old file” error from Adobe

[Jeremy Garchow]

I see. Open the old version of Ae on a PPC machine.

Resave it as the old version.

And then, all of a sudden, it’ll work! I love it when a plan comes together.

Can you import the Ae file in to a new project instead of opening it?

[Walter Soyka]

That error could have been helpful if it were specific.

Ae CS6 can read project files back to AE v7.0.

AE CS5 can read project files back to AE v6.0.

Walter Soyka
Principal & Designer at Keen Live
Motion Graphics, Widescreen Events, Presentation Design, and Consulting
RenderBreak Blog – What I’m thinking when my workstation’s thinking
Creative Cow Forum Host: Live & Stage Events

[T. Payton]

Hey guys, I’m sorry I didn’t actually need help. I got it taken care of. Just poking some fun at Adobe, and realize that in the future if we just have the cloud apps, or even on the App sore, there is no chance of opening up in an older version because the old version wouldn’t exist!

——
T. Payton
OneCreative, Albuquerque

[Walter Soyka]

[T. Payton] “Hey guys, I’m sorry I didn’t actually need help. I got it taken care of.”

Whoosh. Sorry!

[T. Payton] “Just poking some fun at Adobe, and realize that in the future if we just have the cloud apps, or even on the App sore, there is no chance of opening up in an older version because the old version wouldn’t exist!”

Fair enough — it is a silly error message!

Older versions will still exist with Creative Cloud. Contrary to the name, the software still installs and runs locally on your desktop, and when a new update is available, you decide when to install it.

CC is actually a bit of a step forward here, because it lets you step back.

From the Creative Cloud FAQ [link]:

Do Creative Cloud members have access to previous versions of Creative Cloud apps?
Yes. Creative Cloud paid members have access to a select set of archived versions of the desktop apps. Starting with CS6, select versions of each of the desktop creative apps will be archived and available for download. Archived versions are provided “as is” and are not updated to work with the latest hardware and software platforms.

This wouldn’t have helped you with the AE v6.5 problem, but it will be the first time you could still get older versions of the software from Adobe after a newer one is released.

Walter Soyka
Principal & Designer at Keen Live
Motion Graphics, Widescreen Events, Presentation Design, and Consulting
RenderBreak Blog – What I’m thinking when my workstation’s thinking
Creative Cow Forum Host: Live & Stage Events