Plug-ins from PSE3

[chas3stix]

I sure am glad that this question/answer area was created.
I have several plug-ins that now reside in PSE# and I tried to install them in PSE5 but with no luck at all... I tried placing them in the same area as Wendy's orb and that was a no-go. The freebies from Flaming Pear is just one of the plug-ins. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I really don't want to have to bounce back and forth between the two editors if i can help it.
Chas

[graficalicus]

they go in Photoshop Elements 5.0\Plug-Ins

[Wendy]

Hi Chaz ...

They are plug ins not actions ... and they go in the same place in PSE5 as they did in your other version

... as Graffi said they just go in the Plug ins folder in Photoshop Elements 5. Then you will need to do a restart

Wendy

[GaryK]

Chas

I tend to keep all my 3rd party plugins in a separate folder outside elements. That way I can just point ot it from the additional plugins part in preferences and have both programs find it with no moving around.

It also keeps them separate if a reload is needed or if I need to know which plugins came with the program.

I'm sure there are some that won't work that way, but for now I have no problems at all.

Edit... one of my "extra" plugins is not allowing PE5 to open. A couple of mine had "install" programs and will run as standalone so I have a feeling it is one of those.
Will do some further testing.
It could just be a simple reinstall of those or maybe they are not compatible.

[chas3stix]

Just to let y'all know....I moved the plug-ins to their proper place in PSE5.
Seems like they work as advertised.
Chas

[johnfranklin]

I just downloaded the trial of PSE5 .It's so cute, it looks like vista....will someday. At any rate, I have been fumbling around in the bowels of the program trying to find out exactlly which plugins and such from earlier editions will work. As most of you probably know, there quite a number of resources (free and reasonable) available for all versions of PSE. They fall into three principle categories of file extension; 8bf (filters), asl (layer styles) ,and atn (action) files. These are like Noah's animals in as much as they go together with like kind. Actions written for PSE2 pretty much only work with PSE2, and then only with "ling's snap actions" Which is an installer with a GUI. Grant's tools (atn files) for PSE3 don't seem to work with PSE5 but,(good news) a new package has been written for PSE5. There seems to be almost complete compatibility with 8bf (filter plugins) I have sucesssfully installed Cymbia, Flaming Pear freebies and SmartCurves thus far and they function flawlessly. All of my asl (layer style) addins also work flawlessy.
The punchline: There is no harm maintaining more than one version of PSE on your computer! I understand the mindset and marketing of a new version has a mentality of Upgrade your old program has been superceded, it's obsolete! Not so, given the size of today,s hard drives it's easy to keep any number of versions installed. In fact the 1.5 or so Megabytes required for 3 or four versions won,t even register in the used space properties. PSE5 will convert your old catalogues from PSE3 or 4 and they are still usable by the earlier program versions. If you move files with PSE5 then the reconnect file function of PSE3 or 4 will find them. PSE2 doesnt have an organizer so no foul there. Only one hitch you can't open more than one at a time. (If that actually is a drawback) So if you've got a dynamite action for PSE2 and a picture to use it on go for it, no one need ever know you used your old, obsolete ,superceded version, unless of course you choose to tell them.

[Wendy]

Hi John ...

... and welcome to the forum

I guess that quite a lot of us have several versions of Elements and/or Photoshop installed ... various reason like favourite addons not working or indeed keeping them there simply to answer forum questions.

An interesting point it that you can have more that one version open at a time on a Mac ... I have never managed to work out why it doesn't work on Windows ..

Wendy

[johnfranklin]

I believe a gentleman named Panos is a member of these forums. Anyway he has a wonderful web site dedicated to photoshop actions. www.panosfx.com There is a section dedicated to PSE users. In the elements forums you will find a tutorial/post about PSE5 action installation.
this is marvelous, well done and will instantly lead you out of your confusion at least with respect to actions (atn files) specifically. As someone else pointed the 8bf filter files go into the plugins folder as with the older versions of elements. Overall the situation with actions working in PSE5 is a tad hit or miss some work, some don't, Ive installed a couple of actions supposedly for PSCS2 and had them work perfectly. It goes to whether to the editing functions necessary to complete the action are available in PSE5

[Wags374]

Personally I think Graffi's "add-o-matic" is awesome. Cuts out the confusion compeletely since it does all the work for you. I have never loaded extras so easily! I think it is well worth the asking price just to not have to worry about it ever again.