FAQ

For answers to commonly asked customer service questions, visit the customer service page.

For answers to commonly asked technical support questions, visit the support page.

Activation is a mandatory process that requires the software to connect to Adobe servers via the Internet and associates the products you have bought from Adobe with the computers on which you use those products. Activation helps protect your computers and environment from malicious code by ensuring you are using genuine Adobe software.

Adobe does not gather, transmit, or use personally identifiable information during activation, other than the computer’s IP address.

The machine with Technical Communication Suite 4 installed must connect to the Internet at least once within 30 days of the first launch of your serialized product.

Activation occurs silently in the background after installation when the system detects an Internet connection. You don't have to do anything proactively to activate.

The product must connect to the Internet at least one time within 30 days of the first launch of your serialized product. If the product has not been activated after 30 days, the application does not launch until an Internet connection is detected and the software can be activated.

The software silently tries to connect to the Internet to activate for the first seven days after the first launch of your serialized product. If the software has not activated within the first seven days, you receive a reminder for the next 23 days on every launch that the machine must connect to the Internet and activate the software. As soon as the software detects an Internet connection, it silently activates the product.

No. Activation of the product via the Internet is required for Technical Communication Suite 4. If your system is connected to the Internet and you receive an activation reminder, contact your local Customer Support for assistance. Customer Support, however, cannot activate your software over the phone if you don’t have an Internet connection.

If your system is connected to the Internet and you have received a reminder asking you to activate your product, please contact your local Customer Support. The phone numbers for Customer Support are available at www.adobe.com/support/contact/.

Yes. All Technical Communication Suite 4 users need to activate their product. If your company has firewall restrictions that prevent the machines from connecting to the Internet, have your IT administrator contact your local Customer Support. The phone numbers for Customer Support are available at www.adobe.com/support/contact/.

Yes. Every computer that has Technical Communication Suite 4 installed must activate in order to continue using the software.

If your company has firewall restrictions that prevent the machines from connecting to the Internet, have your IT administrator contact your local Customer Support. The phone numbers for Customer Support are available at www.adobe.com/support/contact/.

Activation of Technical Communication Suite 4 is required via the Internet to continue use of the product. Activating your product helps protect your computer and your environment by ensuring that you are using a genuine Adobe product. Activating your product has other benefits as well. Visit www.adobe.com/products/activation for more information. The machine with Technical Communication Suite 4 installed must connect to the Internet at least once within 30 days of the first launch of your serialized product or the product stops working. If you work in a company that has a firewall that prevents your system from connecting to the Internet, have your IT administrator contact their local Customer Support. The phone numbers for Customer Support are available at www.adobe.com/support/contact/.

No. Activation of Technical Communication Suite 4 is required via the Internet. Each machine with one of these applications installed must connect to the Internet at least once within 30 days of the first launch of your serialized product to continue use of the product.

For details on Adobe return policies in your region, visit http://kb2.adobe.com/cps/153/tn_15327.html

No. Activation is a mandatory process that requires the software to connect to Adobe servers via the Internet and associates the products you have bought from Adobe with the computers on which you use those products. Activation helps protect your computers and environments from malicious code by verifying that you have genuine Adobe software. Registration is an optional process that gives you access to a wide range of benefits and options, including access to support, notification of product updates, newsletters, special offers, and invitations to Adobe events.

Registration and activation are completely different. Activation is a mandatory process that requires the software to connect to Adobe servers via the Internet and associates the products you buy from Adobe with the computers on which you use those products. Activation helps protect your computers and environments from malicious code by verifying that you have genuine Adobe software. Registration is an optional process that gives you access to a wide range of benefits and options, including access to support, notification of product updates, newsletters, special offers, and invitations to Adobe events.

Contact Customer Service from 6am to 5pm, Pacific Time, Monday through Friday, at 800-833-6687, or submit a request online at any time. For faster service when calling, have your invoice number available.

A subscription is a new, more flexible way to get Adobe Technical Communications Suite. It gives you ongoing access to the software for a low monthly fee, as well as access to all upgrades at no additional charge as long as your subscription remains active.

Adobe Captivate 6 and Adobe Illustrator CS6 are available on a subscription basis as standalone products.

There is no difference in functionality, and the system requirements are the same. The only difference is that if you cancel a subscription, you can no longer use the software.

Subscribing is a great option to consider if:

• You use an individual tool, like Adobe FrameMaker or Adobe RoboHelp, and would like access to everything offered by Adobe Technical Communication Suite at an affordable cost.
• You have never used Adobe Technical Communication Suite and want a way to try it for the first time.

The subscription-based plan is also a terrific option if you work on a freelance basis, are a small business owner and have only an occasional need for Technical Communication Suite, or want to move your staff to Technical Communication Suite with a smaller initial financial outlay. 

Subscription editions are similar to retail versions of Technical Communication Suite in that they are installed locally on your computer. The functionality of a subscription edition is no different from that of the retail product. You do not need to be online to use your Technical Communication Suite subscription. However, you need to be online when you install and license your software and at least once every 30 days thereafter. The software alerts you if you need to make an Internet connection for a license status check.

Technical Communication Suite subscriptions are available exclusively through Adobe.com.

If you are already using a trial version of Technical Communication Suite, you can buy a subscription for that product from Adobe.com. Select the Subscription option when you add the product to your online cart. You are given a serial number at the end of your purchase. Just copy and paste the serial number when you launch your trial, and follow the onscreen instructions to start using your subscription product.

No. When you purchase your subscription, you electronically download the software. Your serial number and a link to the electronic download are emailed to you as soon as you purchase the software.

Your subscription includes access to current and future versions of the Adobe Technical Communication Suite as long as your subscription remains active.

Adobe offers one-year and month-to-month plans. One-year plans have lower monthly payments and require that you remain a subscriber for at least a year. Month-to-month plans allow you to stop and restart the subscription as your business needs change, but they cost slightly more. If your subscription is inactive for more than six months, you must purchase a new subscription.

Subscription fees vary by product, plan, and your country of residence. Visit Adobe.com or the online Adobe Store in your respective country for pricing information.

Your credit card is billed each month under either plan. See terms and conditions for details.

Currently, the only way to pay your monthly subscription fee is by credit card.

No. There is no price discount on a subscription if you own Adobe Technical Communication Suite.

Subscription editions of Adobe Technical Communication Suite are available only on Adobe.com.

Currently, only individual subscription editions are available, and only on Adobe.com. Licensing customers should consider the Adobe Upgrade Plan.

No. Currently, only individual retail subscription editions are available, and only on Adobe.com.

Adobe Technical Communication Suite 4 subscriptions are being made available in English, French, German, and Japanese.

Getting started with a subscription is fast and easy: Go to Adobe.com and choose your product and plan, and then complete the purchase. Immediately after purchase, check your email for a message from Adobe with your serial number and a link to download your software. After you download the product, double-click the installer and follow the onscreen instructions to install your product and start your subscription.

Your subscription begins as soon as the order is fulfilled by the Adobe Store.

Visit the Adobe Store download forum, where you can find information about typical software download issues.

From the Your Purchases pull-down menu on the Adobe Store, choose Your Downloads. A column displays the serial number for your subscription, along with a link to download

During the course of your purchase and installation, you are asked to create or enter an Adobe ID. An Adobe ID is simply your current email address.

When you install your software, you are required to enter the same Adobe ID that you used to subscribe to:

• • Help ensure that the person who subscribed is the same person who is installing the software
• • Enable Adobe to send you important account information if your subscription is about to expire or cannot be charged
• • Provide you access to CS Live online services

Adobe respects your privacy and sends you information about other Adobe products or services only if you explicitly opt in for such messages.

Ensure that your Adobe ID is your current active email address. If not, please update it.

No. You can use the same Adobe ID with all your Adobe products, including subscriptions. Each subscription is considered a separate purchase, so you may receive a separate email for each subscription if there is a problem associated with multiple subscriptions on your account.

See subscription terms and conditions.

See the product license agreement for the software you want to subscribe to.

When you buy a software product from Adobe, you are issued a serial number that represents your license to use that software. Activation is the process by which Adobe validates that your software and serial number are genuine and being used as allowed by your product license agreement. It is intended to protect both your rights as a consumer and Adobe’s rights as a software developer. Activation helps confirm that the software you bought is not counterfeit. You cannot use your Adobe subscription edition software if it is not activated.

Yes. If Adobe cannot activate the product, you are warned when you launch the application. Blocking access to the activation server prevents the product from launching.

If you own your own business and need to purchase 10 subscription edition products to get your team up and running, you must download and install all 10 subscription products using the same Adobe ID that was used when you purchased the product. Your Adobe ID and password must be entered on each system on which you install the application.

You can suspend your month-to-month plan at any time by logging into your account on Adobe.com and turning off auto-renew. After that, your subscription is not renewed at the end of the current billing cycle, but you can use the software until the end of your current billing cycle. If you try to launch the software when it is suspended, you receive a message that your subscription has expired.

Adobe keeps your information on file for 180 days. If you want to restart your subscription within the 180-day period, go to the Subscription Manager and turn on auto-renew. If your billing information is still valid, your subscription restarts. When you launch the application, follow the instructions onscreen to begin using your Adobe Technical Communication Suite again. If a new version of the product has been released while your subscription was inactive, a link to the new version is available from the Your Subscriptions option in the Your Purchases pull-down menu on the Adobe Store.

You can restart your subscription to either plan within six months of canceling. After six months, your account is deactivated, and you must purchase a new subscription on Adobe.com. If the version of the Adobe Technical Communication Suite you have installed is still the current version, you do not need to download it again, even if you are past the six-month period. Simply launch the installed software and enter your new subscription number.

Call Adobe Customer Service for assistance in making this change.

You can return a subscription edition within the first 30 days of purchase and get a full refund. The return process differs for countries and regions. Learn more about returning products in North America or Europe and Asia Pacific.

If your subscription expires or is stopped for any reason (for example, due to an expired credit card), you are notified by email, and your software displays an alert that your subscription has ended. If it has been less than six months since the subscription ended, click the Renew button displayed with the alert to enter the information required to restart your subscription.

No. When you cancel your subscription, you no longer have access to any version of your Adobe Technical Communication Suite subscription software.

There are no discounts offered for moving from a subscription edition to a non-subscription purchase of Adobe Technical Communication Suite.

If you buy the same product that you were previously subscribing to, you do not need to download or reinstall it. You can deactivate the product by choosing Help > Deactivate in the menu bar. Then, the next time you launch the product, enter the serial number that came with your new purchase. If your subscription has already expired, when you launch the application, enter the new serial number to begin using the software again.

You are eligible to receive updates to the subscription edition of Adobe Technical Communication Suite as long as your subscription remains active. Adobe notifies you by email as updates become available. The email contains instructions on how to access and install the update. Ongoing bug fixes, security patches, and other update releases that do not require full upgrades are made available through the Updater in the Adobe Application Manager, just as in the regular versions of Adobe Technical Communication Suite.

Notification of applicable upgrades are sent to you as soon as Adobe announces them. Adobe emails you the instructions on how to access and install the upgrade when it is available.

If a customer purchases the Adobe Technical Communication Suite “SUBSCRIPTION” and one (or more) of the individual applications in the Suite (like Captivate, Presenter, Acrobat or Illustrator) has a major release soon after, the customer will only receive updates to the individual applications as a part of the Suite when the Adobe Technical Communication Suite has its next release.

No. You are not required to install any new version of the subscription software, and you have a great deal of flexibility on when you install an upgrade should you choose to do so. You can continue using your current version of the product for one full year after the subsequent version is released.

Contact Adobe Customer Service.

Contact Adobe support for issues with your software.

You get the same service and support with your subscription that you would get under the traditional purchasing model for that product.