TechNote

Issue

Apple has released version 10.6 (Snow Leopard) of their OS X operating system. This document tracks the known issues that Adobe After Effects users are most likely to encounter while running After Effects CS4 in Snow Leopard. 

Note: It is very important to install the latest update for After Effects CS4 (version 9.0.2) You can update After Effects from another Adobe CS4 application (Bridge, Premiere Pro, etc) or download an update from the Adobe support web site.

Known issues

Plugin Compatibility

• Some 3rd party plug-ins are not compatible with Adobe After Effects CS4 running on Snow Leopard. As of now, this only applies to plug-ins that use Quartz Composer. Customers are encouraged to check plug-in compatibility before upgrading. Also, on Snow Leopard, QuickTime files with a Quartz Composer track are not compatible with After Effects CS4. 
• A table listing plug-ins and their compatibility with Snow Leopard is being maintained at Toolfarm (www.toolfarm.com). 
  Note: This link is provided as a courtesy only. Adobe does not monitor the site or verify the information provided.

Application Compatibility

• Render Multiple Frames Simultaneously (under Preferences > Memory & Multiprocessing) does not work properly in After Effects CS4 (9.0.0) in Mac OS 10.6.
• After Effects CS4 (9.0.0) may freeze or hang on startup after you upgrade to Mac OS 10.6. 

Solution

Update After Effects to version 9.0.2

Rosetta required

• After Effects bounces in the Dock, but does not launch. This can occur after a clean install of Snow Leopard.

Solution: After Effects requires Rosetta to be installed. Rosetta is an optional install on the Snow Leopard disk. After Rosetta is installed, you may have to restart your Mac a few times in order to remove the missing component flag that prevents After Effects from launching successfully.

Language Support

• It is no longer possible to run After Effects in another language by using the Finder Get Info dialog to deselect languages. The Language section has been removed from the Get Info dialog box.

Gamma change

• Apple has changed the default gamma from 1.8 to 2.2 in Snow Leopard. While this is not an After Effects issue, it may affect the appearance of After Effects projects. For more information on this change in gamma values, refer to this article on the Apple support site.

Additional information

After Effects CS3 has also been tested with Snow Leopard and has the same issues as CS4. Please be aware that CS3 preceded Snow Leopard by a few years and Adobe no longer issues updates for After Effects CS3.