Adobe’s “What is in the box” package arrived today. Unsurprisingly, it was… a box!

After fighting with the excessive (but undeniably appealing) packaging to get to the CD-Rom, I popped it into my 24″ iMac, then attempted to launch the software. My first attempt was greeted with:

C’mon Adobe, it really can’t be that hard to send me a CD-Rom that actually works, surely, especially when it’s only a simple video?

Anyway, after a few more attempts the software did successfully run, and yes, it was pleasing enough, albeit nowhere near as pleasing as a trial of the new version of Creative Suite would have been. Adobe, please, send biscuits or cakes next time, maybe an Indian headdress or a photograph of a baboon: something a bit more exciting that won’t disappoint.

Pop your shades on and check out the screengrabs of the video below:

37Signals, the developers of Basecamp, have finally launched the eagerly-anticipated Highrise web app. Check out the feature tour here.

The online collaboration and project planning tool Goplan by Webreakstuff has been released. A direct competitor to Basecamp and the open-source activeCollab, the application is likely to attract considerable interest due to its impressive feature-set and attractive (compared to Basecamp) price point. Whether they can attract existing users away from Basecamp is another matter…

Check out this great photoset on Flickr featuring historical examples of Swiss design.

UPDATE:

More good stuff from our Swiss friends here.

The Dogs Trust has launched social networking site for dog owners. Doggysnaps allows users to post photos of their four-legged friends; users can also leave comments on other dogs and participate in forums.

Over 10,000 dogs have been added to date, so it appears the site is proving popular, and if nothing else, it’s worth a visit to see adorable little dogs like Ellie, Poppy and Alfie.

Adobe’s CEO Bruce Chizen has revealed that a free, hosted version of Photoshop is scheduled to appear within the next six months, as part of a bigger company strategy to introduce online apps that compliment its off-the-shelf products.