I find it surprising that Macromedia did not adopt PDF like Illustrator all these years, allowing users to open the files virtually anywhere. The last update for Freehand was released by Macromedia in 2003. Adobe acquired the program in 2005. It would have been inevitable that Adobe would be the one to "embrace PDF" "in all this time" if Freehand had ever done so, right?
By the way, Freehand has the ability to export to PDF. Additionally, CorelDraw exports to PDF. Just so you know, Illustrator documents can only be opened with other Creative Suite (CS) applications. IF… "Create PDF compatible File" is selected in the Save dialog box.
An illustration would be a basic 16 x 6 x 24 cm box layout with a front and back one-color 240 dpi image, and the remaining text and vectors. After checking PDF: 8,4 MB: full previews open in Acrobat Pro and function in both OSX and Bridge; Without PDF: 356 KB: preview opens in Acrobat Pro but functions as an icon in both OSX and Bridge; Freehand: 397 MB: previews full-size in OSX (Quicklook-spacebar) using 1000 x 1000, 75% JPG in FH prefs (user definable), which accounts for the larger file size.
We will next look at opening a FreeHand file.
Assuming you have a copy, you can open FH10 & FH11 files with the relevant version of Adobe’s FreeHand software. They can also be opened with the most recent versions of Adobe Illustrator and Animate. However, you can simply use FreeHand to convert the file to a different format, like EPS, if you already have it installed on your computer. Once you have the EPS file, you can convert it to another image format, such as JPG, PDF, or PNG, using an online file converter such as FileZigZag or Zamzar. It’s possible that there is a SAVE AS_ or EXPORT _menu option to save the file to a different format because Illustrator and Animate can both open these formats.
This is an example of opening a FreeHand file in Illustrator.
Launch Illustrator and choose File | Open from the menu. Verify that FreeHand is visible in the file format drop-down menu. You will see the following window asking for your license code when you open the first FreeHand file. The ‘FreeHand Import Options’ window will appear after the license has been verified, indicating that the plugin has been successfully installed and activated. You can manage the way that files are opened by adjusting the settings on the FreeHand Import Options window. Select if you want to import one page or the entire document. This option causes all of the document’s text to become outlines, which cannot be edited in text mode. The selected font replaces any fonts that cannot be found when this option is checked.
What about the ability of affinity designer to open files in FreeHand?
Adobe Freehand6 Affinity Photo (.afphoto) and Affinity Designer (.afdesign) Freehand files with multiple pages open with each page combined onto a single page. To import, add the.fh10 or.fh11 file extension. Importing text is not supported. Affinity Publisher supports a number of document, raster, and vector graphic formats for direct opening, importing, placing, and exporting. When a file is opened, the document will either open natively or its contents will be imported. Depending on where you place a file on the page, Affinity Publisher will either embed a copy of the file or link to the original one. Export will enable sharing or publication readiness.