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1047: Adobe has a big problem

October 14, 2026 · 35 min

Show notes

Someone just clean-room ported seven Adobe apps to Rust, and Wes is shocked at how good it is. Scott and Wes break down what it gets right, what’s still missing, and why copying software is easy but inventing what comes next is the hard part.

Show Notes
  • 00:00 Welcome to Syntax!
  • 00:12 Adobe Is in Trouble: A Clean Room Port of the Entire Suite
  • 02:22 Scott’s Long Running Adobe Grudge Since 2017
  • 03:42 Figma Is Not a Raster Tool: Why Every Alternative Falls Short
  • 04:40 Opening Real Photoshop Files: Masks, Half Tones and Blend Modes
  • 06:30 What Clean Room Porting Actually Means
  • 09:54 A Familiar Interface, Entirely Built in Rust
  • 10:15 Don’t Trash the Whole Thing Over One or Two Bugs
  • 12:14 What’s Missing: Artboards and the Tiny UI Interactions
  • 13:53 Where Are the Vibe Coded Photoshops? Four Months Later
  • 14:33 Figma’s Locked Down MCP and the Backlash
  • 17:22 Dylan’s Clap Back at Anthropic’s Own Closed Ecosystem
  • 18:08 The Real Photoshop Replacement Will Be a New Way of Working
  • 21:35 Good UI Is Still the Moat
  • 22:28 Caring About Your Project Past Two Days
  • 23:05 Audio Crackles and Paper Cuts: The Bugs Only Humans Chase
  • 24:56 Brought to you by Sentry!
  • 26:28 Copying Is Easy: The Hard Part Is Inventing What Comes Next
  • 27:28 DaVinci Resolve Keeps Shipping Useful Releases
  • 28:26 Sick Picks + Shameless Plugs
Sick Picks Hit us up on Socials!

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Scott: X Instagram Tiktok LinkedIn Threads

Randy: X Instagram YouTube Threads

All episodes of Syntax – Tasty Web Development Treats

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