Installing .aco files in Mac PSE6..Is it possible?

[maureenreynolds]

After all the info about Kuler that Cathy Zielske has given us, I have tried installing the swatch .ase files, changing them to .aco files and trying to install and pulling my hair out so much my roots show!!

I asked at BPS, and over at Elements Village, and found various bits of advice here and there, but nothing is working. Some say you can use new .aco swatches in PSE6 but I sure can't get them to install. On my iMac they did show up (by title) in the little drop down when I just put the files into the Presets folder, but they won't open.

I know I can take a screen shot of a swatch and keep it as a .jpeg, but why can't I install?

If this is working on your PSE6 on a Mac, would you tell me what you're doing that I'm not?

edit: There is also this widget for a Mac Dashboard. It's not as complete but it could be handy.http://mac.softpedia.com/get/Dashboa...us/Kuler.shtml

[maureenreynolds]

Well, by googling and googling with a lot of rephrasing, I have come to this method for my Mac PSE6.

Go into Kuler, find a palette you like, download it to your desktop e.g. It will be an .ase file which looks like a white sheet of paper now. Got to PSE and go to swatches, load swatch and pick your new .ase file. It will appear in the color palette but at this point I don't see how one can save only that one. Hitting save will include those colors in whichever palette you have open but it will also save the swatch as an .aco file which you CAN reopen. So I've just downloaded a couple and load them one at a time to change the file extension. Apparently one must let PSE change the extension, not do it myself

Now I just need an .aco preview like Brushpilot for brushes.

[sweetpeony]

Maureen - I found a way to do it, kind of round about. I first copy and paste the kuler file in a new PSE document, then follow the instructions here: Photoshop Elements Basics Lesson 3 Exercise: Create a Custom Swatch Collection

Good luck!

[maureenreynolds]

Mary Ann, thank you for that link. Are you on a Mac??

[maureenreynolds]

MaryAnn, that tutorial totally worked for me! mwahhh! I must say that was the first info I have ever seen on color swatches in my nearly 2 yrs of digital work. It really was clear. My Kuler swatches are now usable.

[sweetpeony]

Yay, Maureen - that's great! Nope, PC (for Poorgirl's Computer.