Extract text from FreeHand 9 templates (FT9)
To convert FT9 templates to another format, you need Macromedia FreeHand or other Vector Image software.
To convert other file formats to the "Drawing Template" file type, you need software like Macromedia FreeHand or a similar tool.
The .FT9 file is a FreeHand 9 Drawing Template created by Macromedia (later acquired by Adobe Systems). Designers used these files to store pre-configured page layouts, vector graphics, and typography settings to generate new .FH9 drawings efficiently.
Historically, users opened and edited .FT9 files using Macromedia FreeHand 9 or later versions like FreeHand MX.
Today, this format is severely outdated and extremely frustrating to use. It is a strictly proprietary format. Adobe killed the software over a decade ago. Modern vector software, including current versions of Adobe Illustrator or CorelDRAW, refuse to open these files out of the box. Users face a massive roadblock because standard web browsers and modern operating systems cannot process the legacy binary data. You are forced to track down old software or buy expensive third-party plugins just to view your old artwork.
You should convert .FT9 files to universal vector formats like EPS, PDF, or SVG. Converting to these formats ensures your vector paths remain scalable and editable in modern software. Be aware that specific legacy FreeHand effects or proprietary layer structures might be flattened or lost during the transition.
Standard online converters usually fail to process .FT9 files because the format is a closed, undocumented relic. Often, only the original legacy software can properly read or export the vector data accurately. We can inspect the file, extract readable text, and if our analysis detects a supported embedded format, viewing or conversion may still be possible.
Convert.Guru analyzes your FT9 file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted FT8, FT7 and HSE files.
If you want to convert FT9 file to SVG, AI, EPS, PDF, JPG, CDR, WMF, EMF, SWF, FLA, XFL or SKETCH, you can use Macromedia FreeHand or similar software from the "Vector Graphics Template" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert AFPUB, EPS, FIG, VSD, SKETCH, VDX, AFPHOTO, PDF, AFDESIGN, SVG, VSDX or AI files to FT9, try Macromedia FreeHand or another comparable tool in the "Vector Graphics Template" category.
The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our FT9 converter.