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The CorelDRAW Graphics Suite has come a long way and with each iteration, it seems to improve on its market share. This version is also easier to use than before
Not many software developers that can boast fourteen major releases of their software, and even fewer can say that they have been around for just less than twenty years (this is especially true for graphics applications).
My first encounter with this franchise was back in 1993, when the company launched Version 4, and it’s mind blowing to see how much CorelDRAW has improved since then. Talking about all the features alone will require a few double-page spreads.
In a nutshell, CorelDRAW X4 consists of four graphic tools: Illustrate (CorelDRAW X4), Layout (CorelDRAW X4), Photo-Edit (Corel PHOTO-PAINT X4), and Trace (Corel PowerTRACE X4).
The bundle also includes a variety of other applications including Corel CAPTURE X4 (a screen capture utility), Barcode Wizard (a barcode generator), and Bitstream Font Navigator. Traditionally, these applications were spread across multiple discs, but fortunately Corel opted for the single DVD installer this time around.
Once installed, existing CorelDRAW users will immediately notice the overhauled user interface, which I found particularly refreshing and most importantly, intuitive to use. The developers also added an interesting interface customisation feature that allows the CorelDRAW X4 workspace to imitate that of its Adobe counterparts.
PHOTO-PAINT takes on Photoshop while CorelDRAW takes on Adobe Illustrator. This is not just a clever marketing gimmick, but it will play a major role in companies that have opted to move away from Adobe’s Creative Suite in lieu of CorelDRAW Graphics Suite.
CorelDraw now also supports Adobe CS3 (Photoshop, Acrobat, and Illustrator) files.
Corel also appears to have put some extra effort into image and text editing, as well as improved its layout capabilities. One of these is the new independent layer support for pages. The software allows users to edit page layers individually from the others, something that caused mild frustration in previous versions of the
software. You can now also add unique guidelines for individual pages or create a master guideline for the entire document.
Corel has always been known to add a lot of value to their software by including fonts, images, and clipart with the software. This time it’s clear they mean business. CorelDRAW X4 comes bundled with more than 10,000 clipart pictures and photos, as well as 1,000 high-resolution stock photos and 1,000 OpenType fonts, all of which are royalty free.
There is also a training DVD in the box, which offers about two hours of training tutorials. There is no doubt that CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X4 offers great value for money, especially considering it is cheaper that its Adobe counterpart.
While Adobe still dominates this creative market space, Corel has done a great job of making the transition from Adobe as simple as possible, and this will definitely play in their favour with small design houses and students purchasing the suite.
Not many software developers that can boast fourteen major releases of their software, and even fewer can say that they have been around for just less than twenty years (this is especially true for graphics applications).
My first encounter with this franchise was back in 1993, when the company launched Version 4, and it’s mind blowing to see how much CorelDRAW has improved since then. Talking about all the features alone will require a few double-page spreads.
In a nutshell, CorelDRAW X4 consists of four graphic tools: Illustrate (CorelDRAW X4), Layout (CorelDRAW X4), Photo-Edit (Corel PHOTO-PAINT X4), and Trace (Corel PowerTRACE X4).
The bundle also includes a variety of other applications including Corel CAPTURE X4 (a screen capture utility), Barcode Wizard (a barcode generator), and Bitstream Font Navigator. Traditionally, these applications were spread across multiple discs, but fortunately Corel opted for the single DVD installer this time around.
Once installed, existing CorelDRAW users will immediately notice the overhauled user interface, which I found particularly refreshing and most importantly, intuitive to use. The developers also added an interesting interface customisation feature that allows the CorelDRAW X4 workspace to imitate that of its Adobe counterparts.
PHOTO-PAINT takes on Photoshop while CorelDRAW takes on Adobe Illustrator. This is not just a clever marketing gimmick, but it will play a major role in companies that have opted to move away from Adobe’s Creative Suite in lieu of CorelDRAW Graphics Suite.
CorelDraw now also supports Adobe CS3 (Photoshop, Acrobat, and Illustrator) files.
Corel also appears to have put some extra effort into image and text editing, as well as improved its layout capabilities. One of these is the new independent layer support for pages. The software allows users to edit page layers individually from the others, something that caused mild frustration in previous versions of the
software. You can now also add unique guidelines for individual pages or create a master guideline for the entire document.
Corel has always been known to add a lot of value to their software by including fonts, images, and clipart with the software. This time it’s clear they mean business. CorelDRAW X4 comes bundled with more than 10,000 clipart pictures and photos, as well as 1,000 high-resolution stock photos and 1,000 OpenType fonts, all of which are royalty free.
There is also a training DVD in the box, which offers about two hours of training tutorials. There is no doubt that CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X4 offers great value for money, especially considering it is cheaper that its Adobe counterpart.
While Adobe still dominates this creative market space, Corel has done a great job of making the transition from Adobe as simple as possible, and this will definitely play in their favour with small design houses and students purchasing the suite.