SOFTWARE
Name Price Rating Comment Win 95 Win 3.1 From Tel no Issue Page Additional comments, notes
Graphics/Drawing
ABC Graphics Suite £249 llllmm Considerable power, strongly technical, not suitable for beginners. Y N Micrografx 0800 626009 18 163
Add Depth £131 llllmm Useful if expensive tool for creating classy 3D style artwork. Y Softlline 0181 401 1234 6 142
ASAP £95 llllmm Basic presentation graphics tool, excellent pre built templates. Y Y Software Catalogue 0800 136932 14 169
Coreldraw! 6 £495 lllllm A worthwhile upgrade if you have high spec hardware. Y Y Corel 01703 814142 13 132
Coreldraw! 6 £495 lllllm The defining standard to which other packages aspire. Y N Corel 01703 814142 18 157 recommended
Corel Xara £199 lllllm A natural illustration package - output realism comparable to paint software. Y Y Corel 01703 814142 18 158
Elastic Reality £399 lllllm Outstandingly powerful morphing and special effects package. Y Softline 0181 401 1234 4 162 recommended
Flying fonts £199 lllllm Powerful package for creating flying logos for presentations. Y Y LTS 01386 792617 13 150 recommended
Freehand 5 £450 lllmmm Aimed at the graphics professional, but will not beat Corel. Y Y Computers Unlimited 0181 200 8282 12 126
Freehand 5 £450 llllmm Mixed high and low spots. Bitmapping is embarrasing. Y Y Computers Unlimited 0181 200 8282 18 159
Freehand 4 £450 llllmm Puts practicality first. A few errors and omissions mar its appeal. Y Aldus 0131 451 6888 1 116
Key Presenter £40 lllmmm Good presentation graphics on a budget. Y Softkey 0181 789 2000 9 129
KPT Convolver £129 llllmm Undoubtedly the most exciting way to manipulate images. Y Principal 01706 832000 10 150
Leadview 3 £99 llllmm Cheap and quick storage and manipulation facilities. Y Equations Technology 01935 74144 1 153
Media Paint £449 llllmm Superb set of special effects tools, but a challenging learning process. Y N Principal 01706 832000 23 172
MicroGrafx Designer 4.1 TE £375 llllmm Falls between CAD and presentation, takes time to use. Y Micrografx 0800 626009 2 150
MicroGrafx Draw 4 £33 lllllm Drawing with unexceptional functionality but exceptional value for money. Y N Micrografx 0191 510 0203 16 133 recommended
Paint Shop Pro 4 £50 llllmm Showing its age, but if your demands are few well worth a look. Y N Digital Workshop 01295 258335 25 204
Painter 4 £399 lllllm Top of its class with vectors, internet and Mosaic capabilities. Y Y Computers Unlimited 0181 200 8282 18 122 recommended
PhotoImpact 3 £135 llllll The ideal solution for general photo editing. Y Y BIT UK 01420 83811 25 208 excellence
Photoshop 3 £725 lllllm Not perfect, but does justify its huge price tag. Y Principal 01706 832000 4 140 recommended
Picture Publisher 5 £375 lllllm Sold at a mid range price, yet boasting high end features. Y Micrografx 01483 747526 3 163
Serif DrawPlus 2 £99 llllmm Powerful and easy to use for the new or occasional user. Y Serif 0800 924925 8 148
Simply 3D £69 lllmmm Introduction to the world of 3D rendering. Y Visual Software 0151 933 8772 8 145
Smartsketch 95 £47 llllmm Works like a painting package. Idiosyncratic. Y Y CGS ComputerBild 0181 679 7307 15 122
Smartsketch 95 £47 llllmm Powerful in some areas, underpowered in others. Y Y CGS ComputerBild 0181 679 7307 18 160
Virtus Walkthrough Pro 2 £295 llllmm Well designed and easy to use, can produce 3D virtual walkthroughs. Y Roderick Manhattan 0181 8754400 7 136
Visio 4 £169 lllllm Excellent for creating schematic diagrams of all kinds. Y Visio International 0800 834859 12 138 recommended
Visio 3 £99 llllmm An excellent product for people who need to draw but can't. Y Shapeware 0800 834859 3 169
Windows Draw 4 £39 lllllm Extremely easy to use, but very poor text handling. Y N Micrografx 01483 747526 18 163
Xara Studio £199 lllllm Ground breaking, bridging the gap between drawing and painting. Y Y Corel 01703 814142 12 132 recommended
Xres 2 £549 llllmm Capable photo editing software. Y Y Computers Unlimited 0181 358 5857 23 170
Graphics Management
Hijaak 95 £50 llllmm A handy screen capture and manipulation utility. Y N Quarterdeck 01245 496699 20 152
Imageaxs £149 llllmm Efficient, though unexciting. Does not handle video or sound files. Y New Media Solutions 0171 229 1708 13 158

Last Update: 15/10/96

Name: PC Pro