Re: Need help purchasing software

Kelly Thorson · Post by **Kelly Thorson** » Fri Mar 27, 2009 11:58 pm

Edit by Mike Jackson: Someone had asked about which software people would suggest they purchase if they only wanted to print out designs and project them for hand lettering. The post was somehow deleted, so I am adding this to the top of Kelly's thread so it makes sense. MJ

I think the general consensus is that Illustrator is the industry standard. That being said, Corel Draw is considerably cheaper and having used both I prefer Corel and feel it performs equally. If you are just wanting something for basic layouts however there are open source programs (Gimp for example) that are free and will likely perform the needed functions with far less resources.

A program that has always really impressed me is Xara. You can try it out for free for a month here. Xara has been built from the ground up unlike some of the bigger programs that buy and incorporate features from other programs. For that reason it is incredibly quick and everything works in real time. It's got a very easy learning curve and has a library of short and concise how to videos. Although the interface seems simple a visit to the Xara Xone site should convince you of it's capabilities. Simply put, the speed of the program and the live time interface gives it potential that would be cumbersome using any of the "industry standards". It also comes with a library of fonts, that are in themselves worth the price of the software. The only issues I have with it are interfacing with my plotter. I'd suggest downloading the trial and giving it a go. At $89 for the regular program ( it doesn't sound like you need the $249 pro version) it is pretty hard to go wrong.

Post by **Mike Jackson** » Sat Mar 28, 2009 8:30 am

The first question is whether you want to use a vector based program or a bitmap image editor? I all you are doing is projecting your finished image onto a wall using a projector, either would work.

Most of the sign insustry uses vector based programs, most of which can also add bitmaps. Besides the dedicated sign programs like Omega, Signlab, Casmate, Flexisign and so forth, you can buy consumer desktop publishing programs like Illustrator, Corel Draw, Xara, and others. (I haven't used Xara, but it sounds interesting). You can sometimes buy full versions of older software very cheap, still factory sealed and unregistered. I used to see them at Sam's Club.

Personally, I still like designing signs in Omega, but I'd probably get Corel Draw if I were in your shoes. There are lots of users, mostly happy, out there. I like Illustrator because it dovetails into Photoshop better than Corel, and the Illustrator/Photoshop pair share many of the same tools, commands, and shortcut keys.

And as Kelly mentioned, I am sure there are several FREE programs out there that can fill basic needs. There are tons of free fonts on the net, but I haven't been to happy with the quality of them. But they are free?

Good luck,
M. Jackson

Kelly Thorson · Post by **Kelly Thorson** » Sat Mar 28, 2009 10:37 am

I'm not sure what happened but I didn't start this post. The original question seems to have dissapeared.

Post by **Mike Jackson** » Sat Mar 28, 2009 12:38 pm

Hi Kelly,
I may have caused the problem....not sure? We get people signing onto the site with names like RiccIO, Gabby, XbXbXb. Danny normally sends them a note suggesting they change their user names to their real name or get deleted. I have a feeling the person that asked the original question had an odd nickname, and we may have deleted him and his posts. I deleted one like that this morning. It is also possible the original poster simply deleted the message.

Maybe they will reregister.

Mike Jackson