Showing posts with label software. Show all posts
Showing posts with label software. Show all posts

Abbyy FineReader 5.0 Office OCR Review

Abbyy FineReader 5.0 Office OCR
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I've been using Omni-10 and recently was about to remove the old Presto from my harddrive. However, I ran across the new ABBYY FineReader Office and gave it a try. For my money, it's a LOT better than Omni-10 (don't know about -11 except that it's costly).
FineReader doesn't have the text-to-voice of Omni, but I don't do any recognition of tables (where the feature is supposed to be valuable) anyway. FR's character recognition is superior, but the best feature is that it chooses a font size and kerning that really do an excellent job of reproducing the original (not choosing too-small font sizes with giant spaces, like Omni-10).
Overall, beats Omni-10 -- which in turn beats everything else!

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Abbyy Fine Reader 5.0 Office is optical character recognition (OCR) software designed for work in the office. The Office version is specially designed for a network. Once installed on the server, it can be installed on workstations directly over the network. Images can be processed on several workstations simultaneously, allowing users to scan on one workstation and recognize them on another. With multiprocessing support, recognition speed is increased in direct proportion to the number of processors installed.
A built-in editor lets users edit the image layout manually. Edit recognized text while looking at an image of the source text in the Zoom window. The built-in spell checker will search text for misspelled words in mere seconds. Included with the Office version is the Formulator, which lets users fill in any form electronically. Just scan in a blank form and have it completely filled in onscreen and printed out in seconds.

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Myob Accountedge 2008 for Mac Also Includes Network Edition Review

Myob Accountedge 2008 for Mac Also Includes Network Edition
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I have been a regular user of AccountEdge since September of 1999, having switched when intuit could not guarantee a Y2K patch for QuickBooks Pro. Since MYOB has a new version of the software, I thought this would be a good time to take a look at what other accounting programs for Macintosh were being offered. I was surprised to see three other robust programs available. Reading the specs though I could see they were designed for smaller businesses such as sole proprietorships, or specific types of businesses (i.e., retail), or individuals. The two big players on the market for small to medium businesses are still QuickBooks Pro and MYOB AccountEdge (or Peachtree, if you are running an Intel Mac.) I know that MYOB maintains a commitment to continue to develop for the Macintosh platform. This is not necessarily so for Intuit and definitely not for Peachtree. And, Intuit recently had some major issues with user data being lost. http://db.tidbits.com/article/9378.
It's not my intention to review MYOB AccountEdge by using QuickBooks Pro as their foil. The truth is that there are very few Accounting programs that are supported on a Macintosh. And even though I always give kudos to MYOB for their support of the Macintosh platform, there are always features that can be improved upon. Most notably for me was the length of time it took MYOB to be up and running for the OS 10.5 Panther release. At this point in time, MYOB has the following statement on the website:
AccountEdge and AccountEdge Network Edition 2008 are certified compatible with Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard. Make sure you are on the latest version by opening the Help menu from the top menu bar and choosing Check for Product Updates from the Help menu. Following is a list of known issues.
Payroll forms - In order to run any payroll forms - including W-2s - at the end of the year, you will need to download an updated Payroll Forms Viewer. This update can be accessed by opening AccountEdge, navigating to the Help menu, and then selecting Check For Updates.
Upgrading files - When opening a file from a previous version, you may receive an "Upgrade Assistant is unable to process the company file" error message. You must first upgrade the file using the Upgrade Assistant found in your MYOB AccountEdge 2008 applications directory.
New Features in MYOB AccountEdge 2008
Backup to .mac. is by far one the best new feature for my money. This offsite backup capability for .mac account holders is useful for businesses that do not have any other offsite backup in place. When the backup command is selected, there is an option to back up to disk, or to .mac. The user also has the option to back up only the company file which saves on storage space. I have to say that I am having problems with this new feature, and had hoped to have it solved before posting this review. My workaround right now is to back my company file up to disc, then open .mac and upload the file from there. My past experience with this company on issues like this is that they are eventually taken care of. It could be that there is a conflict on my end as well. I've yet to sign up for a support plan, but will be doing so.
iCal integration is a great tool for people who use iCal on a regular basis. One advantage I can see to this is if the user has a customer that is historically late with payments. Publishing the invoice to iCal will bring up a reminder to contact the customer when the invoice is due. Other reminders such as bill payments and recording recurring transactions can also be sent to iCal just by selecting the checkbox in the open window.
New Payroll features include better sick leave and vacation tracking, and auto calculating the same. This is a great feature both the payroll clerk and employee will benefit from.
Statements have been updates to be more customizable. This is a great new feature, as in prior versions the statements could be confusing to some customers who did not pay their entire invoice in full.
The Command Center has a new look. It's OK, not really necessary but nice to see. Also added to the command center is a feature called Task Drawer. It is a slide out window controlled by a button on the bottom right edge of the Command Center. The Task Drawer holds a list of the most common functions the user can customize to his or her specific tasks.
The W-2 and W-3 function in AccountEdge 2008 is greatly improved from earlier versions of the software. Using Forms Viewer, the user can now print plain paper copies of these forms, eliminating the need to purchase costly pre-printed forms from third party vendors.
There are other new features in AccountEdge 2008 that can improve productivity once the user becomes familiar with them. Command +N now bring up new, accounts, jobs, invoices, depending on the window the user is working in. Previously this command would only bring up a new window. If you are using direct deposit for payroll, you can now email pay-stubs to the employees, saving on printing.
MYOB offers it's Accounting 101 tutorial for people who are just starting out, or need a refresher course in Accounting. I would recommend that anyone who is considering this software be somewhat familiar with standard accounting practices, however.
New customers can take advantage of an online training webinar. For a fee, MYOB offers Full Service Payroll, Credit Card Processing, Direct Deposit, eFiling, and Vendor Payment services. I've not tried any of these, but I can see how they would make sense for a small business that doesn't want to spend a lot of time taking care of these types of tasks.
If you are running Leopard (OS 10.5) make sure all your software updates have been downloaded and installed., including 10.5.1. Also helpful is the latest version of stuffit expander 12.0.1 Once MYOB AccountEdge is installed, choose check for updates from your MYOB products under the help menu, download and install. Ancillary programs such as Forms Viewer need to be updated the same way, by looking under the help menu. Make sure the most current tax tables are loaded by choosing that feature once the program is fully installed and updated.
I hear a lot of complaining about paid support plans, and read about problems with them on the message boards. I'd like to speak up in defense of paid support plans. In one sense it is no different from purchasing AppleCare for hardware products. It's there if you need it, and hopefully you don't. Also, the company has to have staff on hand for those who do need help with the software. I imagine there are a percentage of users who know little about accounting and use the support plans for reasons other than software glitches. That said, when comparing cost of ownership including the support plan over a three year period, between QuickBooks and MYOB, MYOB offers the best value for money.
There is a user discussion board accessible through the MYOB site. I have found it useful to read through some of the discussions. One thread recently reported that networked machines on Leopard using file-connect have noticed an improvement is speed. Speed has been an issue since the introduction of the Networked version of AccountEdge, so I'm glad to see that has been improved upon.
A trial version of this software is available for 30 days, and support is free for the first 30 days.
MYOB offers a free Accountant's Version of the software to qualified users.
MYOB AccountEdge and AccountEdge Network Edition 2008 version 8 System Requirements
Minimum requirements for full installation:
'Mac OS X v10.3.9 or later
'PowerMac G3 or later with at least 128 MB RAM
'100MB of available Hard Disk space for program installation. 245MB for full installation
'Average of 35 MB additional HD space for each company file maintained with MYOB AccountEdge
'1024x768 screen resolution running thousands of colors
Help System, Payroll Updates and Business Services:
'Internet access required for payroll updates and forms, as well as Internet-based Business Services
'Safari or Firefox
'QuickTime 5.0 or higher
Networking Requirements:
'AccountEdge Network Edition recommended for multi-user networking
'G5 processor or better with at least 1 GB RAM
'100BaseT or faster Ethernet network
Microsoft Office connection requires:
'Microsoft Word® X and 2004
'Microsoft Excel® X and 2004
Intel-Based Mac Compatibility:
'AccountEdge v7 and above will run natively on both Intel-based and PowerPC Macs.
1. Mac OS X 10.4 or later is required for syncing with Mac Address Book. 2. (UNIX File System) formatted hard drives are not supported
MyMac rating on this product is 4.5 out of 5.

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Punch ViaCAD 2D/3D (Mac) Review

Punch ViaCAD 2D/3D (Mac)
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ViaCAD 5 is the first release of Concepts 3D since their acquisition by Punch! software. While priced like a 2D illustration or CAD tool (TurboCAD 2D for Mac, for example), it is a 5th generation of the Concepts 3D CAD engine which has been used in their own products as well as OEM'd to firms like Ashlar Vellum and IMSI TurboCAD for Mac.
I'm a use of the Concepts Unlimited 3D version 4, a package normally selling for over $2K. The PDF available on the Punch! site highlights the differences in features, the main one no present in ViaCAD being more advanced 3D rendering capabilities with surface textures.
Folks, this package, either for Windows or the Mac, is a genuine bargain- I bought it to have a license install of the full 3D editing capabilities on a new MB Pro, while the "high end" Concepts Unlimited sits on my G5 PowerMac. This is NOT the kind of limited functionality 2D illustration program you usually wind up with for under $100- this is a full featured 3D CAD program that is quite easy to use (in part due to the user interface, including what ViaCAD now calls "Logicursor", which was/is called "Drafting Assitant" in Ashlar Vellum products. Advanced construction and snap features combined with parametric editing after the intial entry make object creation and basic drawing quite easy and fast with just a little practice.
Additionally, there are a number of UI modifications and refinements in this ViaCAD version 5 compared with Concepts 3D version 4, including how switching between 2D and 3D views is handled, rotation of view point in 3D, and some other tweaks which streamline and simplify the user interface.
Standard features include extensive Import and Export format support, including IGES, SAT, STEP, ACIS, AutoCAD, Rhino3DM, and 3D Studio.
3D support includes surface modeling and solids modeling. The solids modeling using the most current ACIS kernel is quite powerful, and supports fast editing of complex 3D objects, with an emphasis on mechanical design support needed for castable or machinable parts. Extrusions, swept solids with curves, bosses, shelling, etc, this is a real production capable tool- too many useful features to list.
Currently I'm only using this as a hobbyist, for 3D design for HT and high end loudspeakers.
Though the package has some tools making it interesting for architectural design, that's not really it's intent- furniture design, now that it would do well.
Documentation is a manual that's a standard paperback size about 7/8" thick, ~340 pages, and two double sided reference cards the same size as the page size of the manual.
Very recommended.

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PerfectDisk 2008 Professional - Complete Package (Q33291) Category: Utility Software Review

PerfectDisk 2008 Professional - Complete Package (Q33291) Category: Utility Software
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For Vista users, this is almost required software. You probably already know Microsoft went way backwards with defragment. This product does what Microsoft should have done in the first place, and adds some nice functions.
I've used many different defrag tools in the past and none work as well as Perfectdisk. The software installs quickly and easily. The default settings are pretty decent, a person could leave them alone and the software will quietly do it's job. The defragging is fast and efficient. I haven't run any benchmarks, but qualitatively would say my drives run faster than with Vista's defragment program.
Comparing the Vista's defrag with Perfectdisk, a 1 or 2% fragmented 180Gb hard drive 3/4 full took about 6 hours to defrag with Vista's built in program. Perfectdisk took about an hour.
Perfectdisk adds some pretty nice options that other software doesn't include.
Scheduling, you can set the program to run manually, on a timed schedule, background, at boot, and at screensaver. Background senses whenever a program runs and stops working. My personal favorite is on screensaver. You can set the program to only defrag if the drive is over a certain percentage fragmented (I set mine at 1%).
Reports, there are performance graphs and logs the software keeps. It's kind of fun to see how successive defrags improve drive performance.
Overall, I really like this program. It's reasonably priced. It's an essential tool for Vista users. It's probably a nice to have for XP. It's just sad that Microsoft did such a bad job on defragmenting in Vista.


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ScanSoft OmniPage 15 Review

ScanSoft OmniPage 15
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I have just purchased this upgrade, so the following comments should be viewed as preliminary. Still, some information is better than none.
Having used OmniPage since its beginning, I have been irritated by the company's practice of releasing software before it has driven the bugs out. That does not appear to be a problem in this case. The software loaded cleanly and came up and works properly.
As one would expect after 15 shots at it, character recognition is generally excellent.
The big advance is in speed of operation. Compared to ver. 14, this version flies, which will probably be the improvement of greatest interest to users.
The interface remains non-user-friendly. New users will go crazy trying to figure out how to use it, but once you do, it's worth it.

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OmniPage 15, the latest version of the world's best selling OCR software, is the most precise way to convert paper and PDF files into your favorite PC applications. Powerful new OCR technology, advanced layout analysis and intuitive editing tools allow you to quickly turn paper and PDF files into editable electronic documents that look justlike the original – complete with text, tables and graphics.

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Starry Night Enthusiast 6.0 Win/Mac Review

Starry Night Enthusiast 6.0 Win/Mac
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The previous review tagged "Enthusiast" with a single star, understandably because the owner couldn't get it running on Vista, but Vista must share in the blame - since its release, there have been all manner of compatibility issues. I'm successfully running it on a Mac with OS X, and it's truly remarkable. If you're interested in astronomy, this is a fabulous program that lives up to its advertising copy. I am amazed at what it brings to your desk/laptop for such a relatively low price.

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Explore a vast array of astronomical wonders, both natural and man-made! Replay spectacular fly-bys of Voyager, Galileo, and other famous space missions. Never miss your chance to witness celestial events, such as Jupiter satellite shadow transits, with the powerful Events Finder. Easily navigate around the cosmos using SkyGuide as your tour guide. Starry Night Enthusiast gives you the freedom and resources to explore the night sky on your computer or with the naked eye or a pair of binoculars.Browse a library of over 100 Starry Night files that demonstrate events such as eclipses, planetary alignments and close-ups of galaxies and planetsAssign horizon panorama to a specific location on or off Earth with your choice of 11 photorealistic horizon panoramasPinpoint the exact location of historical events, such as the Apollo moon landings, with Location MarkersAccess up-to-date local observing conditions through online link to Clear Sky Clock (requires Internet connection)Click on any location on Earth while hovering and select a Google Map for that precise location (requires Internet connection)Create your own automated guided tour of the universe with AppleScript, which helps you run a list of Starry Night files in sequence (Mac only)Ambient environment sounds enhance the digital observing experienceExplore without limits 700 million light years of spaceView 2,500,000 starsNGC-IC Catalog of 13,000 deep space objectsTravel in time from 4713 BC to 9999 ADDeepen your understanding of the universe with over 70 interactive SkyGuide toursSimulate the view through binocularsView how the Earth and Sun look like right now with images from ground-and space-based observatories

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QuickBooks Standard Payroll Subscription Review

QuickBooks Standard Payroll Subscription
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If your new to payroll give in and buy it. I bought the standard payroll and it was much easier than doing payroll manually, especially since I'm still trying to figure what I'm doing. But like all the other Quickbook products, no support and every other page is a way for you to spend more money. Does not support Workman's comp , not even a place to build your tracking and if you void a check it screws up the YTD and it won't let you delete a check. I have to call and pay to find out what's wrong.

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QuickBooks Payroll saves you time when you are processing payroll by eliminating steps and preventing costly mistakes, every payroll cycle and tax filing period. QuickBooks Payroll works inside QuickBooks – so there is no double entry and nothing new to learn.

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Corel WordPerfect Office X3 Home Edition Review

Corel WordPerfect Office X3 Home Edition
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I purchased this product needing to work on a personal legal (nonbusiness) matter, so the noncommercial license was fine for my "home" use. Good thing I checked with Corel after buying it and seeing the "Home Edition" captions not only on the total suite packaging but underneath the "WordPerfect" and "Quattro Pro" components (inside front box folding cover with velcro). Corel ultimately confirmed to me that "certain components that are designed for the business customer, such as Legal Tools, MetaData Removal, Document Compare, Quickfinder to name a few are not included in the Home Edition version." Corel needs to make this clearer in their marketing of the "Home Edition." I focused on the word processing application, but the Quattro Pro application is also captioned as "Home Edition" so it may be missing some features available in the Quattro Pro included in other Suite versions (Standard, Pro, Student/Teacher, etc.). The Home Edition may still be suitable for some users, but I'm a strong believer in "full disclosure." WordPerfect itself is a great program. Try setting point sizes with decimals in Word -- you can't. Try changing the size of the font in legal pleadings in Word -- there's no direct control of it (the Microsoft site instructs you to change margins and number of lines per page to attempt to get Word to adjust the font size) [but remember, you need any WordPerfect version other than Home Edition to get Legal Tools].

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WordPerfect Office X3 is everything you'd expect from an office suite -- and more -- for less. Enhanced compatibility ensures that you can work with people who use Microsoft Office or other office suites. Each application in the suite has been updated with stylish new buttons and toolbars to provide more familiar and easy-to-use environments. Plus, groundbreaking new features and enhancements make this the most enticing and innovative WordPerfect Office yet. With the WordPerfect Office X3 Home Edition you also get great photo, video, DVD creation, and security software.
Great Compatibility WordPerfect Office continues to break down compatibility barriers for its users. These days, who has time to figure out which product works with which file format? You want to simply and easily open, edit, save, and senddocuments and spreadsheets. To that end, WordPerfect Office X3 provides improved support for Microsoft Office file formats. In addition, the suite's built-in PDF publishing capabilities have been enhanced, making it easier than ever to exchange information.
Incredible Ease of Use WordPerfect Office X3 provides exciting new features that are designed to reduce the need for software expertise. The user interface for each application has been refreshed, providing more intuitive, familiar environments. Context-sensitive toolbars make it easy to identify tools and features. You can copy HTML and paste clean, unformatted text. The unmatched Corel RealTime Preview lets you see how potential formatting changes will affect your work before you commit to them. To help new users find their footing, the Workspace Manager can simulate the keystrokes and menu items of other office suites, such as Microsoft Office. The unobtrusive PerfectExpert is a handy guide and consultant for virtually any project. Plus, two free hours of training videos by lynda.com are included on CD.
Home Edition Applications Designed with the specific needs of home computer users in mind, WordPerfect Office X3 Home Edition provides eight leading home PC tools in one complete package. It includes WordPerfect X3 Home Edition for word processing, Quattro Pro X3 Home Edition for spreadsheets and charts, two WordPerfect OfficeReady template collections, Corel Photo Album 6 Standard Edition for managing digital photo collections, Pinnacle Studio SE for editing home videos, Pinnacle Instant CD/DVD LE v8 for burning CDs and DVDs, and Norton Internet Security 2006 for protection from viruses and other threats. This compatible, feature-rich, value-packed suite is sure to make your entire household's computing experience more enjoyable, creative, and secure.
On top of all that, WordPerfect Office X3 includes 9,500 clipart images, 175 photos, and 900 TrueType fonts.
WordPerfect X3: WordPerfect X3 provides exceptional ease of use and complete formatting control for producing newsletters, articles, reports, proposals, books, and other documents. The popular Reveal Codes, Corel RealTime Preview, and Legal features help reduce the amount of time you spend on document formatting, freeing you to focus on creating content. WordPerfect X3 also provides enhanced compatibility with Microsoft Word, the new ability to import PDFs, and robust PDF publishing capabilities, ensuring that you can freely exchange information with colleagues and clients, regardless of the software they use.
Quattro Pro X3: Quattro Pro X3 is a powerful spreadsheet application that helps you organize, analyze, report, manage, and share important data and financial information. Improved compatibility with Microsoft Excel ensures that you can smoothly exchange information with Excel users. Quattro Pro X3 also includes outstanding tools for creating tables, financial forms, lists, databases, charts, reports, or any other type of data-oriented document. In addition, you can easily present your spreadsheet data in charts, and you can apply advanced rendering to your charts to give the information a professional, polished look.

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Adobe Acrobat Standard 8.0 Upgrade from Standard V5+ Review

Adobe Acrobat Standard 8.0 Upgrade from Standard V5+
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I love the product. I especially like being able to type text onto scanned pdf documents. Extremely helpful for filling in government or preset forms. I should have checked the nnumber of licenses with the upgrade (only 2). I use on my office, home and laptop computers. A single license is not available so I had to buy two full upgrades.

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Adobe Acrobat 8 Standard software enables business professionals to reliably create, combine, and control Adobe PDF documents for easy, more secure distribution and collaboration. Combine files from multiple applications, such as text files, spreadsheets, presentations, and web pages, into a single, polished Adobe PDF document. Protect sensitive information with passwords and permissions, and conduct collaborative document reviews by e-mail or server.

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Corel Wordperfect Office X4 Review

Corel Wordperfect Office X4
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I have been using this for about a year now. I find it very useful. I have solved many of the problems I was having. I have upgraded the software to 5 stars. The software can do many things that MS office can but for a fraction of the price. The only drawback is that this software is not fully compatible with Microsoft office files, this is not 100% correct, as I have had to use the machines with Microsoft Excel at work in order to work with some of the files generated by my job in Excel 2003, these files are required to do my job, so there was a huge disappointment there, as I thought I could do this work at home if I purchased this software. Furthermore, the presentations created in this software are not readable by Powerpoint, as previously thought. So, there are some inconsistencies with the description and the software. I also use Open Office a free software, and find that Open office can do more than this software in terms of compatibility with MS Office. If you like Wordperfect, and have used it through the years, you will love this, if not, then you may not like it at all. I personally have been a Wordperfect user since the early to mid 70's with the blue screen dos version. Anyone remember that one? OK, I am old, and certainly dating myself here. But, Wordperfect is solid software and always has been.
Rod.

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GarageBand Jam Pack (iLife '04 Add-on) Review

GarageBand Jam Pack (iLife '04 Add-on)
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What can you do with GarageBand? Better question: What can't you do? GarageBand is the answer to the amateur and not-so-amateur musician's prayers. Not only is it the easiest mulitrack recorder I've ever used (and I've used a bunch), it is the best drum machine out there--bar none. That is, provided you have enough drum loops to get you started. And that is reason enough to buy the Jam Pack. It adds a host of new percussion loops. It also adds new instruments (both loops and instruments you can play from any USB or MIDI keyboard).
Can't rave enough.

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Fxpansion BFD2 Acoustic Drums Module Review

Fxpansion BFD2 Acoustic Drums Module
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Not sure why the other reviewers were so disillusioned but I can't believe the realizm of this module. Is it complicated, yes, but so is recording acoustic drums and getting quality recordings. With the included grooves and those available online (groovemonkee) coupled with the ability to edit them within BDF2, I challange anyone to recognize it as a 'drum machine'. If you want to be up and running in 10 minutes, buy a Boss Dr. Rhythm box, but if you want lush, real acoustic drums, spend the time and learn this module - it's fantastic!

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Adobe Creative Suite 5 Design Standard Student & Teacher Edition Review

Adobe Creative Suite 5 Design Standard Student and Teacher Edition
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I discovered that Amazon has free 2-day shipping for college students, and its orders are processed faster than Adobe. Not only that, but it sells Adobe products cheaper than the main website, still giving student discounts. I was astonished at this fact, and will stick with Amazon indefinitely.

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Adobe Creative Suite 5 Design Standard is tightly integrated professional software for delivering distinctive print design in marketing collateral, magazines, books, packaging, and more. Achieve exceptional quality even under the tightest deadlines with best-in-class drawing, image editing, page layout, and print production tools.




Create outstanding print design, even under the tightest deadlines
Comprehensive toolset for print design and production Express your most innovative creative visions in print, using tightly integrated software for moving fluidly and confidently from inspiration to output. Accelerate creative reviews with new Adobe CS Live online services that integrate with your Creative Suite software. CS Live online services are complimentary for a limited time--visit www.adobe.com/go/cslive for details.

Breakthrough image editing Create compelling digital images with Adobe Photoshop CS5, the industry standard in digital imaging. Use versatile brush tools to paint with realistic strokes, precise selection tools to make exacting refinements, and a wide range of workflow and performance enhancements to accelerate everyday tasks.

Sophisticated vector graphics Craft compelling graphics with Adobe Illustrator CS5, the vector-drawing environment used by design professionals worldwide. Experiment freely and quickly to achieve the look you want for illustrations, creative effects, typography, and color.

Professional page layout Lay out stunning pages faster and more efficiently in Adobe InDesign CS5 with an intuitive design environment, precise typographic controls, built-in creative tools and effects, robust preflight capabilities, and a host of productivity features.

Adobe PDF creation, editing, and delivery Prepare files for high-end print production with confidence using Adobe Acrobat 9 Pro. End-to-end PDF workflows share common technology to generate, preview, and print PDF files, enabling consistent high-quality output.

Adobe CS Live online services Bring creative reviews directly into your design workflow using new CS Live online services that integrate with your Creative Suite software. Initiate a quick online review from within Photoshop, Illustrator, or InDesign. Reviewers comment in their browser using simple annotation tools, and you view comments in the context of your work--making it much easier to match each comment to the right design element.

Comprehensive preflight and production Use robust preflight features to check files for high-end print publishing. Catch production glitches as you lay out pages, avoid color output surprises in graphics, and apply output presets to reliably meet exacting production standards and minimize costly errors.

Sophisticated typography Easily compose beautiful type for page layouts, images, and illustrations using robust styles in InDesign CS5 and Illustrator CS5, along with a host of advanced typographic controls for creativity and precision.

Built-in creative tools and effects Explore artistic possibilities with built-in Photoshop effects, nondestructive effects, and finer transparency controls in InDesign CS5. Create or modify images with brush tools and paint settings in Photoshop CS5. Sketch naturally and draw in accurate perspective in Illustrator CS5.

Faster performance in Photoshop Perform day-to-day imaging tasks faster, and process very large images at least 10 times faster. (Requires a 64-bit-capable computer with a 64-bit version of Mac OS, Microsoft Windows 7, or Windows Vista. Actual performance increase varies depending on the installed drivers, the features that you're using, and other factors.)

Adobe Photoshop CS5Create powerful images with the professional standard Adobe Photoshop CS5 delivers breakthrough capabilities to help you create images with impact. Refine your images with reengineered photography tools for removing noise, adding grain, and creating high dynamic range (HDR) images. Get precise results when making complex selections. Remove any image element and see the space fill in almost magically. Paint with naturally textured brushstrokes and realistic color blends. Also work fast with cross-platform 64-bit support and dozens of other time-savers.


Refine with powerful photography tools Create and refine images using state-of-the-art photography tools that deliver superior results with unprecedented ease and in fewer steps than ever before.

Maximize creative impact Explore new creative possibilities with breakthrough tools that enable you to select, adjust, paint, and recompose images with tremendous precision and freedom.

Boost productivity Accelerate your workflow with fast performance on 64-bit hardware systems, smoother interactions thanks to GPU acceleration, and dozens of time-savers throughout the application.

Adobe Illustrator CS5--Explore new paths with the essential vector tool Create distinctive designs for any project. Used by creative professionals worldwide, Adobe Illustrator CS5 software provides precision and power. Paint expressively with vectors, draw in perspective, and explore designing for interactivity. Move easily between Illustrator, other Adobe products, and Adobe CS Live online services. Get the job done efficiently but beautifully, moving quickly from multiple ideas to multiple outputs with complete control and delivering exactly what you had in mind.


Design with powerful creative tools Take advantage of exceptional precision and power to create distinctive vector artwork. Combine highly controllable drawing tools with expressive natural brushes and dramatic effects to make unique, striking designs.

Work smoothly and efficiently Speed up your workflow with innovations that encourage efficiency. Get the job done with purpose and agility using shortcuts and time-savers to take multiple ideas to multiple outputs.

Deliver virtually anywhere Incorporate vector artwork into essentially any project and deliver resolution-independent graphics across media. Enjoy tighter-than-ever integration with other Adobe products and go anywhere your creativity takes you.

Adobe InDesign CS5--Design professional layouts for print and digital publishing Adobe InDesign CS5 software provides precise control over typography and built-in creative tools for designing, preflighting, and publishing documents for print, online, or to mobile devices. Bring documents and presentations to life with interactivity, animation, sound, and video. Leading industry tools, and productivity enhancements make page layout simpler and faster. Access Adobe CS Live online services* from within InDesign to streamline critical review processes.


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Adobe Acrobat 9 Pro--Protect documents and accelerate information exchange with PDF Adobe Acrobat 9 Pro software builds on the foundational feature set of Acrobat 9 Standard to provide business and creative professionals with additional capabilities, including enhanced security features, high-end print production support, and easy-to-manage electronic document reviews.
Deliver polished, professional documents Quickly integrate content, insert company logos, define navigation, and add polish to your PDF Portfolio using one of many customizable templates.

Create dynamic electronic forms Use included Adobe LiveCycle Designer software--a professional form design tool--to create, customize, and automate dynamic forms.

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Adobe Creative Suite 5 With powerful new creative tools, enhanced performance and workflows, and the ability to integrate with timesaving new Adobe CS Live online services, Adobe Creative Suite 5 software provides the edge you need to create rich content for virtually any media--print, web, interactive, video, audio, and mobile. Whether you need to produce printed pages efficiently or design and distribute engaging content online, on film, on air, and on device, you'll find the right combination of Adobe tools to increase your productivity and keep pace with your creative vision.


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Norton SystemWorks 2002 Professional Edition Review

Norton SystemWorks 2002 Professional Edition
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
A note to any readers who are contemplating purchasing
Systemworks. I have always been a user of Norton's Windows
programs, be they Norton Utilities, Systemworks or
whatever. The last version, however, I would recommend
against buying, at least if you are using the NTFS file
system. The Speed Disk feature is much slower then
Microsoft's built in defrag aplet, which is an offshoot of
Executive Software's Diskeeper program. While you can use
Norton Disk Doctor to diagnose a drive, you must use XP's
built in CHKDSK function to actually repair it. The new
program does not have the benchmark features from the
former releases in the System Information. As previously
stated, I don't see a good use for Cleansweep, as XP has a
faster and better uninstall program. There is no longer a
registry editor or optimizer in the Norton Utilities part,
XP now incorporates Faxing, so the limited version of
WINFAX PRO is no longer needed. A limited version of Roxio
Go Back is included, but whether this is superior to using
XP's System Restore and Backup (for data) features is
highly debatable. The Rescue Disk has been discontinued.
The only programs that seem to be worth having are Norton
Ghost and, of course, Norton Anti Virus. Since I purchased
Norton's Internet Security program, which includes a far
better firewall than XPs, a parental control program that
actually works with Windows logons, and the same anti
virus program, I really have no need for Systemworks.
Possibly, the diagnostic features (Win Doctor) are
worthwhile, but while this always identified a lot of
problems and cleaned them up, it never actually bailed me
out of a Windows problem that I was epxperiencing (I'm not
even sure if this is available for XP, or what it does. XP
right now is running fine - if it ain't broke, don't fix
it). I saw a note on Microsoft Newgroups that Win doctor acutally trashed one uer's machine to the point of unrecoverability.

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Clean out Internet buildup with Norton CleanSweep from Symantec. Its powerful tools improve your PCs performance by removing unwanted programs and other files that waste disk space. Internet Sweep cleans away the clutter accumulated by Web surfing, including cookies that track your Internet activities. Fast & Safe Cleanup automatically removes files you no longer need, while Safety Sweep prevents the accidental deletion of critical files. The Uninstall Wizard guides you safely step by step through removing old programs. Now Windows XP users can also enjoy the benefits of this award-winning program. Trust Norton CleanSweep 2002 for safe, easy, complete hard drive cleanup.

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WipeDrive 5 Review

WipeDrive 5
Average Reviews:

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I bought WipeDrive 5 to erase my harddrive prior to recycling my PC. The instructions included with the CD are somewhat lacking. The online/website support, however, is top notch. The online support was absolutely neccessary for me to use WipeDrive correctly and successfully. The online support not only includes instructions for using WipeDrive but also instructions for preparing your PC and re-loading your operating system. If you are going to erase the harddrive on your only working PC, I highly recommend visiting the support website and printing out as much information as possible. If you have two or more computers, I would have the support website available before, during and after using WipeDrive.
WipeDrive 5 gives you several options for erasing your harddrive based on several US, DoD, and foreign office standards. I opted for a seven-times overwrite of my harddrive just to satisfy my paranoia prior to donating my PC. My harddrive is 80GB. It took WipeDrive over 13 hours to complete the seven-times overwrite. I did not have to interact with the PC while the drive was being erased, so I just started the process and let it run overnight. There are options for overwriting your harddrive fewer times, so you might not have to wait as long. The process seems to have worked, and I feel a little more confident about donating my PC.
Overall, WipeDrive is an excellent product when used with the online support!!!

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Screenblast ACID 4.0 Review

Screenblast ACID 4.0
Average Reviews:

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I owned Acid 2.0 a few years back and had loads of fun making music and re-mixing. A couple years passed, I lost the Installation CD's, and my wife graciously bought me Screenblast Acid 4.0. Well, it looks and works just like Acid 2.0, except the included loops are all cheesy, already slapped-together garbage, and there are much fewer of them.
Sure, you can get more loops via the Screenblast.com web site, but it's $39.95 per year to subscribe. And all the Acid Loop Libraries? Now that Sony owns them, they're $50 EACH!!! Almost the cost of the software itself to own just one library!
If you need more loops (and you WILL), find web sites like AcidFanatic.com, where these libraries are still reasonably priced, or just find free loops elsewhere.
VERY disappointed in this product. You'd think that two revisions and a major media outlet would improve this great product, but Sony has just turned this into a cash cow for their music loops. It's like giving you a car for free, but it runs on "Special" gas that costs $10 a gallon...

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Parallels Desktop for Mac Review

Parallels Desktop for Mac
Average Reviews:

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I purchased Parallel 3.0 for mac, I installed and was never able to use it once (I must premise that I am not a novice with regard of both macs and PCs). I repacked the install disk and useless manuals back inside the product's box and it's all sitting unused. Parallels it's not a tool, it's a STOOL! I bought VMWARE fusion, I installed it, and in about 1/2 hour I had WINXP up and running on a virtual machine! By the way the 1/2 hour includes the time it took to install WINXP. In conclusion Parallels just stinks, save your money and purchase VMWARE fusion for mac.

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