Overview

Adobe PageMaker Plus is a professional-level application for desktop publishing. PageMaker Plus can be used to lay out and design virtually any type of print medium, from simple business cards, brochures, and letters to complex reports, grant proposals, and scientific posters. This program goes far beyond word processing by giving the user precise control and freedom in page design to create documents that are unique and interesting and that communicate effectively. PageMaker documents can be exported as HTML or PDF files to create Web pages for online publishing. Hyperlinks can be created within PageMaker to test links and Web site organization before exporting Web pages. The HTML-export filter automatically converts incorporated graphics into appropriate formats for the World Wide Web with the exception of PageMaker objects and typographic controls. Web pages created this way are primarily unformatted text accompanied by any graphics imported into the document. They are quite simple compared to Web pages created in programs designed specifically for Web-page construction.

PageMaker integrates seamlessly with other Adobe products such as Photoshop, Illustrator, Acrobat, and PageMill, and integrates well with Microsoft products. Any graphic created in an Adobe product can simply be cut and pasted into a PageMaker document. Import and export filters enable the user to import text and graphics from most word-processing and database programs and then manipulate them into more complex formats. Graphics and text can be cropped, rotated, and scaled, and text can be forced to follow complex wrapping boundaries. PageMaker is an industry standard; service bureaus and printing services are well equipped to print PageMaker documents reliably without complex file conversions or incompatibility issues.

How Long Did It Take to Learn to Use It Productively?

I began using PageMaker not long after its introduction in 1985, so I am very familiar with it, as well as with other Adobe software. It took me only a few hours to become acquainted with the new features of version 6.52 and put them into use. I estimate that it would take a novice less than a day to read the introductory materials, work through the tutorials, and confidently begin to create a poster or document. Proficiency can then be achieved by regular use and by using the manual to solve problems. The program is basically intuitive in both interface and organization and is highly visual.

Product Quality

Customizability

Not applicable.

Ability to Program in Scripts, Add Extension Modules, etc.

PageMaker can be scripted to perform repetitive tasks such as setting up pages or importing standard sets of graphics.

Ability to Import and Export in Different File Formats

PageMaker can import and export many types of files as long as the appropriate filters are installed. The only difficulty I had was importing older PC word-processing documents directly into Macintosh PageMaker. I had to convert the files to newer versions on the PC, and then convert those newer versions to the corresponding software on the Macintosh platform before I could import them into PageMaker. Copying and pasting text to and from the clipboard is one solution for text-importing problems.

PageMaker can import Claris Works 1.0-4.0; Document Content Architecture 2.0; Microsoft Excel, Word, and Works; RTF; HTML; tagged text (ASCII); and plain text (ASCII) files. It can export Document Content Architecture 2.0, HTML, PDF, RTF, and ASCII text.

PageMaker can import graphics files from Adobe Illustrator, CorelDRAW (Windows), Kodak Photo CD, Lotus Freelance Graphics (PIC), Excel, PC Paintbrush, and WordPerfect, as well as other files with the following formats: DCS, DXF, EPS, GEM, GIF; JPEG, PICT, QuickTime movie (specified frame only), TIFF, Windows bitmap (BMP), and Windows metafile or enhanced metafile.

Useful or Unusual Features

Text manipulation is one of the most useful functions in PageMaker. Once the user is familiar with adding and modifying text blocks, changing and reorganizing a document is an easy task. Text can be added over an imported graphic for labels, and simple graphic objects can frame the images. Figure legends can be placed easily as individual objects and moved independently from other text and graphics. Body copy wraps around text objects in numerous ways, and individual text objects can be edited without repagination.

Layers, already implemented in Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, are new to PageMaker 6.5. They are especially useful for organizing and working with complex documents such as scientific posters. High-resolution graphics can be grouped into layers and turned off while working on other areas of the document to speed up screen redraws. Multiple objects that overlap, such as background graphics and text, can be placed on different layers, and they can be quickly and easily selected and manipulated after locking the layers.

Web sites can now be designed in PageMaker. Hierarchical and interconnected pages can be laid out with common master designs and backgrounds in one PageMaker document. Hyperlinks can be created and Web performance can be simulated within PageMaker. Clicking on links to other pages in the document takes the user to the page as if one were on the Web. Clicking on URLs launches the user's Internet browser and opens the linked site. PageMaker-created Web pages may seem somewhat rudimentary by today's standards, but they do allow for the online publishing of documents originally created in PageMaker for other purposes.

Limitations

It seems that most software programs that have been on the market for a while grow more and more complex in order to be competitive and keep their market share. New upgrades constantly add new features so that many programs can accomplish a myriad of tasks, many of which are irrelevant to many users. Some users may feel overwhelmed if they are starting from scratch with a program as versatile and professional as PageMaker. But if you focus on the specific types of documents that are of interest, learning PageMaker is not difficult.

Cross-platform compatibility from the Macintosh to the PC is relatively good. Simple text documents open smoothly from one platform to the other. However, when testing a complex poster with many placed graphics, those with transparent background did not open properly on the PC.

PageMaker Plus is bundled with Acrobat Reader and Distiller, Photoshop LE, PageMill 3.0, and an art CD containing clip art and stock photography. The educational version does not include the art CD.

Comparisons with Similar Software

Having used PageMaker since version 1, I am pleased that it has maintained the original intuitive look and feel of the program while continuing to add new features. Each upgrade has added many useful features without compromising the integrity and usefulness of the previous versions. The latest versions of PageMaker have proven to be stable and reliable.

Technical Support and Documentation

Documentation is thorough and well organized, although some of the graphics in the tutorials were too small to follow effectively. I was disappointed to learn that my personal favorite Adobe Systems tutorials were omitted from PageMaker Plus (version 6.52). The PageMaker 6.5 CD contains QuickTime movies introducing new features. These movies supply a good visual overview of new features and their use. They introduce layers, text frames, master pages, automatic layout changes, and hyperlinks, and are a good foundation before approaching the written, step-by-step tutorials. Text objects and layers are extremely useful features, but difficult to understand; however, the program documentation does a good job at orienting the user to these valuable features. The CD has two limited, but very useful, written tutorials. Other tutorials are available on the Web site in PDF format.

Over the years, my experience with Adobe's technical support has always been good. Phone support is free during the 90-day warranty period. After 90 days, pay-as-you-go phone support is $2 per minute (using a 900 number) or a flat fee per instance. One year of unlimited help is available for $149. Adobe offers free online support at its Web site. The support database is well organized, and it is easy to locate relevant problem topics. User forums are also available at the Adobe site. I find that users are often invaluable sources of solutions; chances are that if a user is having a problem, someone else has already encountered and solved that problem.

Target Users

PageMaker Plus is primarily marketed as a professional page-layout program for businesses, and it is geared to graphic designers who support businesses by creating catalogs, annual reports, newsletters, and advertising brochures. However, I believe that the program is very useful to the scientific and educational community as well. This program is well adapted to create grant proposals with multiple graphic images of research results. The documents are viewed on screen in a natural page-by-page manner instead of with the scrolling pages and variable page breaks of word- processing documents. This allows you to see more clearly what the finished document will look like and to organize notes, references, and bibliographies. You can also perform large-scale document editing, such as adding pages in the middle of a document, without disrupting the flow of text if each text section was created as an independent text object. Professional, customized letterhead templates can also be created easily to identify organizations or educational departments and individuals on their correspondence. As a medical illustrator, I use PageMaker to create scientific posters used in poster presentations for national and international meetings. PageMaker allows the flexibility and control needed to create well-organized and eye-catching posters that print out consistently and predictably.