Applelust is looking to add writers to its staff. If you
are interested or want to be part of the Applelust community, drop us
a line with your resume or vita. We are always on the look out for good,
very smart, and reliable people to join the staff. If you think you have
what it takes, let us know.
Two heavyweight design gladiators face
off today in Design Stadium, Macromedia Freehand 10
and Adobe Illustrator 10. Both challengers are carbonized
for OS X, and both have a deeply entrenched user base.
Representing those users, we introduce the IRON DESIGNERS!
In the red corner,
Iron Matt, fighting for Adobe Illustrator 10, Master
of the Raster, King of the Ring, he even lives in
a house made with adobe bricks!
And in the blue
corner, Iron Dean, standing up for Freehand
10, the Wacom Kid, the Dean of Design, fueled by Shinto
Beans!
The Challenge
Both Iron Designers were tasked to create their traditional
designer garb and desktop patterns using their vaunted
software. Click on the graphics below to view their
efforts!
As memory serves, designers the world over often
proclaim the dominance of their preferred vector software
using several reasons. I, Chairman Joel, ask the Iron
Designers to address the following 8 issues, and then
Spin their way toward a resolution to this conflict!
Let the verbal sparring begin!
1. Integration with Flash, Photoshop, etc.
Iron Matt (Illustrator
10)
Well, “Integration”
being such a well-defined and under-used word
I’ll step out and say that Illustrator
is fully integrated with Flash, Photoshop, etc.
Illustrator is able to export viable formats
to both applications as well as import various
file formats that are standard in the design
industry.
Iron Dean (Freehand
10)
Well as I stated in my review,
the Flash integration is supple and sweet...
Great output and preview options makes it a
joy to create in Freehand and export in Flash.
You can test the movie while inside the app!
And of course it's Photoshop compatible! You
make Chef Dean laugh!
2. Compatibility with outside .eps files.
Iron Matt (Illustrator
10)
Given the nature of Illustrator
and Freehand, compatibility with .eps files
is a given. Illustrator is able to import previous
versions of Illustrator .eps artwork as well
as Freehand .eps artwork.
Iron Dean (Freehand
10
Freehand is classy and savvy with
the prepress world, and perhaps even more so
in the latest dish of OS X goodness. Again,
an easy question! This is like making cereal
for breakfast! Ha!
3. Rendering features – mesh vs. blends vs.
contour gradients.
Iron Matt (Illustrator
10)
Well, honestly this is new to
me. It was new in Illustrator 9 and has potential
for a number of illustrative styles. I used
Illustrator’s gradient blends extensively
in my Iron Designer Costume. I’ve recently
been advised by my pre-press folks that any
type of gradient blend (Illustrator or Freehand)
should be rendered out to bitmap as it is less
likely to choke their RIP. Bear in mind that
the printing industry tends to lag behind the
design industry a bit.
Iron Dean (Freehand
10)
While possibly not as "meshy"
(mushy?) as Illustrator in the blend category,
the gradients are worth singing about, even
at the dinner table.
4. Ability to produce charts and graphs.
Iron Matt (Illustrator
10)
With the new ability to create
artwork from XML files, you can build templates
that are then populated by remote XML files.
Illustrator 10 adds new table building tools
that are entirely welcome. Given the popularity
of tables in Word documents, this is a huge
time-saver.
Iron Dean (Freehand
10)
The Grid Iron (ugh) that is Freehand
can handle such things with delight! In fact,
the grid options are so fluid here you might
spend all your time cooking up beautiful looking
charts and graphs instead of particularly poignant
or potent information!
5. Ability to create layouts and spreads.
Iron Matt (Illustrator
10)
Again, like number two, I consider
this as a given for any pro-level design application.
Iron Dean (Freehand
10)
Ah-ha! Behold the MasterPages
and import options! The Freehand stew is far
more full of edible delights in its publisher-oriented
new abilities.
6. Drawing tools.
Iron Matt (Illustrator
10)
Well, for vector (Bezier) artwork,
you can’t get any better. Illustrator 10
brings new symbol and liquefy tools that make
it easier and quicker to get certain effects.
When combined with keystrokes, the Bezier Pen
drawing tool is one of the most versatile and
functional tools in the designers tool kit.
Iron Dean (Freehand
10)
Tools! It is my pleasure to announce
Freehand is not lacking in any areas of Toolware,
and you shall find such a multitude of standard
options that you will lack for nothing. All
our culinary favorites are here, with some interesting
new options to boot!
7. Export options and real world advantages.
Iron Matt (Illustrator
10)
Export options? I got your export
options right here! “How you wan-it, I’z
got it.” Real world advantages are relevant
and I’ll address some of my perceptions
in point nine.
Iron Dean (Freehand
10)
I am stunned! Chef Dean reels
and sneers! I have been found out! Here my precocious
application is but a half-filled cream puff
of Illustrator envy! My meat is not fully cooked,
my garnish inedible and the fish full of bones...
While Flash is a rich dessert to export, the
false-bottom Chicken Pot Pie of Web export abilities
are a bit under-done. The publishing side is
well taken care of, but only if the Web dishes
were as confident and well-arranged!
8. Ease of use.
Iron Matt (Illustrator
10)
Having started with Illustrator
6 (or was it 5???) ease of use isn’t easy
for me to measure. It all makes sense. If you’ve
got experience with other Adobe applications
(Pagemaker, Photoshop, etc.) the interface elements
and placement will be familiar. More important
issues for newbies will likely be color-modes
and how to work with CMYK and RGB pallets. (Hey
that gives me an idea for a future OP/ED piece.)
Iron Dean (Freehand
10)
It is as easy as freshly baked
pie to use Freehand, especially if you are already
used to the Macromedia restaurant way of cooking.
Returning patrons will find the usually friendly
faire lined up beside all new integrated dining
experiences.
9. Spin…
Iron Matt (Illustrator
10)
As I mentioned in my review of
Illustrator 10, both of these applications are
tools. They’re both extremely capable design
applications geared for pros. These apps solve
the same problems, and are direct competitors
for the same market share. Designers grow up
in a certain application, and tend to stay there.
When asked (or sometimes forced) to switch to
a foreign application designers will drag feet,
mumble, stumble and finally find their groove
in the new application.
A few years ago I was a designer
at an advertising agency. I had grown up in
Illustrator and the art director was a Freehand
guy. After trying out Freehand on a few projects
I stuck with Illustrator. Not because I couldn’t
learn Freehand, but in that environment it was
much more important that work was produced rather
than what it was produced with. We ran Illustrator
and Freehand art together and ultimately it
didn’t matter which application had created
the artwork.
Adobe (www.adobe.com) and Macromedia
(www.macromedia.com) offer trial versions of
their applications available for you to download.
Remember that these are professional tools and
come with learning curves and unlimited potential.
Enjoy.
Iron Dean (Freehand
10)
Please keep in mind, oh honorable
judge, that this dish is the first of its kind!
First to use the OS X dishware, first meal to
arrive at the table, and first use of such stunning
integration of Flash properties so that Flash
authors could begin converting to OS X immediately!
My opponent must have gotten lost coming out
of the kitchen to have arrived at the table
so late... Was his waiter intoxicated? And is
this meant to be a replacement for the other
large dish Team Adobe speaks so much about?
Cooks who spend so much time lecturing on their
upcoming dishes are neglecting the time in the
kitchen preparing them!
What's the Vector Verdict, Victor?
The Chairman would like to apologize for that poor
joke and reference to "Airplane." Join us
soon for another episode of IRON DESIGNER!
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
