MS Publisher replacements?

[plug-discuss@lists.plug.phoenix.az.us]

Quoting Tom Emerson <tom@technicaljanitors.com>: 
 
<snip> 
>  
> My question, is MS Publisher mostly a 'hand-holder'?  This wouldn't  
> suprise me.  My current opinion on MS Word, you need a college degree to  
> compentently operate it.  (not so different from AutoCAD ... anybody can  
> whip out a simple drawing, but only well trained people can draw space  
> shuttles). 
>  
>   - tom e. 
 
It used to be that no service bureau would take a Publisher file. Most people 
who haven't had some graphic arts training are clueless about how to properly 
layout a document. Publisher's strength (if you can call it that) is that it 
gives you a "cookie-cutter" approach to layout with lots of wizards and 
templates to make the newbie feel comfortable. The newbie probably used too 
many fonts, has borders around everything (since he doesn't know how to 
structure information), and doesn't have nearly enough white space. 
 
The real problem with using Word is that like most word processors it is 
linear with one thing going after another. Sometimes hard to move things 
around, but great for long structured documents. Single page ads, 
newsletter,etc. can benefit from a good designer and the fluid layout a 
program like PageMaker or CorelDraw allows. 
 
- Dennis Kibbe 

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