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Subject:Ventura vs. FrameMaker From:"George F. Hayhoe III" <george -dot- hayhoe -at- SRS -dot- GOV> Date:Tue, 6 Sep 1994 13:52:00 -0400
Heather Lum asked about switching from Ventura Publisher to FrameMaker.
While I haven't used FrameMaker in a production environment, it doesn't
appear to me to have a definite advantage over Ventura as yet. Before I
switch, I'll wait to see what Corel has done/will do to the product.
Here are some answers to Heather's specific concerns about Ventura:
1. Wait till you see Corel Ventura 5. The ads don't do it justice, if the
documentation that shipped with Corel 5 accurately describes the final
feature set of Corel Ventura 5 (which is due to ship at the end of
September). While it won't offer Multiple Document Interface capability
yet (ability to open multiple chapters), it will have some definite
improvements.
2. Most notable among the new features is that Corel Ventura 5 finally does
away with width tables and uses the standard Windows (ANSI) character set.
3. Since Corel Ventura 5 will share graphics engines with Corel Draw 5 and
the rest of the Corel 5 suite, its graphics handling should be much
improved. (By the way, you can avoid a lot of the earlier VP for Windows
problems with graphics by opening the graphic with a product like Corel
Draw and saving it as a Windows metafile, then bringing it into VP; or
simply copy the graphic to the clipboard and paste into VP.)
4. In my experience (going back further than I like to think to the early
days of personal computing!), all major software releases tend to be buggy.
Windows software--especially large programs like Ventura or WinWord 6--and
comparable Mac software may SEEM buggier than most because so many users
are driving underpowered PCs. I haven't had many problems with Windows
programs on a 386 or 486 with at least 8 MB of RAM.
If you're not a systems software hacker and are fortunate enough to work
for a company with a resident Windows guru (or have a friend who's really
knowledgeable), ask him or her to check your system out. Some simple tuning
(like setting the printer timeouts high enough if you're printing to a
network printer or to a non-networked PostScript printer) can make all the
difference in the world.
Like most other longtime Ventura users, I have my doubts about the future
of the product, but right now I don't plan to make a decision to switch
till after Corel Ventura 6 ships sometime next year. That version should
offer even more new features, and should prove to be the make or break
release for this venerable and capable product.
By the way, I just read in last week's trade papers that Corel is offering
a tempting competitive upgrade from PageMaker, Quark Express, and
FrameMaker to its Corel 5 suite, which includes Corel Draw, PhotoPaint,
Ventura, and several other products and accessories. It's essentially a
full-service graphics and page layout package that none of the competitors
can beat, and Corel 5 has also been acclaimed as the "best of breed" in
several extended reviews that I've read.
--George Hayhoe
Assistant to the President for Recognition Programs
STC
