Customer Reviews

Coreldraw 12: The Official Guide

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Let's cut to the bottom line - if you own CorelDRAW 12 you must buy this book. Why? Steve Bain has taken a very large application and distilled its tools and features into a well oganized book. Unlike so many books which describe an application's tools (sounding very much like a rehash of the help files) without ever telling you what you can do with the tools, Steve has created a wealth of practical real world examples of what can be done with using CorelDRAW.
Most large books end up on my bookshelf only being pulled down when everything else fails. Because this is such a useful book, I have to refer to it on a daily basis. Point in fact, it isn't on my bookshelf, I use it so often that is it is next to my computer. Like I said at the beginning, if you own CorelDRAW 12 buying this book will be the best investment you will ever make.

When I upgraded from CorelDRAW 10 to 12, I was determined to only use the documentation that came with the product. While all of the information is in the user guide I eventually got tired of jumping from one end of the book to the other trying to figure out how to do things. I finally broke down and bought the Official Guide. After using the book for one day I can say my only mistake was not buying the book to begin with. It is an excellent book and I was really impressed with how well it is organized into tasks and projects. The only recommendation I have for the improvement of the book is to add a CD to the next edition.

I am brand new to Coreldraw 12 and purchased this book with the idea that it would help me quickly learn the basics. Each time I needed help and went to this book, I was disappointed by the fact that it either didn't explain how to perform the functions I was trying to execute, or I couldn't find it altogether. I ended up finding answers to all my questions on the good old web or the tutorial that came with the program

This book cuts to the chase with the exact steps to use all the tools and effects in CorelDRAW, plus explanation of illustration concepts which have eluded my all my life. Haven't found a single error yet either. It doesn't include PhotoPaint coverage (I believe that's another official guide) and the support files are only available via download (meaning no CD). But, the example tutorial workshops are error free and extremely informative. It's the only book I could find that explains CorelDraw's complexities clearly without driving me crazy. It is nearly 700 pages packed, well-pictured, written in laymen's terms, and includes hundreds of program tips. I learned more from this book than I ever did in college!

I use this book to supplement our graphic illustration course at a local college. It's amazingly precise for a third party manual and extremely thorough in covering every aspect of the program. We follow the tutorials to create our practical design projects.

One reviewer mentioned he had troubles with the companion Web site, but we've never had a problem downloading the files. We follow the Downloads link and locate the book from the alphabetized list. It's a couple of clicks at most.

I selected this book after reading reviews on Amazon.com. I found the book an excellent supplement to the lynda.com training I purchased for the same program. It helped to fill in the gaps and expand upon the online training. I cannot compare it to the Coreldraw 12 unleashed cd since I have not viewed it, but I am pleased with my purchase. I enjoyed the book from start to end and that says a lot for a discriminating reader of technical publications. Because I use coreldraw 12 primarily to construct business cards, I do wish the book would have addressed color matching. However, there are other sources on this subject on the net. Enough said - great book!

I went to the McGraw Hill page set aside for the images in the book so that I could use them to work along with the book. This is always a very big factor in my decision to buy software oriented books. Most software books now have a companion site if a CD was not included. Literally, over 90% of the 20 software books I have bought in the past three months have a companion site online if they do not supply images and other goodies on a CD in the book itself. Being able to follow along with the same images is an invaluable learning tool. This book advertises the availability of images online on the cover and within. I'm afraid however, that the web links on the companion web page lead to nowhere and McGraw Hill's technical support person could not have cared less. He never got back to me as promised, the links are still broken and if I could I would return the book. The person I spoke to simply didn't care about my problem (apathetic beyond description)-it was quite evident in his tone of voice and in the ultimate not fixing of the problem. And yes, I spoke to the correct department. This is all Unfortunate, as this book has the potential to be a terrific workbook. Now it is nothing more than a run of the mill book and I don't like to buy from companies that do not stand behind their products and mislead their customers as to what their purchase includes. Shame on you Osborne/McGraw Hill. Hopefully, someone from this mega book supplier will see this review and fix the companion site. For now , I will not be buying any books from Osborne/McGraw Hill or any of its associated companies.

This is the best choice of the two available CorelDRAW books (the Unleashed ebook I think is a rip-off - read my review). This book explains each and every tool and program feature in plain English and great detail (infinitely better than the CorelDRAW manual). As a non-designer and new CorelDRAW user, the Official Guide helps me learn what I need to know right away and taught me some great basic drawing techniques. Kudos to the publisher/author!

This is an extremely comprehensive guide that is packed full of clear illustrations. I consider the volume to be very readable and useful for a range of users, i.e., users new to CorelDraw or intermediate level and above. No wonder they call it the "Only Authorized Reference on CorelDraw 12"!

The book only covers Coreldraw, yet the reviews and the description of the imply that it also covers Photo-Paint