Customer Reviews

Nova Scrapbook Factory Deluxe 3.0 [OLD VERSION]

5 star:		(37)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(14)

 

 

I was given an inexpensive digital scrapbooking software program last year and found it was a nice quick way to get caught up on my scrapbooking. However the software was inexpensive and had many limitations so I decided to invest in a better program. I found this software had received the highest rating from a group reviewing multiple scrapbooking programs. I was sorely disappointed in the result. It is no better than my very inexpensive version. I was happy to see that there is a 90 day money back guarentee but so far I have not heard back from the manufacturers as to where I am to send the product for refunding.

Within minutes of using the program, I was making a list of things that needed to be corrected or improved for any reasonable use. Things like:

1) It will not let you see the image/object you are resizing while resizing it. You just get a box outlining the object. This isn't very helpful if the object you are moving or resizing is anything other than square or rectangle. Can't line up a round rivit to a curved area when all I see is an outline of a square.
2) When you select multiple objects to space evenly over an area, it will rearrange the order they are in. This is annoying when trying to equally space graphics of letters across the top of your page to spell say "Hello" for instance and it will equally space the letters but now it reads "eollH". It also rearranged photos that I had placed in a sequence.
3) It does not allow for the new standard of 8" x 8" paper.
4) I also can't seem to find a way to lay out a double page layout so that I see both pages at once.
5)Once you pick a text "effect" to see what it looks like, you can not remove it. You must start over.
6) No search capabilities to find objects/graphics by keywords.
7) Can't load multiple images onto a page at a time. Must select and load images one at a time.
8) I found it ran quite slowly.
9) If you add a border to an image and then want to delete the border, it also deletes your image as well.
10) Borders don't fit tight to the image so background shows inbetween image and border.
11) Once you start the application, you can't exit it until you select a project and walk thru some basic selections first.

I found these and actually a couple more minor complants after literally a couple of hours of playing with the software. I edited one premade template and attempted to lay out a page from scratch. I got so frustrated I gave up before completing it.

I will say this program has phenominal art/graphic clipart items although they are often difficult to find the one you want since you can
t use keywords to search for them.

If you only want to use premade templates and just drop in your own pictures, this program would be pretty good. If you like to have creative control, I would look elsewhere.

I am really enjoying this software. The opportunities are literally endless. What I like is that I can "think" if I want to because there are so many layout tools that I can create my own layout; but if I am not in the mood for thinking up something, there are hundreds of nice layouts already done that are not "cutesy," but actually very professional looking. It's mistake-proof, and you really cannot go wrong with this one. Have fun!

I just received this program through the mail. I own other scrapbooking software and the previous version of Scrapbook Factory. This is by far the best scrapbooking software I have ever used. The updated Photo Explorer is fun and easy to use. The cloning tool is amazing. All together I am pleased with this new version of the application.

I was kind of wary about purchasing this after the three fairly bad reviews here because I like to be creative and do my own thing, but when I'm in a hurry, the pre-made templates are great to have.

I found this program satisfies my creativity in both ways. I didn't have any difficulty with delays or photo distortion. The only thing I think might contribute to those issues is possibly a slow or old computer and/or the graphics capability is not up to par. I also had no problem finding "matching" pages as they can be color coordinated with each other. The only way your pages will look amateurish is if you make them that way. That's up to you. Everything you could possibly want to show off your creativity is available here.

The graphics are definitely realistic. They are three dimensional and look very cool. This is the next best thing to actually creating the scrapbook yourself.

The only reason I didn't give this program 5 stars is because the directions are not as complete as they could be. For example, I wanted to change the color of the uniform on a clipart of a cheerleader to match my daughters and there were no directions on how to do this. Through some frustrating trial and error I finally figured it out. Another example on subpar directions is in regards to grouping and ungrouping. I finally figured out that if you move the clipart off the page to ungroup, change the colors and then re-group it is 100% easier. Then simply drag and drop back onto the page.

I love the fact that you can convert your pages to .pdf so you can take it to Kinko's and have it professionally printed. A huge plus as far as I'm concerned.

While it's definitely a program that you have to spend time getting comfortable using (don't expect to knock out your first album in a day unless you totally use the premade templates) because there is SO MUCH to see and learn. I definitely feel like I got my money's worth and am really enjoying it.

I think this is pretty good software. The only bad thing I have to say about it is the slowness of the software. I would recommend using arrow keys to move things around rather than the mouse. It doesn't like the mouse for some unknown reason. And copy and pasting is REALLY slow - especially if you select several objects at a time - it often causes the program to "not respond" and I end up having to shut down the software and open it back up. But if you use the duplicate feature it works much better. I have never had a problem with reopening the documents. It does let you just use their quick layouts or compile a page yourself with an enormous amount of embellishments, words, graphics, pictures, and paper. And there are other picture projects that you can do - trading cards, newspapers, magazine covers, magnets, iron on transfers, and journals.

During printing the graphics and pictures are both very clear, crisp, and of good quality. I've done two major projects with this and they have both turned out pretty well. Obviously printing on photo paper is going to work better for the pictures than printing on card stock but it does look good on the card stock. I think the user interface and the pages themselves are good quality - but I have no other software programs to compare this too. I have never felt the pages were childlike or silly. Other than the slowness, which may be the result of the use of a lot of graphics in one document at a time, I think this is great software. And you can make your pages into PDF or JPEGs if you need to print them somewhere other than home - though I recommmend not using the JPEG feature b/c you do lose some of the quality. You just have to learn to use the software to make it work how you want it to work. After you get familiar with the software it's apt to make the creation of scrapbook pages pretty quick. Have fun and good luck!

As a serious digital photographer, as well as someone who's been scrapbooking (including digitally) for years, this program is horrendous. To make it simple:

Pros:
1. Lots of backgrounds and embellishments to choose from
2. Pre-made pages that are easy to edit.

Cons:
1. When using the "Double-click to insert picture" feature, it distorts any picture you import by changing the aspect ratio of the picture
2. This doesn't have any sort of "Theme" feature. In order to make coordinating pages you have to page through their thousands of backgrounds to find a single one, just to start over again to make the next page.
3. Most of the backgrounds and page themes are very ameaturish. They look like something a child made in some elementary-level illustration program.
4. The program itself looks like it's straight out of the early 90's as far as user-interface and lack of intuitiveness. Software has come a long way since then and there are programs that are much easier to use.
5. It takes ages to complete a single page unless you use the pre-made pages and then import pictures, which, once again, distorts them.

My advice: keep looking. There are much better programs out there than this one.

I have only had this a short time and I am enjoying it very much. It is so easy to use and you can do so many different things with it. You can use their templates or create your own. I have used a few other scrapbook makers (American Greetings,Print Master, and Print Workshop) and this is by far the best. It does more than just scrapbooking. You can also design and print your own envelopes,address labels,iron ons,calendars, and small crafts for kids. When you register your product on line you will also be notified in the future when there is an update for it. I am so glad I bought this.

I got this new software just a week ago, and I love it. It is so simple to do, and the results are fabulous. It is so much easier than cutting and pasteing papers; purchasesing all the supplies that are needed to create a photo scrapbook. I had success with my first project. Having this program and a digital camera, your ready to create works of art. I use photo paper to print our the completed page.

Nice software for a beginner or person with average computer knowledge. There is a reason this is the # 1 Scrapbooking Program. It is user friendly and has endless possibilities. The only limit is your imagination. It even has a spell check feature. This is a great improvement over their earlier version of this software.

As a literacy teacher, I have been using this program to develop posters for my classroom and materials for my students. It has certainly made it easy to create visually motivating materials. It is easy to tailor a page to whatever genre you wish to create. They also added a feature so you can save your work as a PDF file. This way you can send what you create to someone who does not have this program and they can view it through "acrobatic reader".

I really enjoy scrapbooking too and this program makes it easy to develop pages for your digital prints. There are pre-made templates you can use and you can easily modify these or create your own from scratch. It comes with a detailed manual but if you get stuck, their technical support is really available! A lot of companies promise this and don't come through but Nova Development does.

For me, this has been a good investment that has been more than worth its purchase price.

I was very excited to have recived this item for Christmas. I had looked into reviews of different software and this one looked promising.

The software is easy to follow but the features that are not listed are the most beneficial. Like did you know you can save as a JPEG file? I can make a scrapbook page and then convert and upload to my message board and put it as part of my signature.

Did you know you can choose your page size and make a 5 x 7 page which means if you print them as as photo you wont pay an arm & leg in photo processing fees.

I find that I do not use the pre-page layouts very often since they are in sizes such as 10x10 but it doesn't matter since I love making my own creations.

I am still a beginner when to comes to scrapbooking but this sofware is helping.