CorelDRAW 9 Features
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Color and Color Management Features
Multiple On-screen Color Palettes: CorelDRAW 9 can display multiple Color Palettes, giving users choice, speed, and flexibility when customizing their workspace. Users can view more than one Color Palette using the Color Palette Browser window or the Color Palettes menu in the Windows menu and enabling the check box beside the palettes they wish to view. Palettes can be unchecked at any time. Users can also set the default palette according to their preference. New Color Palettes: New Color Palettes have been included in The CorelDRAW 9 Graphics Suite. They are: PANTONE MATCHING SYSTEM Coated; PANTONE MATCHING SYSTEM Uncoated; PANTONE Hexachrome Coated; PANTONE Hexachrome Uncoated; PANTONE Metallic Colors; PANTONE Pastel Colors Coated; PANTONE Pastel Colors Uncoated; HKS Color Palettes. Enhanced Uniform Fill Dialog Box: The Uniform Fill dialog box has been enhanced to let users click tabs when switching between options in the dialog box. For quick navigation, a Name list box has been added to provide users with a complete list of all colors in the fixed Color Palettes. Also, the Add To Palette button in the Uniform Fill dialog box lets users add selected colors to open custom palettes. Users also have the option to change color models in the Color Harmonies viewer in CorelDRAW 9, and can move each handle on the Color Wheel individually to create new harmonies. Choice of Internal RGB Space: Users can customize the internal RGB space in which colors are managed. This will increase color consistency between Corel and third-party applications. Several choices of internal RGB profiles are included. Embedded ICC Profiles: ICC profiles may be embedded in various file formats, such as CPT, CDR., and TIF, file formats. Users can also extract color profiles from images with embedded profiles. This gives users greater control over the color management process between applications. Apply ICC Profile: By specifying a source ICC profile in CorelDRAW 9, users can convert images that do not contain embedded ICC profiles into the RGB space of the application.
Professional Output Features
The Professional Output features in the CorelDRAW 9 Graphics Suite include Publish to PDF, Encapsulated PostScript Export, and Printing Features. 1. Publish to PDF--The new Publish to PDF features in CorelDRAW 9 are designed to let users create a PDF identical to their original file. This gives users increased publishing flexibility. Options in Publish to PDF include downsampling and compression options, bookmark and hyperlink options, job ticketing capabilities, font embedding, subsetting, and color management options. Enhanced Text and Font Options: Users can control how fonts are published in PDF documents. Fonts can be included in the document or exported as curves. Users have the option of subsetting fonts. They can also include base 14 PostScript fonts in case they vary between computers. Image Controls: Several image controls are included in Publish to PDF. Two compression methods are available: Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) and Lemple-Ziv-Welch (LZW) bitmap compression. Options let users downsample color, grayscale, and monochrome bitmap images independently Bookmarks and Thumbnails: Users can include bookmarks and thumbnails in PDF documents, which makes it easy for readers to navigate a file. Users can also specify how PDF documents will appear when they are opened in Adobe Acrobat Reader and Acrobat Exchange. PDF Styles: Users can save their favorite PDF settings as a style. Four default styles are included in CorelDRAW 9: PDF for Prepress, PDF for Web, PDF for Document Distribution, and PDF for Editing. Users can customize settings and include them in the PDF Style list box, eliminating the need to define settings each time they publish to PDF. Include Hyperlinks: Users can include in the PDF file hyperlinks that have been set in the Internet tab in the Object Properties dialog box or in the Internet Objects Toolbar. Hyperlinks created in Publish to PDF can start an Internet browser, go directly to a specified page number, or link to another object within the document. Job Ticketing: Although job ticketing is still an emerging technology in the prepress industry, users can create basic job tickets with CorelDRAW 9. job tickets inform a printing company about the production details for each job, such as the setup and binding instructions. Users can choose an embedded or external job ticket. job ticketing in CorelDRAW 9 conforms to the Adobe PJTF specifications. Color Management Options: The color management options in Publish to PDF let users apply an ICC profile at the time of export. Users can choose either a composite printer profile or a separations printer profile, and have the option of setting specific profiles. Users can also output objects as Red Green Blue (RGB), Cyan Magenta Yellow Black (CMYK), or grayscale. These options let users manage images within PDF documents. 2. Encapsulated PostScript Export EPS: The Encapsulated PostScript (EPS) dialog box has been enhanced to give users new EPS exporting options based on parallel PostScript printing features. New options include enhanced color management options, bitmap image compression, and choice of PostScript compatibility. Bounding box options have been enhanced to increase flexibility. For example, users may now choose to use the object or page bounding box, or add a bleed amount and include crop marks. 3. Printing Features--There are a variety of enhancements. Preflight Warnings: Preflight warnings give users important feedback and warnings about print jobs. Once the Print engine has analyzed a document, a message is displayed on the preflight tab stating any issues related to the printing job, including suggestions about how to avoid problems in the future. Miniature Print Preview: Miniature Print Preview lets users immediately see the effects of any setting changes. Also, users can verify positioning and page size. Users can still use Full Print Preview for a larger preview with tools to zoom, set up imposition layouts, and move or resize the contents of individual pages. Enhanced Print To File Options: Enhanced Print To File options in the Print dialog box eliminate the need to print an entire document to a single file. Enhanced Imposition Layout: The Imposition Layout tools combine the Signature Layout and N-up Format capabilities from CorelDRAW 8 into one feature. This is to increase imposition usability and flexibility, and to address specific shortcomings in the imposition features of CorelDRAW 8. The Imposition Layout tools are capable of advanced signature layouts, including customized group sets of signatures, advanced binding options, page rotation, fold marks, and gutters. Enhanced Print Options: New options in the Print dialog box let users turn off overprints specified for objects in the document. Users can also output all bitmap images as RGB, CMYK, or grayscale. Also, a new printing page in the Tools, Options dialog box gives users access to those options previously located in the Special Settings section in the Miscellaneous tab in the Print dialog box. Print Multiple Documents: Users can print multiple documents in CorelDRAW 9. All selected documents will be printed as one print job, and users can combine documents on one page using the Imposition Layout tools. PDF Marks: This option adds annotations to PostScript output that are useful when using Adobe Acrobat Distiller. Hyperlinks and bookmarks are maintained when the document is converted to a PostScript file and PDF. Downsample Bitmap Images: By downsampling bitmap images, users can improve print speed when proofing a document, or when printing documents that have bitmap images that contain too much information. Rasterize Page: Rasterization prepares a page for display or printing by turning text and graphics into a bitmap image. Enabling the Rasterize Page check box on the Miscellaneous tab in the Print dialog box lets users resolve printing problems that may occur with non-PostScript printer drivers. Rasterization can also improve print speed when proofing a document. Enhanced Duplexing Wizard: The enhanced Duplexing wizard helps users set up duplexing on their desktop printer using fewer steps and only one sheet of paper. PostScript Printer Description (PPD) Support: CorelDRAW 9 includes direct parsing support for PostScript Printer Description (PPD) files. Users can now access PPDs for printer setup directly, rather than relying on standard printer drivers supplied with the operating system. Device-independent PostScript: Users can create multipage, device-independent PostScript files that adhere to the Adobe Document Structuring Convention (DSC). This feature is useful for bringing Corel PostScript files into trapping and imposition programs that do not work well with driver-generated PostScript. Prepare for Service Bureau Wizard: The Prepare For Service Bureau wizard has been enhanced to let users automatically gather all files associated with a document, such as fonts and linked images, to provide a service bureau with everything necessary to open and output the document. Also, users can include a PDF to generate output or to be used as an electronic proof of a document. The Prepare for Service Bureau wizard has a second mode that runs from a profile supplied by the service bureau, automatically setting print options and guiding the user through the process.
Performance and Productivity Features
New Scripting Commands: New scripting commands have been added to CorelDRAW 9. These automation commands increase the exposure of the application to third-party developers who wish to create CorelDRAW-based solutions for their customers and users. Link Manager Docker Window: The new Link Manager Docker window provides an organized fist of all external references in a document. The fist refers to both Uniform Resource Locators (URLs) and externally linked bitmap images. It also provides users with feedback regarding whether the links are valid, broken, or out of date. This feature is important for users who must deliver files to service bureaus or external contacts, and is useful for Web designers. Save Linked Bitmap: Users can save linked or embedded bitmap images in CorelDRAW 9. By right-clicking a linked or embedded bitmap image, users can extract and save it as a new file. This function streamlines workflow when working with bitmap images and helps users recover lost files. Convert Outline To Object: Convert Outline to Object creates an object with a shape identical to the selected object's outline. This creates a new path that can be used for trapping complex objects. Enhanced Hot Key for Multiple Copies: Users can drop multiple copies of an object into a document by pressing the Spacebar as they move the object around the screen.
User Interface Enhancements
The CorelDRAW 9 Graphics Suite now features a streamlined user interface with many easy-to-use enhancements. Enhanced Pattern Fills: The Interactive Fill tool has been enhanced to make its behavior consistent with that of other interactive tools in CorelDRAW 9. A user can drag a color from the Color Palette to the front or back handles in the dialog box to change the foreground or background color of a Pattern Fill. Enhanced Drag-and-Drop Color Functionality: CorelDRAW 9 lets users change the color of an object layer by dragging a color from the on-screen Color Palette to a layer in the Object Manager. Layers can be colored individually to aid in the organization and layout of a document. Escape Support: Users can cancel all creation and editing operations by pressing the Escape (ESC) key. Escaping reverts a CorelDRAW 9 document to its previous state. Enhanced Docker Windows: Users can substitute a Gripper Bar instead of a Title Bar on an undocked Docker window, removing redundant information and leaving more visible space in the drawing window. Enhanced Object Manager: The Object Manager contains a view mode that lets users obtain a layer-only view, to manipulate layers and move objects on layers quickly. Clear Effect Button: A Clear Effect button has been added to all Interactive Tool Property Bars. This removes an effect that has been applied to a CorelDRAW 9 image. Multicolor Guidelines: CorelDRAW 9 lets users organize guidelines by using multicolor guidelines. Users can change the color of a guideline by dragging a color from the on-screen Color Palette, or by selecting a guideline and right-clicking a color in the Color Palette. Enhanced Status Bar: The Status Bar in CorelDRAW 9 displays an info line. If the Status Bar is active, it will display helpful hints about the tool with which the user is working. Enhanced Object Outline Functionality: CorelDRAW 9 lets users highlight objects by changing the outline of a selected object to a dashed line, creating a contrast between the highlighted object and other objects on the page. This is for display only, and does not change the properties of the highlighted object. Sound Feedback: Users can associate sounds with certain events in CorelDRAW 9 by using the standard Windows Sound interface. Other Enhancements: Other user interface enhancements in (CorelDRAW 9 include: Docker windows have been redesigned; Roll-Ups have been converted to Docker windows; resolutions in the simplified Convert To Bitmap dialog box are consistent; and Property Bar transactions can be repeated.
Precision Features
Curve Smoothness: This feature reduces the number of nodes on an object, simplifying drawings and making them easier to edit and print. Using the node reduction pop-up slider users can choose the desired reduction amount. The object on the screen is updated as the slider moves. Releasing the mouse gives the object the chosen shape. Interactive Connector Tool: The Interactive Connector tool lets users build flow and organizational charts easily. Users can link objects by clicking and dragging. When linked objects are moved, the connector fines are dynamically rebuilt. Connector lines can be bound and unbound to accommodate changes in the diagram, and can be edited to produce user-defined shapes. Smart Auto-Close: Smart Auto-Close shows users when a selected object will change from an open path to a closed path while being edited with the Shape tool or the Freehand tool. The cursor feedback shows users when the path will close or be joined. Enhanced Rotation Functionality: Users can accurately position objects in CorelDRAW 9 documents by maintaining an object's absolute values after it has been rotated. This shows users how much an object has been rotated from its previous position. Irregular Marquee Selections: (Corel)RAW 9 lets users make irregular marquee selections with the Shape tool, making it easy for users to select nodes in complex line segments. Pressing the ALT key changes the marquee from a rectangle to a freehand marquee. Enhanced Rectangle Tool: The Rectangle tool in CoreIDRAW 9 lets users single or multiselect corners of a rectangle to round them. Enhanced Default Grid Settings: The default grids in CorelDRAW 9 have been redesigned to enhance visibility and functionality. The grid's design now features gray lines rather than dots, and is spaced in 0.25-inch squares, giving it the appearance of graph paper. Enhanced Zoom Out Functionality: The default behavior of the Zoom tool in CorelDRAW 9 has been enhanced to be consistent with Corel PHOTO-PAlNT. Users can now zoom out by right-clicking with the Zoom tool. Live Positioning and Sizing: Users can see the position and size values of an object in the Property Bar while creating the object. This lets users create accurately sized and positioned objects. Preset Guidelines: Users can create new documents with preset guidelines. Users can choose between CorelDRAW preset guidelines or define guidelines using Guidelines Setup in the View menu. Guidelines let users create aligned illustrations consistently. Guideline Property Bar: The new Guideline Property Bar is activated when guidelines are selected. It provides users with feedback for precise positioning of guidelines. Enhanced Contour Functionality: Objects created with the contour feature contain fewer nodes. This reduces the complexity of drawings that use contours, specifically while editing the contour, exporting, and printing. Enhanced Hot Key to Change Node Types: Users can change the node type by using a hot key, eliminating the need to use the Property Bar. When a node or nodes are selected, users can change the node type from cusp to curve and from smooth to symmetrical. Enhanced Shape Tool Selections: Users can select all nodes on a selected object, so that all nodes may be simultaneously reduced or modified. Reverse Path: Users can reverse the direction of a selected path, changing the direction of the curve.
Creation Tools
Artistic Media Tool: The Artistic Media tool in CorelDRAW 9 contains numerous artistic effects. For example, it lets users apply effects to existing fine segments. Some of these effects include Presets, which provide strokes with varying widths and standard styles; Brushes, which stretch CorelDRAW objects along a path; Calligraphic effects, which create calligraphic strokes; and Pressure-sensitive strokes. The Artistic Media tool contains the same smoothing algorithm that is used in the Freehand tool. The Object Sprayer is also a mode of the Artistic Media tool, providing users with a new artistic brush effect. It lets users spray objects or groups of objects along a path. Users can spray both bitmap images and vector objects. This tool contains a Property Bar and Docker window, which let users create lists of objects to spray, place the sprays along an existing path, or choose a predefined path and apply a spray list to it. Live Smoothing: CorelDRAW 9 lets users set an amount of smoothing that can be applied with lines drawn with the Freehand and Artistic Media tools. Users can determine the amount of smoothing by moving the slider in the Tools Property Bar. The next line drawn will be smoothed according to the last setting. Mesh Fills: Mesh Fills let users create multipoint fills. A creative artistic feature, it lets users create smooth color transitions in any direction without having to create hundreds of objects with blends and contours. These fills can be printed on any device. Eyedropper: The Eyedropper tool copies an object's color, fill, or outline, letting users paste it onto another object. This feature lets users format documents and create styles quickly and easily. New Eraser Nib Shape: The Eraser tool in CorelDRAW 9 contains a new square nib, making it easy for users to edit work in a limited space. Also, the creative element of the feature lets users create knock outs, such as a cookie cutter, from an object. Enhanced Line Segment Functionality: Users can join or add to selected line segments with cursor feedback. Selecting a line segment and then the Freehand tool lets the user select the start or end node of the fine segment and extend it by drawing with the Freehand tool. Perspective Dropshadow: A dropshadow is an object that looks Eke the shadow of another object. The dropshadow feature has been enhanced to let users create perspective dropshadows. The sides of the shadow converge to a vanishing point, creating three-dimensional depth. Users can change the shadow's direction and distance from an object, its color and opacity, and the feathering of its edges. Users can create perspective dropshadows by dragging the Dropshadow Interactive Control to the side of an object, or by choosing the option from the Dropshadow Property Bar. Interactive Contour Tool: This new interactive tool lets users create contoured objects and determine the contour type, such as inside, outside, or middle. Users can click an object with the Contour tool, then drag the mouse to create an interactive vector line. Users can also adjust the number of steps by moving the slider on the vector fine.
Internet Features
Map Text to HTML Style: Users who work with CorelDRAW 9 text styles can achieve a clean conversion to HTML by using Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) as a layout. The HTML files produced are more accurate and editable, since Corel text Styles are translated into CSS, enhancing the export of Web documents. Enhanced HTML Export: Files with duplicated bitmap images will contain only one copy of the bitmap image. All references to the bitmap image point to one file, reducing Web site size and enhancing the export of Web documents. Automatic Web Link Update: CorelDRAW 9 lets users update "Corel on the Web" links on a regular basis. The Update command, a new option in the Help menu, gives users the latest list of Internet links from Corel. This fist of links includes any program update information, news, and special offers and opportunities from Corel. Live Hyperlinks: Users can preview the target of hyperlinks by right-clicking an object with an associated hyperlink. Choosing jump To Hyperlink In Browser lets users ensure that hyperlinks point to the correct location. Web Statistics Page: When publishing to the Internet, users can automatically generate a statistics page by enabling the Create Statistics Page check box in the Publish to Internet dialog box. Menu Links: Many menus in CorelDRAW 9 contain Corel Online links to guide users to useful information and downloads.
Compatibility and Integration Features
Support for Corel PHOTO-PAINT and Adobe Photoshop File Formats: Users can externally link Corel PHOTO-PAINT (.CPT) and Adobe Photoshop (.PSD) raster images. CorelDRAW 9 also supports external linking of CPT and PSD files. Users can work with large bitmap images that are externally linked without having to convert them to another file format. ixla Digital Camera Interface: CorelDRAW 9 uses a plug-and-play interface for acquiring images from over 120 digital camera models, including Casio, Epson, Fujifilm, Hewlett-Packard, Konica, NEC, Nikon, Olympus, Panasonic, Ricoh, Sanyo, and Sharp!. Images can be acquired directly from digital cameras. This eliminates the need for a third-party interface to move images from camera to computer before editing. Edited image files can be sent back to digital cameras for storage, sharing, and review.
Bitmap Features
Increased Rasterization Limit: CorelDRAW 9 lets users convert to a bitmap image with a resolution value as high as 10,000 dots per inch (dpi). This feature is beneficial to users who create bitmap images for extremely large media, such as billboards or highway signs. Enhanced Convert To Bitmap Dialog Box: CorelDRAW 9 has logical and consistent bitmap image conversion resolutions, enhancing the application's consistency with Corel PHOTO-PAINT. Corel TRACE Integration: Users can send a bitmap image from CoreIDRAW 9 to Corel TRACE for conversion to vector graphics. This can be accomplished by right-clicking a new context menu item, or by clicking a button on the Bitmap toolbar. Bitmap Crop: This feature lets users crop a bitmap image in CorelDRAW 9. This eliminates the need to crop bitmap images in Corel PHOTO-PAINT, streamlining workflow.
Bitmap Effects
CorelDRAW 9 now contains many of the bitmap effects features used in Corel PHOTO-PAINT. They include the following: 1. Art Strokes Charcoal: Charcoal strokes create an image in a charcoal art style, simulating the charcoal technique. Conte Crayon: Conte crayon strokes create an image in a conte crayon art style, giving the image a soft, aesthetic effect. Users can compose an image using one of the five traditional conte colors, a combination of the five, or all the colors. The conte& crayon colors are black, white, sanguine, bistre, and sepia. Crayon: The Crayon effect scatters the pixels in an image to produce a wax crayon drawing. Users can control the crayon pressure and create outlines around elements in the image. Cubist: The Cubist effect produces angular strokes that simulate the mood and technique of the Cubist painting style. Impressionist: The Impressionist effect creates a simulation of standard Impressionist techniques and applies them to an image. Users can choose between a loose stroke style, such as a Monet style, or a fine Dab style, such as a Seurat style. Palette Knife: The Palette Knife creates images in a Palette Knife painting style. It also adds depth to the paint strokes, giving the image a layered, three-dimensional appearance. Pastels: The Pastels strokes create an image in a pastel art style that gives it a smeared appearance. Users can choose between Regular or Oil pastels. Pen & Ink: The Pen & Ink effect gives images the appearance of being created in a pen and ink art style. Users can choose between a Crosshatch or Stippling technique. Pointillist: Users can create images that simulate the Pointillist art style, which resembles an Impressionist work of art. Scraperboard: The Scraperboard effect creates images in a scraperboard art style, producing dramatic black-and-white or color images. Sketch Pad: The Sketch Pad effect gives images the appearance of a pencil sketch. Users can choose between a range of techniques, from Rough to Fine. Also, users can determine the desired lead type, from 6H to 6B, or choose a colored pencil with pressure values. Watercolor: The Watercolor effect creates images in a watercolor painting style. This effect lets users customize the watercolor painting technique, from loose to fine, and from opaque to washed. Users can also determine the amount of paper granulation. Water Marker: The Water Marker effect gives images the appearance of a water marker art style. Users can choose between a range of techniques, all of which produce vibrant, colorful artwork. Wave Paper: The Wave Paper effect makes images appear as though they have been painted on wave paper. This produces a daubed painting style on a subtle wave-textured paper. 2. Color Adjustment Effects Deinterlace: The Deinterlace effect reduces even or odd horizontal lines from, scanned or interlaced video images. Desaturate: The Desaturate effect automatically reduces the saturation of each color to zero, removes the hue component, and converts each color to its grayscale equivalent. This creates a grayscale image without changing the color mode. Level Equalization: Level Equalization lets users adjust shadow, midtone, and highlighted areas by redistributing shades from darkest to lightest, preserving shadow and highlight detail. Replace Colors: The Replace Colors dialog box replaces one image color with another color. Selective Color: Users can perform color modifications with the Selective Color dialog box. Color modification is accomplished by increasing and decreasing the percentage of the magenta, yellow, and black pixels that make up each color in the spectrum. Tone Curve: The Tone Curve effect performs color corrections similar to Level Equalization. Users have more precise control over individual values in relation to other values. Users can define their own response curves or choose from a number of presets. Sample/Target Balance: The Sample/Target Balance dialog box lets users perform color correction by shifting color values from a sample color to a target color selected from a color model. Users can apply Sample/Target Balance on three levels: from the low-point (shadow), mid-point (midtones), and high-point (highlights). 3. 3D Filters Cylinder: The Cylinder filter warps an image around the shape of a cylinder. The Percentage slider lets users set the amount of wrapping. Positive values expand pixels, while negative values compress pixels. Sphere: The Sphere filter wraps an image around the inside or outside of a sphere. The Percentage slider lets users control the effect. Positive values expand the central pixels towards the image's edge, resulting in a spherical shape. Negative values compress pixels towards the center of the image to conform the image to a concave sphere. 4. Blur Filters Low Pass: The Low Pass filter removes sharp edges and detail from an image, leaving smooth gradients and low-frequency detail. Users can control the percentage and radius of the effect using the sliders. Jaggy Despeckle: The Jaggy Despeckle filter scatters color in an image, creating a soft, blurred effect with minimal distortion. Users can control height and width values of the effect. Directional Smooth: The Directional Smooth filter analyzes the value of pixels of similar tonal values to determine the direction in which to apply the greatest amount of smoothing, subtly smoothing edges and surfaces. Zoom: The Zoom filter lets users create an effect that blurs pixels outward from a center point on an image. The pixels closest to the center point are the least blurry. Users can customize the amount of blurring. Radial Blur: The Radial Blur filter gives an image a blurred effect that radiates from a central point. Users can reposition the center point, set the intensity of the effect, choose a blur node, and set the quality of the output. Soften: The Soften filter slightly blurs an image, retaining a high level of detail. Users can apply the Soften filter to the entire image, or to part of it using a lens. 5. Color Transform Filters Bit Planes: The Bit Planes filter is a tool for analyzing gradients in images. It reduces the image to basic Red Green Blue (RGB) components and emphasizes tonal changes. The Bit Planes filter is useful for analyzing the number of steps in gradients. Halftone: The Halftone filter gives an image the appearance of a color halftone, which is an image that has been converted from a continuous tone image to a series of dots of various sizes to represent different tones. Users can adjust the screen angles to produce a wider range of colors. 6. Contour Filters Find Edges: The Find Edges filter locates edges in an image and converts them to soft or solid fines. Soft fines create a smooth, blurred outline, while solid lines create a sharp, crisp outline. This filter is useful for high-contrast images, such as images that contain text. Trace Contour: The Trace Contour filter traces image elements using a 16-color palette. Users can specify which pixels are highlighted by setting a threshold level. They can also choose an edge type, Lower or Higher. The Lower edge type highlights pixels with a brightness value below the user-defined threshold level. The High edge type highlights the pixels with a brightness value that is higher than the threshold level. 7. Creative Effects Crafts: The Crafts effect reconstructs images by sampling main image colors and replacing them with puzzle pieces, gears, marbles, candy, ceramic tiles, or poker chips. Crystalize: The Crystalize effect transforms images into crystal formations, creating a geometric pixelation of images in polygon forms. Fabric: The Fabric effect reconstructs images by sampling main image colors and replacing them with needlepoint stitches, quilt patches, rug hooking, strings, ribbons, or a tissue collage. Frame: The Frame effect applies irregular vignette borders to objects or images, resulting in a specified background color or transparency. Users can choose from over 150 preset borders, eliminating the need for extensive masking. Kid's Play: The Kid's Play effect reconstructs images by sampling main color images and replacing them with Lite Pegs, building blocks, finger paints, or paint by numbers. Mosaic: The Mosaic effect gives images the appearance of being created with mosaic tiles. Users can also choose to have the tiles form a vignette pattern. Particles: The Particles effect creates stars or bubbles across an image, resulting in the appearance of star fields, dust, or carbonated soda. Stained Glass: The Stained Glass effect transforms images into stained glass creations. Users can determine pane and solder size, and can simulate outdoor lighting through a luminosity setting. Also, users can determine the depth of the glass and solder through a 3D Lighting check box in the Stained Glass dialog box. Weather: The Weather effects add natural elements and atmosphere to images, ranging from a snow flurry to a snowstorm, drizzling rain to a downpour, and misty fog to pea-soup fog. 8. Distort Filters Blocks: The Blocks filter breaks an image into scrambled block pieces. Users can set the size of the blocks, the distance between them, and the background color. Ripple: The Ripple filter distorts an image with one or more waves. Users can control the strength of the primary wave or add an additional perpendicular wave to increase the distortion. Tile: The Tile filter reproduces images as a series of tiles on a grid. The Horizontal and Vertical values can be set by the user, and represent the number of images duplicated on each axis. Users can use the Tile effect in combination with flood fills to create backgrounds or preview wallpaper for Web pages. Whirlpool: The Whirlpool filter applies a fluid, swirling pattern across images. User can choose between any of the preset whirlpool styles in CorelDRAW 9, or they can create custom styles by setting the smear length, spacing, twist, and streak detail of the Whirlpool effect. Custom whirlpool styles can be saved for later use. Wind: The Wind filter blurs an image in a specific direction, creating the effect of wind blowing across an image. Users can control the strength and direction of the Wind effect. They can also adjust the transparency of the effect by moving the Opacity slider. Higher opacity values produce visible distortion and blurring, while lower opacity values produce a more subtle effect. 9. Noise Filters Diffuse: The Diffuse filter spreads out the pixels of an image to fill in blank spaces and remove noise. The effect can appear smooth or blurry, or produce a soft, double-edged look, depending on the level of diffusion. Dust And Scratch: The Dust And Scratch filter is useful for eliminating dust and scratch faults in an image. It reduces image noise by averaging pixel values, causing adjacent pixels to bleed into each other. Maximum: The Maximum filter removes noise by adjusting pixel values based on the maximum pixel value of neighboring pixels. The filter also causes a mild blurring effect if it is applied in large percentages or more than once. Median: The Median filter is similar to the Dust And Scratch filter, since it removes noise and detail by averaging the colors of adjacent pixels in image. The median filter blurs an image to a greater extent than the Dust And Scratch filter. Minimum: The Minimum filter darkens an image by adjusting pixel values based on the minimum pixel values of neighboring pixels. The Radius slider determines the number of neighboring pixels that are selected and evaluated in the minimum filter process. A large radius value will result in a more profound effect. The Percentage slider controls the amount of darkening applied to an image. Remove Moire: The Remove Moiré filter removes undesired wave patterns created by conflicting dot patterns. These patterns occur when halftone screens or two different frequencies are superimposed in an image. 10. Sharpen Filters High Pass: The High Pass filter removes low-frequency detail and shading, giving the image a glowing quality. It emphasizes the highlighted and luminous areas of an image. Higher settings remove most of the image detail, leaving only edges visible. Directional: The Directional filter analyzes pixels of similar shades to determine the direction in which to apply the greatest amount of sharpening. Adaptive Unsharp: The Adaptive Unsharp filter accentuates edge detail by analyzing the pixel value of neighboring pixels, preserving more image detail than other sharpening effects. The results achieved by this filter are subtle and may only be apparent in high-resolution images.
Desktop Publishing and Typography Features
Enhanced Font List: CorelDRAW 9 features an enhanced Font list box, which helps users find fonts quickly and easily. When a user types the name of a font in the fist box, the text engine searches for the font name in the list of installed fonts, and displays the font in the fist box. The Font list box also includes a Most Recently Used (MRU) font list that will not move as a user scrolls through the list, making the MRU fonts easy to access. Enhanced Right Mouse Button Functionality: This feature lets users drag elements in and out of text, eliminating the need to copy and paste. Users can right-click on selected items and drag them to the desired location inside or outside the text block. Enhanced Fit Text To Path: The Fit Text To Path mode of the Text tool makes text follow the shape of an object, such as an ellipse. Once the text has been placed on a path, users can choose, through the Property Bar, a Fit Text to Path option. In CorelDRAW 9, when a user selects a graphical element with the Text tool, the text will be placed at the cursor insertion point rather than the beginning of the path. Enhanced Frame Editing Functionality: This feature lets a user resize the text frame while the text tool remains selected. Paragraph text is easier to manipulate, since users can select the text frame bounding box handles without using the Pick tool. Enhanced Import Capabilities: CorelDRAW 9 retains the original text settings in an imported text file, such as column and page size information. This maintains as much of the original document formatting as possible so that users can take less time to reformat an imported document. Insert Symbols as Special Characters: Users can insert symbols in CorelDRAW 9 documents as a graphical element, or as special characters to be used in text. Users can double-click on a symbol, or drag the symbol onto a page or into a text string. If a text box is selected, the object is inserted into the text box; if no text box is selected, the object is placed on the CoreIDRAW 9 page as a graphical element. Wrap Text Around Text Frames: This feature lets paragraph text wrap around other paragraph text frames, making it easier to work with text. Increased Wrap Styles for Paragraph Text: Wrap styles have been enhanced to include several other wrap styles, such as right, left, above, and below. Users can choose the desired wrap option from a list box under the Wrap icon. Enhanced Kerning Functionality: Kerning is the spacing between letters in text. By using the Shape tool, users can change the spacing in Artistic and Paragraph Text between letters, words, or both.
Web Page Editor: Macromedia Dreamweaver 3.0 Graphics: CorelDraw Graphics Suite 8 & 9