MacFormat Magazine - Nov 2001
Debate: The Big One.
Expert's View

If you produce graphics you either use Illustrator or Freehand, and both packages have their die-hard fans. So which is best? We ask a panel of design experts for their views.

Sarah Mowatt (PR Manager Macromedia UK):
Lawrence, how long have you been using Freehand? And what version are you using now?

Lawrence Zeegen:
Gosh, I starting using it on and off at version 5 but really went over to it fully at 7. I now use 9 but am moving over to 10 really soon when my new G4 Powerbook arrives. Just to see how OSX behaves with it!

Ed Haynes (Deputy Editor MacFormat):
Why did you move from Illustrator to Freehand?

Lawrence Zeegen:
I guess that after starting with Illustrator and then trying Freehand it just seemed more user-friendly, the interface just felt more comfortable. I guess I did worry about leaving Adobe as I wanted to co-exist with Photoshop, which I still do, of course!

Ed Haynes:
Lawrence, do you find the interface changes a problem between Adobe and Macromedia products?

Lawrence Zeegen:
Not really. The way I use Photoshop and Freehand just works as I need it. Freehand seems to cope well importing images from Photoshop, once you get to grips with file formats, etc. I guess that I am surprised that Macromedia has not tried to challenge Photoshop!

Ed Haynes:
What benefits did you initially see from Freehand. Miss anything in Illustrator?

Lawrence Zeegen:
The way I use Freehand means that some of the grumbles others have had of Freehand don't upset me. I hear that there are more customisable tools in Illustrator but I get by.

I think that most illustrators are so afraid of technology, generally, that they daren't leave what they know - that is why so many sit on previous versions and use older Mac OSs.

Martin (Macromedia Technical Support):
What were the grumbles that the others had, in your experience?

Lawrence Zeegen:
Grumbles... I think that much of the upset has been about the perception of the two products rather than real issues about how the two compare. When Freehand went through a redesign at version 8 it looked fresher and, I think, started to appeal to designers as well as more aware illustrators... I think that it is worth mentioning that the links with Photoshop that Illustrator has have been pipped to the post by Freehand's obvious links to Flash.

Ed Haynes:
How do you think the feature set between the two packages differs? Freehand offers multi-page documents and has been known for better text handling, but Illustrator has features like the gradient mesh fill.

Lawrence Zeegen:
The multi-page option is great for designers, less so for illustrators as they tend to work on one image at a time. My sense is that Freehand is used by designers as more than just a vector illustration package. More traditional illustrators are using Illustrator!

Ed Haynes:
Is closer integration with the web the way forward for the toolset or does this further alienate the traditional print designer, do you think?

Lawrence Zeegen:
I would like to see the easy options in Freehand for saving to JPEG that can be used by my clients. I email all of my artwork and have to convert to Photoshop for them - a pain! Traditional designers want the transition to newer media made good and simple and Freehand is doing that...

© www.zeegen.com