Features

• Word processing combined with professional script formatting
• Designed for writing movie scripts, television episodics, and stage plays
• Automatically paginates and formats script to industry standards
• 100-percent cross-platform compatibility; easily import/export files
• 50+ templates; text to speech, have your script read back to you

Reviews (16)

Great formatter with poor font rendering.
As a screenplay formatter Final Draft 7.0 works as well as its predecessors, but still has a rotten font rendering quality. I would have thought that this would the number one priority to attend to at this stage in Final Draft's development cycle.

That gripe aside - and it's a really significant one - everything else works very smoothly.

Because of this issue, I would recommend Screenwriter 2000, which does everything that Final Draft can do, and doesn't have any issue with its ability to render fonts cleanly. In addition, screenwriter 2000 has a more useful suite of associated products, notably: Dramatica 4 pro and Storyview 2. The tech backup is superior, too.

If you're a new user, DON'T BUY IT!
I've used Final Draft since version 5 through version 6, and although it was antiquated and clunky compared to contemporary word processing software, it was at least useable and relatively stable.

HOWEVER - I recently upgraded to FD7, and it's a mess. It implemented new features in such a way as make them impractical in daily, minute by minute by use, while simultaneously dumping several genuinely useful features from previous versions. It's been through two patches since it was released already, and it's still clunky, bug ridden, crash prone, and less usable in practice than the previous version.

If you are a first time buyer, I'd recommend delaying your purchase for at least six months till they sort out the bugs (assuming that's possible), or consider buying another of the many products available, e.g. Screenwriter or Sophocles.

ADDENDUM:

I'd also recommend you read some of the reviews on this site with a pinch of salt - there are a couple that I would consider suspiciously glowing. There's nothing to stop someone from the manufacturer adding a review, is there...?

Just add words?
I have to work every day with FD 7 (Mac OSX) as the production company I write for asked me to do so. To cut it short: I have never ever seen a programme with so many bugs and crashes! Unfortunately recent updates have not changed anything. :-(

Weird (on a PC anyway)
I have a friend who uses the Mac version and swears by it. I purchased the PC version and it's certainly interesting. It behaves like no other text editor I've ever seen. Simple operations like cut and paste become strange exasperating games to see what text Final Draft will actually decide to let you cut and paste. I guess it's trying to keep script elements contiguous--but there are times when you just...want...to move...the damn...WORDS. Final Draft makes the mistake of assuming too much.

Edit: I hereby redact the rest of my review. I still think the program could use some polish on a PC...but my previous ire was more from ignorance than the program itself. It ain't so bad.

Finished Another First Draft With Final Draft
I have written or re-written over 30 scripts, both hits and flops, both TV and Feature, with Final Draft. Like most people who have made the mistake of buying Movie Magic Screenwriter, I switched when the program didn't work and they made me angry on the phone. I have never had a problem with my fonts, or tech support, or upgrading or updating. Ever. They even make their own font to make the switch from Mac to Win seamless and it is. The other programs are okay, but not as 'finished', maybe because just about every TV show and Film is made with Final Draft. It really is combat tested. I just bought another copy from amazon.com for my office and both companies are great! ... Read more

Features

• Photo enhancing tools with industry-leading technology
• Make quick fixes or use advanced editing options
• Get high-quality with camera raw and 16-bit support
• Enjoy flexible print options; process batches of photos at once
• Easily adjust shadows and highlights; view before and after

Amazon.com Product Review

Your yard has always been good to you, giving you space to play with your kids, barbecue, and even sun-bathe on those lazy summer days. But now you're ready to bring some creative elegance and flair to your outdoor living. And you don't want to spend a mint just to have a landscape designer or consultant tell you what you want. If you know what you want, but you just need a little help turning that vision into reality, the Better Homes and Gardens Landscaping and Deck Designer software package is just for you.

Better Homes and Gardens, the number one home and garden publisher, has partnered with leading software designer Chief Architect to bring you the Landscaping and Deck Designer. This program can help you transform your yard space into the landscape of your dreams, at a fraction of the cost of what a professional would charge. Using the software's fun, intuitive, and easy-to-use tools, you'll quickly be on the way toward becoming the envy of your neighborhood as your backyard barbecues in the sun turn into elegant moon-lit affairs on your new deck.

With the Landscaping and Deck Designer, you don't need any design experience to plan your new landscaping, deck or patio areas. In a few easy steps, you'll be able to take care of site planning and cost estimating. The software will give you everything you need, from conception to planning to pricing.

With a huge library of over 1,200 plants at your disposal, you won't have to be stuck with the same old options the local home and garden shop offers. You can create beautiful landscaping with trees, shrubs, water features, and flowers of your own choosing. You can even import your digital photos and add your own custom landscaping features to your plans. To keep those plants thriving, you'll want to install a sprinkler system. The "sprinkler designer" feature can help you lay out sprinkler zones for optimal watering. A "furniture" feature allows you to project a wide variety of backdrops, objects, images, and textures onto your designs. It's never been easier to select the right patio furniture for your new deck or out by the swimming pool.

As you plan your new outdoor living area, the software can project 3D models of your plot and perimeter designs, giving you realistic images of what your designs will look like. A "terrain" feature can help you build fences and driveways, and the software will help you choose the best materials for the pathways you design through your gardens. You'll even have a special "fence tool" at your fingertips that will help you to choose from several different custom fence and gate styles.

In short, with the Landscaping and Deck Designer software at your fingertips, you can say good-bye to all those cookie-cutter yards that populate new developments. You can finally say hello to an outdoor living area that not only reflects your dreams and visions, but that also reflects how your outdoor area should be experienced, day in and day out, for years to come.

Features:

• Landscaping templates designed by Better Homes and Gardens help you to quickly place your landscaping beds
• Use the Better Homes and Gardens Design Planning Center to guide your designs with tips and advice
• Choose from a library of more than 4,000 items for your designs, including over 1,200 plants
• Plant Hardiness Zone reference maps helps you choose the most appropriate plants, and a Plant Chooser feature helps you search for plants based on climate, drought tolerance, deer resistance, and much more
• Layout sprinkler zones quickly and efficiently
• Design single or multi-level decks with Deck Designer
• Assign the materials you want for your new patio design
• Quickly lay out your deck, add stairs, then place and arrange furniture
• Deck foundations automatically generate to match sloped lots
• Design and visualize your areas in 3D
• Import your own photos of houses, plants, people, and more
• Produce realistic images of your outdoor projects
• Easily create hills and valleys for custom landscapes
• Automatically generate materials list to estimate costs
• Includes free How-To Tutorial CD

Reviews (3)

Fence angles on odd shaped lots will be a problem.
From the online reviews I decided to purchase Landscaping and Deck Designer ver. 7.01. I have to warn you that if you have an odd shaped lot you'll run into a problem with the software. If you have to make fence angles that aren't at 90 degrees perpendicular to each other you may not be able to draw a fence that is exactly shaped like yours. I have an odd shaped lot and when I tried to make the fence angles the same as mine the drawn fences only rotate in 7 1/2 degree increments. This means you either have to make a lot size bigger or smaller than what your actual lot size is. The work around is to draw a lot size bigger than yours then manually draw your actual fence lines. I confirmed with their tech support that the software works that way.

This is best consumer level landscaping software out there
After extensive research, I eventually concluded that nothing really good existed in the low end consumer world of Landscape Design software, but I held out great hope that Better Homes and Gardens Landscaping and Deck Designer would be different.

So I took a chance and bought it from Amazon in April.and After some initial delays in actually getting the product, it was worth the wait!This software has blown me away after using it just two days now!!

This is the newest 7.x version of the landscaping modules first introduced in the BH&G 6.x home designed suite.The new version, just recently released in Mar/Apr 2005 by Chief Architect for BH&G is now standalond landscaping and deck design product.I suspect a 7.x home designer suite will eventually follow.

It is clear that this software has inherited many good things from its more professional rooted product line at Chief Architect.

This latest Landscape and Deck designer is really easy to use.It comes with a program CD and tutorial CD.After a quick and easy installation process ... I found myself able to use this software quite quickly.

This worked for me, since I despise reading confusing manuals and going through endless tutorials ... this software was easy enought to "figure out", with a little help from the tutorial videos and the help subsystem.

Each video clip on the tutorial CD is only 2-4 minutes in duration and shows how to do several useful things at a time.This "show and tell" approach to learning really worked for me.I watch a quick video -- then I go do it myself.

Unlike other tutorials, this one is quick and to the point.You won't spend more than 30-45 minutes to watch all of the videos included.I reccomend watching the first 1-3 videos, then go try the program yourself, then come back to the tutorial videos a finish them off after you have an initial grasp of the program.

There is also a more comprehensive help utility where you can look up individual topics by topic or search for things within the help system ... very good overall.

This program is easy to use and the 3D capabilities are very impressive.I had my new home' irregular shapes lot laid out and my new home located on that lot to within half foot precision in the first night of use.You almost fool yourself into thinking this program is more than just landscaping, but there are certainly limits, but reasonable ones.

I was zooming around my lot and house in 3D on the first night of use.The house roof wasn't exactly correct, but very close ... and thats where the landscaping program meets its limits ... you can't really make the house architechturally correct from top to bottom, but very accurate dimensionally and certainly good for planning your landscape and/or deck.

You can even take an actual picture and mask out the surrounding and paste that picture onto your 3D model of the house.That really makes the product yield realistic looking models.And I did that one side of the house on my first night of using it.

You can save pictures of your 3D drawing to files, you can even make a motion video tour of your landscape ideas.I was blown away by the capabilities.I can't wait to get home and see what else I can do.

I didn't get into the landscaping till day 2.By the end of Day 2, I had an initial landscape layout 80% completed.This program is very usable and probably could be used by a pro if they didn't have the budget for the $1000+ software out there.

I can't say enough good things about this software.It should be a top seller within 1 year, if others feel the same as I do.My hats off to BH&G and Chief Architect -- "home run" guys.

Professional Calibre Software But Easy to Use
As a designer and general contractor who has for many years relied on Chief Architect professional level CAD software, I nevertheless decided, when it came time for me to research consumer-level home design and landscaping products (as I am frequently asked to recommend these products), that I would evaluate those by other companies, as well.

I'm happy to report that the BH&G products won out.I was amazed to see how much Chief Architect capability has been incorporated into its consumer level products, marketed under the illustrious Better Homes & Gardens name.I am thoroughly impressed with how useable these programs are and how quickly non-professionals are able to learn them.The quality of the output is stunning and, as far as I'm concerned, the Chief Architect based products far surpass the competition in terms of integration and useability.

The unexpected outcome of my evaluation is that I deem these products, despite being consumer oriented software, to be of sufficiently high quality that I can use them in the office as ancillary products for interns and short-term employees to use.The output from Home Designer Pro can then even be opened in Chief Architect for further work by professionals.The Home Designer series is a boon for the consumer and the professional alike.In this day and age it's nice to see software developers who take their craft seriously and who are responsive to their customers, and to acknowledge that rare quality I've taken the time to write this review.

Jay Palmer
New York, NY
... Read more

Features

• Digital Camera Noise Removal Filter scans photos and removes image noise while intelligently preserving image textures.
• Create masterpieces using realistic Art Media tools include Oil Brush, Chalk, Pastel, Crayon, Colored Pencil, and Marker.
• Text Options in the print layout make it easier than ever to add captions and titles to photo layouts.
• Fill Flash Filter corrects the underexposure of shadows and Backlighting Filter compensates for overexposed areas.
• Powerful Selective Undo functionality allows users to easily undo any individual editing step in a document’s history.

Features

• Searches Ancestry.com automatically to find your ancestors
• Compare new findings with your own data side-by-side
• Incorporate new information easily with the new Web Merge Wizard
• Easily navigate through generations in the new Pedigree View
• Quickly jump to people in your tree with bookmarks

Features

• Getting Started tutorial; 30+ videos for step-by-step instructions
• Software for home remodeling, design, landscaping, and decking projects
• 500 sample home plans; House Wizard for a customized design
• Library of over 3,000 items to create a 3D Model in minutes
• Automatically generate a materials list for project-cost estimating

Reviews (2)

Finally!
I've tried many home design programs over the last couple of years and have always been disappointed.I've downloaded many free trial versions and purchased a couple.My latest, Punch Super Home Suite, was OK for 2D stuff but the 3D was impossible and frustrating.I took advantage of their money back guarantee!

I just purchased Better Homes and Gardens Home Designer for $39.00 from a local retailer last week.While I still have lots to learn I love it!I'm amazed at the sophistication for the price.I was VERY leery of buying this based on only one 5 star rating but I did.Well now there are two 5 star ratings so hopefully this will help others.

There are still some things that are "tricky" to construct but I haven't found anything I couldn't create yet and I discover more useful features every time I use it.The training videos are a great way to learn the software quickly and it comes with a hard copy manual, which is getting less common these days.If you are looking for an inexpensive but powerful design program definitely try this one!

AWESOME! FANTASTICPROGRAM.......
Chief Architect tops them all! This program is great. It has a easy userface like 3D Home Architect version 4.0! This program is definitely worth the $ 59.00 I paid for it. Eventually I will upgrade to the next version. This version also offers designing tutorials. And the backdrops are really nice. BUY IT!!!! I have tried soooo many Home design programs and this is the BEST!!! I WOULD GIVE IT 10 STARS BUT THEY ONLY ALLOW UP TO 5!!! ... Read more

Features

• 18,000+ exclusive greeting cards and customizable projects
• 82,000+ beautiful graphics; 500+ fonts
• 5,000+ easy-to-customize sentiments
• Advanced digital photo editor; import images from any source
• Electronic greetings; dozens of additional creative projects

Product Description

The ColorVision Spyder2 Plus combines the next generation Spyder2 - the standard for affordable monitor calibration - with printer color correction and Adobe Photoshop Elements 3.0. The ColorVision Spyder2 colorimeter and monitor calibration for advanced amateurs and prosumers delivers precise ICC display profiles for your CRT, LCD or notebook display. ProfilerPLUS provides quick, scanner-based printer profiles.Tired of time consuming, trial and error monitor -to-printer color proofs? The Spyder2 Plus bundle calibrates your monitor with the next generation Spyder2 hardware. It also includes ColorVision ProfilerPLUS software for creating printer profiles using your desktop scanner. You can now calibrate your monitors and printers and match the color on your CRT or LCD display with what you see in print.Today, all advanced amateurs and designers understand that monitor calibration is a fundamental step in their "digital workflow." Wherever color is critical, so too is a calibrated monitor. The ColorVision Spyder2, the next generation of the award-winning Spyder product line, was specifically designed to meet the needs of this new "digital" creative. ColorVision Spyder2 sets a new standard for monitor calibration. Combining the Spyder2 colorimeter and Spyder2 monitor calibration software, this innovative and advanced product delivers unrivaled calibration results for advanced amateurs and designers.The sleek, dual-phase Spyder2 hardware features precise c ... Read more

Features

• Sleek, dual-phase Spyder2 colorimeter offers pro-level monitor calibration -Superior gray balance, tonal response and accurate flesh tones
• Create exceptionally smooth gradient steps, lifelike skin tones and neutral grays
• New filter pack system and patent-protected light baffle increase the accuracy of on-screen color
• PANTONE Colorist, and ColorVision DoctorPRO helps to enhance, edit, correct, and specify colors on your images, screens, and printers
• Also includes FREE bonus software -nik Color Efex Pro 2.0 Standard Edition

Reviews (1)

Do not order from J&R Music and Computer World
J&R Music and Computer World (via Amazon) sent me a confirmation email with the exact product name that I ordered. Instead of sending me the correct item they sent me a similar item of lesser value. They say they can not help customers via email. They *may* offer me a "exchange/refund" if I contact them again via telephone. J&R Music and Computer World will not promise to send me the item I paid for. They will not promise to exchange the wrong item or refund my money.

Do not order from J&R Music and Computer World if you wish to contact them via the Internet.

Do not order from J&R Music and Computer World if you wish to receive the item you pay for. ... Read more

Features

• Sophisticated, easy-to-use program for creating personalized projects
• Design greeting cards, newsletters, full stationery sets, or decorations
• Access images, photos, headlines, logos, and more from one location
• Full suite of photo editing tools; enhanced printing resolution
• 100 free Paramount greeting cards with online registration

Reviews (1)

LOTS of Projects
This program has lots of projects for you to choose from. It is easy to use, also. The biggest downfall is that the photo fixing and enhancing are not the greatest. You are limited to a few minor fixes on the photo itself, and enhancing is the same. You can enhance a lot better with Creating Keepsakes. Neither program has much to actually fix a photo. If you are looking for photo enhancing and fixing, move on. If you want great projects for everything from photos to making coloring book pages for kids, this is for you. ... Read more

Features

• Advanced map customization and printing
• Automatic routing on trails and roads
• Nationwide campground information
• GPS compatibility; USGS digital map data
• $50 of free aerial and satellite imagery included

Reviews (2)

Poor Printing Options
I found the software to be slow and have poor printing capabilities. I wanted digitized USGS 7.5' quads to print and use for offroad trips, but not with this software. Advancing to higher level of detail was slow and I had to go through each incremental increase. The largest map size for printing is 11x17 (I asked Delorme). You can select 2x2 or 3x3 mosiac prints, for manual assembly, but not what I wanted. I used the 30 money back guarantee.

Missing Too Much Information
Within 5 minutes of trying to map my first route, I have already discovered a bridge that is missing from the map. This bridge was present in other versions of the program and I was hoping the data in the new version would be better than the old, not worse! ... Read more

Product Description

Topics Entertainment (CS-531s) Marvel 40 Yrs of Spiderman ... Read more

Features

• 11-disc CD-ROM collection of 500+ Spider-Man comic books
• Covers 40+ years of all Amazing Spider-Man comic books printed
• Mind-blowing 10 Milestones of Amazing Spider-Man
• Spider-Man's debut issue: The Amazing Fantasy #15
• All articles and vintage ads, Spider's-Web column, and Bullpen Bulletins

Reviews (10)

Tim Robertson MyMac.com Review
40 Years of the Amazing Spider-Man CD-ROM
Company: TOPICS Entertainment
Price: $49.99
http://www.topics-ent.com/

As a comic book reader, I was very interested in this product when I first started seeing advertisements for it six months ago. As the title suggests, 40 Years of the Amazing Spider-Man CD-ROM is just that, all the issues of the Amazing Spider-Man comic on eleven CD-ROMs. Actually, the series also includes the original 1962 Amazing Fantasy #15, which is the first appearance of Spider-Man. From then on, however, it's all Amazing Spider-Man.

Each issue on the CD-ROM is an Adobe PDF file. You do need Adobe Acrobat 6.0 or later to view the files, which is included on the disc #1 in both Mac and Windows versions. If you try using another PDF viewing application, such as Apple's own Preview, you get to see the watermark Topics Entertainment placed on every page of every issue. I don't know why they bothered to put the watermark in the files, as that constitutes the level of anti-piracy they employ. Otherwise, these are simple PDF files.

The forty years include every issue from the above mention first appearance all the way up to issue #500 (December 2003). A curious omission, however, is the yearly annuals.

One of the problems, if you can call it that, is issues that crossover to other comics, be it another Marvel comic such as X-Men or Fantastic Four, or another Spider-Man title, such as Spectacular Spider-Man or Web of Spider-Man. This happened quite often in the late 1980's, and throughout all the 1990's. So sadly, while all the Amazing issues are present, not all the stories that go with those issues are.

Quality-wise, the stories are what they are. Some issues are fantastic, some not so much. I won't try and review every issue, that would be crazy. But there is a quality issue I'm a little disappointed with, and that is the picture quality of the PDF's themselves. But more on that in a moment.

I enjoy that each issue is complete from cover to cover, including the original ads on each page. Nothing like looking back at the older "Prizes for Cash" ads from the 1980's. I also like the fact that the covers are not only included, but the back cover as well. 99% of the time, the back cover is an advertisement, but occasionally, especially when you get into the special anniversary issues, a cover would be a wrap-around, so had they omitted the back cover, there was a chance that half the artwork would have been missing.

The problem is that while supplying these back issues of Amazing Spider-Man is a great concept, it's obvious that Topics Entertainment didn't work with Marvel Comics to acquire the best electronic format or physical copies of these issues. Rather, they simply used a flatbed scanner to scan each issue, page by page, to build the PDF files. They also did not use very high quality issues, as many of the copies are yellowed and flawed. More, there are some issues cocked at a slight angle, rather than laying them completely horizontal and true. This can be annoying to read. Even worse, there was not much care given to cleaning up the pages within Photoshop. I ran one page through Adobe Photoshop and applied the Auto-Color correction to the page and got fantastic results, at least three times better picture than the supplied PDF file.

Still, to have forty years of Amazing Spider-Man in electronic format on my computer (I copied all the CD-ROMs to an external FireWire Hard Drive for easier access) is a treat. As a long time comic book reader, it feels strange to read these comics on a computer screen. I have many of the physical issues myself, most of which are in better condition than the copies Topics Entertainment used when scanning. But to be able to quickly pull up an issue for reference is fun.

All in all, for $49.99 US (you can find it MUCH cheaper online, such as Amazon.com where the current price is $32.99) you can have a piece of comic book history that never goes out of style.

MyMac.com Rating: 3 out of 5. Good concept, nice format. I would prefer that more care be given to these comics, such as running batch color correction on each issue. I do like the index PDF for each year as well, but all it shows is a miniature version of the cover, not too handy.

Excellent idea, poor execution
I've been reading Spider-Man for over 30 years now, and when I saw this Advertised I thought it was an excellent idea. The actual product has some significant flaws, however. First and foremost is the quality of the books they scanned. Many of the issues, especially from 1962-65, are so tattered and banged up that they'dbe graded 5.0 (out of 10) at best. The omission of the annuals and giant-size issues from the compilation is a curious oversight. And although I understand their desire to not have people printing up copies of their work willy-nilly, stamping "MARVEL" across every single page is distracting and disruptive.

You'd be hard pressed to find a bigger Spidey fan than me, but I can't recommend this software. If you want to read these issues you'd be better off buying physical reprints, which are plentiful and inexpensive.

Performs exactly as described...
I almost gave this one 3 stars because it fell kinda short of my expectations.After I counted to 10 and took a deep breath I realized that this set contains exactly what the box claims it does...nothing more, nothing less.
What you get is "40 Years of The Amazing Spider Man".As others have pointed out, that encompasses only the "Amazing Spider-Man" title.Not "The Web of Spider-Man" or "Peter Parker the Spectacular Spider-Man" or other Spin-Off titles (some of which had storylines which were tied into ASM).
The really big let down for me was that I had gotten used to the Broderbund Series of magazine/ comic reproductions (National Geographic, MAD Magazine, et al), and Broderbund runs a software program which features such bonus as a search engine.

Had Broderbund done this title, a user would have been able to do a search such as 'all issues in which The Lizard appears' and the user would be provided that information whether or not those issues existed on the particular Disk the user was view at the time.But alas this title is in Adobe Acrobat so such is not the case.

Nevertheless it is a good collection and I don't regret the purchase at all. That the collection could have been packaged and presented better is besides the point because what the box says you get is, well- what you get

501 issues of Spider-Man on CD-Rom is an Amazing deal
It should be very easy for you to decide if you are going to like "40 Years of the Amazing Spider-Man" because here are the two things that you might consider major shortcomings.First, what you are getting here are digital scans of each two-page spread from copies of the original comic books.So these are not the originals or whatever Marvel uses when they reproduce early Spider-Man comics for their Masterworks or Essential series of reprints.The copies are pretty good, even the really old ones, but they are not perfect and they are not always lined up straight.Basically, then, you are looking at photographs of somebody else's collection of "The Amazing Spider-Man" comic books.

Second, you have to view these comic books through the Adobe Reader, the 6.0 version of which you can install from the first disc (this is important because otherwise the "Marvel" that pops up as a sort of watermark when you try to print these pages pops up when you start reading each page.Unless you have a really big monitor (I thought I did before this) you have to choose between seeing the pages real size, where you cannot see an entire two-page spread at the same time, or you can reduce them in size to where you can see the entire two-page spread in which case the question is whether your eye sight is good enough to still read the print (I appear to be older than I thought).Beyond this it is a question of how powerful your computer is for being able to move from one spread to the next at a decent rate.Some people will find this maddening, and if that is the case you will not enjoy what this CD-Rom has to offer.

There are minor problems in that what you get is each CD-Rom in its own envelope, which means you can undoubtedly find some better way of keeping them around, and each disc only indicates what years are covered (e.g., 1962-1966), so you need to come up with your own way of remember what issues are on each disc (you can jot the numbers down on the envelope).The top choice on my list of Spider-Man comics I wanted to read again was #257, the one where Mary Jane finally told Peter Parker she knew he was Spider-Man.After I checked out the first disc I made a calculated guess as to which one it was on and I was right, but including the range of issues on each disc or at least on the box (to go along with the "mind-blowing 10 Milestones") should have been a no-brainer.Still, all of these "problems" are easily fixable.I am surprised that the annuals are not included, but expecting to have the crossovers (as some of the "Essentials" volumes do, e.g., "Tomb of Dracula) is rather unrealistic, so I would not count it as a major or minor problem.

Yes, it would be nice to sit in a chair that was not in front of a computer and read "The Amazing Spider-Man" from nicely bound books.But the "Marvel Masterworks" series is a rather expensive way of getting these comic books, the "Marvel Essentials" series is reprinted in black & white, and combined those two have not reprinted half of what is collected on these 11 CD-Roms.Even if you have the comic books, taking them out of their bags and backing boards seems like heresy, especially with the old ones.However, I do not have that problem because many years ago when my brother and I split up who was going to collect which Marvel comic books, he got the Spider-Man titles (we had from #28 on in the original comics, with everything prior to that being the original reprints in "Marvel Tales").All I have are the six "Essential" collections and the four "Masterworks" trade paperbacks, which means I only have about a quarter of what is here in book form.When it comes to being economical, you are not going to be able to beat what this collection has to offer, and that is the key factor for putting its shortcomings in perspective.

"40 Years of The Amazing Spider-Man" begins with "Amazing Fantasy" #15 and ends with what became "The Amazing Spider-Man" #500 when "Volume 2" took advantage of the "Volume 1" numbering to mark a significant milestone in the history of the web-slinger.The touching coda in that last issue, drawn by John Romita, Sr. (who was Spider-Man's artist when I bought my first "Spider-Man" comic book, #62), makes for a fitting place to end this collection.I suppose a disc 12 could be out in 2007, but I do not have the same qualms about taking the latest issues out to read again that I do about the original Stan Lee and Steve Ditko issues.I am not overly excited about having the "complete" comic books, with all of those ads we remember from out childhood and the letters to the editor, but I do like seeing the covers of the other titles Marvel was putting out in the Sixties.

I gave up on Spider-Man when the whole clone thing was getting way out of hand.The alien costume bit was okay, but the clone bit was just too much for me.I started reading the comic books again (we live in the age of multiple titles for any successful comic book character) when I started teaching an Introduction to Popular Culture class in which I use "The Essential Spider-Man, Volume 1."The class also looks at a recent issue of one of the main Spider-Man titles, so I started reading "The Amazing Spider-Man" again with #482 (nee #42), almost a year after J. Michael Stracynski started scripting the book.I have gone back and gotten all of "Volume 2" of the book, and these CD-Roms allow me to fill in the gaps.It is just going to take a while to get through all of these and I feel like I should write some sort of academic treatise on it all.

Excellant Amazing Spider-man collection on CD-Rom.
-I've been collecting the Amazing Spider-Man comics for awhile, and this collection on CD-Rom is great!! It's authentic scans of real issues.Unlike the reprinted and released hard backs. With this CD-Rom collection you get to view first printings of the issues ( I can almost smell the pages)!!!You can seriously enlarge the scans, and no matter how large you go the images stay crisp and clear!It appears not a page of any issue is missing.All adds, covers, and story pages are there.It's a Marvel released collection, not some boot-leg or pirated item. This CD-Rom collection will bring my little spidey fan son and I, years and years of enjoyment. ... Read more

Product Description

It's a challenge to find time to create new meals for you and your family. With MasterCook Deluxe 8.0, life in the kitchen just got a whole lot easier. Includes 7,000+ recipes with 400+ new baking recipes, grocery lists, personal nutritionist, and much more! ... Read more

Features

• Prepare hundreds of recipes in less than 20 minutes
• Easy meal planning with 7,000+ recipes and expert nutritional analysis
• Quickly search by ingredient, food type, cook time, and more
• Conveniently download to PDA, email, or print shopping lists
• Culinary experts give advice in step-by-step instructional videos

Reviews (3)

The best recipe management software out there!
I have used Master Cook for many years now, and I am very impressed with it's capabilities.I mainly use it for managing and nutritionally analyzing my own recipes, but the recipes that come with the program are also useful, and easy to customize to your own needs.There are many yahoo (and other) groups dedicated to sharing Master Cook recipes in a format that is very easy to download, and the recipe import feature makes it easy to copy and paste recipes in text format (or from websites - including pictures!) in just a few seconds.It can take a while to type in a lot of recipes from books, or initially typing in your collection if you choose to do it all at once, but I think it is worth the effort.I have tried a variety of other recipe software programs (Cook'n, ChefTec - EXPENSIVE, Meal Master, Instant Home Cooking, CookWare, among a few!) and I have found Master Cook to be by far the best value with the most customization abilities, ease of use, and user-friendliness.

Master Cook also has the capability to keep track of your pantry, create shopping lists, plan your menus, search for recipes based on very specific criteria (ingredients to avoid or include, single nutritional items, your personal rating or category, time to make, cost - if you use the shopping section, etc., and combinations of any of these things).

One thing that I don't like about Master Cook are that it *doesn't* include SUGAR or TRANS FATS in the nutritional information (or a custom nutrition capability - that would be handy for calculating weight watchers points!) I contacted ValuSoft about the possibility of adding these and was told that they do *not* expect to add these in the near future.I was disappointed by this because I think that sugar and trans fat are pretty basic items to nutrition - I hope they reconsider!

Overall, I highly recommend this product if you are interested in maintaining and sharing recipes and/or having control over your nutrition.I have enjoyed the ability to modify recipes so that they are healthier for me and my family, and have given this software (and my recipes/cookbooks from it!) to several family members as gifts.

A treasury of information
It's true there are not many pictures, but this software wasn't meant to be eye candy. It was created for functionality and to fill a void in the software market. The program has been around for years, and each edition keeps getting better. In version 8.0, MasterCook includes literally thousands upon thousands of recipes compiled from various cookbooks and textbooks used in home cooking as well as the hospitality industry (such as Food for Fifty, On Cooking, etc). I've found delicious and sometimes difficult to find recipes for petits fours, casseroles, and breads. There are even separate sections for "low carb" and vegetarian recipes. I honestly haven't prepared many of the recipes, but I don't think that could be accomplished in my lifetime!

Each recipe can be customized by adding your own notes, ingredients or modifications on the original recipe. You can choose recipes to compose an entire meal and print out a grocery list of all the ingredients required to make that meal. It makes meal planning on a daily or weekly basis a snap (if you have the time to invest). It also has chapters on preparation methods and definitions of terms used in cooking.

The best part is the nutritional analysis, my main reason for buying this software package. You can enter a recipe from your own archives and receive a fully detailed nutritional analysis of the dish. Despite its overly-complicated interface, it is chocked full of information and retails at an affordable price. This is a fantastic organizational tool for a computer-savvy foodie, a nutritionist, or even a chef. I recommend this software as one of the best recipe organizers and cookbooks available for your PC.

Very few pictures!
It has a lot of recipes, just very few pictures of them! ... Read more

Features

• Imports MIDI's; microphone headset included
• 20-lesson singing tutorial with real-time pitch recognition technology
• Automatically adjusts songs to specific vocal range; sheet music view
• Edit songs or compose new songs with compose mode
• Learn to sing with proper breathing and posture; measure performance

Reviews (6)

Awesome product!!!
I bought this product for my daughter who has wanted to improve her singing skills. She wants to be an actress. It has helped not only her singing skills but also her confidence when it comes to singing. In addition to be very educational it was also alot of fun.

Singing for joy!
I'm very enthusiastic about this product. Not only has Singing Coach Unlimited improve my awful singing, but it's just such a fun product to use. Since I bought it, me and my friends gather at least once a week (we call it our karaoke night)and just have such an awesome time competing for the best scores. Soon I will be entering a talent show at my high school, thanks to Singing Coach I feel confident that my performance will get lots of cheers!

Band player that couldn't sing
Singing Coach Unlimited is a great product, and I give it two thumbs up. I have always grown up with music in my family and I can play my Tuba great, but when it comes to singing my wife would say I'm no Elvis. I purchased this product to improve my singing secretly so that I could impress my wife at our anniversary. After practicing and practicing I felt and heard a dramatic change in my voice. And when I sung, "When a man loves a woman" to my wife I actually saw tears of joy as she had heard my newfound voice. When she asked me if I had hired a vocal coach I said no honey, I purchased singing coach unlimited and now we are both hooked on the software.

Software needs improvement
The concept of this program is excellent, however there are some serious shortcomings in the software.Once you enter a song in the compose mode and then go into the sing mode and sing with it you can no longer go back to the compose mode to edit the song with out changing it's title.Also if you enter a song in a given key, save it, there is no option to allow you to open it up in the original key - the program automatically changes the key to fit your voice and if that's not where you want it, the onus is on you to remember the key in which you entered it if you want to reset it back to that key.An extensive tutorial would be a welcome improvement.

Singing Coach
Singing Coach Unlimited is a great product.My girlfriend tends to make fun of my singing in the car and claims I've ruined many songs for her.Well since I bought the product, she thinks my singing has improved and I'm no longer ruining songs for her.I enjoy the easy format that the software enables and the ability to download songs from the online store.My little sister likes the cartoon characters and finds them very entertaining.Although I've only had the product for a few weeks, I think my singing has improved greatly.I would recommend this program for the singer in us all. ... Read more

Features

• Inspire your designs with the Better Homes and Gardens Design Planning Center
• Create a Virtual Walk-Through of your home design
• Design and visualize in 3D
• Choose from a Library of more than 4,300 items for your designs
• Generate an Automatic Material List for project cost estimating

Reviews (9)

Where are the crabs, seahorses, snails ?
This ss is kinda nice, but there is not enough variety. There should have been a lot more exotic fishes, and crustations like spider crabs, snails, starfishes, etc.

There are over a thousand different animals in the ocean, but the programmers decided that it would be easiest to place only a handfull.

There should also be an option that lets you "buy" toys to place in the aquarium. Like sunken boats and treasure chests.

I hope someone makes a third version of this ss with my above recommendations.

Nice looking, but glitchy for me
Without a doubt, this is an impressive looking screensaver. Images are extremely detailed and realistic. The screensaver also has many settings you can configure. However...

I've observed this screensaver on two computers, one a Pentium 4 at 2.4Ghz, and the other a Pentium 2 at 450Mhz. On both machines the screensaver caused some minor graphics problems, especially on the P2 computer. Basically I'm referring to the screen freezing up for a few seconds, or the Windows taskbar changing colors. One time half the screensaver was running, and the other half I saw the XP desktop. All the colors were blurred.

On my P4 computer, which has an integrated video card, it takes about 5 seconds after I move the mouse for the Windows XP desktop to reappear. With a standard, ordinary screensaver running, the desktop reappears immediately after I move the mouse.

I emailed SereneScreen about this, and they suggested I upgrade my video driver. I did so, but that didn't change anything. If your computer has a powerful video card, then this screensaver might work okay. It also wouldn't hurt to have a Pentium 4 processor running at 2Ghz or faster. However, if your computer has an integrated video card, or an older processor, you might run into some problems.

Amazing graphics
The graphics are amazing. My local CompUSA was using this on all of their demo monitors, and I just had to have it. It is a lot of fun. And you don't have to clean the tank! But one watchout... I don't recommended it for "slower" machines... it totally bogs down my Pentium II 333 at work... had to uninstall it. Works great on P3 933.

Don't bother
I just bought this SS after seeing it live in action at the store. It looked great. Well at least at the store. I have a 3 GH CPU, 1024 of DDR RAM, and a 64 MB video card in my laptop. (The laptop is 1 month old) When it does run, it is SLOW and choppy. The bubbles suck, and the fish swim as if they are about to go belly up and end up at the top of the tank. Thankfully the store I bought it at is offering me a full return.

The best screensaver that I've seen
It's absolutely amazing. I can stay there watching it all day, it's so soothing and beautiful. I wish there were more features like more fish (although there's 26 already) and it would have been nice if we can change the background a little bit and the look of the aquarium. But those would be just bonuses, the screensaver is already perfect like it is. Highly recommended. ... Read more

Product Description

FL Studio is a full-featured sequencer perfectly suited for creation of complex songs and realistic drum loops, with 32 bit internal mixing and advanced MIDI support. The resulting song or loop can be exported to a WAV/MP3 file and all MIDI events can be exported to a standard MIDI file. FL Studio is a pattern based sequencer, which means you create your songs in pieces (patterns) using the Step Sequencer and the Piano Roll view and then weld those pieces together using the Playlist window (the Playlist also supports full-featured audio tracks with hard drive streaming). ... Read more

Features

• High-precision mastering and special effects filters - reverb, compressor, procedural equalizer, distortion, phaser, flanger, bass boost, delay line and others
• Sequencing methods for realistic drum loops, and complex instrumentals like advanced piano roll, arpeggiator, keyboard tracking and real-time gate
• Unique note properties morphing ability -- pitch, cutoff, resonance, panning
• 68 mixer tracks to work with - 64 insert and 4 send tracks - supporting up to 8 filters each, with ASIO input support and the ability to create mixer chains
• Integrated procedural equalizer, volume and panning for each mixer track

Reviews (1)

A great sequencer! but not an all in one solution
I use FL Studio frequently. It's my primary sequencer for Drums and melody.Well at least when I'm clicking notes on a grid.It actually snaps the notes to grid (something Sonar 2.0 didn't do)
As far as original melody creation and midi sequencing it's a joy to use.
Plus it supports VST effects. and I actually Like it's effects.(The EQ is nice to work with, as is the fast distortian)
Now down to why I gave it trhee stars...
For some reason It won't let me use ASIo 2.0 (even though sonar will)which makes inputting notes from my keyboard almost pianful) so I simply use the grid, or enter notes into sonar (sonar 2.0 I've seen it for $15 on ebay), my solution is to get an m-audi card to replace my OLD Soundblaster card.that should fix that problem.
Loops are difficult to control in teh playlsit window, you either have the loops snap to cell or beat (which I don't like because I don't have very much control) amd when I turn off snap to grid it's very difficult to sequence one loop after another it's too easy to put a loop to far away from the previous loop or accidentally overlap loops.
I'll get acid for all my loop sequencing needs.

The bottom line:
The only sequencer that you'll ever need (if you have a low latentcy soundcard) but not a good all in one solution.
In the future (once I get acid) I will convert my orignal material to wav and sequence in ACID ... Read more