FreeHand
MX is finally here!
On February 10, 2003, Macromedia announced that FreeHand MX was available for download at their site (website link here). This latest version of FreeHand has been anticipated for many months. Long-time users should be pleased with the result. Many bugs from FreeHand 10 have been fixed - including the operation of the Pen tool - and more than 40 new features have been added. Each of us has different needs, according to the type of work we do and the current client. It will take a few issues to cover just the new features, and major features will be described in detail at Brainstormer.org - with tutorials - as time goes on.
The next thing you're probably going to notice when you begin to work is the speed increase. It's so fast compared to FreeHand 10 that you'll wonder how you ever worked in 10 at all - I know, most of you stayed in 9. I happened to be one of those die-hards that learned to work around the whims and quirks of FreeHand 10, so MX really makes a difference to me.
The first thing you'll notice about FreeHand MX is how different it looks. The entire interface has had a facelift and a reorganization of floating elements such as panels and some menus. You've all heard about the lawsuit between Adobe and Macromedia, and much of the visual change is due to the settlement of that suit. A lot of the new look is like coming home from work to find that the maid has rearranged the furniture (sure, you have a maid, don't you?). Other changes will take some getting used to, but the process doesn't take long because it's so much more efficient.
Some tools have been added to the Toolbar, and others seem to have disappeared. They're still there, but have been nested with other tools of a similar function. Here are some of the groupings:
 |
The default Windows Toolbar is shown on the far left. My Mac Toolbar has been customized. I prefer to have some tools accessible with a single click, there are other tools I don't want on the Toolbar at all. That funny-looking icon just below the highlighted Rectangle tool is the new look of the Rotate tool. It still works the same, you'll just have to search a bit to find it. |
Each of these tools has a small triangle at the bottom right corner of its icon. A click-and-hold will bring the other tools into view, then just release the mouse on the tool you wish to use. If you're using a Wacom tablet, you have to click and drag slightly to activate the menu. As in prior versions, if the icon has an inverted "L" shape in the top right corner, double-clicking it brings up an options window.
There are dozens of other changes in the program. I think most of the changes are for the better. I have to tell you up-front that I'm a print kinda guy, and even though I work on the Web, I'm on the side of the fence that would like to see FreeHand stay as strictly a vector-based drawing program without all the Web bells and whistles. It's not that I'm a purist, but if I want to dig a hole, I don't reach for a hammer. I like the use of specific tools for specific jobs. In the case of digging a hole, I reach for the phone and try to find someone to do it for meÉ My vector effects are done in FreeHand, and 90% of my raster effects are handled in Adobe Photoshop. Anything for the Web ends up going through Fireworks. But that's me. I welcome your opinions and will print them if you take the time to send them in.
At any rate, look for explanations of other FreeHand MX changes in the following column in other issues.
Every issue, we try to bring you some news about the new features, bugs, workarounds, and other information that can make your FreeHand life more comfortable.
Output Area. This new tool allows you to select a rectangular area in the document for printing. You can create a thumbnail page of multiple pages in the document, or select particular areas of the document that you want to print. This lets you check your work in a single portion of the job instead of printing the whole project.
Gradients. There's a new Cone Gradient that's a real time-saver with certain types of renderings. But the newest feature with gradients is the control handle that appears when you have a gradient fill selected with the Pointer tool. It offers greater - and more convenient - control of the gradient than we've ever had before.
Polygonal Controls. If you've ever created a 22-point star shape and wanted to rotate all the outer points a few degrees, you know what a chore you had to look forward to. First you'd have to ungroup the star, and drag a selection box around the entire star to activate all the points. Then you'd have to click each inner point to deselect it. Then you'd change tools and make the rotation. It's different in FreeHand MX. A polygon drawn with the Polygon tool will show two different point types when the Subselect tool is selected. One icon (point style) is a diamond, and the other is a circle. Click a diamond and drag it to move ALL the diamond points at once. Do the same with the circle icons. The diamond and round icons relate to numerical input fields in the Object Inspector. You can change the numbers in these fields to modify the polygon if you want to have repeatability with other objects or pure precision.
