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FreeHand MX
Words by Trey Yancy

FreeHand has been a major player in the illustration market since the late 1980s and it continues to be the application of choice for such heavy hitters as Knight/Ridder and the Associated Press. Now at version eleven (aka FreeHand MX,) it has an improved interface and includes some wow-factor features that are guaranteed to turn heads.

Interface

As with other MX applications, Freehand MX has a tightly integrated interface. Docked panels can be rolled into one another and joined with others, then expanded or retracted by clicking on their title bars. The panels and docking tool bars are highly customizable, making it easy for those of us with dual display systems to create a well stocked and tightly docked palette monitor. It may take a bit of clicking to access a wide range of tools on a single-monitor system, but it clearly beats what the competition has to offer. Panel groupings are handled via panel options menus. It is not drag-and-drop as with some earlier versions of FreeHand, but you can easily reorganize every panel within a minute or two.

Object Panel

One prominent new feature is the objects panel, which combines the former stroke and fill panels and adds a powerful effects component. It is used for setting and viewing the attributes of an object, including fill, strokes, and effects, as well as arranging their stacking order. You may have noticed that I used the word "strokes." With FreeHand MX, you can now use an unlimited number of strokes on a single object.

For example, you can create a couple of calligraphic strokes with different colors, angles and characteristics and place a scattered brushed texture behind them, creating a great design that is fast, simple, and highly editable. (See illustration). You can also apply transformations, raster or vector effects in any order and to all or to selected attributes of the object. You can alter and deform the appearance of an object without affecting the original. Tweak the parent object and all the other cloned objects reflect the change. Naturally, you can drag and drop between the objects and styles panels to quickly redefine graphic and text styles. Again, this is all done using only a single path. For users who are into landscape design, cartography, custom typography or cutting edge design in general, this is heaven. The only thing lacking in the objects panel is the ability to display the attributes of a group of objects hierarchically.

Improved Flash Integration

A number of illustration applications can be used to generate simple Flash content, but FreeHand can do more. You can export FreeHand files directly to Flash with layers intact. You can use the new action tool to create and attach action scripts right from within FreeHand. You can also playback Flash files from within FreeHand using the new transport controls tool panel.

Fireworks Integration

Fireworks MX can be launched from within FreeHand MX, allowing the user to edit bitmapped graphics on the fly with instant updating and without losing transformations or effects. The export of FreeHand files directly into Fireworks is now more reliable and you can do so while retaining the ability to edit both text and vector elements.

Other New Features

New to FreeHand is an extrude tool that is used for adding 3-D effects to objects via live controls, including lighting, rotation and shared vanishing points. Another addition is the connector lines tool for creating drag-and-drop customizable flow lines and call-outs between objects. Other new features include a blend tool for creating and modifying live blends, an eraser tool for organically modifying paths and alpha channel support for imported bitmaps.

Minor Beefs

Along with discovering new tools and enhancements, I also encountered a bug. Namely, it is possible to move the title bar of a window underneath a horizontal tool bar, making it impossible to reposition the window without repositioning the tool bars.

I also note the sparse printed documentation. PDFs have their place, but sometimes you simply need a printed copy, particularly with crowded single-monitor systems, when learning complex procedures, or if you like to bone up when away from your machine. Also, some of the tutorials and other non-live content are only available via the web, so if you are using a laptop and away from a base station, you're out of luck. Macromedia describes the sparseness of printed documentation as a response to customer demand. Apparently Adobe's research differs. As for me, I wouldn't mind coughing up an additional fee for an optional printed manual.

Conclusion

FreeHand MX retains its edge over Illustrator with superior type handling, as well as with multipage, multimedia and mixed color mode documents. It also offers more intuitive access to such things as color palettes and tool options, and offers tighter integration with Flash and other Macromedia applications. Its interface is more advanced and efficient, and it includes some heavy-hitting features that Illustrator cannot match. Of course, there are some things where Illustrator maintains a lead, but on a feature-by-feature basis, I give the nod to FreeHand MX.

If you are FreeHand user, this is a must-have upgrade. If you are a Flash developer, you need FreeHand MX. If you use Illustrator on a daily basis, it is time to enhance the firepower of your arsenal. As for me, I have used both Illustrator and FreeHand on a daily basis for years and I recommend both. Illustrator can do a handful of things that FreeHand cannot, but for everything else, I recommended Freehand MX.

FreeHand MX >Price: $395, Upgrade: $99-$149 > Pros: Live effects, multiple attributes, enhanced Flash integration > Cons: Toolbars can hide title bar, minimal printed documentationFrom: Macromedia www.macromedia.com