by Mike Swope April 15, 2002

Immediately after Adobe announced InDesign, many in the DTP and graphic design world believed PageMaker to be dead, since InDesign promised to be Adobe's "Quark killer" page layout application. This belief continued as Adobe eventually released InDesign 1.0 and 1.5, with nary a whisper about PageMaker. Much to the surprise of many, however, Adobe released PageMaker 7 in mid-2001, without much fanfare. I immediately purchased the PageMaker 7 upgrade because it promised greater cross-platform parity, and because PageMaker is my choice page layout application. PageMaker, along with an illustration package and image editor, has always been more than adequate for my design needs. This still holds true with PageMaker 7, but I have discovered a few disappointments with the Mac version of this upgrade.

Nearly the Same Old PageMaker

PageMaker is a page layout application, with which users assemble illustrations, images and text to create publications such as brochures, flyers, catalogs, books, advertisements, any type of publication. As one can expect of any page layout application, PageMaker imports a variety of image formats; prints composites, CMYK and spot color separations; traps objects; sets type; assigns paragraph styles; specifies indents and tabs; checks spelling; and much, much more. In these regards, PageMaker 7 is the same old PageMaker. At first glance, PageMaker 7 and PageMaker 6.5 are nearly indistinguishable. In fact, the PageMaker 7 CD serial number labels don't identify the serial number being associated with PageMaker 7 but instead to Adobe PageMaker Plus (as in 6.5 Plus). So previous users of PageMaker will feel right at home in PageMaker 7.

One of PageMaker's unique features has been its ability to wrap text completely around objects, left, right, top and bottom at once in a single column of text. QuarkXPress 5, released only weeks ago, appears to have introduced this feature (I have not been able to test Quark 5 for this feature). Previous releases of Quark would only wrap text on the left or right side in a single column.

Another unique feature to PageMaker is its preflight capabilities to help users deliver error-free documents to printers and service bureaus. While Quark 5.0 doesn't appear to have yet introduced similar prepress functionality into the XPress family, it would benefit from doing so. PageMaker has had preflight capabilities since as early as version 6.0. The preflight capabilities in PageMaker 7 have not changed much. PageMaker's Save for Service Provider utility checks all fonts, links, colors, and print-specific information to make sure nothing is missing or amiss. The Save for Service Provider utility also creates a folder of all files necessary, including images and fonts, for service providers to print the publication, and users can print a report about the document to hand to the service bureau or printer.

PageMaker is squarely targeted toward small businesses, home offices and education. While InDesign sports greater design flexibility and integration with Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop, PageMaker's strengths are in its rock-solid, proven production capabilities. With PageMaker 7, Adobe bundles 4700 stock illustrations in Adobe Illustrator and JPEG format; 300 high-resolution stock photographs; more than 150 Adobe Type 1 fonts; and hundreds of A4 and U.S. letter templates for newsletters, brochures, flyers, advertisements, etc. The clipart is stock clipart similar in style and quality to that included with Deneba Canvas, Corel Draw and other illustration software. The templates are likewise average. The generality, of course, is understood, since clipart and templates must be adaptable to various SOHO uses.

For a full version upgrade, there are surprisingly few changes to PageMaker's core capabilities. The changes that have been made, however, strengthen PageMaker's attraction for its small business and SOHO target market. PageMaker 7 now provides native Illustrator 9 and Photoshop 5.0-6.0 support; improved Adobe Acrobat PDF import and export; and the ability to merge PageMaker 7 documents with a database. These new features are available in both the Mac and PC upgrade. For PC users, however, there are additional features that mysteriously and inexplicably did not make it into the Mac version.

Native Illustrator 9 and Photoshop 5.x-6.x Support

If you're using Illustrator 9 and Photoshop 5.x or 6.x to create images for your PageMaker documents, PageMaker 7 now allows you to import native layered Illustrator 9 and Photoshop 5 and 6 documents directly into your layout. You no longer need to save your Illustrator and Photoshop documents to flattened formats (EPS and TIFF in particular) to use in PageMaker. This can save many users a great deal of time as they refine and edit their designs and assemble their PageMaker documents.

Enhanced PDF Import and Creation

PageMaker 7 also offers greatly enhanced support for PDFs, version 1.2 through version 1.5 files (these versions relate to PDF file format, not software releases). PageMaker 7 users can now place PDF files into PageMaker documents with fewer errors. Users on mailing lists report problems placing PDFs (most likely version 1.5 files) into PageMaker 6.5 documents, but upgrading to PageMaker 7 resolves most of these problems. Many PageMaker users will find it beneficial to upgrade to PageMaker 7 for no other reason than PageMaker 7's more reliable PDF placement.

PageMaker 7 also features enhanced PDF creation from PageMaker documents. This is accomplished through Acrobat Distiller 5, roughly 1/3 or 1/2 the full-blown Acrobat application. With these updated capabilities, PageMaker now creates modern PDFs and eBooks (an eBook is a PDF with special tags that allow text in the PDF document to reflow to better fit the screens of PDAs and similar handheld devices). To create a PDF directly from PageMaker 7, the user simply chooses File>Export>Acrobat PDF and, after a short time, is presented with the menus to specify their PDF output features, all of the features available to Acrobat Distiller, including document security.

Unfortunately, PageMaker 7's PDF creation capabilities may not live up to most users' expectations. This feature requires a PostScript print driver. Luckily, the Adobe PostScript Print Driver is installed with PageMaker 7. But to use it to create a PDF, the print driver must be selected in the Chooser. Next, when first selecting File>Export>Acrobat PDF in Classic, it takes longer than expected for the PDF menus to appear. I presume this is because PageMaker is reading the Acrobat Distiller application. Performance within the PDF menu in Classic was likewise sluggish, but not unusable. In contrast, these features were snappier in OS 9.

Acrobat Distiller itself also poses problems to would-be PDF makers. I could not successfully create a PDF from PageMaker, even after several hours and repeated attempts. PageMaker would start to create the PDF and then error out, reporting that either the user had cancelled the process or a PostScript error had occurred, and suggesting that the distiller log for the job would show more information. Unfortunately, at no point was such a log ever generated when creating a PDF from PageMaker 7. So I tried a workaround. Instead of creating the PDF within PageMaker 7, I printed to a PostScript file and attempted to distill this into a PDF. This process likewise errored out, but at least a log was produced this time. The problem appeared to be with a font which Distiller cannot find. I suffered similar problems upgrading from Acrobat 3 to Acrobat 5 on another machine, and at that point I discovered that Distiller doesn't want to read fonts that are buried too deeply in folders. So I theorize that it is this same problem which prevents me from successfully creating a PDF from PageMaker 7, as I have my fonts organized on my system, creating folders several layers deep. I am a bit stumped, however, that it is the Helvetica font named as the culprit in the error log, since Helvetica is installed in the System Folder by default and I have not moved it from the System Folder. Whatever the cause, this error will take some time to investigate and possibly a phone call to Adobe Technical Support to resolve, at a time when I really need to create a PDF.

Merging PageMaker 7 Documents with Databases

Perhaps the most useful new feature for small businesses and SOHO users is PageMaker 7's ability to merge PageMaker documents with databases containing both text and images to create customized publications, such as direct mail postcards and letters of introduction, to name only two. This functionality integrates well with emerging digital printing technology. With PageMaker 7 and a service bureau which uses digital printing technology, users can now print completely customized but professional full-color direct mail pieces, without the change in type, style, size or weight typically associated with low-budget direct mailings. Of course, smaller businesses on shoestring budgets can also use this database feature to print direct mail pieces on standard desktop or network printers, too. With PageMaker 7 and a digital workflow, any size business can appear to have a large advertising budget.

PageMaker 7 makes merging documents and databases very, very simple, much simpler than QuarkXPress and third-party plug-ins. The toughest challenge with PageMaker 7 is getting the database into the only format PageMaker 7 will understand: a comma-delimited text file. When I created my database, I used AppleWorks 6, mistakenly believing that AppleWorks 6 would export my 62-record spreadsheet to a comma-delimited file without a hitch. I was disappointed. AppleWorks 6 will only export in a few formats. Comma-delimited text file is not one of them. Luckily, AppleWorks 6 will export to Microsoft Excel, so I exported to Excel, opened the file with Excel, and then saved my file as a comma-delimited text file for PageMaker 7. Since most businesses use Microsoft Office, they can avoid the AppleWorks problem by creating their spreadsheet directly in Excel. Of course, I would expect FileMaker and Access to export to comma-delimited files, too.

When the document to be merged is created, the user should make allowances for the data that will be inserted from the database. This typically means making sure that if a line or two wraps differently due to a long entry, the layout will not be destroyed or overlap any other part of the layout. Since PageMaker 7 creates a new document from the source document and the database, it's no problem to go back to the original source document and correct problem areas and merge the document and database again.

Once both the source document and database are created, it is time to prepare the document to merge with the database. First, the user needs to open the Data Merge Palette from Window>Plug-in Palettes>Show Data Merge Palette. From the Data Merge Palette pull-down menu, the user selects the data source to be merged with the document. The Data Merge Palette will display the fields in the data source. The user then simply highlights the words to be replaced or places the text cursor where the data is to be inserted, and then clicks on the field in the Data Merge Palette. A string of characters like "<<Business Name>>" (without the quotes) is inserted into the document. The user must perform this operation every instance of every field that should be merged.

After all instances in the document are prepared, the document is almost ready to be merged. Users can preview what the publication will look like with the data merged by selecting Preview Records from the Data Merge Palette. By default, the first record's data is previewed in the document. The user can select other records to be previewed by selecting 'Go To Record' from the Data Merge Palette and typing in the number of the record to next be previewed. This record's data is now previewed in the document. The user can preview as many records as needed and make necessary adjustments. The user must remember than all adjustments in a document are global and will affect every record, not just the record being previewed.

Once the records have been previewed, it's time to merge the document with the database. To merge the PageMaker 7 document with the database, the user simply selects Merge Records from either Utilities>Plug-ins> menu or the Data Merge Palette pull-down menu. PageMaker 7 displays the Merge Records Dialogue Box. Here the user selects which records, how many records, layout options, image embedding, and length of the new document(s) that will be produced by the merge. The default new publication length is 50 pages, so if the user has 100 records, two documents would be produced (these may vary in the number of pages depending on the user's other selections). If the user would like to merge all records into a single document, the user would simply uncheck this option. If the user would like to merge only a few records, the record numbers should be entered in the Range field as indicated. It is also possible merge more than one record per page, for postcards printed four-up for example. When the user makes his selections and clicks OK, PageMaker creates a new document according to the selections he has made, containing the data from his database merged with the source document. This new document can now be sent to a service bureau or printer, or be printed from the user's standard office printer. In my case, I printed my merged letter of introduction to my Epson inkjet printer.

PageMaker 7's Disappointments for Mac Users

Along with the Acrobat problems noted above, which may or may not affect Windows PCs, PageMaker 7 offers other disappointments for Mac users. This shouldn't be surprising, as the Mac isn't a common business machine, small businesses and SOHOs being the publicly stated market for PageMaker 7. Most businesses use Windows PCs. So it makes some sense that Mac users get the short end of the stick with PageMaker 7. PageMaker 7 for Macintosh is less versatile and has fewer enhancements than the Windows version. It don't get no simpler.

PageMaker 7 for Windows offers at least three useful enhancements not available in the Mac version: a Picture Palette for browsing and managing stock illustrations, clip art and photographs; a Template Browser for searching and managing PageMaker templates (the templates that ship with PageMaker 7); and a Microsoft Office-style Toolbar with shortcuts to commonly used features. These surely come in handy for Windows users. They would certainly have come in handy for Mac users, too.

PageMaker 7 for Windows also offers more powerful abilities to open PageMaker files from either Mac or PC. PageMaker 7 for WIndows can read PageMaker documents as old as version 4 for both Mac and Windows. PageMaker 7 for Macintosh, on the other hand, can likewise read PageMaker documents created on the Mac back to version 4, but can only read documents as old as 6.5 for Windows. The Windows version of PageMaker 7 also offers the ability to convert Microsoft Publisher 97, 98 and 2000 documents to PageMaker 7. The Mac version does not.

The most disappointing omission from PageMaker 7 for Macintosh, however, is that it lacks OS X support. OS X is Apple's next-generation operating system and will replace OS 9.x. Since Apple is now shipping all machines with OS X as the default operating system, Apple's clearly signalling that the days of the legacy MacOS are numbered. Perhaps, then, PageMaker's days are also numbered. At this writing, however, PageMaker 7 runs acceptably well inside Classic in OS X, although it performs sluggishly with some functions (see the data on exporting to Acrobat PDF above).

To date, Adobe has not made any public comment regarding any other upgrade to PageMaker to give both Windows and Mac versions feature parity or to make it OS X compatible. If youêre a Mac user, your hands will be tied trying to open Windows documents created with nearly any version of PageMaker. Youêll have to coerce your Windows clients to upgrade their versions of PageMaker so that you can accept their files. If you're a Mac user running OS X, you'll also be forced to run PageMaker 7 in Classic, or boot into OS 9.x.

What About Quark?

To help win over QuarkXPress users, users who have grown weary of Quark's l-o-n-g delays in providing upgrades (this delay may be a testament to QuarkXPress's strength and reliability) and Quark's general take-it-or-leave-it attitude, Adobe has bundled a converter application with PageMaker 7 to convert QuarkXPress 3.3-4.0 documents to PageMaker 7 (for Windows users, the QuarkXPress converter is the same that converts Microsoft Publisher documents). This QuarkXPress converter works reasonably well, and better than the previous QuarkXPress converter. You should expect to do some rework on all QuarkXPress documents that you convert, but it sure beats recreating the documents from scratch. Adobe deserves some measure of appreciateion for continuing to provide this handy conversion utility for PageMaker.

A Mixed But Worthwhile Upgrade

For Mac users, PageMaker 7 is a mixed bag. I had hoped that PageMaker 7 for Mac would provide the same benefits as PageMaker 7 for Windows, having achieved feature parity across platforms. Alas, this is not the case. And I am puzzled. Why can't Adobe offer the additional enhancements found in the Windows version for Mac users? I don't know.

Despite the lack of cross-platform parity, PageMaker 7 for both Macintosh and Windows offers business, SOHO and education users some useful features for their money. Most users will be pleased with the native compatibility with Illustrator 9 and Photoshop 5.x-6.x documents, improved PDF capabilities, and data merge feature. Even though I'm disappointed that PageMaker 7 for Mac has fewer features than the Windows version, I'm still glad that I have upgraded and can enjoy Pagemaker 7's minor but important improvements. At $79 for the upgrade, PageMaker 7 will make you glad you upgraded, too.

Mike Swope is publisher of inetreviews.com, a site that contains software, hardware and book reviews, and also the president of MacWichita Macintosh User Group in Wichita, KS. He runs his own graphics/web design business, Swope Design, and a new venture, SuperPersonalized.com, to produce personalized photographic gifts and convert home movies and home videos to DVD.

Agree? Disagree? What are your thoughts? Be sure to post them

Product: PageMaker 7 Publisher: Adobe Systems Price: US $499 MSRP  |  US $79 Upgrade from Pagemaker 6 or 6.5 (Plus) Target Audience: Small business, SOHO, and education who need a reliable page layout application bundled with clipart and templates. Rating: (out of 5)