Amiga Computing - Commodore Is Awesome

PageStream imported this complicated document
from V/ordworth 5 ■ only partially successfully
ohink of desk top publishing on the
Amiga, and most of you will admit
that, for a long time now, there has
been only one choice for the seri
ous designer. Soft-Logik has been proving for
years that what the Macintosh can do with
Quark XPress, the Amiga can accomplish with
the venerable PageStream package.
Not surprising then, that Amiga designers
have been getting impatient waiting for a new
release of the PageStream software. In fad,
PageStream appeared as version 3 - to great
acclaim, of course - way back in December
1994. Some would be forgiven for imagining
that Soft-Logik had abandoned the Amiga to
develop for less uncertain markets.
Fortunately this is not the case. PageStream
3.2 has finally arrived to reassure Amiga users
that their favourite DTP package is keeping up
with the times. The fact that this is only being
marketed as an update rather than a full new
version shouldn't disappoint anyone too much
either. So many refinements and new features
have been implemented since version 3.0 that
Soft-Logik can justifiably claim to have made
widespread improvements to the program.
Before anyone with a sudden desire to
make a start in DTP places their order, remem
ber this is a powerful package aimed at the pro
fessional user and consequently requires a rea
sonably powerful Amiga to run satisfactorily.
Version 3.2 now needs 4Mbs of RAM, but rec
ommends 8Mbs. Furthermore, if you plan to
PageStream 3.2 is unrivalled on the Amiga
when it comes to sophisticated page design
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am has received a major update with
the release of version 3.2. Gareth Lofthouse
puts the Amiga's leading DTP program to the test
work on a day-to-day basis with PageStream, a
RTC board would be highly recommended to
allow you to move text and picture boxes
around at speed. PageStream 3.2 includes
direct support for CyberGraphx graphic cards,
allowing users to work in up to 24 bit mode on
ORKING WITH OTHER
PLATFORMS
Softlogik has made a big deal of how PageStream can work with source material from the
PC or Macintosh platforms. This is understandable, since the Macintosh has established itself
as the industry standard for Desk Top Publishing.
However, there have been problems previously with importing text from other platforms.
Now Soft-Logik have added a new RTF (Rich Text Format) import filter to replace the Word
and WordPerfect 5 filters which never worked as well as they should have. Fortunately, all
major word processors, including Word and WordPerfect, can save in RTF format.
Graphically, PageStream still will import and export the commonly used PC and MAC for
mats. It also uses PostScript, Compugraphic Intellifont and PageStream fonts, and includes
42 fonts as part of the package.
Amiga Computing
MARCH 1997
a CyberGraphx compatible system.
A good DTP package should put a huge
array of flexible tools and options in the hands
of the user, yet it has to be suitable for use by
non-technical, creative people. In this respect,
PageStream competes admirably with the best
packages on other platforms, yet alone the
Amiga.
Other platforms
The interface is composed of a title bar, depth
gadget, toolbox and edit palette and, of course,
the working window itself. Text and pictures
can be imported into PageStream, from other
programs (and even other platforms), then
drag'n'dropped into position on screen. Text
chunks and pictures are contained within
frames with grabable handles that can be used
to resize them. This means viewing docu
ments, laying them out and formatting them is
as simple and flexible as you could hope for
considering the huge array of options that lie