Photoshop vs Illustrator

[Sigurd]

Since they're designed by the same company to complement rather than compete you have to be very clear on what your tasks are.

Raster graphics will always be messy compared to vector graphics but some people find photoshop (and similar packages easier to work with). "Messy" is a very relative term and may never be an issue depending on your application.


If its a business decision I'd take a hard look at adobe's cheaper competition too.

There are lots of professional artists who still swear by photoshop 7.


Sigurd

[Midgardsormr]

Is there enough improvement in functionality in CS3 over CS1 to be worth spending money on it? I've been using both Photoshop CS1 and v7, and there are barely any differences to be seen, certainly not enough to be worth the upgrade fee. Granted, I am fairly inexperienced with Photoshop.

I agree with Rob. Check out Inkscape, and use the money you save to escape from PowerPoint. Go for a spin in MediaShout. You'll never want to touch PP again.

[Gamerprinter]

Or consider using Xara Xtreme - this is hybrid raster/vector application that has the functionality of some photoshop features and most of Illustrator's features. It in fact uses PS Plug-ins as well. Xara costs about $89 so its not free like GIMP or Inkscape.

Here's a free link to download a trial of Xara Xtreme, if you're interested...

My affiliate link to Xara Xtreme...