When Adobe released InDesign, a new page layout and composition program, we openly wondered why they would be marketing two products which, essentially, do the same thing. The answer is now clear.
   Adobe assurred us at the time it did not see InDesign as a replacement for PageMaker, which it purchased from Aldus a number of years ago. While none of this seemed to make sense at the time, with the release of PageMaker 7.0, it makes a great deal of sense.
   Admittedly, PageMaker 7.0 does not have the raft of new features we sometimes expect from a complete new version release. But the new things it does have – and its positioning in the marketplace, say a great deal about what Adobe is looking at in the years ahead.
   Indeed, the newest thing in PageMaker 7 is data merge. For those of you who have used mail merge capabilities in word processing software, the concept will be familiar: you can customize a publication by including data from outside the program itself.
   Thus, for the first time we know of, PageMaker gives the desktop publisher the ability to send those nifty, personalized publications we get from lots of other people: with your own name and, perhaps, address included in the copy.
   While this is technology which has been available for several years at a price, the key here is "at a price." And, while you could use it to address mailers and the like, that is almost a waste when one looks at the rich potential Adobe has included with data merge.
   This is because you can merge all sorts of data, including artwork. Now, that's pretty spiffy. We can think of a whole range of uses for this capability but, just for fun, consider a mailer to members of a club for an annual picnic. Why not include a photograph of the person to whom you are sending the mailer having a good time at the last picnic? Talk about personalization!
   Also new to PageMaker 7 is a toolbar with commonly used commands. We were a bit disappointed that the toolbar is not customizable, like those which have been available from Extensis' PageTools. Still, the new toolbar adds ease of use to PageMaker which, we feel, positions the program more firmly in its place in the market.
   And what is that place? Actually, in many ways, this is the "big deal" about this new upgrade. Adobe is positioning PageMaker as a, if you will pardon the expression, page layout and design program "for the rest of us." We view that as good news, indeed.
   PageMaker now is a program for that huge number of non-professional publishers who truly need outstanding tools to produce their brochures, newsletters, mailers, letterhead, booklets and many, many other publications but who generally do not want nor need gazillions of bells and whistles necessary to come up with a four-color multi-page publication on a regular basis.
   Don't think for a minute that PageMaker 7 is "dumbed-down," because it isn't. Every capability that has, in our opinion, made it the leader in page layout and design for years, is included. However, in the future, we see that PageMaker will have less new, gee-whiz professional design capabilities and more ease-of-use functions to make it easy for you to produce your own publications when you have other things to do as well. You won't need a degree in graphics design to get great results from PageMaker.
   One major example: Adobe PageMaker 7.0 has a list price of $499; Adobe InDesign 1.5 is $699.
   Another: PageMaker 7 comes with a whole CD full of outstanding graphics. You can import them directly to your publications.
   There is also good news for those who use Adobe Acrobat files a lot (doesn't everyone these days?). PageMaker 7 not only allows you to place Acrobat .PDF files in your publications, it also allows you to create .PDF files from your PageMaker publication. How? You get a "free" copy of Acrobat Distiller, the engine the full (not just the reader) version of Acrobat uses to make these files.
   We have beta-tested and used PageMaker since before the release of version 1.0. In all, several thousand publications have been designed and created with this amazing program on my computer alone. The upgrade to version 7.0 is easily worth the money and, if you are what we would call a "business," "non-professional" or "light designer" type user, PageMaker is and will continue to be the must program you will – and should – use.

   Connect to the Adobe web site.