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Illustrator vs Corel Draw

I had a question about these two software programs. I am opening a spreadshirt store and have had people recommend using both illustrator & corel draw to create designs

My background: I am NOT a designer. Most of the t-shirt designs I create will just be slogans. I will probably experiment with utilizing clip art as well. I will hire designers to create more complicated designs.

I have seen people comment that corel draw is easier to use for a novice than illustrator. But does this apply to someone creating simple designs like I described above? If corel draw is the EASIER of the two, are there disadvantages to using it? When I had my initial shirts printed the illustration was created with corel draw. There was MAJOR problems converting it to an AI file so that the printer could use it. I also checked with another local printer and they did not accept corel draw files either. Is this a common problem? I would appreciate any info(preferably from those who have used both programs) but all comments are certainly appreciated! So compared head to head for the PURPOSE of creating slogan based designs(possibly utilizing clip art) which is the best software? Also, does one have more fonts available for use than the other? Thanks in advance, Tony

 

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Thanks for the article and the insight into corel draw. I think the initial problem I had with my designer was that they were using an old version of AI when they converted the corel draw files. It's good to know that this isn't a prevalent issue with the program itself. I think I will take the 15 day trial. One more quick question...I am a college student(until Dec 13th) and saw that corel draw was priced significantly less for students....is the student software the same as the full priced? If not, will it be sufficient? Thanks everyone, Tony

PS.......Give the little paperclip a break! :^)

I have Coreldraw X3 and it's great. As Greg mentioned, it's easy to save your file in the correct format for your printer. You can save it in practically any file type imaginable.

It is a relatively easy process to make simple graphics as you described. However, as with any graphics software, there is always a learning curve. I have found that the Corel "Help" interface is very intuitive, it brings up new tips for you according to what you are doing (and it is not annoying, like the Microsoft paperclip guy). Also, there is a nice set of tutorials on one of the CDs, which give step-by-step video instruction on various basic tasks.

 

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Re: Illustrator vs Corel Draw- answers from COREL

I could be wrong, but I think the downloadable trial does not come with the paper manuals. The academic version doesn't have any manuals, and I believe it also doesn't come with the fonts, video tutorials, and other little "extras". Also, I think the academic version can't be upgraded in the future. You should check out the Corel website for more info.

I emailed COREL today all the questions where there seemed to be conflicting info in the forums. Here are the answers from corel customer service:

Response (Susanne) - 10/13/2006 04:12 PM
Hi Tony,

1. Does the academic version come with photo paint x3? YES

2. Is it upgradable? NO

3. If you are a student, are you allowed to use the product
commercially too? NO

4. Do the clip art and photo images come with it? YES

5. Do the fonts come with it? YES

6. Does it come with the printed help manuals? NO

7. Please let me know if there are any other differences between the
"academic" and "full" versions.

The academic version does not come with user manuals, you may not use
it commercially, it does not qualify for online warranty support, and
you must be a student/teacher or non-profit organization to purchase it.

I hope this helps!

Susanne
Corel Customer Support Services

 

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Corel Draw X3 UNLEASHED DVD-ROM

You can also find a wealth of Corel Knowledge at
www.unleash.com
www.oberplace.com

I looked at unleashed and I see they have 750 page ebook that helps with learning the x3 program. Has anyone ever purchased this program? is it helpful? Thanks in advance, Tony