Publisher vs. Word

C

Carl.

I have been using Word to make various graphic documents (flyers and such).
This might sound dumb, but I played with Publisher and I can't find any
benefits to using it over Word. Am I missing something? It looks like all
of the drawing tools are exactly the same.
 
B

Brian Kvalheim - [MS MVP]

In
Carl. said:
I have been using Word to make various graphic documents (flyers and
such). This might sound dumb, but I played with Publisher and I can't
find any benefits to using it over Word. Am I missing something? It
looks like all of the drawing tools are exactly the same.
Click to expand...

Drawing tools are the same essentially. However layout tools are GREATLY
superior in Publisher. An example would be to open one of the 4 page
newsletter template/wizards and look at the layout, text boxes, objects,
wrapping, etc. See how long it will take you to do that in Word vs.
Publisher.

Publisher also offers Commercial printing options such as spot colors, cmyk
composite output, pantone charts, font substiution, graphic manager,
arrange/layout and snap to features.
--
Brian Kvalheim
Microsoft Publisher MVP
http://www.publishermvps.com

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and
confers no rights.
 
C

Carl.

Brian Kvalheim - said:
In

Drawing tools are the same essentially. However layout tools are GREATLY
superior in Publisher. An example would be to open one of the 4 page
newsletter template/wizards and look at the layout, text boxes, objects,
wrapping, etc. See how long it will take you to do that in Word vs.
Publisher.

Publisher also offers Commercial printing options such as spot colors, cmyk
composite output, pantone charts, font substiution, graphic manager,
arrange/layout and snap to features.
Click to expand...

Thanks, those are all features I probably wouldn't have thought of. The
cmyk sounds interesting. Will that make it survive a color copying and/or
printing better?
 
K

Karen

If I had to choose between Word and Publisher - I would definitely choose
Publisher. I have used every version of Publisher ever released and will
continue to do so. I think it is one of the most versatile programs I have
ever seen. Cannot imagine trying to do all sorts of publishing in Word.
That's one reason I am amazed at the templates on the microsoft site --
newsletters, brochures and the like. They are all done in Word! Amazing!

Karen
 
E

Ed Bennett

A small child turns to Ed, and exclaims: "Look! Look! A post from Carl.
Thanks, those are all features I probably wouldn't have thought of.
The cmyk sounds interesting. Will that make it survive a color
copying and/or printing better?
Click to expand...

It is only of use when you are taking your files to a professional printer
to be output - when printing to a desktop printer it converts the colours
back to RGB, then to CMYK on the printer.
 
C

carla

I love publisher but, people are telling me that they can not open my newsletter. Any suggest
 
S

Suzanne S. Barnhill

Publisher files cannot be opened by recipients who don't have Publisher.
Although many more recipients are likely to have Word, those who don't can
obtain the Word Viewer
(http://office.microsoft.com/downloads/2000/wd97vwr32.aspx), which will
allow them to read and print (but not edit) Word documents. There is still,
I think, no viewer of any kind for Publisher publications. Publisher
publications can be saved as JPEGs (one per page), but this is far from
satisfactory. If you have Acrobat, you can save your publication as a PDF,
and anyone who has the free Adobe Reader can read it.
 
E

Ed Bennett

A small child turns to Ed, and exclaims: "Look! Look! A post from carla
I love publisher but, people are telling me that they can not open my
newsletter. Any suggest
Click to expand...

In addition to Suzanne's response, you do not necessarily need Adobe Acrobat
to create a PDF - you can create one using one of the free/shareware
alternatives such as PDF995 (www.pdf995.com). PDFs are normally smaller
than Word files so are more suitable for emailing or online distribution,
and are less able to carry macro viruses. In addition, more platforms are
able to display PDF files properly than complex Word files.
 
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