Why I Use Serif’s PagePlus Software

by Mary Rose Maguire

 

Years ago, I became a dating and relationship coach and knew I needed to create teaching materials for my workshops. My husband introduced me to Serif's PagePlus, a UK-based software company that produced document creation, desktop publishing, drawing, and photo editing programs. Little did I know how important this program would become to me.

 

I learned how to create PDFs so I could package my workshop content as an eBook. I created my own logo and business cards. I fell in love with the simplicity of PagePlus and the many options that allowed me to customize my creations.

 

When I first heard about digital scrapbooking, I was intrigued. One day, my husband bought a scrapbooking software program. I was excited. Finally, I was going to create my first digital layout! As soon as we returned home, I excitedly popped in the software CD and located all the templates and graphic art. Actually, “Graphic Art” might be an overstatement. The program had old clip art that fell far below my expectations of layout design. I was disappointed as I looked at the screen. I was able to download some free digital scrapbook kits and wondered if I could use them. Why not? They were images, right?

 

Well, there are different types of images. Most of the images I used were .jpg files. Little did I realize that most digital designers use .png files for their images. When I tried to import the .png files into the scrapbooking software program, I found a dead-end. The program would only allow .jpg files to be used. Frustrated, I headed for my husband's counsel. Maybe he could “tweak” something for me!

 

"Why don't you try using PagePlus for your layout design?" He asked. I didn't even think of that as a possibility. I decided to try it and was delighted to see PagePlus accept the .png files! In a very short time, I was importing images, resizing them, moving embellishments, and playing with the Artistic Text Tool.

 

At the time, I was unaware that the majority of digital scrapbookers used Adobe Photoshop Elements or Adobe Photoshop Creative Suite (which is a very expensive design program, by the way...). Good thing, otherwise I would have spent my energies on learning Photoshop Elements! As it happened, I quickly adapted to Serif's PagePlus and began to push the envelope regarding its functions.

 

One of the reasons I love PagePlus is for its intuitiveness and ease of use. When I copy and paste an image, it appears within the screen, no matter what view size I've chosen. Resizing is a snap with the guidelines. I can also easily move the images and arrange them according to my design needs.

 

Because this program has a much lower learning curve than Adobe Photoshop, I use it in my classes to introduce the students to digital scrapbooking. Most beginners want to be able to hit the ground running with their layout design instead of taking hours to learn a complicated program.

 

PagePlus offers the beginner a quick route to creating beautiful layouts and room to grow with the program. And it is much more economical than its competitors. Upgrading from the free version will still be less expensive than buying Photoshop Elements.

 

While I use other programs such as Jasc Paintshop Pro to edit my photographs, and Adobe Photoshop Elements to edit templates, I still find myself returning to PagePlus to finish my layouts and add extra touches. PagePlus is simply a great program for a great price. Try it, and see if you don't agree!