Illustrator 8 borrows some key tools from Photoshop: the Layers technology, as well as the actions and navigator palette. This version also improves upon some other features. Once upon a time, for example, working with the pencil tool and your mouse meant that you had to draw a slightly jagged line unless you meticulously tampered with it. Those days are gone--as is the need to adjust the line using handles or points. Another welcome improvement is the Bounding Box Handles, which make resizing simple and allow a specified item to be treated as an object and even to be imported into Microsoft Word.

For those who are familiar with other Adobe products, this software is easy to learn and use. (A warning to those who are making the jump from 6.0: you'll face a significantly reorganized menu structure.) For anyone currently using other graphics software, Illustrator can import from just about every file format, from the most popular for Web images (TIF, GIF, and JPEG) to EPS, PDF, EMF, BMP, CGM, and RTF. With greater flexibility and a more intuitive design, it's clear why Adobe Illustrator continues to set an industry standard. --Jennifer Buckendorff

Amazon.com Product Description
Preferred by designers, graphic artists, technical illustrators, and business professionals around the world, Adobe Illustrator provides a combination of freedom and productivity. Enjoy superior integration with all major file formats as well as all Adobe products. Create eye-catching artwork for print and the Internet with a variety of creative tools.