been experimenting with the software all this past week. for the most part i like it. i read manuals to learn how to do something. i find that it actually reduces the learning curve and i'm able to do more in less time. most people feel they are wasting time by reading and would rather struggle through something than learn how to use it the right way. my dad is like this and he is constantly asking me how i figured out how to do something. my response is: "I READ THE MANUAL". having said that, i spent a big portion of my free time learning how to use this software. i would open the application and size the window in the upper 2/3 of the monitor. i would then run the help application and size that window just under the designer window. then i would read the instructions and apply them in the window above. this actually goes pretty fast and once i have tried something, it tends to stay with me so it's not too often i have to refer back to the directions.
i developed this strategy when working in my old profession, testing software. you learn the software quickly, but you do run across a number of errors in the documentation... such is the case with this package too. most of the errors i ran across were nothing too big - mostly a lot of the wrong key assignments. i work on a mac and there was a lot of reference to the "control" key when in reality it should have read as the "command" key. i run into this a lot because most windoz programmers are not aware of the difference between platforms, so i won't get too bent out of shape with that. most of us mac users are aware of that oversight and just accept it.
one thing that i wasn't happy with though, was the fact that many graphics were not present. for whatever reason, there were many graphic holders that were dark. THAT is unacceptable and i hope that CarveWright will fix that.
CW has put up a number of video tutorials on their sight. i like the fact that there are both inline versions and downloadable ones as well. i think this is brilliant on their part. even if you have a dial-up line to the internet, you can start the download and go do something else while you are waiting. i would encourage everyone to download a version to their computer if they have the disk storage space available. if disk space is at a premium, i would still see if you could download one or two videos and then burn them to cd or dvd.
i make this suggestion for a good reason - convenience. the computer i use for making patterns, etc is located in my workshop basement. while my carvewright is cutting away on a project, i work on other patterns. this computer is not connected to the internet. if i should need to reference a tutorial, all i have to do is pop in a dvd and i have the help in front of me. it's a good idea to review these tutorials from time to time. you would be surprised how much you pick up AFTER you have used your carvewright for a while. all of a sudden, something you watched a while back now makes sense, or it inspires you to try something new.
my only suggestion to CW, is to make the type in the text boxes a bit larger. sometimes there is too much crammed into a box and it's hard to read what is being said.
the example below illustrates what i am talking about.