Rating: 
Summary: The Standard for Graphics
Review: Adobe Illustrator 9.0 surpassed my expectations with regard to my feature 'wish-list". The tools and application are oriented to web design which assist me in quickly determining the appropriate look I'm trying to achieve. The tools and interface function identically to Photoshop which is a tremendous help for me. I rate the updgrade as a 5-star release! Great work Adobe, and I recommend the upgrade, (or purchase)!
Rating: 
Summary: Stick with your old 8.0
Review: For starters this new version takes about twice as long to load up when you open the program. When I'm working with this 9.0 version I keep getting the hour glass every time while working with some tools. It's always processing stuff. I NEVER encoutered this with 8.0 version. After a while it gets really annoying. I purchased this newer version because Adobe finally figured out how to support transparency in Illustrator. I have still yet to get it to work. Even my neighbor (who runs a graphics company) can't figure out how to make this Windows transparency thing work. I think the Mac versions are much more of a breeze though. Anyway long story short I continue to just use my 8.0 Illustrator while using PhotoShop for transparency stuff. 9.0 is a waste of money!
Rating:
Summary: Stick with your old 8.0
Review: For starters this new version takes about twice as long to load up when you open the program. When I'm working with this 9.0 version I keep getting the hour glass every time while working with some tools. It's always processing stuff. I NEVER encoutered this with 8.0 version. After a while it gets really annoying. I purchased this newer version because Adobe finally figured out how to support transparency in Illustrator. I have still yet to get it to work. Even my neighbor (who runs a graphics company) can't figure out how to make this Windows transparency thing work. I think the Mac versions are much more of a breeze though. Anyway long story short I continue to just use my 8.0 Illustrator while using PhotoShop for transparency stuff. 9.0 is a waste of money!
Rating: 
Summary: Nice Try--But Still Behind the Competition
Review: I am a professional web designer and was originally enthusiastic about this upgrade--hoping that it will finally stand up to the competition--but have been disappointed with it ever since I installed it. Yes, Illustrator remains reliable and precise, and well integrated with Photoshop and even Flash. However, the transparency features remain way behind the competition; the pen tool is antiquated; font preview, HTML export and multi page support are non-existent, and the package is the clumsiest on the market. If you are on a Mac and working mostly for print, Illustrator is a reasonable choice. If you do web design on the Mac, the Freehand Flash studio is a far better deal, however. If you are on a PC doing web design, nothing will beat Xara, a program that does more than Fireworks and Illustrator put together for a third of Illustrator's price. And if you do print work on the PC, Corel Draw is a more powerful choice than Illustrator and just as recognized by print shops.
Rating:
Summary: I can't believe I can "make art!"
Review: I have always wished that I could draw and create visual art. Somewhere along the way, I gave up. Then I found Illustrator. I avoided it for such a long time, thinking that one needed a strong artistic background to make anything "nice." However, the power and beauty of this program is the way it lets a regular guy like me create amazingly professional looking pieces. I am still no DaVince, but with Illustrator (and it's pixel based sibling, Photoshop), I can impress my family, friends, and employer!
Rating: 
Summary: It just gets better
Review: I have used a version of Illustrator since the first one in 1988. Every subsequent version just keeps getting better. I love the new transparency effects and the interconnectivity with web graphics. The primary engine for Illustrator is now based on PDF but I really wish it was more stable. I sometimes get the annoying and certainly cryptic "PDF is having trouble saving the file". The workaround for that is to save as an older version but I am looking forward to 10.0.
Rating:
Summary: The BEST vector graphics program there is!!
Review: If you like to create logo's and illustrations, you owe it to yourself to purchase this program. Ever wonder how people create those crisp, sharpe looking logo's? Well many designers use this program. It is extremly easy to use. It comes with a second cd full of tutorials and help files that will answer any questions that you may have while you are creating. You won't be sorry once you start trying this program out. I'm sure you'll fall in love with it.
Rating:
Summary: The industry standard finally comes up to industry standards
Review: Illustrator is a solid vector graphics program but in my opinion slightly over-rated. It isn't as good as Freehand or CorelDraw (but this version certainly closed the gap). Many of the "new features" aren't so new. For example, transparancy and soft drop shadows (a couple of features that weren't in the previous version) have both been around for several years/versions of both Freehand or CorelDraw. If you are aspiring to be a graphic designer dealing with print graphics, you definitely should learn this program. It is the industry standard (required for most print graphic jobs), and, as history shows, no matter how far the technology falls behind it will stay the industry standard. If you don't want to become a professional designer but need a good drawing program, take a look at CorelDraw--you get way more bang for your buck, besides it's more intuitive/easier to learn. For web graphics Freehand may be the better choice (it works better with Dreamweaver & Flash). Don't get me wrong, Illustrator is a very good product and this is a good upgrade (I frequently use it in my work), but unlike Photoshop, it isn't the hands down best product of its type as other reviewers may lead you to believe.
Rating:
Summary: The industry standard finally comes up to industry standards
Review: Illustrator is a solid vector graphics program but in my opinion slightly over-rated. It isn't as good as Freehand or CorelDraw (but this version certainly closed the gap). Many of the "new features" aren't so new. For example, transparancy and soft drop shadows (a couple of features that weren't in the previous version) have both been around for several years/versions of both Freehand or CorelDraw. If you are aspiring to be a graphic designer dealing with print graphics, you definitely should learn this program. It is the industry standard (required for most print graphic jobs), and, as history shows, no matter how far the technology falls behind it will stay the industry standard. If you don't want to become a professional designer but need a good drawing program, take a look at CorelDraw--you get way more bang for your buck, besides it's more intuitive/easier to learn. For web graphics Freehand may be the better choice (it works better with Dreamweaver & Flash). Don't get me wrong, Illustrator is a very good product and this is a good upgrade (I frequently use it in my work), but unlike Photoshop, it isn't the hands down best product of its type as other reviewers may lead you to believe.
Rating:
Summary: Not bad, but not a great upgrade.
Review: Most of the features here echo Illustrator 8. There have been some minor enhancements, but perhaps not enough to warrant an update at this point. It is, of course, the premiere vector drawing program. If you don't use it, you're using something lesser.
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