<< 1 >>
Rating: 
Summary: AlphaGraph might even be appropriate
Review: For the past decade, I've been using DeltaGraph in a variety of publications ranging from newsletters and in-house presentations to annual reports and Surgeon General's reports because of the program's flexibility, ease, and power. This software is available in both Windows and Macintosh versions. (I have not tried the Windoze version, preferring to use that OS only when forced to or for the most typical administrative tasks such as word processing and email.)According to the manufacturer's PR info, DeltaGraph offers a vast array of chart types, supposedly more than 80, and some 200 styles for those charts. I certainly have not come close to using that many variations (who would?), but I can appreciate having this smorgasbord at my disposal. The ability to quickly perform various functions for analyzing and arraying the data and to create multiple charts from one data set is an asset, too. It's easy enough to manipulate the charts to customize their appearance and to set up default libraries or templates for one publication or presentation. The graphs can be exported into other file formats such as EPS, PSD, JPEG so that users can then import these graphics into other programs either for retouching or ready to use. I've had some problems with PMS colors matching or calibrating just right, and if I working on a high-profile publication, I prefer to import DeltaGraph charts into Adobe Illustrator for fine-tuning. But for the most part, the program is easy to use, and one can jump in pretty fast without having to become too immersed in the user's guide. I also encountered a few problems importing data from Excel and other spreadsheets, and often the issue was not so much with DeltaGraph as with how the data were arrayed in the source file. I wish the menus were a bit more users friendly and flexible, particularly the "set all" function for formatting axes, grids, and labels. I also wish I could name pages without having to invoke the menu. Still, I've found DeltaGraph to be far superior to Excel or Illustrator for creating graphs and charts that are functional and informative. If you are working on a Macintosh platform and need to display visual information for scientific, financial, and other professional audiences, I would recommend taking a close look at DeltaGraph.
<< 1 >>
| 
