CorelDRAW X6 The Official Guide 1st Edition

CorelDraw is a powerful application for putting together very detailed and complex graphical designs. In the hands of someone who knows how to use it, it is an amazing software application and it provides a staggering amount of power and control. For the less knowledgeable it is simply overwhelming, likely causing more frustration than anything else. For many years I have played with CorelDraw but my knowledge has been only on the absolute surface - I never really harnessed the real power available and it was more of an expensive plaything instead of a tool. I finally decided with CorelDraw X6 to truly learn how to use the application, and after a little bit of research I settled on buying CorelDraw X6: The Official Guide. This has been one of the better book purchases I have made and has provided me with exactly what I have needed to get moving.The book presents topics with tutorial information that allows the reader to actually work through a concept rather than simply read about it, and this approach definitely works. Each tutorial is laid out in a numbered step-by-step manner and makes following along very easy and straightforward. Support files for the tutorials are available online and it is a very good idea to get these files so that the tutorials make a lot more sense.The tutorials are usually spot on. However, one thing that has been slightly frustrating is that the CorelDraw interface uses button groups instead of individual buttons and this means that on occasion there are specific buttons needed for a tutorial that are not visible as the default in the group. On several occasions this has meant, for me, digging through the online help in search of information on where to locate a function. This does not bother me too much as it helps me to learn even more about what is available to me, but it may prove to be discouraging for others.The book presents fairly complete coverage of what is available in CorelDraw. There is great coverage on working with objects and groups of objects, object creation and drawing. It covers many of the desktop publishing features too (which is the aspect of CorelDraw that interests me most). Just in the introductory chapter alone there is enough training material to put me much closer to using CorelDraw for assembling sharp documents that make a real impact.What came as a pleasant surprise is that the book also covers some of the features of Photo-Paint, the other major application in the CorelDraw suite. Photo-Paint is a powerful photo editing tool that does a fine job of retouching photos but it provides a lot more than that. The book really highlights the power available and walks the reader through some great exercises on how to really make some incredible adjustments to images, such as removing parts of pictures without leaving a hole or an obvious splice line.It should be obvious that this book will not teach the artistically challenged how to draw or create artwork. That's not the purpose of this book. There are other books for this purpose. What it does teach, though, is how to make artistic elements of a drawing such that those with a talent for art will be able to combine these elements in CorelDraw to create art.I like the author's writing style. Although this is a well-written and professional book, the author has found a way to write in a light-hearted manner and injects humor along the way.CorelDraw X6: The Official Guide is a very good book for those wanting to learn how to really use CorelDraw and get more out of this powerful application. It covers the basics as well as some more in-depth and challenging aspects of the application and provides excellent tutorial materials to help the reader along in the journey. If you really want to delve into CorelDraw and really know how to use it, this book is a great place to begin that journey. This is the book I wish I had years ago.

The best way to describe the book is with quotes. Introduction (page xxxi), “Organization is key.” Chapter 8 (page 181), “You have to begin somewhere…- and this is the chapter.”The book is very informative, but it jump from one idea to another and back. I know artist think different than the rest of us, but it was hard for me to read. If you only need to know how to do one thing, it's probably fine.

This is a God Send! Very informative. Could not use corel X6 to the fullest without this easy to follow manual. I was a Corel 8 user for a long time but can't get it to work on Windows 7 so I purchased X6 and it has so many new features it takes this manual to get the upper hand on learning X6.I HIGHLY recommend this manual for all X6 users both new and experienced. So full of information. And the best part is that I can carry the manual with me wherever I go and can read it while I am away from my computer, unlike the included manual you have to read on your computer. I just love it and have learned so much more than I would have using Corel's manual. Of course, you could print the included manual if you have a couple reams of paper and a gallon of ink. And this manual still teaches you more and is more in-depth. If you have Corel X6 you NEED this great, easy to use manual. It will cut your learning curve in half. BUY IT!!!!!!!

Organized and easy to follow. This is a very complex program and they have done a good job of walking through examples that give you an overall feel. You will need to explore more to actually effectively use all the available tools. Be sure to go to the link and download the examples to work through. I was trying to apply techniques using my work but it was better to learn following their examples.

i must say that this book has a very thorough way through all aspects of the program.i have worked with coral draw in 10 years and i am not an artist but i have used it to draw when my house needed some changeand to draw electrical wiring , so reading this book gave me some new ways to use coral draw with an intuitive methode.i can only say that i find the book every penny worth plus a little moreErik

I'm only a "casual" user of CorelDraw, but have been with it since version 2 (Yes, that long ago.) At best I only scratch the surface of the program's potential. A book like this is really a must have for me to explore beyond the surface and get creative. Maybe not so for those that work with the program everyday.If you're a casual user, I would recommend the purchase.

After spending $26 on the Kindle version of this book (so I could at least see the graphics in full color) I discovered that the book is not searchable, meaning that if you want information on a specific subject you have to dig through the Contents page or depend on the Kindle index to start you in the right direction. But so far I have been unable to find out how to create a useable Custom Media Strokes out of the Image Lists available under Corel Content. One would expect that since Corel included the Image Lists in the Content folder they would be useable in CorelDRAW as Spray bitmaps. No such luck. Having to read over 300 pages to find a specific subject is not what I expect from Amazon. They need to have more stringent acceptance policies on how and which "technical" books they offer on Kindle.Don't buy this unless you're prepared to read (and remember) the entire serial story...

I do a lot of photo editing and page layout work. I refer to the book regularly. The index is easy to use and through. The book has much more detail than what is in the guide book that came with the software. It makes the software much more usable for me.