ACD Canvas

ACD Canvas is a technical and general graphics drawing, imaging, and publishing (print and web) product from ACD Systems for personal computers. The current version is Canvas 11.

Canvas' origins date back to 1987. The original idea for Canvas came from Jorge Miranda, one of the founders of Deneba Systems Inc. of Miami Florida, for Apple's Macintosh computers -- part of the wave of programs that made the desktop publishing revolution.

The first version was unique in many ways; not least because it was released as both an application and a desk accessory. In the latter form, it could be used while another program, e.g. PageMaker, was running simultaneously; very handy in that time of single program operation.

Canvas provides excellent tools for creating and editing vector and raster graphics. It is used for illustration, page layout, animation, presentations, and publications in printed and Web formats.

But Canvas' greatest strength for users is the integration of operations of its excellent tools and formats. From its inception, Canvas differed from other graphics applications because it combined tools and file formats for both vector (line art) graphics, and raster (photographic and other pixel-based) images, along with word-processing and page-layout features such as multiple page documents and master pages. Canvas is like a suite of programs all rolled into one efficient package. The user works in a window which is the familiar "page on a pasteboard" analog used by many DTP and vector graphics programs, but in that window, which might be a single illustration page or one page of a multi-page magazine, book, web site, animation or presentation, the user can create or edit and layout text, vector graphics and raster images. Canvas also emphasized technical drawing in addition to artistic illustration features.

While integration is the greatest strength of Canvas, is also its greatest weakness in terms of prospective user perception. Reviewers often referred to Canvas as a "Swiss Army knife" application because of its broad range of capabilities, conjuring up a vision of a clumsy collection of second rate tools in a bloated software package. In fact, Canvas' tools are and were first rate and parts of the program were often leaders in their field -- in particular the vector graphics and type manipulation elements -- and it was years ahead of better known programs in work which involved vector and raster elements interacting. Canvas was also the first graphics application to allow for live effects on vector, text, and raster -- and all in the same document.

With Version 3.5, Deneba went cross-platform, releasing a version with file-format compatibility for Macintosh and Windows computers. At Version 5, Canvas was completely rewritten in PostScript for both platforms. At Version 8, it was the first of the complex graphics programs to be "Carbonized" to run on both Classic and Mac OS X. With the introduction of Canvas 11, support for the Macintosh platform was dropped, making the application Windows-only.

In April 2003, Deneba Systems was acquired by ACD Systems of Victoria, BC, Canada, the developers of Windows image editing and handling software such as ACDSee, before the release of version 9. Canvas development has continued under the guise of ACD Systems of America in Miami.

Canvas is available in a standard and extended version. The once-optional Scientific Imaging module is now integrated into Canvas and provides enhanced input-output filters for file formats commonly used in science and engineering visualization. The GIS module provides tools for use in mapping and GIS-based data analysis.

While Canvas started out as a prosumer program in the general graphics/DTP market, and continues to be the first (even only) tool of many professionals in such fields as graphics design, advertising, marketing, and DTP, it is less known in the consumer/prosumer market today than programs marketed by larger companies, such as Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, and CorelDRAW. It has been better known in academic and commercial enterprises, with a customer base that includes Lockheed Martin, Boeing, NASA, Caterpillar, Sikorsky, Honeywell, GE, Raytheon, universities, school districts and publishing companies.

Canvas has been translated into multiple languages, including German, Spanish, French, Italian, and Japanese. International sales account for over one third of all sales with Japan and Germany representing the largest markets. Honda, BASF, BP, Toyota, Philips and many others use Canvas.

Full and demonstration versions of Canvas 11 can be downloaded from the ACD Systems website (see link below).

Version history

*Canvas 1.0 (Macintosh)
*Canvas 2.0 (Macintosh)
*Canvas 3.0 (Macintosh) 1990
*Canvas 3.5 (Macintosh and Windows) 1992
*Canvas 5 (Macintosh and Windows) 1996
*Canvas 6 (Macintosh and Windows) 1998
*Canvas 7 (Macintosh and Windows) 1999
*Canvas 8 (Mac OS 9, Mac OS X, and Windows) 2001
*Canvas 9 (Mac OS X and Windows) 2003
*Canvas X (Mac OS X and Windows) 2005
*Canvas 11 (Windows Vista) 2007

External links

* [http://www.acdsee.com/ Official Page]
* [http://www.wizaerd.com/forum Wizaerd's Realm Canvas Discussions]
* [http://www.plugsandpixels.com/canvangelist The Canvangelist]
* [http://forums.acdsystems.com ACD Support Forums]