As I'm a bloke who likes experimenting with different tools, I'm always playing around with demos.
Somebody recommended Manga Studio to me as a way of cutting down on the time it takes to do a comic.
A couple of weeks later, I've arrived home from work, having picked up the latest edition of ImagineFX magazine on my way.
Lo and Behold! It comes with a demo version for Manga Studio 4.
I install the software and start furiously doodling away with it.
I'm finding the interface difficult to work with and the subtleties of the tools a tad irritating.
For example, the text can only be entered in the default size, then resized to suit my needs. (Yes, even entering a character in the middle of a size 3 word will appear in size 15)
However, as with any new item of software, I know that it's most likely my own unfamiliarity rather than faults in the actual program.
A friend of mine requests I do a comic illustrating a comic containing a couple of in-jokes and with nothing better to draw, I start making the comic.
A couple of hours later, having gotten what I wanted vaguely onto the page, I go to save it as a .png
This is where the bullshit starts.
Apparently, the "Save as" command isn't available in the demo version. This is ridiculous. What if I want to save it with another file name?
I'd need to browse to the folder it's saved in, rename the file, close down manga studio, start it up again and open the file so it wouldn't keep resaving with the old name.
However, this setback his gets me thinking. Perhaps because it uses its own file format, there's a different way to save it as an actual image other programs can use. (Like flash with .swf files)
A quick browse leads me to an export option. "Hurrah!" thinks I, having found the magical function I had been searching for.
OH WAIT! I can't access that in the demo either! After a long search through the menus and a bit of googling I still find no way of exporting it in the demo version.
Eventually, I just end up using printscreen and photoshop to collage the panels together.
Fortunately, I'm a terrible artist, so at least it didn't ruin anything GOOD.
Now, when I'm trying out some trial software, the thing which is going to lose points with me the fastest, is being an enormous waste of my time.
Yes, there was a brief dialogue box when I started it up for the first time saying that some capabilities were limited, but I'd never have thought it would have been such a vital component.
What is the point of offering me a trial in which doesn't even allow me see what the finished looks like?
There is no way that I am EVER going to hand over three cents, let alone US$300 to a company that treats me like a three year old in a museum. "Look, but don't Touch."
Anyway, I needed some way of venting this anger, and who knows, maybe somebody will read it and avoid wasting an hour or two with a useless demo.
P.S. I don't really have too much of an issue with the actual program, I imagine it would save me some time and effort if I were able to spend more time with it. I have nothing against those who use it as their comic maker of choice. My issue is with the team who made such a poor choice of what to cut-out of the trial. And yes, I do realise there could easily be some way to have exported it, but I'm not going to jump through hoops for a program which is merely a guest on my computer.
