Publisher's Paintbrush Is Powerful! Copyright 1988 David W. Batterson Publisher's Paintbrush is the top gun of ZSoft's arsenal of graphics programs. Along with the notable capabilities of PC Paintbrush and PC Paintbrush Plus, it has added many high-end additions. The review copy I received is Version 1.5. There are newer updates already. ZSoft doesn't rest on its laurels, like some software publishers I won't name. Publisher's Paintbrush requires 640K, but even that is insufficient to make full use of picture manipulation. ZSoft recommends 2 MB MINIMUM of Expanded Memory. Don't bother with an XT, either, with floppy drives, as you'll be wasting your time. You'll need an AT, 386 or PS/2, and the more add-on memory, the better. You can't have TOO much, when you are working with graphics images. I tested Publisher's Paintbrush on an AT with 1MB, but it wasn't always enough. Why? Well, in many ATs and 386s with 1MB, the extra 384K is chewed up by executing the BIOS and video display through RAM. This speeds things up remarkably. So now you have a full 640K left over, right? Nope. Subtract 64K for DOS, 225K for Publisher's Paintbrush and 60K for the FRIEZE (image capture) program. If I added and subtracted correctly, that leaves you with only 291K for a picture workspace. When working with large images, especially in 16 colors (or 256-color VGA), the memory is gobbled up incredibly fast; a full-page image going to a 300 dpi laser printer takes about 1 MB! There is a program (EXMM.SYS) included that lets your extended AT memory simulate LIM EMS memory. This helps but it does run slower than by using an EMS board. Another way around the memory problem is to configure Publisher's Paintbrush in black and white mode, even if you are using a CGA, EGA or VGA color monitor. This saves LOTS of memory and the program runs faster too. Most users don't print in color anyway. Colors are pleasing to look at, but I found the monochrome mode was the way to go. Otherwise, I constantly got error messages while trying to work with large images or saving cutouts. Publisher's Paintbrush can display grayscale images, usually 16 levels. This depends upon your video card, however. Up to 64 levels are possible. Grayscale support is also provided for scanners. But you're going to run into that memory problem again; scanning in gray mode takes up four times as much memory as b&w scanned images. A useful utility program called GRAYTOBW.EXE converts these grayscale images into b&w pictures. This is necessary when you export the images into DTP programs, like Ventura Publisher and PC PageMaker. You can also convert regular color images into b&w ones. But wait, there's more in Publisher's Paintbrush. You get control not only over point size, but with leading and kerning. You can also type text at any angle you choose. We've all had the irritation caused by the "jaggies" (those letters with choppy sides that look like they were carved with a chain saw!). You notice them mostly when making headlines, signs and banners. The program provides a few curvilinear fonts. These can be entered in large sizes, without the jaggies. All paint programs provide a ZOOM feature. But this one goes beyond normal abilities. Selecting Zoom In allows two levels. Zoom Out has four level settings, in Draft or Quality. Zoom Out is used to work on images that contain more than one screen. For example, some scanned images can consist of 24 screens! With Zoom Out, it is much easier to work in all areas of the picture, and the drawing tools work about the same. There is also a feature called Flash Zoom (activated with the key) which lets you see the regular image instantly. You can reposition the cursor with the crosshair, and then jump back to the Zoom Out mode. Here are some additional useful features in Publisher's Paintbrush. If you use a joystick instead of a mouse, you can vary the speed to suit your taste. A Merge PIC option in the menu lets you bring in Lotus 1-2-3 charts in the .PIC format. Shrink & Grow (changing image sizes) now works faster too. Publisher's Paintbrush is an exceptional, major league graphics program, that you won't outgrow for many years. Suggested list price is $285, but shop around and you'll pay less. FontPaks and PicturePaks are available too. An outside company offers a utility programs package which lets you use the program's .PCX images in your own BASIC, C and Turbo Pascal programs. It sounds like a great idea. For more information on Publisher's Paintbrush, contact ZSoft Corp., 450 Franklin Rd., Suite 100, Marietta, GA 30067; (404) 428-0008; FAX (404) 427-1150; BBS (404) 427-1045 or MCI MAIL: ZSOFT. # David W. Batterson writes about computer products and online services for several publications. He also writes/edits/designs newsletters and other business publications. Contact him via MCI MAIL: DBATTERSON.