In the wake of Adobe Systems proposed acquisition of Macromedia, it may be too soon to tell the fate of Macromedias vector-drawing program FreeHand MX.
For many years, FreeHand and Adobes Illustrator battled each other for graphics supremacy. While Illustrator (perhaps with Adobes introduction of its Creative Suite) appears to be on the ascent, FreeHand still has many advocates.
Michael McDaniel, a graphics designer based in Austin, Texas, worked solely in FreeHand until he began working for Austin-based corporate branding and strategies company fd2s Inc., which is an all-Adobe shop on the print end.
According to McDaniel, he prefers FreeHand because “FreeHand makes files that are a lot smaller, and it seems like an easier and faster environment to draw … illustrative logos and vector artwork.”
McDaniel added that he and his colleagues “went down kicking and screaming” when his company migrated all of its print work to Adobe Creative Suite.