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The long-awaited Easy CID Creator version 4.0 is out, and while it lives up to the hoopla, some of us could live without the cutesy additions that do less for user-friendliness than plain old user fury. Like Microsoft's dancing paperclip in Word, Adaptec has seen fit to include an annoying character in its own polished program.
This dancing disc, officially named CID Guide is every bit as irritating as Mr. Paperclip, is quite irritating. He shows up at installation with some silly music, but worse, like his metal cousin, he clutters your life through the main program, too, with no immediately obvious way to kill him and get on with your work. The trick is to right click him and "hide" him, or go to the help menu and choose "Show/Hide CD Guide" or click on the CD Guide toolbar icon.
Dancing distraction aside, however, there is nothing to knock in this worthy upgrade to Adaptec's flagship software product.
Inventory...
In the flashy retail box, you'll find the Easy CD Creator install disc, a manaual covering all the included programs, a registration card, a flyer for Arboretum Systems' Ray GUn sound editing software, the ever- present big red copyright warning sheet and a rebate request form. Adaptec offers a $20 rebate to owners of any of its CD products, PC or Mac, and also promises the same rebate to owners of just about any other recording software who take the competitive upgrade plunge with the Creator 4.0 A nice suprise is the Hewlett-Packard CD labler, which is not as fancy as some, but gets the job done just the same. Included are four labels, which seems a little stingy to me, but the labler remains a nice touch.
Finally, Adaptec includes an RCA to minijack audio cable to hook your audio equipment into your sound card for analog recordong from tape or LP into Spin Doctor. Another nice touch, Also included, much to my dismay, is a little CD Guide sticker that you are apparently supposed to paste somewhere. I put mine on my forehead.
... Not Even Half the Story
Its not just the new, smoother look of the program, with Explorer-like buttons on the toolbar and pleasing gray colors, but the sheer quantity...