FaxBuilder. (computer graphics software) (Evaluation)
by Eddie Huffman

In this age of worldwide fax communication, the folks at Unison World have decided that fax senders also need some canned creativity. Like a book of clip art, FaxBuilder provides a seemingly endless array of pictures, logos, and borders to accompany tax transmissions. While I don't go for flashy faxes myself, the Print Shop crowd will make frequent use of FaxBuilder's at-the-ready graphics capability.

The illustration on the front of FaxBuilder's box shows a fax message with the somewhat redundant heading "FAX MESSAGE" in bold, inch-high letters, along with an unnecessary border. After enduring the long wait for FaxBuilder to load onto your hard drive, you'll find little innovation. There's a vase full of flowers with "HAVE A NICE DAY!" taking up half a page, a passenger jet heading into the sunset for a "While I'm Away" message, and all manner of pushpins, flags, and maps.

Patching together one of these pictures for transmission takes a little time, though FaxBuilder does walk you through a relatively simple, straightforward process to create personalized faxes. As you work, FaxBuilder displays each change or addition clearly. Automatically filling in some names and numbers from a permanent phone book, the program is set up to create cover sheets, text pages, and trailing sheets using a healthy variety of type sizes and styles.

In the end, unless a pair of shaking hands below the caption "Have I Got a Deal for You . . ." sounds appealing, using FaxBuilder as a sophisticated word processor to create distinctive documents may be its most suitable use. While clip art has appeal, the ability to easily manipulate fonts and typefaces seems a far more significant feature.