Chasys Draw IES

Chasys Draw IES packs quite a few tools, including the ability to create your own illustrations from scratch, scan and edit images, and create GIFs. There’s a learning curve, but the design and layout aim to make it as easy as possible to get started.

PROS

Miles better than Microsoft Paint: If you’ve dabbled with the brushes and colors to draw with Microsoft Paint, you’ll be amazed by the additional ways you can customize and create drawings with the Artist feature in Chasys Draw IE. It’s easy to choose the brush style and color, and we particularly liked that the onscreen options faded to grayscale and were nearly transparent when not in use.

Extras: Drawing may be the main purpose of the software, but you also can scan images or documents, initiate a video to record from your webcam, and batch process image files, just to name a few.

Getting started options: Because the software lets you do a lot, it tries to make the process as easy as possible. When you open Chasys Draw IES, you can choose to start with a blank canvas, or you can opt for a specific task, such as creating a CD or other disc label, or developing an animation sequence for an animated GIF.

CONS

Odd uninstall: In our tests, uninstalling was a bit confusing. When we chose Uninstall/Change in the Control Panel, a window popped up relating that the software was already installed, which didn’t seem to make sense. The small window header still said Installing when we chose the option to change the app, and the process took more than a few minutes to complete.

Overwhelming in the beginning: If you’ve never used an app like this, you may be overwhelmed by the features and even some of the terminology, but a useful Help file will answer many of your questions.

BOTTOM LINE

Chasys Draw IES offers multiple features to help you create and edit your artwork or images. It works well after you get acclimated and, unlike apps that offer the same type of features, Chasys Draw IES doesn’t cost a thing.