Microsoft PhotoDraw 2000 is a vector graphics and raster imaging software package developed by Microsoft. PhotoDraw fills a hole in the Office productivity suite, which includes software programs for word processing, spreadsheet, presentation and alike, but lacks a capable image creation and editing program. Office typically includes Microsoft Photo Editor, a lightweight bitmap editor.

History

PhotoDraw was released in 1999 along with Microsoft Office 2000 Premium Edition, but came separately on 2 CDs. It developed from the Picture It! 2.0 engine's .MIX format and expanded further into vector imaging technology. It required a separate installation from the main installer for the core Office suite, and was also released as a stand-alone product as part of Microsoft's Graphics Studio line of products (Greetings, etc.). The only subsequent version came to be called Microsoft PhotoDraw 2000 Version 2, released around 2000, and featured 3 CDs (though only two were included with Premium Edition as discs 3 and 4, presumably because of shared features between the applications of the suite). Both versions were branded "Microsoft Office Application," though were bundled only with the then-largest Office suite, Premium Edition (Version 2 being included with the SR-1 release). It was nevertheless indeed a "member of the family," as were other Microsoft applications (most notably Publisher) at the time.

Version 2 was also released as a standalone product with a larger collection of clip-art pictures and fonts, and with Windows XP compatibility. This version was widely localized, as well.

After Version 2 was released, Microsoft decided to discontinue PhotoDraw. This measure was based on the popularity of the product, though later it became obvious that its satisfied users retained to it and continued using PhotoDraw along with even the newest Office versions. This was supported by the fact that Microsoft did not release any substituting graphic solutions until 2007; thus most Office users could solve their graphical needs via the now-discontinued PhotoDraw.

Purpose and features

PhotoDraw is a full-featured dual-type (vector and bitmap) graphics software like Adobe Illustrator, CorelDRAW or Macromedia Freehand, developed for semiprofessional business use. It includes a vast library of clip-art, and a good collection of additional fonts.

The proprietary PhotoDraw file format has the extension ".mix". This type of file can be imported by Microsoft Office 2000 and later, as well as Adobe Illustrator. PhotoDraw can also open and save in various file formats, including PNG.

As positioned mainly as a MS Office family companion and a business graphical solution suite, it was not useful enough for home users, who are more interested in manipulating digital pictures - which are bitmaps - than creating vector graphics. Microsoft has responded by bundling Windows Picture and Fax Viewer with Windows XP, developing Microsoft Picture It!, as well as creating Microsoft Office Picture Manager for Microsoft Office 2003 to expand on Microsoft Photo Editor. Furthermore, PhotoDraw was also not good enough to challenge Illustrator, the de facto standard for graphics professionals. In spite of its commercial mediocrity, PhotoDraw Version 2 regularly sells on eBay for U.S. $50–$100.

Compatibility, Office 2007 issues (solved?)

Despite its age, PhotoDraw works fine with later versions of Microsoft Office, up to version 2003. The early beta (and Beta2 Tech Refresh) versions of the Microsoft Office 2007 suite, proved to compromise the file handling and bitmap import/export filters of PhotoDraw, rendering it incapable to normally open or save any other file formats than its native .mix and the standard .bmp types. Other attempts resulted in either distorted aspect ratio, or unsuccessful saving procedures. The formerly working copy/paste image transfer between PowerPoint and PhotoDraw also got corrupted. These problems were intensively reported to Microsoft.

As of February 2007, the RTM version of Office 2007 seems to solve the problems. PhotoDraw once again works seamlessly with this build of Office, without the issues described above, apart from that objects copied from PowerPoint must be pasted as special EMF (enhanced metafile) in PhotoDraw, otherwise the latter won't recognize the content of the Clipboard. This fuels a new hope that PhotoDraw can be used with the final release of Office 2007.

•  • [ e] Microsoft Office
Desktop products:	Accounting • Access • Communicator • Document Imaging • Document Scanning • Entourage • Equation Editor • Excel • Groove • InfoPath • InterConnect • MapPoint • OneNote • Outlook • Picture Manager • PowerPoint • Project • Publisher • SharePoint Designer • Visio • Word
Server products:	Communications Server • Forms Server • Groove Server • PerformancePoint Server • Project Server • Project Portfolio Server • SharePoint Server
Online services:	Live Meeting • Office Live
Discontinued products:	Binder • Data Analyzer • FrontPage • Mail • The Office Assistants • PhotoDraw • Photo Editor • Schedule+ • Vizact Bold type indicates a core application