SmartDraw 2013 adds cloud access

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Posted by Dr Andus
Oct 11, 2012 at 11:11 AM

It looks like the only major change between SmartDraw 2012 and 2013 is that the latter now has cloud sharing features. The business version upgrade is USD99, and the Enterprise version (which I have) is USD299! Note, these are not different types of licenses, just software versions. On the plus side, the cloud account is free, so this seems to be a one-off cost.

This raises the issue of what cloud access is really worth. It seems to me it’s a commodity and so it should pretty much have the same basic value/price across all software. It is of course more difficult to compare when it’s not an annual fee but a one-off. Although SmartDraw now seems to be coming out with annual upgrades, so this might be even more expensive in the long run, who knows…

I like SmartDraw as a graphics programme for presentational purposes, but I think it’s other purported capabilities (e.g. project management, mind mapping etc.) are blown out of proportion by SmartDraw. Yes, you can make pretty flow charts, mind maps and Gantt charts of every imaginable variety, but it will take you much longer to do than in a specialist dedicated software.

Nope, I won’t be upgrading this time.

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