Ulead CD & DVD PictureShow 4 - Create Your Own 15 Minutes of Fame

Ulead CD & DVD PictureShow 4 is a simple-to-use software application that helps develop customized slideshows from personal photographs. It's a cost-effective way to create, organize, and store photos into a slideshow that can be viewed on a television. 

Getting started is easy with CD & DVD PictureShow 4. Tab 1 is the Organize tab in which a user collects their photos and then begins a new project. While there is not a great deal of user support provided, the user simply clicks on the drop down arrow to the right of the picture icon to begin adding photos. Next, a Windows-style window opens showing the file folders available on the computer. [See Image 3] From there, the user selects the photos to add to the application. Users can also use Ulead to add photos from a digital camera, mobile phone, memory card, or other USB device. 

Once the photos are selected for the project, the real customization begins. Using the icons across the top of the screen, the user can select to Add Text to a photo to be shown on the slide with the photo in the pictureshow. [See Image 5] The user can also apply an Express Fix to selected photos to correct basic photography flaws including exposure, color cast and saturation, focus, and even skin tone. [See Image 4] Once satisfied, the user can move on thru the process by simply clicking Tab 2, where he or she will be able to select a Theme for the slideshow. 

Themes basically set the tone for the slideshow. Options range from holidays and special events to sports and vacations. The slides themselves are updated to reflect the selected theme and then users can further customize their slideshows by adding a title. [See Image 7] Further customization options are available from the subtabs; Menu and Slideshow. These selections can includes such items as background audio, background image, pan and zoom, motion filters, photo display duration, and transition effects. [See Image 8]

The final step in the process is to save the slideshow. The layout of Tab 3, the Burn screen, is pretty straightforward. The user essentially assigns the file a filename and then selects the drive to which they want to burn. They can also select the number of copies to burn at one time. Saving the file to an internal or external drive is also an option by unselecting the Record to Disc box and selecting the drop down arrow at far right. [See Image 10] Overall, there are a number of options for saving the slideshow file. Once saved or burned, it can be played on a computer screen or via a standard DVD player and television.

What's Hot: 
Ulead CD & DVD PictureShow 4 costs about $40, which is relatively inexpensive and a perfect solution for a novice user. If you can stand the painful installation process, buying this software is a no-brainer.

What's Not: 
You get what you pay for. CD & DVD PictureShow 4 is a basic solution for creating customized slideshows. For such a low cost, users shouldn't expect too much fluff.

What's Hot: 
The Ulead CD & DVD PictureShow 4 download only took about twenty minutes to complete which is faster than other products of a similar nature.

There are two different versions of the product. One for Windows products and one that works with MacIntosh products.

What's Not: 
The overall installation process is very laborious. The email instructions for the installation don't explain that the user must run a series of executables after downloading. In order to complete the installation, I had to place a phone call to Technical Support and be walked through the installation process. Overall, it took about an hour to install all of the components, including time on the phone with a tech.

What's Hot: 
The user interface is very easy to navigate. At the top of the screen there are large numbers (1, 2, 3) to help the user navigate through the process of creating their slideshow. [See Image 1] Pop up boxes that appear when placing the mouse over an icon help to describe the purpose of each. 

What's Not: 
Although the user interface is very simple, it's not all that intuitive. As a user, it helps if you have either read the online information or viewed a tutorial before using Ulead CD & DVD PictureShow 4. A pop-up box provides initial instructions but you are on your own after that. [See Image 2]

What's Hot: 
Given that the tool is pretty basic, the overall features of Ulead CD & DVD PictureShow 4 serve their purpose. The user has the ability to download/import their own photos into the application from a digital camera, mobile phone, memory card, or other USB device. From there they can then do a basic fix of the photos to improve their appearance. The customization features are nice, they allow the user to add text to photos that will appear in the slideshow, select an overall theme for the show, and then add other graphics, music, or voice narration. Once completed, the user can burn their slideshow to a CD or save it as a file on their computer.


What's Not: 
The photo fix functionality is not as robust as in some of its competitors and provides basic photo enhancement options.  The overall software features are very straightforward and basic and really don't make it stand out from competitor products.  With Ulead's CD & DVD PictureShow, the user is really only getting the ability to create and share slideshows. Users looking to do more than that will be disappointed and better suited with a more robust product.

What's Hot: 
Ulead CD & DVD PictureShow 4 provides a standard Windows-style help menu from which the user can either select a topic from the provided list, browse the index, or conduct a search.  The only other help provided is via the Corel.com website. On the site, there is a product demo/tutorial. Given the simple nature of the product, the user shouldn't have too many questions after the inital setup process.

What's Not: 
The product warranty provides for one courtesy telephone support call to assist you with product installation, which you are probably going to need. Additionally, there is unlimited web-based support and a fee-based service for other live representative assistance calls.

All in all, Ulead's CD & DVD PictureShow 4 is a simple application with the sole purpose of creating customized slideshows. Once you get past the initial installation process, it is easy to use, even if you are a novice or not tech-savvy. One of the pros about using this tool is that it makes burning CDs relatively easy. That coupled with the fact that CD burners come standard today on most computers, this is a product that many users can use. 

If you go in with the understanding that it really serves only the simple purpose of creating basic slideshows without all the bells and whistles available in other products, the tool is a good choice.  For beginners who are just starting out with a hobby in using and sharing their photographs, the simplicity of this tool is hard to pass up. However, those really creative types who want to take their photography to the next level with a higher degree of creativity and photo manipulation would be better served buying a higher end tool. 

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