Nova Development US Hallmark Card Studio 2015 Deluxe 1 - Old Version

I wanted to post a quick review on this because I have read mixed reviews while researching and looking at previous year's versions. First of all, I received this product about 1/2 hour ago, I am new to Hallmark software, didn't read any instructions, and have a 5yr old's birthday tomorrow so I figured this would be a good test.1.) Install: The install was quick and the program auto-updated itself once. I am a circa 2013 PC using Windows 8.1 64-bit so it's a relatively new system. One word of caution is that the CD will spin for several minutes without any "install bar" movement. At first this was concerning. Once the bar started moving, the install took about 8 minutes. Keep in mind there are thousands of likely encrypted images so I thought he install was relatively painless.2.) Creating a Card: I needed a unicorn or rainbow pony (this is a 5yr old girl!) and was happy to find one in about 30 seconds. Interface is very intuitive. I was able to add her name to the front of the card and import a photo into a custom frame for the inside cover of the card. The Hallmark text was great and I didn't mess with that.3.) I printed to Avery 3265 folding card stock (from Amazon by the way) and the software had a custom setting for that exact product. The software recognized my Cannon PRO-100 (also from Amazon) and had to run two easy test prints to make sure the software understood how the printer loads - very clever. I loaded and printed the card in about 2 minutes.Overall, I am very happy. The card looks awesome - very professional - and took less than 10 minutes. It took me longer to write this review. Installation, creation, and printing went very smooth. Hopefully this review will assist others. After reading prior year reviews, I was nervous but the software has exceeded my expectations. I plan to print Christmas cards this weekend so wish me luck!

Good software. You can do about anything with it related to cards, labels, envelopes, certificates and lots of other paper products. Has tons of predesigned cards that are easy to customize to your requirements. Far more clip artwork, frames, shapes, etc., than you'll ever need. It is reasonably easy to use once you get used to it and get it set up for your printer(s). It creates beautiful full size (full sheet) cards that are easy to print on both sides.Only downside to Card Studio is that Hallmark will nag you constantly to buy the next upgrade even if you have the current version. Unsubscribing from their endless stream of emails was very difficult.

I am very disappointed in this. I was expecting top notch and got low grade. The clip art is comparable to what is free every where. Never again will I be mislead by "Hallmark when you care enough to send the very best." No where near what I had before with a different company. I was forced to upgrade my computer and my older program by another company was not compatible. I am so wishing they would.

There was no problem with installation of the software and the patch from Hallmark did download okay; however, I returned this to Amazon after finding that there were gaps in the pre-installed greetings in many of the cards I tried. Another fault was with text formatting. When attempting to change the colors of text, I found that only the text outlines colors could be changed, not the inside colors... also whenever making text bold, the text expanded so much that the result was a large blob on the page. I have had two previous versions of Hallmark Card Studio, and found that the 2015 version didn't have that many new cards versus the older ones. I don't recommend the 2015 Deluxe version.

There are both pros and cons with this software. I make all of my greeting cards because I enjoy doing it. I previously have used Nova Greeting Card Factory software. Hallmark has better designs than Nova does. Although Hallmark includes its logo on the back page, you can opt not to use that, which I prefer since I have my own design to use on the back.One of my problems with Hallmark is that too many of the cards come in a format that fits on 8.5x11-inch paper that must be folded into fourths. I prefer using card stock and printing cards that are designed for the paper to be folded in half. Attempts to transfer a design made for two folds to one with only one fold have been less than successful. I have learned to click on printing to see what the format is because I can't tell otherwise until I have everything ready to print. Before I figured out that I must do that, I would have cards ready to go - I usually add a personal touch, including the recipient's name - and then would find out if was the wrong format.If Hallmark would team with Nova, they would have a really great product. Until then, I alternate back and forth, depending on my needs.My other problem with Hallmark is that it doesn't have rulers on the sides so I can tell if something that I add is centered. Nova does, which makes it easier to use. Since purchasing Hallmark Card Studio, I have located and purchased Nova Card Factory Version 10. I alternate between that and Hallmark when making cards. If Hallmark would make their designs easier to use, I would stick with it because the design quality is better.