It's all in the look; tips on making your documents and presentations look more professional.

Tips on making your documents and presentations look more professional

Do you want to make your computerized documents and presentations more eye-catching? Technique, a new bimonthly how-to magazine, can help you create everything you need from simple business letters to colorful brochures.

"We try to give real, practical information to help people understand how to use graphic tools and typography in very |anybody can do it' ways," says Susan D. Sigel, publisher at the Boston-based inPrint publishing Inc., which puts out Technique.

Each issue contains at least four how-to articles that are designed as two-page spreads. This way, you can open them up and lay them out next to your computer, making it easier to follow the step-by-step instructions.

There's also a "Complete Project" section, which highlights a specific project from conception through completion. For example, the May/June issue featured "Successful Direct Mail." The reader was taken through the various steps in planning and producing a direct mail campaign. Moreover, the reader received advice on how to select the right lists, make the customer an offer they can't refuse, create an unforgettably designed document and make a profit.

The value of Technique is that it shows you how to change the whole feel of a document without having to plow through pages and chapters of a dry computer manual. This subscription-only publication costs $14.95 for six issues (800-A PAPERS).

Of course, when it comes to designing presentations, you may be wondering which computer software has the best deal. At the top of the list is Harvard Graphics for Windows from Software Publishing Corp., followed by Microsoft PowerPoint and Lotus Freelance Graphics.

Harvard Graphics (800-336-8360) not only has versatile capabilities, but it helps users create presentations easier and faster. The latest enhancements include an interactive Design Checker that flags the user with suggestions on how to improve a slide's appearance. Quick Advice offers how-to suggestions on selecting various charts and presentations.

Another plus about this program is you can easily import data from word processors and spreadsheet programs. Version 3.0 retails for $395.

Granted, PowerPoint is widely used and quite easy to integrate with Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel. But this program doesn't offer the same advanced help features. What's nice about this program is its beautifully designed templates and charting capabilities. PowerPoint lists for $495 (800-426-9400).

Freelance Graphics is also easy to learn and execute. In fact, it's really a three-step process to create a presentation. But like PowerPoint, its interactive capabilities are weaker than those of Harvard Graphics. Freelance Graphics retails for $379 (800-343-5414).