Roxio's Friendly New Look

The new launch pad is the biggest treat; not only does it let you start modules by task type or program name but it also handily keeps track of recent projects. My only complaint is decidedly minor: Navigation by Alt key combinations is missing from various dialog boxes and buttons.

The suite's mainstays are still on hand, albeit in much improved form: Creator Classic for mastering, Drag to Disc for packet writing and collecting data for mastering, Photo Suite for photo editing, DVD Builder for DVD creation, and VideoWave 7 for video editing and processing. The last three are now tightly integrated, so they share projects and launch one another when needed.

Version 7 is a few features shy of a complete set. The package is not as efficient as a single all-in-one app, there's no incremental backup, and support for more-arcane file types is limited compared with that in archrival Nero 6 Ultra Edition. All mastering and packet-writing basics are here, however, and advanced features abound: You get a full-fledged DVD-copy program (for use on non-copy-protected discs only), sound and photo editing, Cinemagic automated video production, and DivX encoding.

After receiving lots of user e-mail decrying prior versions' bugginess, I kicked version 7's tires hard and long, to a nearly bug-free result--though that's no guarantee of an equally smooth encounter for everyone. One caveat: Booting and switching between the apps often seemed a bit labored, even on my superfast Athlon 64 3200+-based system.

Roxio Easy Media Creator 7

Great new interface makes this suite more elegant than Nero 6.
Price when reviewed: $99, upgrade $79
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