AOLPress: Freeware worth paying for

Of all the "freeware" programs downloadable from the Web, AOLPress must rank as one of the most remarkable. Created by US Software firm Navisoft, It last year became first GNNPress and then, in the hands of the giant America Online, AOLPress. It was one of the first products to let you create Web pages without seeing any of the underlying HTML code.

At the start of 1996, Navipress/GNNPress was a cutting-edge tool. Now it's ageing fast. Its table support no longer compares with Microsoft FrontPage or Corel's Web.Designer, let alone the mouse-moveable table borders of Claris Home Page. But those products have limitations of their own - and they cost. AOLPress costs only your download time, as well as providing unexpected support for Java applets. And as an introduction to Web publishing, AOLPress is almost unbeatable: simple enough not to intimidate novices, but complex enough to turn out impressive pages.

Much of what AOLPress can't do isn't worth a newcomer's time anyway - frames, for instance. And for other procedures, you can use secondary programs which have advantages over the integrated alternatives offered by Microsoft and Corel. If you want to create clickable image maps, for instance, you can download the freeware Map This!

For most new users, the commercial products just won't be worth the extra money. Personal users also have free access to Netscape's Navigator Gold package, but AOLPress is worth your time. You can download it from AOLPress's site.

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