Can anyone recommend a good DTP program

[Ben2]

I would need something that does the following:

Can output in pdf format.
Is not horrifically complex to use.
Lets you use layers.

Yes, it is for creating WaW supplements.

I'd like to draft the text in word and then copy paste into a DTP program.

Any pointer gratefully received.

 

[Hiromoon]

Word 2007, with the PDF plug in downloaded from Microsoft.

 

[DM]

I'd second the suggestion.

Do you even need a plug-in? IIRC the version of Office 2007 I've got came with "save as PDF" as an inbuilt option.

 

[Hiromoon]

Microsoft removed it from the initial build because Adobe raised a stink about it. Then Microsoft released it as a free plug-in for Office 2007 (basically, all your Office 2007 programs get it), and Adobe was silent on the matter.

Right now they're screwing the customers over about something else, though I'm not entirely sure what's up... just that I know all my pdfs lost their Thumbnail view over some .dll issue.

 

[Paladin]

Alternate:
http://www.fineprint.com/products/pdffactory/index.html

Installs as a printer. Select it instead of your normal printer and it will capture your doc and convert it to PDF. It can also combine several docs into one if you leave it up and keep printing to it. When you are done you save it/name it as you like.

Free version puts a small ad in the bottom left corner.

 

[DM]

Is there something that goes the other way/ I have a big PDF file with lots of tables in it that I'd like to turn into a Word document. I must admit I haven't looked to see if Office 2007 has an import to do this sort of thing.

 

[Hiromoon]

Adobe Acrobat 8 allows you to export pages as pictures or as Word documents or as XML

 

[tiepilot1138]

I use paperless printer, which allows you to print anything to a large number of different document types (including PDF), but I'm fairly certain it doesn't do layers.

 

[Silvereye]

I use Open Office as it comes with a integral pdf distiller.

I'm not sure what the freeware DTP stuff is like, but Page Plus and Scribus popped up on an internet search.

http://www.pdfonline.com/ seems to crunch something into pdf, and pdf into something else. Though the trial version does expire, and only does the first three pages.

 

[Pietia]

Scribus is good, but rather difficult to use...
Edit: PagePlus is excellent, but you need additional software to be able to print a document as PDF...

 

[Silvereye]

I found there is a freeware PDF writer CutePDF as well as a PDF alternative called DjVu. Again I've not tried using either of them.

 

[mwhite212]

I personally use Scribus. I just published a fanzine (professionally printed) for the first time and it worked out beautifully. It exports to PDF. Just remember, you will have far more control over the physical layout of your document with a DTP than Word or Open Office at the expense of being only slightly more complex. Best of all, Scribus is 100% free and pretty intuitive.

Mike