The box contained the program CD-ROM in a jewel case and a 19 page, glossy, color Quick Start Guide. The Guide contains brief installation instructions, tutorials on making CD labels and jewel case inserts, and information on using the Image, Text, and Display Tools. It also tells you how to make your own templates. (You’ll find a copy in PDF format in the program folder.) 

Learning to Use the Program
The Help File has many Tutorials. The Label Tutorial takes you through the whole process in creating a simple label including saving and printing your label. Most decisions are left for you to make so you can create a label you actually need. 

The Help sections Using Quick Designer and Using CD/Jewel Case Designer contain mini-tutorials. You’ll find the rest of the tutorials in How Do I…. They include Add a Background Image, Add a Clipart, Add a Line, Add a Shape, Add Text, Add Circular Text, Add 3D Text, Add Barcodes (26 different types supported), Add a Gradient Background, and Calibrate My Printer. 

Running the Program
Following the steps in the Brochure Tutorial, I used the Quick Designer to create a CD label. I looked at all the different layouts (Metallic didn’t display). The selection tools in the Quick Designer scroll through each customization option forward or backwards. You must scroll through most of them if you want one near the middle of the list; a Dropdown List would be handier. Depending on the layout design, you get to choose among different color schemes, background images, and font schemes. Once you make your choices, you transfer the design to the label layout. You can make further changes in the main program window. 

After doing the tutorial I opened a full-page label and started checking out the different features of the program. I don’t have enough space to tell you about them all so I’ll cover those that I found most interesting or difficult to use. 

Menu bar items change depending on what you have open or are doing. You may need to click on a more icon to see all choices. How much you see also depends on selections in the Options Menu. 

I found that text boxes, pieces of clip art, 3D Text, and Circular text move easily if I re-click them if I don’t use the lock icon right away. I can always unlock one if I need to move it again. 

Dynamic Circular Text allows on the fly resizing. Stomp claims it’s “simply the easiest way to make circular text.” I think they’re right. I had no difficulties and enjoyed making circular text items. Much easier than in Publish It! and Page Magic. 

While it’s one of the hardest tools to learn to use, I really enjoy creating 3D Text. The 3D Text Dialog box lets you easily control bevels, extrusion, material, lighting placement, rotation around three axis, and coloring your text. You can also “texture photo images” onto your text. 

The Photo Effects Dialog Box allows you to apply 16 different filters to your photos. You can compare the effects of a filter through two large thumbnails of the whole image. Underlay, one I haven’t seen before, allows you to place a texture or other photo behind your background photo. It gives some really interesting effects. Different results occur if you switch background and underlay photos. 

You can control how the program looks and acts through the Options Menu. Among my favorites: 
The Default Save Location allows you to choose between the MyDesigns directory and the Last Directory you saved in. 
The Texture Dialog box allows you to choose a texture for the program face. 
The Image Selector lets you set the default directory for choosing graphics and whether you’ll see thumbnails or a file listing. 

I was disappointed that the full-page label only comes in portrait orientation and not in landscape orientation. 

Other Comments
Label Types: CD discs, DVD discs, Jewel Case, Mini-CD, Business Card CD, CD Hub Caps, Zip Disks, Jazz Disks, 3.5" Floppy Disks, Video Tapes, Audio Cassette, Photographic paper, and Full sheet labels. 

Supported Manufacturers: Avery, CD-Stomper, Data Becker, Expert, Gizmo, Global Star, Hewlett Packard, Kyso, Memorex, Meritline, My Software, Neato, Press-It, Primera, and SureThing. For photo paper only: 3M, Epson, Fuji and Kodak. 

Supported file formats: BMP, RLE, WMF, JPG, TIFF, PCX, WPG, EMF, PCD, PNG, and TGA. 

Unlike many others, the program installed only 34 fonts. I found Stomp Almonte Woodgrain, Stomp Crystal Radio Kit, and Stomp Zackman with its stylized faces (they remind me of Packman) very unusual and worth keeping. Stomp Sholp brings to mind dripping blood or melting snow. 

Microsoft System Information ver 2.51 gives you information that you can save and print about your system. 

Installation
During the install, you can choose to create backup copies of files replaced during the installation so that you can rollback your system if you uninstall the program. You can choose from the following graphics options: Click “n Design 3D with Starter ClipArt (78,031 KB), Extra ClipArt Collection #1 (40,996 KB), and Extra ClipArt Collection #2 (69,811 KB). I chose everything; all the graphics were placed together in subject folders. 

At first, the installation proceeded normally. However, after some system files were installed I got following notice: "Reboot Required. OLE system files are in use and cannot be updated. The installation must restart Windows to update OLE before it can continue." I clicked on the restart button and my system rebooted. 

The Install Program automatically came up at beginning of the install instead of at the point it had left off. This confused me. I thought the install had finished so I shut it down. When I couldn't find the program icon or the files, I realized my error. I restarted the install and went through all the steps again. This time, all the files were installed. 

After many system files, fonts, and program files were installed, an Update System Configuration notice came up. It took much longer for this than to install the files. Then the graphics files were installed. The completion bar showed 100% but files were added for several minutes afterwards. Then I had to restart my system again. (My system runs at 200 MHz under Windows 95. If you have a faster system, your install may go quicker.) 

Bottom Line
I really liked the design capabilities of Click N Design 3D Pro. The graphics collection is superior to that of many programs costing much more. It’s worth the hard drive space just to have it available for other programs. The only missing feature I found is the ability to import the title and track names from the CD to the label. 

System Requirements 
CPU: Pentium 166Mhz, equivalent processor or better. Operating systems: Windows XP Home and Professional, Windows 2000 Workstation (up to SP2), Windows ME, Windows NT 4 Workstation with SP4, Windows 98 SE, or Windows 95 with IE4 or higher. Required RAM: 32 MB RAM; Recommended RAM: 64 MB RAM; free disk space: 30 MB minimum hard disk space; up to 320MB additional hard disk space required for clipart content; Soundcard to hear sound effects; Display properties: 16 bit color, 800x600 or better; Interface: Mouse or other pointing device. 

Vital Statistics
I found Click N Design 3D Pro at OfficeMax for its retail price of $19.99. You can also buy it at CompUSA. At one time, CompUSA offered a $5.00 instant rebate and a $15.00 mail-in rebate although I could not tell which version. Click’N Design 3D comes in three versions: Click’N Design 3D Silver, Click’N Design 3D Gold, and Click’N Design 3D Pro. 

You can order Click N Design 3D Pro on the Web. A download only version costs $14.95. A CD-ROM version costs $19.95 plus $7.22 for standard shipping. They also collect Texas sales tax. They do include a free Stomper CD Labeling Applicator however. The download version only has 350 pieces of clipart while the CD-ROM version has “an additional 5000 pieces of Clipart, Photos, Textures and more”. 

Trial downloads — download a 30-day trial of the program and the Quick Start Guide.