Quote Originally Posted by ladiestorm View Post
The only way you would be able to alter one of my maps, is if you have cc3+, and my fcw, which I almost never post.
Even then, it would work only if the user who downloaded your FCW had all of the symbols and fill styles that you used in exactly the same folder that you do. If not, red Xs start to appear where symbols and fills should be. FM8 allows users to decide whether they embed symbols in their maps. If the symbols are embedded, they also are accessible to users who don't have them installed on their computers. However, this difference isn't very important to most users, because they aren't trying to create maps for other people to modify.

So what does cc3+ offer that FM8 doesn't? From what I can tell, with all the add ons and things... more versatility, and overall better looking maps. the cc3+ maps are a little more polished, although some would say they tend to be cartoonish... but then, you are mapping fantasy worlds... so, as in all things, it comes down to personal preference. Both Waldronate and I use cc3+, although I don't have FT3...yet! Mark Oliva, on this site uses FM8. Feel free to check out the maps we've made, and it will give you a feel for what you will get.
One of the big differences between CC3/CC3+ on the one hand and FM8 and Dundjinni on the other that LadieStorm did not mention (and probably doesn't know) is that CC3/CC3+ have huge learning curves, where Dundjinni and FM8 are relatively simple in interface steering and can be learned quickly.

I have CC3, CC3+, FM8 and Dundjinni. I would argue that FM8 can duplicate almost anything that you can do with CC3+ and that you can duplicate almost anything that I could do with FM8 with CC3+. However, I would urge guild members not to follow this advice ...

Feel free to check out the maps we've made, and it will give you a feel for what you will get.
... as far as our FM8 maps are concerned. Our Vintyri Project maps by no means show what FM8 can do. We make our maps for our Dungeons Daring (TM) RPG and our Jörðgarð (TM) campaign setting, where a key goal of ours is to keep our maps relatively simple technically so that users with relatively little technical knowledge can go in and modify the maps to fit their campaigns' needs. For that reason, our maps are not representative of what FM8 can do, and they shouldn't be used for quality comparisons.

Bottom line is this... get the program that works best for what you want to do. We can tell you what each product offers, but we can't tell you which one is the best... because we don't know what will best fit your needs. Only you can determine that.
This, on the other hand, is excellent advice. With CC3+, ProFantasy gives you a 14-day return-and-get-your-money-back right, so you can test it for two weeks at no risk. FM8 has a free trial version and free tutorials that you can use forever. One of the main differences is that the trial version cannot print maps.