I've been using DVD Workshop 2 for a while now. I just built a new video editing system and went to reinstall the software on this new system and I was unable to get it to work. I was getting BSOD stop error screens and the whole bit. Well, I decided to give Adobe Encore DVD 2.0 (my new system can run it!) a try and I have to say, as a complete beginner to the Adobe line of products, WOW.

Encore blows DVDWS2 out of the water. Best of all, it's not hard to use as I was expecting it to be. I really don't know much of anything in Photoshop beyond making layers and simple text effects. But that's all you really need to know to make decent looking menus. And actually you don't HAVE to use Photoshop to create the menu either. Encore gives you a great amount of text editing controls (leading, tracking, kerning), more shadow control, superscript, subscript, easy to use alignment. If there is something you need to do to the menu that you can't do in Encore, If you have Photoshop, you can just right click in Encore and select "edit this menu in photoshop" Encore also has end action options for everything, button routing, color sets, easy to create and use subpictures, external preview via firewire AND it previews AS you work, meaning you can drag stuff around and see exactly what it looks like on the TV - This is an AWESOME feature. You can use guides, place them wherever you want in order to get things lined up. Use the pick whip to link things, use poster frames to set the static image of a button, and more stuff I'm sure I haven't discovered yet.

If you're someone like me who looks at Adobe products like Photoshop and just feel overwhelmed with all the panels, options and what not and don't know where to begin, don't worry because Encore DVD is very very user friendly. The help file that comes with it is great too! I liked using DVDWS2 because I could get things done fast. But now I can do the same thing with Encore and have a lot more CONTROL over what I create...

So for anyone who is using Ulead, definitely take a look at Encore if you find yourself wanting to be able to do more and it's less money too...Can't beat it =)