Software: OmniGraphSketcher
Many times there is the need to produce illustrative graphs, annotated graphs of imported data, etc. This is a tool that almost does everything I need, Having the ability to do pie-charts would make this perfect, maybe it does them and I haven't found the options yet. But compared to how I struggle with Excel's graphing options sometimes, this is a different world.
There are some videos of OmniGraphSketcher on the OmniGroup website, that show its capabilities pretty well. The software is licensed, but comes with a generous 30 day free trial, and the price is $29.95 for a full license. Student and faculty (Yey!!) discounts are available, as is a family pack and volume discounts. So students with large families, will get an incredibly keen price.