I would like to place a solid line aound the perimeter of my pictures. Is this possible using VSD ver 5.9.4?

not sure if you can place borders directly, but here is an easy way to accomplish the same goal. Insert an object, (square, rectangle) and give it the color you want. Make it slightly larger than your image (I think you can click and drag or use the properties). Then place your image over the sqare. Resize to fit giving it a border look. Experiment and you could even create a drop shadow look or picture frame sort of thing.

An alternative to Cliff's suggestion (and not looking exactly "like" a frame, but little easier) is to use the Effects button and put a Shadow and/or Beval on the image.