Broaden Xara X's appeal

[Charles Moir]

Perhaps the wrong forum to ask, because many here are very capable artists and use Xara X for producing great drawings. But I'd like feedback on what you do NOT use Xara X for. What common or day-to-day graphics jobs do you have to use other tools for? And for the graphics professionals or artists here, it's not really what you use, but what do you think the mass-market, average computer user would want. We want to show (or make sure) that Xara X can be used as a general purpose day-to-day graphics tools for performing all your typical, common, photo and drawing work (as well as add high-end drawing features, but that's another list)

What would broaden the appeal of Xara X to a much wider audience?

So a simple question: What are the top four, common, every-day, photo or graphics jobs that you use other tools for?

[Albacore]

Hi Charles,
This is too open aquestion to ask here!
For small print jobs i may use Xara X1 or PagePlus and use the wizards if I feel very lazy.

For easy web graphic resize jobs and quick enhancements I use Xara and XPE but if it rerquires more then it is PS and IR.

If it is for print and client wants PDF the rough out in Xara and then into AI CS for finishing.

For navigation and web page layout for slices not Xara but PS and IR or Flash. I could go go and on but that is not the question your asking you want to know what the average punter wants from their computer in the way of graphics. I would say have a look at what HP offers its printer and camera users at the following address http://h10050.www1.hp.com/activityce.../en/index.html

There many ways to produce all sorts of graphics from downloading PDF files so that you can put in your own text to using a Flash interface upload your own photos into templates and then print them from that interface. I think that this site leads the way and shows the average punter how to get the best from their printer and camera. Most people know that Photo Scrapbooking is becomming so popular and here also this site offers the user various ways to improve their graphics and edit them in online classes. They even have forums where the punters can easily communicate with their teacher.

A lot of people do not like the MS way of suppying Clip Art in Word and leave the rest to the ideas of the user. Most folk prefer to have a template and to use their own photo's like in MS "Picture It" or use the birthday card software programmes to produce quality products without much input. In my opinion if Xara wants to go into this market it should offer software that the user can make their office stationary, Photo Scrapbooking, Card making, CD inserts & labels, Online Albums, Flyers all from wizards and templates and the list is endless. The only thing is that as you can see this is offered already by two very large companies.

[Christine Farrelly]

The one thing I would mention would be selections on bitmaps - there are a lot of excellent plug-ins that require a selection and therefore can't be used within Xara.

Also compatability with the latest plug-ins, I have quite a few which do not require selections but are not compatible with Xara.

Christine

[amoore]

Common graphics/photo jobs for which I do not use Xara:

- Screen captures for documentation

- Any job in which I have to modify specific pixels (such as removing red eye or matching text in a screen capture)

- Web authoring & navbars (create/modify buttons in Xara; assemble in NOF, sometimes via AllWebMenus)

- Flash authoring (create many elements in Xara)

For photos, it depends on the picture whether I use Xara, Paint Shop Pro, PhotoBrush or DCE AutoEnhance — whichever one gives me the best results with the least amount of effort.

[diniel]

I have never used the Navbar feature in Xara X, preferring instead to use XX to create images to use in my own web page designs.

I don't use Xara X for:

I would love to be able to use Xara X to batch resize photos, but at the moment I use Fireworks for that because I can select the large originals and leave it going.

I have Thumbsplus just for resizing photos, usually product photos, when I need the final images to be specific sizes - eg there may be square, 3x4 and 6x4 aspect ratio photos but the results need to be square. Never seen how to batch this in Fireworks, but THumbsplus can add white (or any coloured) space to the required sides to make the output square.

I don't use Xara X for... opening many files that I'm sent. This has to be a combination of Freehand and Ghostscript to find a file which Xara will import without the dreaded EPS Error Detected message.

[RTK]

Widen the appeal:

- More extensive quick shapes.
- More textures/fonts/photos etc.
- More automated bitmap editing effect - auto red eye, coloring, noise, selective blur etc.
- Template, templates, templates - Web site, banner, business card, stationary etc.
- Look at MS PhotoDraw 2 for ideas. Yes, it ran like syrup (at best), and missed advanced features to enable a user to go to the next level, but it did have quite a few nifty things.

[AntonM]

I'd like to be able to do frame-based page layout, a la desktop publishing. Is that too over the top? I know that Computer Concepts (which became Xara) did a fantastic job of a DTP program, called !Impression.

[RTK]

Hmmm... Maybe I misunderstood... http://www.talkgraphics.com/images/smilies/rolleyes.gif I was thinking grandma, and that crazy uncle that still uses MS Paint when it came to "widen the appeal".

Other wise we have a number of "feature wish lists" containing things that will widen the appeal to people already involved... http://www.talkgraphics.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

[gwpriester]

Templates and wizards might be a draw to new users.

Gary

[Ron Duke]

I'm not an artist but these would help me:
editing bitmaps, i.e. swirling.
water effects, i.e. realistic mirroring.
transparencies that will conform to specific shape????
easier to work with molds?
easy texture creating.

ron