Broaden Xara X's appeal

[masque]

Please don't bog Xara down with templates and wizards. Serif do that to death and it makes people wary of using their software for serious tasks, (even though some of it is capable), because of the perception that it is primarily for producing 'effortless' flyers for the local scout group or a quick card for mothers day to save having to go and buy one.

PDF export maybe. The idea of increasing it's usefulness for page layout appeals, which I already use it for, so long as it doesn't interfer with the basic core program or turn it into coreldraw.

[accessD]

I can do ANY vector drawing I want in Xara X http://www.talkgraphics.com/images/smilies/smile.gif

Xara is FULL and COMPLETE vector drawing tool, and I have only one vector drawing tool
installed - Xara X.

My pixel works I made in Photoshop. PictureEditor can't substitute it even in 0,1%.
Xara X is professional software, but PE is just 'strange applet', it doesn't fit.
It should stay near other 'strange applets' like Xara3D, WebStyler, ScreenMaker etc.

As for 'what could simple users want' - I think almost all possible is already realized.
Red eya removal could be done simply with two transparent circles;
templates, quick shapes could be substituted by clipart gallery.
IMHO the most breakthrout innovation in XaraX could be multipage support (btw in
ex-FLARE standard such possibility exists) and DTP-like text flow.

In animation it would be great to have keyframe animation, but this is not real,
and there is MOHO for this.
Great would be scrip support like in CorelDraw, eg:

... ActiveDocument.Shapes.AddBox(10,10,100,100)...

So I even don't know what to expect from Xara X, I think it is already good enought.
Just fix old bugs.

[stlewis]

I would like to see X2 being able to create things for Webstyle - that would be a good draw for WS users - and cause them to splash out more cash.

I too am wary of templates etc - too much clutter; unless you could add a **separate** Wizard application which generated a XAR file which you could then tweak in X2.

I would like a TWAIN link in X2 - currently I use PSP, tweak there, and copy and paste into X1.

[Mike Bailey]

You might want to improved Xara's text effects and text editing stuff, I use good old Corel Draw 7 for text work.

[wW]

What's up with the un-used Wizard Icon?

How about some connectivity between Xara & x3d. Two great programs like this should be able to transfer back & forth more readily. 3d vectors? Need I say more...

Line profiles with a slider tool for changing the frequency of the Intestine Line in the info bar.

A NAME GALLERY that is actually functional. I frequently have to change RGB effect to CMYK. Being able to select any specific tapered lines of a certain type & or color is a good example. OR I want all green items that are outlines of a certain type. The reason I ask. Often, Exported items to CorelDraw have to be changed in order for them to make it across the pond(so to speak). The main reason is for creating print layers. I can quickly grab, change, items on active layers. Converting screen colors to CMYK & spot is a great example of this. So, In the NAME GALLERY-more category's for; Outlines Used(tapered-solid-brush) or Outline Type, Drop Shadows(type). Better connectivity between groups.
Try this - Select a line of text with a font other than the default. The USED FONTS will hi-light but the default black in the color section will not.

Most Xara projects cannot be printed or separated from the program that created them. Xara's inability to do so, to have to send these jobs to PhotoShop for separating is shameful & un-necessary most the time. Especially when the work is designed within the learned guidelines of successful printing/separation from within Xara. Working Xara's strengths, working around it's weakness. **

An Icon for CONVERTING LINE TO SHAPES. If I had a penny for every time I've had to that, I'd be a hundredaire.... http://www.talkgraphics.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

A FONT GALLERY upgrade. An open box (at the top of the gallery) to change the default letters from AaBbCc to the selected text or letters that will help one match a font easier. Ex- If text & word that has to be matched does not have an ABC in them. It's tuff finding the match.

A font gallery that will allow better organizing or font gallery's - NEW FONT GALLERY FOLDERS. ex- If un-installed fonts are on the HD, a way to put these in a new gallery. Managing fonts would be super easy then. This could be a major selling point. I've got too many fonts installed now (900+) & it takes forever scrolling through them looking for matches.

ENVELOPES - More than 4 nodes! NODES THAT CAN BE NUDGED would be a major improvement. Xara has the best nudge options of any program out here. Why isn't this a part of the envelope tool? Was it forgotten?

I know if Xara put some focus on the print dialog or functions. This program could shake up the Screen Print industry which at this time is dominated by CorelDraw, secondly by Illustrator. We've been showing folks what Xara can do & it's starting to raise eyebrows. I can only imagine if Xara started looking into print a preview for CMYK or spot color printing. Ex-viewing of an individual plate. 1-step further would be overprinting that can be turned off. In other words, subtracting of printed layers. I think the RGB effects hinders or conflicts with this aspect of CMYK print. Often times I can't figure out why projects don't print/Sep from Xara. Often there is No logical explanation why. **
- Let me explain. Often I'll use outlined text.
If you stack text of various color & line thickness. When you try to print them, Xara does not subtract the visible upper items from the invisible lower items. I can send examples of all of the above if needed.

I'm not so sure that Xara should try to be a bitmap editor. Plugin's are a great asset in Xara but if I need a photo edited in a major way. I'll open PSP or PS.

One last thing I'm going to throw out there. If I create a new layer & want this layer to be my print layer. Is there a way that an Icon can be added to the Layer Gallery that will allow everthing on the active layer to be converted to curves/editable shapes - perhaps convert to cmyk? Text, Lines, RGB effects, quick shapes & powerclips included. Bitmaps?

SUMMATION - The new open architecture in Xara will open the doors for all of us to many new things in the years to come. More than perhaps Xara is willing or able to tackle. It's a great thing for this to be happening in Xara. An open door for plugin development.

Whew, this was a long winded. Reminds me of a John Disdale post... I miss that guy!

[jclements]

1-
I don't do much integration with MS products because of limitation of Xara import/export filters. I would greatly appreciate the capability to import Excel graphics/barcharts (not as ole objects), Project timelimes, Tables and perhaps be able to flow (link) text from MS Word. Currently I use CorelDRAW to pretty things up. I'd love to be able to use Xara to (recolor, scale, and enhance) MS office graphics and text for use in presentations, proposals, and reports.

2-
I usually would not dare use Xara to do complex Org Charts and flow diagrams which might require extensive or last minute changes. If Xara had smart-connecting lines and could import flow charts, I would.

3-
I don't do document publication (muliti-page) integrated text and graphics. If Xara could do a bit more sophisticated formatting and text flow between frames and handle multi-page formats, format tabular data, and had a plug-in for spell checking, I could probably use it instead of CorelDRAW or InDesign.

[John Rayner]

Better integration with bitmaps... A twain interface, and do something with XPE... It was novel at first, but it is just getting to be a pain when it opens everytime I double click a bitmap. Then it is a pain to open when I want it on a sliced shape... I use PS for Bitmap color adjusting and I hate PS.

[joroho]

I don't use XaraX for desktop publishing purposes -- that's one of the few times I pull out CorelDraw 9. Granted, I'm not looking for a full-featured program like Ventura (which I also own), but something that can handle columns and be able to wrap text around picture frames or headlines.

.joroho.

[Mark (theKeeper)]

I'm pretty much in line with Allison and Risto on this.

If i were to be more specific to myself, i'd say:

Make the slicing/exporting system more robusk and functional. The current system is clunky and sometimes aggitating (i.e. you can't slice these because you have images overlapping). It would also be nice to be able to tag our slices with specific data ala PS/IR.

If you want to appeal to new/inexperienced users, as well as veteran users, add more custom brushes to the default template. The current template is very cartoonish and hardly useful.

I don't use Xara for navigation design. I find the system somewhat UN-user friendly. But that could just be me. http://www.talkgraphics.com/images/smilies/smile.gif

And last, but not last, is photo editing. Xara needs much better preview capabilities and plugin support.

On a side note... warping via a grid would be a nice touch. http://www.talkgraphics.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

[stratocast]

I actually use Xara X for just about everything, except bitmap editing. The fact that I nearly always have to output to CorelDraw to get my work to the printer, is but a minor inconvenience. (It's just like visiting a slow-witted, grumpy relative - once your there you can't wait to get back home again).

However, I can think of one feature that could increase Xara X's appeal to average and occasionally, perhaps experienced users.

As far as I know, there is not one graphics application that presents a simple, foolproof way of ensuring that one is in the correct colour space for the intended output. Sure, most apps enable the use of RGB, CMYK, ABC, XYZ, but this is often implemented through obscure menus, arcane "Colour Management" utilities, all backed up by confusing help which is littered with colour theory. So, how about having some kind of selectable, rigid colour spaces (only don't call them that - jargon), where everything is geared to ensuring that the correct output is achieved.

I see it this way. If someone is making something that is going to the print bureau, they can click a button/menu item and from then on they working in CMYK. They can choose their colours as they like without worrying (for instance, the Colour Editor will not give a choice), they will be warned if they import an RGB bitmap (and this can be converted on the fly) and so on. All this backed up by a jargonless, helpful, help file. The same could be implemented for an RGB (web graphics) colour space.

Obviously, this amount of hand-holding will not appeal to all, so these would be extra selectable options and not default settings.

I am talking completely off the top of my head and I have absolutely no idea if the above is even possible. But, I do know from experience that many people have problems with this stuff.