XARA's New Website! Celebration for v4

**handrawn** · 03 April 2008, 09:27 AM

Originally Posted by willdean

That's changing in FF3, where the default is a full zoom.

good news

**GerryI** · 03 April 2008, 09:47 AM

The site on www.xara.com was moved to a different server as part of the launch of the new site design. There was a period yesterday when www.xara.com pointed at the new site but xara.com still pointed at the old one. This was fixed yesterday but various things could be holding on to the old site address for either or both of the names. It could be your ISP's DNS servers, or it could be your own machine's local DNS cache or it could just be your internet browser.

Can you try closing your browser completely and then trying it again? Also, try forcing a refresh with Ctrl-F5. If that doesn't work, then close your browser and then type the following in a command prompt window:

ipconfig /flushdns

...and try it again. If it still gives you the old blue site for either address then there is likely a problem with your ISP DNS (or possibly you router if you have one).

Sorry for inconvenience.

**RTK** · 03 April 2008, 10:07 AM

Gerry,

As pointed out by Sledger, it was proabably a cache issue. From here (Montreal, Canada) I only got the new design with or without the 'www'.

Cheers.

Risto

**StevenWWinters** · 03 April 2008, 10:30 AM

Can anyone from Xara comment on how much of the new site was done in Xtreme? Graphics, html, flash, etc? Just curious.

**The Alien** · 03 April 2008, 10:44 AM

Originally Posted by GerryI

The site on www.xara.com was moved to a different server as part of the launch of the new site design. There was a period yesterday when www.xara.com pointed at the new site but xara.com still pointed at the old one. This was fixed yesterday but various things could be holding on to the old site address for either or both of the names. It could be your ISP's DNS servers, or it could be your own machine's local DNS cache or it could just be your internet browser.

Can you try closing your browser completely and then trying it again? Also, try forcing a refresh with Ctrl-F5. If that doesn't work, then close your browser and then type the following in a command prompt window:

ipconfig /flushdns

...and try it again. If it still gives you the old blue site for either address then there is likely a problem with your ISP DNS (or possibly you router if you have one).

Sorry for inconvenience.

I shut down IE, started a new one (blank page) and pressed CTRL+F5. Closed it again and opened a new IE, but xara.com was still the old site.

ipconfig /flushdns didn't solve it either, so I guess it's my ISP (don't have router here). Oh well, at least the www. site gives the new design

**Seagull** · 03 April 2008, 12:37 PM

Sorry, don't want to be a party pooper but I guess somebody has to do it. What's my problems with the new site. Number one, it comes in very slow. I think xara is going to loose everybody on dial up with this new site. Number two, visiting it over two days, I keep getting the same message. It's crashing the flash player.

In the good old days (last year or so), when you visited a site you were given the option of going with the flash or not. Xara has not given me this option and they are crashing my computer to boot.......that's what I call poor design.

And yes, I know......Paul is not going to be happy with me......but after his complaining about my low resolution of 800 x 600, I went out and bought a 19 inch monitor yesterday that has regulated that problem......but the 10 year old computer will have to stick around for another year or 10 and that is that!!!!!

By the way Paul, my wife has a bone to pick with you. I don't know what your vacation plans are but if I were you I would avoid Canada like the plague, especially the province of Quebec....

**RedWombat** · 03 April 2008, 03:32 PM

I like the new design and didn't have any trouble seeing it. The tabbed section makes it easy to view existing and new features.

My one comment would be that it's very slow loading the first time.

Nice work Xara!

**amoore** · 03 April 2008, 03:45 PM

Originally Posted by Seagull

Sorry, don't want to be a party pooper but I guess somebody has to do it.

<sigh> I also have a problem with the new site, but it's physical. The combination of stark black and white is actually painful. My eyes hurt when I look at it. It's also harder to read the text in the white boxes, which makes no sense since that's not a problem when the color palette is not so "xtreme" (

). I don't remember the discomfort being quite this bad on CRTs.

It's not just Xara's website. I have the same difficulty with other black background sites. For example, I can't read the configuration page for my favorite computer company anymore.

I also have a general design issue with the new Xara site. I'm not getting the visual hierarchy. Too many elements seem to have the same level of importance. And the flash movies just seem to be in my face rather than something I can look at when I choose to.

Perhaps it's just because my eyes are older. If that's the case, then, in the rush to reach a new market, please don't forget that the Xara community are not all spring chickens.

I know there are users who are older than I am because they've spoken up here on multiple occasions. We hens and roosters are Xarans, too.

**handrawn** · 03 April 2008, 04:17 PM

gently skating over the subject of age...

I am glad I am not the only one that thinks this trend is confusing.

The BBC is another example.
And my ISP homepage.

Yes its as if some strange aspect of political correctness has decreed that all the elements of the web page should be given equal importance and so there is no hierarchy to the structure to lead the eye.
Sure its broken down into obvious sections but they are all so uniform and homogenised in presentation.

If I designed a piece of art that way I'd be deeply unhappy [with myself]

Weird.

Ah well progress - not always in a forward direction for everyone as they say..

**haakoo** · 03 April 2008, 06:10 PM

From a webdesign point of view,i must admit the site isn't very inviting nor
simple to view.
The tabbing is nice but the colors are,as mentioned before to hard
For a graphics program they should know better

, black is fine but not the contrasting to white,better to use a light grey for text and contrast elements.
But that's just my point of view.

Here http://kuler.adobe.com/# is to be found that the redishpink doesn't complement nor contrasts with black or white
the color used is #EA2929

Hans