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  1. #11
    Join Date
    Jul 2001
    Location
    Houston, TX, US
    Posts
    133

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    Gary,

    If the option to export to .ai exists, then it should work.

    If Xara is creating complicated graphics that will not work when exported to Illustrator .ai files, then the program should either:

    1.) Tell you how to make your drawing export correctly.
    2.) Export your drawing correctly.
    3.) Not allow the export to .ai option.

    We shouldn't have to use .eps files.

  2. #12
    Join Date
    Aug 2000
    Location
    Las Vegas, NV, USA
    Posts
    1,188

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    I've avoided buying illustrator for almost 8 years now. And it's for reasons just like this.

    I'm not happy at all. Yes I agree that the illustrator option SHOULD work, but it is not the fault of Xara that it doesn't. Freehand doesn't support illustrator above version 7 either.

    Begin Rant

    In my opinion, Xara is the betamax of vector programs, superior, but not popular. I think that the Xara plugin was far superior to the early flash plugin, but that was when corel was sitting on them, so now the Xara plugin is dead. Gee, thanks Corel.

    Unfortunately, illustrator has a strangle hold on many designers either because it's the first program they learned or it's all they know.

    For the web, nothing beats Xara. But as many of us here can attest, we deal with these printing hassles all the time. How many times must we be told that the service bureau can ONLY accept Illustrator files created on a Macintosh on a Mac formatted disc?

    I find it very dishearting that my most productive tool of choice is the red headed step child of vector programs. It's funny how back in the 80's Ridley Scott made that commercial of the girl throwing the hammer at Big Brother on the screen during the SuperBowl only for us to come to this and Apple and Adobe are now Big Brother(this analogy is intended to pertain only to design issues, not MicroSoft, but that's another topic).

    My fellow Xara users, our eyes are open to the possibilites. Xara needs to include multipage PDF export, which will render this whole "how do I get it into illustrator" nightmare moot. I don't know what that entails but it will free me from this hellish nightmare that I hate every time it comes up. Fortunately, it's only a couple times a year. Either that or release a patch that does a more current export version of illustrator, or create a plugin for illustrator that reads native Xara files. Personally, I bet the latter would be easier, but then again, I've never written a plugin. I don't think Xara can continue to sit comfortable with it's position of strictly being a web graphic producing program. At some point all of us designers need to do print jobs. I can't convince the service bureaus I use to switch to a PC and buy Xara.

    Until then, I will continue to be a proponent of Xara. But personally, I would like to know what Xara intends to do with future versions. I would like to know if I am being forced to become an expert at Illustrator, a program that I hate to use, or will Xara come to my rescue someday with PDF's and animated Flash.

    End Rant

    You know what is the best? Turning a client on to Xara. I've done that with one of my clients and they love Xara, but they're all about creating the best software, not following along with the unenlightened masses. BTW, this client that accepts my Xara files is also a software manufacturer that produces some fantastic software packages that get stuff done with quality and speed at a fair price. Check them out Impulse, Inc.

    I now deliver them native Xara files. Now if only I can do that with all my clients.....

    Sheffield Abella
    sheff@sheff.com
    www.sheff.com
    Sheff
    My Site

  3. #13
    Join Date
    Aug 2000
    Location
    San Francisco, CA USA
    Posts
    281

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    Hi Sheff,
    Perhaps I don't get it? If you want PDF files, just use the PDF writer or, if you like twiddling lots of things, use distiller. I've been doing this for years because it seems to be the only way the service bureaus won't give you grief.

    Another possibility is to print to file using a postscript driver. Then you have pure postscript.

    Either way you can get your work PRINTED, which "should be" the desired result. Getting into ai format so some jackass can look at it before "printing" to PDF is a waste of everyone's time.

    I dig your rant. This crap drove me crazy until I gave up and started using PDF. I don't even LIKE PDF, I just got tired of fighting.

    Regards,,,,, Tad.

  4. #14
    Join Date
    Jan 2001
    Location
    East Sussex, England
    Posts
    2,021

    Default

    Buying a copy of Xara for our printing company. They did have a PC which they used CorelDraw on but sending CMX files lost too much.

    Christine
    Christine

    Software: XDPX9, WD9,WD10,XDPX10,WD11,XDPX11,XDP365

  5. #15
    Join Date
    Jul 2001
    Location
    Houston, TX, US
    Posts
    133

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    Sheffield Abella, it is Xara's fault. If the option is in there it should work.

    I can understand everyone's enthusiasm for Xara, but remember this, software doesn't get better if you give the developer a pass (see MICROSOFT).

  6. #16
    Join Date
    Aug 2000
    Location
    Placitas, New Mexico, USA
    Posts
    41,476

    Default

    [QUOTE] We shouldn't have to use .eps files. /QUOTE]

    To which I ask, why not?

    If a PS file, as Tad wisely suggested, will get the job done, or an EPS file, which is the common format for placing a vector and/or vector and bitmap image into Quark, InDesign, PageMaker, etc., for professional output, why rely on the limitations of Illustrator?

    I agree, it would be terrific if every application could share files and include their every native details with one another. But the likelihood of that happening is twofold: slim and none.

    Shef pointed out correctly, that Illustrator's popularity is based not upon it's killer features, but on the fact that most professional illustrators, designers, and art directors learned on it. An unlike us more enlightened Xara users, who are attracted to features and ease-of-use vs. the safe industry standard, design professionals rarely read the manuals, participate in on-line forums, or read software trade magazines. Illustrator is a tool and they use it to get their job done. If Illustrator cannot do what they need, they don't need it. Or they hire a wrist to do it for them. The thing that scares them the most is having to invest the time and energy to learn a new software application.

    A PS printer file is probably the most bulletproof way to get a job professionally output, because it is not dependent upon Quark, InDesign, Illustrator, or any other piece of software to interpret what is in the file. It is an effecient and intelligent way of printing directrly from Xara (or any other vector application) to the output device.

    Gary

    Gary Priester

    Moderator Person

    <a href="http://home.earthlink.net/~garypriester">
    me hoe ebb rivulets</a>

  7. #17
    Join Date
    Jul 2001
    Location
    Houston, TX, US
    Posts
    133

    Default

    The option to export to Illustrator .ai files is there.

    It should work.

    Xara should either rip it out or fix it, so us unenlightened folks can share our files with other programs.

  8. #18
    Join Date
    Aug 2000
    Location
    Prince Edward Island, Canada --- The land of lawn tractors
    Posts
    5,389

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    Gary - Am I correct in thinking that most digital printers will give you (or allow you to download) the drivers to their printers? Around here they do, along with tip sheets to help you output a printerfile that hopefully gets you the quality output you want.

    Regards, Ross

    <a href=http://www.designstop.com/>DesignStop.Com</a>

  9. #19
    Join Date
    Aug 2000
    Location
    Prince Edward Island, Canada --- The land of lawn tractors
    Posts
    5,389

    Default

    rgremill - I think you are missing the point of how export filters work. The .ai export works so long as you don't expect it to bring to ai capabilities not supported in ai. The .ai export in Xara puts out only what ai is capable of using from the Xara original. It cannot make ai any more capable than it is.

    Your agrument seems to be akin to saying Word's save as .txt shouldn't loose all the formating that was in the original Word document when you open the .txt in Notepad.

    Regards, Ross

    <a href=http://www.designstop.com/>DesignStop.Com</a>

  10. #20
    Join Date
    Jul 2001
    Location
    Houston, TX, US
    Posts
    133

    Default

    Ross, you do not get the point.

    Xara is creating .ai files that cannot be read into Photoshop without parser errors.

    I challenge you to take the attached file and create .ai file that is importable into Photoshop 5.5. (Don't worry about the fonts...)

    If you can get this to work you will be my hero!
    Attached Files Attached Files

 

 

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