Help video: New features walkthrough in Xara Designer Pro 6

[Xhris]

Hi, I’ve rushed out as quickly as I could a nice HD video which discusses all the new features and other hidden things in Xara 6 which might help people learn what’s new. There’s over an hour of video (it took way more than an hour to make—but there’s a lot to go over) and so it might not be fun to watch it all at once (my voice can get a bit droning after a while with my mic I noticed… although I was getting tired toward the end ). I had to split the video in two to please YT, but it’s all in a playlist.

Let me know if it was useful/you learned anything--might help direct any future videos.

Video here (part 1 on left)

[xtom]

Brill vid, I'm learning new stuff love the vanishing cow and the mask colouring on the shell, have to go out but will watch the rest later.

[zaphodeist]

Thanks Xhris! Will watch after the footie!

[Xhris]

Thanks Xhris! Will watch after the footie!

lol, sidelined by a football match haha

[tonylondon]

Great, Xhris - much appreciated. For me the second video had the most interesting developments. I feel a lot clearer about the changes.

[JimR]

Great stuff, thanks a lot.

Wow, you just sold me transparancy mask, way cool!!

JimR

[Xhris]

Great, Xhris - much appreciated. For me the second video had the most interesting developments. I feel a lot clearer about the changes.

Some of them are quite subtle but significant aren't they? Like the new GNOMRA rules and brush changes, the JPEG workflow for photo editing and masters folders, and dynamic soloing. Lots of usability and workflow improvements make me appreciate this as a really excellent release.

The new live line drawing BTW really demonstrates laying the foundations for skeletal stroking I feel. Wouldn't be surprised if it appeared in V7/8, but that's just my guess.

[Xhris]

Wow, you just sold me transparancy mask, way cool!!

If truth be told, this was the main reason why I did this video, and I'm glad you said that because it justifies my efforts to me. This is such a powerful feature, but not obvious at all why it's so powerful. When you first look at it, you'd be forgiven for thinking it was pointless...but how much you would miss, and I didn't want people missing out!

PS. I want them to be called transparency masks (or custom transparencies) really. It's so much more intuitive to describe them in terms of what they are. Instead, Xara have gone for the Adobe-consistency approach and called them opacity masks, even though Adobe aren't exactly renowned for their intuitiveness or sensibleness when it comes to naming things (as most Xara users know).

[Scotty]

Great videos!!
I will be spending a lot of time watching them ...to grasp all that was demonstrated..
JimM

[Rik]

Hi Xhris.

Many thanks for the videos. I didn't know what the opacity mask was all about and now I do.

But you also show many other features that seem to be so useful.
I wish I could remember them all.

A real big thanks for your efforts.
Very enjoyable indeed.