Dedicated Eraser Tools

[NervisGrafix]

Why hasn't there ever been a true dedicated eraser true lasso or magic/magnetic wand in Xara X ~ XPGD7? Even free and open source programs like Inkscape,Serif PhotoPlus,Hornil StylePics amd PhotoScape have always had these common to their toolbar.

[gwpriester]

Welcome to TalkGraphics

The answer is this. Xara is a vector drawing application. Vector objects are define by an outline with control points that dictate how the line will be drawn whatever the size. So you can scale a pure vector shape up the size of a building and not loose and detail.

Bitmap applications, such as Photoshop, use pixels, tiny, non-scalable squares of color, to define an object or image. Bitmaps can be scaled down in size but not up by more than a small percent, or else the image gets soft unfocused.

True erasers and lassos, magic wand tools, are bitmap tools. They are meant to work with pixels.

You can erase an object, even more accurately using a vector outlined shape. It is a lot of work granted, but all in all produces a superior result (IMHO).

[pauland]

True erasers and lassos, magic wand tools, are bitmap tools. They are meant to work with pixels.

Edit:

At one stage processor power wasn't good enough to make a real-time eraser in anything but a raster-based image. Advancing processor power has made this possible for vector based artwork, yet the idea persists that it's not possible to have a vector eraser. Many existing vector programmes show this not to be true.

[mwenz]

Gary, download Serif's DrawPlus free version. At least I think the free version has the eraser. Altering shapes via an eraser is an extremely useful tool...and filling in non-closed shapes. Seem to go hand in hand to me.

Take care, Mike

[angelize]

Inkscape is also a vector drawing program and I believe it has an eraser

[handrawn]

if there is such a thing as a 'true' eraser, then surely it is the sort shown attached

illustrators got one too....