Microsoft Surface 2 Pro, Windows 8.1, and Xara P&GD9

[WildRice]

I got a Microsoft Surface 2 Pro running Windows 8.1 for Xmas. I am running a licensed version of Xara Photo & Graphic Designer 9. The Surface Pro has an app called Fresh Paint (seems very limited so far) that uses the supplied MS stylus allowing you to draw directly on the screen like a Wacom Cintiq (which I have not used so cannot directly compare). However, when I tried to use the stylus in Xara P&GD9, I could draw with my finger, but not with the supplied stylus. What you need to make the stylus work in Xara is the Wacom Feel Driver.
http://us.wacom.com/en/feeldriver

TABLET PC – Enhanced Tablet Driver 7.1.2
Expand the capabilities of your Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 tablet computer. Installing this driver will provide many advanced pressure-sensitive features that Wacom pen tablet users have come to enjoy. The driver supports advanced features such as pressure-sensitivity in graphics applications such as Adobe Photoshop and Corel Painter. It also allows you to adjust the pen tip pressure sensitivity and to program the side switch of the pen for a wide range of alternative settings and functions.
This driver should be installed on tablets that have Wacom feel IT technologies or Wacom Pen based technologies. This driver will also support older Penabled Tablet PCs running Windows 7, Windows Vista, and Windows XP Tablet Edition.

If you download and install them onto your Surface computer you can then use the stylus in Xara. This means that I now have a portable drafting tablet like a mini Cintiq Companion. Unlike my Intuos Pen and Touch Tablet, I can see what I am drawing more directly like real drawing. I had to calibrate the stylus cursor location with an app in Control Panel. I added the Surface 2 Pro to my Home group so now I can swap files between it and the other machines on my home network. The Surface 2 Pro is very portable and would be good for doing art work at a cafe, office, on a trip, on the beach, etc. The pressure sensitive feature works and can be adjusted. This may not be good enough for a big project, but it works fine for small projects or making touch ups on a big project.

It is working well enough for detailed line sketches. The down sides are:
1. It is a little too small, but with finger touch zooming and panning it works fairly well. Very portable.
2. Sometimes my hand lands on the screen wrong and I unintentionally pan or zoom. If I try to get the sytlus closer than the hand it works better, but still a little unpredictable.
3. The screen is slick glass, so there is not traditional paper friction feel on the nib. On the other hand it allows quick flicks and the nib should last forever.
4. Windows 8.1 takes some practice to use efficiently. Had to calibrate the stylus/cursor position.
5. The keyboard (I got the more tactile version) is an optional costly accessory but essential.
6. Minor ergo problems. You have to lay it flat or propped up with a wedge or else your drawing hand could hit the keyboard. My neck is a little stiff from the hunched over positioning, but probably because the dining room table I was working on was too low.
7. Not great if you have poor near vision.
8. The Layer window tried to hide from me. I had to narrow the drawing window (by moving it border) to see the layer window fully.
9. I will sometimes touch the screen wrong and unintentionally draw with my finger. You need two fingers to pan and zoom.

Here is a quick line sketch using the Surface 2 Pro and Xara P&GD9 using the stylus (stylus pressure feature turned off). I also used it to do some detail touch up work on this Einstein portrait.

[angelize]

Hi Wildrice, Thanks for sharing this with us I've always wondered how Xara programs would work on the Surface Pro tablets. It sounds pretty good so far. I've often thought they might be good for quick spec layouts while making sales calls. It's the price tag, that is keeping me at bay.

[WildRice]

My wife bought me the top of the line Windows Surface 2 Pro model, just because that was all the store had left. Even so the premium price did not include MS Office (which I bought as a download from MS) or a keyboard (there is a flat one and one with real keys). I don't know all of the model variations, but mine is a very good all around (truly multi-tasking) computer as you could do serious writing on it, surf the Internet, be notified about multiple email accounts all at once, store and open all of your documents and image files, and run Xara with a stylus and finger touch control (all at the same time). The OS is different so I may have to buy a Windows 8.1 book to find out all of the features. The Xara drawing examples I gave are not fancy but just show that precision stylus strokes can be done. It is directly visual which helps significantly. With my Wacom Intuos Pen and Touch Tablet the visual is on a differnt computer screen and the first stroke is often in the wrong direction unless I do a practice "golf swing" first. With the Surface 2 Pro, no golf swing is needed, just pan and zoom with two fingers of the drawing hand and then commence to drawing directly on the art with the stylus (which is a little too thin). The stylus did not work with Xara until I downloaded the Wacom feel driver. I imagine that coordinated power users could draw with the dominant hand and have the non-dominant hand on the keyboard while using Xara. Best thing is you don't have to be tied to your desk/office. Like everything high tech, the prices will come down. Is anyone running Xara on a Wacom Cintiq Windows 8.1? That is an expensive option too. The main reason for my post is that if you already have a Surface computer or other Windows 8.1 touch screen computer, you may only need the Wacom feel driver to get it working as an interactive drawing tablet running Xara. Microsoft brags that their screen surface is super thin making its touch detection and input superior or at least a major advance.

Instead of a mouse theres is a touchpad on the cover/keyboard. I have not mastered the touchpad yet as I have been using the touch screen and it is a new toy.

Touchpad gestures available on all Typing Covers:

Action Touchpad gesture
Move the on-screen pointer Drag your finger on the touchpad
Left click Tap one finger anywhere on the touchpad
-or-
Press the left touchpad button
Right click Tap two fingers anywhere on the touchpad
-or-
Press the right touchpad button
Left-click and drag Hold the left touchpad button down and then slide a finger in any direction
-or-
Tap, then tap and slide one finger in any direction
Scroll Slide two fingers horizontally or vertically
Show the command bar in an app Tap two fingers anywhere on the touchpad
Additional Touchpad gestures on Touch Cover 2 and Type Cover 2

Action Touchpad gesture
Open the charms Swipe in from the right edge of the touchpad.
See your open apps Swipe in from the left edge of the touchpad.
Zoom in or out Move two or more fingers together (pinching motion) or apart (stretching motion) on the touchpad.
Change the touchpad settings
You can change touchpad settings, like scroll rate, or turn gestures off and on. Here’s how.

Step 1: Attach a typing cover to Surface.
Step 2: Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and tap or click Settings.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and then click Settings.)
Step 3: Tap or click Change PC settings, and then tap or click PC and devices.
Step 4: Tap or click Mouse and touchpad.

[Michael]

Wonderful info. I'm contemplating to buy the Surface Pro2 or go for the Lenove Thinkpad Yoga (it's got a larger display...) I've tried the Surface Pro2 but the screen is just too small for me.

I'm quite acquainted with Windows and tablets (have used it for more than 8 years since the Portege M200 arrived at the scen) and I'm aware that you do need to have the proper Wacom drivers to get full benefits of the pressure sensitivity. I always use the latest drivers (now at ISD_DualTouch_712-9) but never heard they were called Wacom Feel. You know that you can disable the touch features (control panel -> touch settings) and that it is even possible to deactivate the touch driver from the command line (and thereby through a shortcut)?

Congrats with your new toy, we do envy you but I guess there will be more users switching to tablets with a pen just for the sheer joy of doodling around on your screen. And it's my irm believe that Xara, with its marvelous responsive rendering engine, can play a very good role in this opening niche market. They have gold at their hands!

[WildRice]

I have not tried tweaking the finger touch screen sensitivity settings. It is detecting my palm as a finger sometimes. If tweaking the settings doesn't solve it, then a thin fingerless glove might. These gloves are commonly used by Cintiq users to decrease palm friction. The clickable keyboard option might be better so you can type by feel.

[WildRice]

I have a lot of muscle memory from using computer mice to use menus, so if I can't adapt to or am too lazy to learn the keyboard touchpad I will likely buy the Microsoft Arc Mouse surface edition accessory. It uses 2 AA batteries, arcs like a lobster tail when used, folds flat for transport, and uses WiFi connectivity without needing a mini dongle to use up the USB port. This should make using Xara just as easy as on a tower computer, only better with direct stylus input on the screen. Consider that on top of the rather steep base price you will need to purchase MS Office, a keyboard/cover, Arc Mouse Surface Edition, and Xara. Microsoft has a firm lock on the hardware accessories I have noticed.

[wizard509]

Check the arc mouse closely to make sure it will work for you. For instance I have an Arc Mouse and I don't like it mostly because the touch strip that is suppose to act like a scroll wheel, just doesn't. Granted I do not have the edition you are referring to.

[PhilM]

Does the Surface Pro 2 need a touch screen, a stylus, a touchpad, a keyboard and a mouse to be able to draw with it successfully? (Not to mention a special glove and some tape to wrap around the barrel of the stylus to make it thicker.)

It doesn't sound very ergonomic to me...

;-)

Phil

[WildRice]

Here are a few more observations:
1. The SurfacePro and Surface2Pro have a different sensing screen than the lower end SurfaceRT and Surface2.
2. The Pro Pen stylus supposedly only works with the SurfacePro or SurfacePro2.
3. Xara P&GD9 is not completely optimized for Windows 8/8.1, as it runs in desktop mode and is still mouse driven. It runs just like it would on a regular PC but does not take full advantage of the touch screen features. The button controls in Xara are a little too close together for touch control and a mouse works more precisely for selecting buttons. Desktop mode is more familiar for file management anyway.
4. I recommend the MS Arc Touch Mouse Surface Edition. It uses 2 AAA batteries (supplied), turns off when flat, and turns on when arched (so you know from looking at it what its status is. Very poor documentation. I loaded the batteries, turned it on, then opened a Surface2Pro setting app to detect bluetooth devices. It took two tries, but now it recognizes it everytime and I have not needed to go back to that bluetooth app again. It is expensive at $69. It does not require a mini USB dongle like the previous Arc mouse version. The scroll "wheel" works for me.
5. The keyboard touchpad is not as responsive as I would like but it functions. Two fingers are a right click to bring up menus, two fingers to pan, and two fingers zoom in or out. The touch screen is better for this.
6. The screen does have palm detection, but still pans or zooms unexpectedly sometimes. This is solved by having the stylus closer to the screen as the palm lands.
7. The stylus attaches to the computer via a magnet, but the stylus could fall off during transport.
8. When taking it somewhere I put the flattened Arc mouse and stylus in my shirt pocket. The keyboard acts as a screen cover and overall is the size of a small hardcover book, so no carrying case is needed.
9. Its a bit too small for wide sweeping hand strokes, but good for medium and short strokes. It is very good for touch up work on a big project (as you know touch up is about 90% of producing a piece).
10. Laid out flat it is like drawing on a slick drawing pad and the other hand can control the keyboard and touch pad.
11. Windows 8.1 boots up very fast, making it very practical portable drawing machine.
12. I had to download the Wacom feel driver for the stylus to work in Xara.
13. This is unlikely to become your primary drawing machine, but it makes a great portable alternative/secondary machine. You are no longer tied to your desk.
14. Pro2 Battery life seems very good. Fully charge it the night before and you should be good for the whole day at work the next day without needing to bring the charging cable.
15. Only one USB port, so you don't want to use a wireless dongle to block it. No DVD/CD player, so software must be downloaded. There is a microSD memory card slot.
16. A larger version would be better for artists.
17. Could easily be stolen so lock away when at a public office and you need to leave your work area. It might hide away folded on a book shelf.
18. Works better after stylus and touch calibration in control panel.

[qmr]

I've been using xara on a surface pro for a while and I find it really good. The smallness of user interface icons takes a bit of getting used to but pinch to zoom works for scaling the drawing in xara. The portability is what I like with this tablet and all I use xara for is drawing, so it works well. Adobe programs though are difficult to use due to their inability to scale the ui buttons etc so they are tiny.

I use a cheap microsoft bluetooth keyboard when I need key commands as the screen keyboard hogs the screen, but I've recently been loaned a touch keyboard to try. I don't much like using it though as it inhibits turning the tablet around to portrait with this touch keyboard attached, and this computer for me is a drawing pad and the onscreen keyboard is ok for typing. I haven't got a mouse although I plan to get a Bluetooth one, but first I want a wacom carbon pen to replace the stock one although the surface pen is not too bad. I use the pen for drawing and mostly my finger to select tools and menu items. I've always used keyboard shortcuts in xara before, and now I'm more into tapping icons within xara. For this reason I'd like xara to have larger size icons as a user option to really optimise user experience on the surface pro, and tablets are becoming more popular for artists. Being able to work on a drawing pad in any environment with what is for me is the best wacom tablet is such a buzz.

The software I use on it besides Xara is Flash and Photoshop also loaded Dreamweaver but need a mouse for that as adobe icons are tiny. Ive just loaded Blender as the ui is scalable in that so it should work well.

re the above post about loading cd software, everything except blender I loaded from the DVD; Xara and Adobe creative suite plus Dreamweaver. What I did was copy the cds to my computer, combine the adobe suite ones into their single common-name folders and then copy them to USB stick. So long as you are careful with keeping exact folder names and structure they load fine, then go to adobe.com to validate them. I refuse to join adobe's creative cloud subscription so I'm sticking with using my cs6 versions and gradually getting more used to the annoying tiny interface in Flash which is the one I use most, so I persevere. actually in portrait mode its not so bad.

Q