Text Box Shading and creating a table or box outline

[dfgrier]

I need to create a page with shading in the text box of different background colors, then drop in text.

Also, when I have a text box, can I have the box outlined?

Is this possible as with other programs?

Xara 9 is my software.

Thanks!

[Egg Bramhill]

Welcome to TG. Could you supply an example image or webpage that uses the effect you reqire dfgrier?

[dfgrier]

Here is the link to the picture ...
http://annuityseeker.com/wp-content/...-Chart9001.jpg

I want to be able to change and edit as needed without having to create in Photoshop and save and re-upload.

THanks!

[mwenz]

BTW,

Kill the drop shadows in your chart(s). They make it hard to read...they don't add anything to the information nor to the design.

I don't have the web products, I use Designer Pro (and don't use it for web stuff). If I wanted to make such a chart for the web, it is simple rectangles and lines, alternating colored rectangles. Then I would just use text boxes and not group the chart (I believe that will force it to become an image if I recall).

Mike

[mwenz]

I am sure there are better ways to construct this. But hey, it's just a sample. I didn't see an align to bottom of text frame for the text along the top. You'll figure out what I did, though.

By having it in an Xara product, you can do it one of a couple ways. First, if an image is acceptable, you can construct it in whatever you are using to build the web site and export it as an image. That way it is still easily editable and you can opt to use whatever font you want.

In my example, the text will remain as text even on the web site.

Mike

[dfgrier]

WOW!!

I am just learning Xara after using Antenna which had an easy way to create text boxes and drop in colors.

I am trying to see how you did this, so tonite I will learn what you did, if the sleep does not take me out first.

Thank you.

[gwpriester]

Welcome to TalkGraphics dfgrier

You will find that there are many ways to do almost anything in Xara.

[Egg Bramhill]

You could also try Design Gallery / Page Elements / Other Widgets / Table Widget

[mwenz]

You could also try Design Gallery / Page Elements / Other Widgets / Table Widget

If the Xara products' table widget wasn't so painful to use, it might be worth mentioning it as a solution. As it is, the thing is less than worthless.

Most of the time for print work, I simply format tables in either Excel or LibreOffice. Generate a PDF, import the PDF. Group the contents, they resize properly. For the web, I would then ungroup. In a quickie test, it hits the html just fine. At least working in LO or Excel isn't painful.

[Acorn]

Treat your table as a set of building bricks (e.g., Lego).

I constructed a text box and background Box and soft grouped them.

You simply clone and position having selected Snap to Objects.
Build your table.
Text changes with the Text Tool.
Colour changes with picking a colour and using the Replace colour... option.

Lego Table.web

Acorn