What are you hoping to see in the next version of Designer Pro?

**angelize** · 13 April 2013, 08:50 AM

Now that we've all had a chance to check out the new web design features in WD9/P anticipation is beginning to grow about the next release of Designer Pro. What are you hoping for in the next release?

Here are a few things I am hoping for (in no particular order)

A choice of nib shapes for the shapebuilder tool
info bar transparency settings for the shapebuilder and eraser tool
Auto hyphenation
export to ebook format
brush strokes that stretch along the path

**gwpriester** · 13 April 2013, 12:56 PM

Support for spot color in bitmaps. I have been hoping to see this for many releases and I am not holding my breath.

**StevenWWinters** · 13 April 2013, 03:09 PM

**Egg Bramhill** · 13 April 2013, 07:23 PM

A fix to the delay in opening the Utilities/Options window. If I have several large photos loaded this delay can be an eternity.

A fix to the "open with" default program. For example I have jpg's & png's etc set to open by default with Xara. Unfortunately it opens them with Designer Pro 6 regardless of if I set it to XDPX. Long overdue a solution.

**Big Frank** · 13 April 2013, 09:21 PM

html5 export

**steve.ledger** · 13 April 2013, 09:28 PM

There is improved HTML5/CSS3 usage in WD version 9, Frank. This will of course make it to DP9.

Web Designer 9 automatically makes use of HTML5 whenever it can, so you get a state of the art website without having to do anything or understand anything about HTML! In v9 we ensure that your graphics are exported in the best format for current browsers (shapes such as rectangles, rounded rectangles with grad fills and transparency, shadows, text with shadows and page backgrounds, are displayed using native HTML not memory hungry PNGs) . It’s more efficient, and that means your site will be faster.

Your site will of course still work with older browsers.

**SignPig** · 15 April 2013, 08:57 AM

To be able to set the default number of steps in the Contour tool, or at least for the default to be set to 1. I use it a lot yet I don't think I've ever needed 4 steps!

Select By Colour would be handy. For example, to right click on a colour on the colour bar and have an option to lock or hide objects of all other colours for easy selection.

The option to select which page of a PDF to import.

More keyboard shortcuts, especially for object alignment.

**steve.ledger** · 15 April 2013, 09:49 AM

Select By Colour would be handy. For example, to right click on a colour on the colour bar and have an option to lock or hide objects of all other colours for easy selection.

Web Designer 9 Premium now has a new colour replace feature to the colour editor.
One can only assume that the Designer Pro version will be enhanced to list the colours in the colour gallery.

Click image for larger version.

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This is an imported EPS file, not Xara clipart.

**SignPig** · 15 April 2013, 09:55 AM

Excellent, that will save a lot of multi-selections.

**csehz** · 15 April 2013, 01:35 PM

- a button which if set on, allows only whole pixels jumping at resizing an object in X-Y coordinates together
- FTPS support
- general info bar - with selecting any object the program writes down that whether that object is Text, Quickshape, Opacity mask etc., plus what can be done with it by mouse. I would prefer there to see rather the main parameters, for example at Fills (type, start - end color, maybe number of control points), Transparency (type, start - end percentages). That could save the tool selection and check the parameters there