New Version of Photo & Graphic Designer

[digitalphaser]

• Paint on photo effects with the new Photo Effect painter
• 25+ photo filter presets in the Online Content Catalog
• Magnetic Lasso for quick and easy cut-outs
• New XProcess option in the photo enhance tool
• New color dodge & burn transparency blend modes
• Google Material Design icons added to the symbol library
• New SmartShapes such as charts, text panels, photo grids and a new spiral
• Enhanced Content Catalog with search and an integrated stock photo library
• Improved Word, PDF, RTF and PSD support

Is it all? Funny!
It's a pity!
I am interested in the last point. What specific improvements by PSD/PDF ex/import? Probably again invisible improvements.

I'll wait for PRO version. Maybe a miracle will happen. Modern AI/PSD export, warp transform tool, some new vector tools and vector patterns, color management etc... ))

[handrawn]

regarding PSD improvements: you can now map xara objects to PSD layers - ie you can tell the PSD export to export every xara object as a seperate PSD layer - and when importing you can choose to convert every PSD layer to a seperate xara object - this is actually very useful as far as I am concerned

the new alignment distribution options are a nice touch, and as mentioned previously the naming of objects in the gallery is long overdue and most welcome

if i was using photo and graphic designer then I would upgrade on the basis of these features; I don't do photgraph manipulation in xara, nor do I use it as much as I once did, but the PSD filter changes and the ability to name objects in the layer gallery would save a lot of time when I do use the program.... it remains to be seen what is offered for Designer Pro and the more expensive upgrade...

[digitalphaser]

regarding PSD improvements: you can now map xara objects to PSD layers - ie you can tell the PSD export to export every xara object as a seperate PSD layer - and when importing you can choose to convert every PSD layer to a seperate xara object - this is actually very useful as far as I am concerned...

Thanks for the info @handrawn.
I am very often prepared PSD files in XDP. I like the ability to manipulate multiple objects in the inside Xara's layer. I like the ability to create layer groups for PSD. Is it different now?
What am I missing: serious transformation tool for bitmap, the ability to export CMYK PSD files. It would be ideal guides and smart objects. Although I wish probably too much. ))

[handrawn]

it would be nice to be able to export each [selected] xara object as it's own PSD layer all within a PSD layer group - but I don't think you can

you can always concatenate in Photoshop afterwards; that is, export each set of PSD layers that you want as a 'group' as a seperate PSD file and put it together in PS - not much fun if you want nested groups of more than one level though....

[digitalphaser]

After the new XDP release I'll try the demo, perhaps the new PSD improvements are handy.

[gwpriester]

You can export objects on named layers in PSD and they come into Photoshop on the same named layers. Just tried this in Designer Pro X11 and Photo & Graphic Designer.

[handrawn]

yes Gary I think you've been able to do that for a while

sometime back someone from xara, might have been PhilM said that since objects in xara could be grouped, such groups were the equivalent of layers in PS, and xara layers could be looked on as as layer groups

until now though you could not export each object on a xara layer to its very own layer in the PSD - now you can

for example six object groups on one xara layer can be exported to a PSD resulting in six layers, one for each object in stacking order and position