I used to be a beta tester for version 4 but couldn't be bothered for version 5 as I was totally disappointed by the so called improvements on 4 and even more so on 5. So I'm not holding my breath for 6.
Printable View
I used to be a beta tester for version 4 but couldn't be bothered for version 5 as I was totally disappointed by the so called improvements on 4 and even more so on 5. So I'm not holding my breath for 6.
Dear sledger,
I've just received a THIRD e-mail advertising Designer 6.
Please contact Marketing and request to opt-out of email promotions.
sledger are you really that smart?
Come on, man, I expected more of you.
The proper version of your post should be: "Contant marketing and tell them to release XX6 and not try to make people buy some worthless software all over again with different discounts and repeated mail actions."
Sponsi
Steve, as well as all the moderators, is a volunteer. We do not work for Xara or Magix. We do this to help the community.
If you have a problem with Xara's marketing efforts, as Steve suggested, please contact Xara.
You can rant and rave to us all you want, but we are not the ones who can do anything about this.
When will xtreme 6 likely be released? I'm trying the wd6 trial and I'm very impressed. I'm not sure whether to wait for xtreme or just go with wd6.
There's a few features listed in x5 that I'd like to see in wd6 like individual objects listed in the layers panel and the content aware rescaling which I think would be a useful feature for designing vertical/horizontal web banners headers etc.
Will xtreme 6 be less ideal for web design than wd6 or will it be just as good for web design but with more features? Not sure which product is best for me.
Sponsi please be more mindful of your wording in your replies and respectful of other users. Sledger gave you the answer and he is always very helpful to every user. Don't take his and other users support ever for granted.
Xcellent
When I'm writing "Why do they keep sending us c-r-a-p (you consider "c-r-a-p" a swearword? ROTFL) newsletters with special offers, Xara, send me info how to buy XX6" it means that I'm disappointed with Xara because instead of releasing 6 they keep sending newsletters which are useless for people who are waiting for solid piece of software (XX6).
I don't mean: "Oh, I need help how to contact Xara." or "Hey, how can I unsubscribe." or "Why are they even sending me any mail?". I am not that dumb.
Everything here was a matter of opinion. It meant: "cut the c-r-a-p, show the stuff."
I'm getting really impatient and this whole mailing action with "special offers" every three days is simply not professional - it's poor, weak...
Stay silent, Xara, go to work, do the programming (while reading people's wishes because nowadays companies forget about clients in their race for money) and release XX6.
:troll:
Apparently you did not read my post, so once more and maybe this time you will get the idea...
And I might point out, we do not work in the mail room either. :rolleyes:Quote:
Sponsi
Steve, as well as all the moderators, is a volunteer. We do not work for Xara or Magix. We do this to help the community.
If you have a problem with Xara's marketing efforts, as Steve suggested, please contact Xara.
You can rant and rave to us all you want, but we are not the ones who can do anything about this.
covoxer why do you take any critics more than "please, Xara, please, include it next time" for trolling?
Just in case: it's a rhetorical question.
Really, people, don't go over some sensible point with your fanboyism.
It's a shame that this community could not satisfy your needs.
Please find more appropriate one.
Thank you.
:banned:
So, the "rebellion" has taken its first victims. haha :D
Er, that should read, EDITED. :rolleyes:
so now we have a company man banning members rather than moderators...
hummm.. there's a message there somewhere for everyone....
I think I'll just go off and compose a new sig....
I don't think anybody would disagree with the action taken, it's just that it was taken by someone who is a Xara employee on a forum that maintains that it is independent of Xara that seems odd. Maybe it would have been wiser to let another moderator wield the axe.
I think some people actually care about this program, that they actually got really disappointed over the time - some even to a point of what we just witnessed.
I know I'm relatively new to Xara, but on the other hand, I think those reactions should at least be considered. People wouldn't react without a reason, and developers should consider these signs. Not that they should blindly listen to every suggestion, but.. it would really be a shame to lose all the loyal users, and what I see, theres a lot of them here.
this is not the web designer/xtreme forum :eek:
but who am I to argue ....
he who pays the piper..... it was ever thus ;)
I have beta tested 4 or 5 software apps. Most all had a stipulation in their nondisclosure agreement that participants should not reveal that they are/were in lheir beta program.
Technically the action taken may very well have been warranted.
So, can we get back on track? There are other fourms at Talkgraphics that are for general pontificating.
ok no problem
though I have to say it was JA that was talking about beta.. not Sponsi ;)
[or am I missing something here.. again :D]
I own both WebDesigner 5 and Xtreme Pro 5
When XXP5 was released I removed WD5 from my system as it incorporated all the features of WD5
I have downloaded the trial of WD6 and it seems good so far.
I am wondering if the WD6 features will be included in XXP6
So- should I purchase WD6 now or wait for XXP6??
Any suggestions?
Yes, please post in the correct forum for Web related questions.
Additionally the answer to your question about the web features of Xtreme Xtreme 6 / Xtreme Pro 6 can be found here
► http://www.talkgraphics.com/showpost...1&postcount=62
And Welcome to TG forums Koala :)
Is there a deadline for the new version XXP? checked daily:)
Maybe it is possible to prepay update to XXP6 and use temporarily WD6?
My Trial period ends :(
I'm really quite excited about the introduction of XXP6. I've been using Xara professionally since 3.2, for illustration, graphic design and latterly video game asset creation (textures, UI, post-processing). It's directly helped earn my employers hundreds of thousands of dollars and it's the one app I'd rescue from a burning building.
For me, any strengthening of the existing tools would be an additional bonus, as I find the existing set so powerful. I work in a design environment dominated (natural) by Adobe users. To my continuing amazement, they still consistently have to access forums and tutorials to achieve effects that Xara allows within a few clicks. I'm sure the reason behind this is that Xara is almost completely intuitive, requiring very little in the way of starter tuition. So while Illustrator is a massively powerful and feature-rich application, I'm able to get far better results from Xara simply because it's very easy to access and understand the tools. My fellow designers are continually amazed/infuriated by the breadth and speed of output I can achieve from Xara.
For me, developing the existing tool set to include an expanded bitmap editor would really help me stay in Xara throughout game asset creation. As it stands i can just about do that, but some key tools are missing.
Continued development of the 'effects' tools would be very welcome. I'd like to see greater options in the shadow, 3d and emboss functions. They've proved to be extremely useful over the last year.
I originally bought Xara for it's freehand vector drawing tools (having tested a large number of similar apps, including Illustrator), and I think these remain both a strength and a weak spot. Focused development of this function could really pull in a new set of users.
In the end, I think Xara is almost the perfect app. It takes a complex subject and makes it extremely intuitive and fun. it's one of the few professional apps that feels like a friend, rather than a tool.
Continued practicality, capped-complexity and above all increased innovation and creativity are what I'd ask for in future versions of Xara :)
Welcome to the TG Forums mangatank,
And thank you for posting a nice positive and honest personal view.
I think most of us regulars here feel much the same way :)
Mangatank, thanks for your great summary. Well done.
MoonArtz, I am in the same situation as you (3 days left for the WD6 trial). I like your idea a credit for the preorder of Xara6 equal to the purchase price of WD6.
If Xara could extend the activation period for WD6 when such a preordered is placed for Xara6 that would make me quite happy. When Xara6 is installed then we would be obligated to remove WD6 or perhaps Xara could do that automatically when Xara6 is installed.
I'd preorder and pay for Xara6 today if such a program were available.
Xara6??Quote:
When Xara6 is installed then we would be obligated to remove WD6 or perhaps Xara could do that automatically when Xara6 is installed.
Xtreme 6 will not include any of Web Designer 6.
Xtreme Pro 6 will.
So if you want to upgrade to Xtreme 6 but not Xtreme Pro 6 and want the new features of WD6, then you will need to purchase WD6 also.
I should have clarified. Meant XtremePro6
I'm getting out of Xara's target group too...
Because of simple functions (like a correct PDF output, CMYK support, 'oldnew' vector tools etc.)
My employers (have two ;) ) do not want to support a design tool that can't make those simple technical job. I have been struggling for Xara for many years, cause was very excited of Xara's abilities, friendly, reliability and speed.
Now I'm not. Even for me, being so fan of Xara, its product doesn't satisfy me everyday needs.
Xtreme is a really nice and powerful design tool! I mean that!
But just for start or hobby. Or for lovers to solve the problems instead of working.
I won't 'sorry' for being rant, since feel sad right now, sad for beloved Xara and 10 years of being fan... It was so easy to pick the easiest way (picking CorelXara as a design tool) at the start, to finish in the dead end when you grown up.
As always, sorry for my English... And good luck to all of you!
That depends on what exactly you mean by "compete." Xtreme does indeed complete with Illustrator for my mindshare.
When I start a new illustration, the question is very prominate in my mind: Shall I do this in Illustrator, Draw, Canvas, or Xtreme? And I'm quite "serious" about that. Despite the other always-current software on my machine, I welcome projects that I can do in Xtreme.
I've been doing illustrations with the mainstream drawing programs since the mid-80s. My work runs the usual gamut, but is primarily illustration-centric. I'm as "jaded" as they come; I suffer from no emotional, illogical brand-loyalty. Any favoritism I have comes down to clean, effcient functionality.
I find it a very refreshing thing to have Xtreme as one of the choices. Fact is, I'd rather work in Xtreme than Illustrator (et al) for any work that suits it.
Truth is, all mainstream 2D drawing programs are mostly just repackaging of the same old kid's stuff. Most of them (Illustrator especially) feign "sophistication" with unnecessary complication. (Talk with any proficient FreeHand user.) But my few (so far) experiments with Xtreme have convinced me any truly proficient and talented Illustrator user can do downright stunning illustration work in Xtreme in a much more elegant and less tedious environment--at a speed that blows the doors off Illustrator's molasses-like performance. The whole experience is just more satisfying and enjoyable.
Except, for now, just one thing: Xtreme has got to have a properly-thought-out and elegantly powerful Bezier drawing tool (pen). For that, see FreeHand, not Illustrator.
So yes, Xtreme does need some basic improvement. But it certainly does not need all the confused, poorly-organized clutter of Illustrator. Put all that half-baked junk in Xtreme and you'll effectively remove its primary advantage: powerful elegance. To hold my interest (and in my opinion, to gain more mindshare among other AI, FH, CD, CV users) Xtreme needs to jealously guard that primary advantage as it adds carefully-integrated, carefully-thought-out, fully fleshed-out, and genuinely-innovative new functionality.
And by the way: Although I've only just played with it so far, I do not see any problem with incorporation of Web Designer functionality in Xtreme 5. It was done elegantly and unobtrusively.
What Xara has right now, though, is a somewhat confused product line, which results in a confused customer base...which prevents buying decisions. Should an Xtreme Pro user buy Xara 3D? Is Xtreme missing some of its features? Will Xtreme Pro 6 contain all the improved functionality of Web Designer 6, or will something be missing?
Understand: I really have no problem with:
Web Designer will continue to be developed as a separate program, intended for those who want its capability without having to buy Xtreme. But the intent going forward is for Xtreme Pro to always include all the functionality of Web Designer (and X3D). In effect, then, Xtreme Pro constitutes an all-inclusive "suite" (but as a single thoroughly-integrated application, not a mere purchase bundle), and for the Xtreme Pro buyer, it is not necessary to purchase Web Designer and X3D separately.
OR with:
Web Designer will continue to be developed as a separate program that works in conjunction with Xtreme Pro. But there is no dumbed-down sub-set of Web Designer in Xtreme Pro.
But I personally do not like:
Xtreme Pro contains some or even most of the functionality of Web Designer and X3D, to make Xtreme Pro more of a "bargain." But Web Designer and X3D are offered separately as full-featured separate apps.
To me, the latter actually makes Xtreme less elegant. It smacks of what Illustrator did with its 3D Effect which--although it added a few new wrinkles inherent in its treatment as a so-called "live effect"--is still a pitifully crippled subset of the functionality of the discontinued Dimensions. That approach would negatively affect my future buying decisions re Xtreme. Sometimes, less is more.
Either way, I think Xara seriously needs to clarify its intent in this regard. People make buying decisions when they don't feel confused. Despite its quite modest cost, I've been sitting here for weeks not purchasing Web Designer 6 simply because I don't know whether all its functionality will be replicated in Xtreme Pro 6, which I'll almost certainly buy.
JET
What are "Artistic Calligraphy" brushes in AI? AI's brushes include Calligraphy Brush (basic thick/thin based on angle), Art Brush (stretches artwork along the spine path), Pattern Brush (tiles and bends artwork along the spine path), and Scatter Brush ("sprays" instances of the artwork along the spine path).Quote:
Artistic Calligraphy brushes in AI
Of those, I would call Calligraphic the most ordinary (most drawing progams have something very similar), and is by far the one I actually use least. Of those, I would call Scatter the most poorly-implemented due to its gross faceting of the spine path.
Just curious as to which of those you are referring and (if Calligraphy) why you find it so valuable.
JET
Well considered responses JET, thanks for posting :cool:
I used to be a power user with Draw. One day the Corel VP of Marketing met with me and told me about this little company they'd 'bought', Xara ... I sort of snickered when he told me about it ... and abruptly stopped snickering when I saw it demo'd later on. He sent me a comp copy of CorelXara which I thought would make a handy companion to Draw ... turned out to work the other way ... Draw became a companion to Xara!! I've not missed an upgrade since and do not plan to miss upgrading my XPP5 to XPP6.
I too hope they fix the PDF problem and add some controls like image naming for websites and other things ... but in the main this product has gotten continually better every year and I for one will continue to support Xara with my purchases because I really do believe that the day will come when it will be THE software to own!!
My hat's been off to Charles & Kate for about 15 years and now I include the rest of the development team that have come onboard in between!
you didn't reference your quote - but a bit of reading back I see it was Peter [albacore] post #68
Perhaps a reference to artistic style - drawing freehand [style not program] as you would with a physical brush or pen, using a tablet and pressure sensitivity, to get an 'artistic-feel' effect in vector
You can't do this with pen that simply puts down a fixed width path. Sure you can shape that path afterwards - but to a freehand style artist that takes away all the sponteneity, and as like as not, takes [often a lot] more time :eek: ;)
if you wany clunky - try using xtreme brushes that way ...
I am too a very loyal Xara customer and used it from when it was Artworks. But I have a different view here. If you wait for that day, it will never come: Adobe is bigger and releases and clutters (more or less) useful tools into AI every year, just concentrating on improving vector tools.
Xara does not aim to be Illustrator and plays on various fields such as webdesign. Xara simply can't be compared to anything else out there. PDF export is a very complicated topic and I'm very grateful Xara supports it - but it's not the same as in Illustrator/Indesign and will never be.
alexbozhenov, I do know where you come from because I'm in a similar situation. Luckily I have found alot of workarounds and Illustrator/Indesign are good companions to Xara for me. It's great tool to use as a single user. In a collaborative studio environment you'll find pretty much yourself the only staff member using Xara though.
If I can amplify what I was trying to say on post #68, Handrawn has got it right, I was referring to the way Xara describes and uses brushes and not as it is done in Illy where each type of brush is clearly defined. In Illy you can libraries for calligraphic, scatter, art, and pattern but in Xara you are limited to using a new/existing brush and then selecting the stroke/pressure profile. This is fine for simple drawings but in my job I am doing quite a few cartoons to enliven boring national health service newsletters to make people want to read the info in them.
My illustration style is to try and make them look if they were done by hand or that they were done using a certain type of media and they have to have the ability to be enlarged or I would just use a paint programme. Now the rub is like Xcellent I started using the computer for a drawing tool from ArtWorks onwards and I have become very comfortable with this programme. Because of work people would like me to use Illy and now I am just as comfortable with that and have the ability to use the very expressive brushes that are available in AI which makes that programme better for drawing cartoons. Now I am talking about either about the Paintbrush & Pencil Tool and not the Pen Tool here a long with the ability to copy & paste from PS.
What I would like people to do is if they have a copy of AI on their machine is to use any of the above tools a long with some of the brush libraries that are available and then try to get the same effect using any of the similar brushes which were made available by Xhris a few years ago which were great at the time. I would also ask people to change the colour of the supplied brushes and use any of the brushes on your own pictures and see how slow your machines runs. As a vector drawing programme I am more than happy with Xpro 5 and I don't think I need a FreeHand pen tool cos I think my speed using the shape editor tool is far quicker least it was in an office only two years back and if I can make a suggestion have a look at one of Bob Hanns videos if you don't believe me.
I am happy to see that Xara Xtreme is continuing to develop.
I am upgrading my Windows Vista system to Windows 7 and was pleased to see that Xara Xtreme was on that Microsoft compatibility list. I am also purchasing a new 64 bit Windows 7 system.
The one thing that concerns me is the new system will be 64 bit (old system is 32 bit.)
I gathered that Microsoft would not make the claim of compatibility of Xara Xtreme in the Windows 7 operating system if such did not apply to both 32 and 64 bit systems?
Is this a correct assumption on my part. Thank you in advance for addressing my concern.
I have Xtreme Pro 4, Xtreme 5, and Xtreme Pro 5 running on my Windows 7 32bit desktop and 64bit laptop systems. Every works well on both systems.