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Expiration of Designer Pro
I've just received notification that in a few days I will no longer receive updates for the software, DesignerPro three hundred and whatever.. Okay, I know that what I've got will continue to work just as it currently does but I've no intention of paying £140 without any indication of what future benefits I may, or may not, get in the form of updates in the next twelve months. I can't remember a single update that has exactly thrilled me over the last year and certainly no drawing updates, which is my main area of interest. Is everyone else but me updating or waiting?
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
Looking at the design improvements over the year (marked in red on the what's new page) it adds up to quite a lot of small enhancements. The biggy for me was the contents generation. Do I trust there will be enough in the coming year? Answer is, I don't know. I may wait and see.
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
maybye anyone know or saw future plans / roadmap for XD pro?
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
Hello Simon
Xara is always very quiet about new features. So with the exception of a few full time Xara employees who answer technical questions here, none of the members or volunteer moderators know any more than you do. :O
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
thnx for reply
its strange in present days, but ok maybye they like do suprises so much :)
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
The price I was quoted to upgrade was 99 pounds or $129, I went ahead and upgraded, especially as I use the Xara web space.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
masque
I've just received notification that in a few days I will no longer receive updates for the software, DesignerPro three hundred and whatever.. Okay, I know that what I've got will continue to work just as it currently does but I've no intention of paying £140 without any indication of what future benefits I may, or may not, get in the form of updates in the next twelve months. I can't remember a single update that has exactly thrilled me over the last year and certainly no drawing updates, which is my main area of interest. Is everyone else but me updating or waiting?
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
You are paying for the new features and content that came out since you paid a year ago, i.e. to lock it all in, and you get an advance on what will come out over the next year. You will pay to lock in what comes out over the next year, if and when you pay again next year. If you don't like or use what came out over the last year, then don't renew. Just remember, if you have to reinstall, what you will have will be whatever the state was when you last paid, and you get to keep any new content that you downloaded. Also, you will no longer have access to on-line content, so you better have downloaded everything that you want. This has all been explained ad nauseum and is well-explained on the Xara site. So why is this so hard to understand?
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
I've been a user since the very first version on Acorn and bought every update since, the latest one being DesignerProX365. I was a little reluctant because I don't like to pay for things I have yet to see, but the promise sounded fine so I subscribed to the first automatic annual increase (which is just about to expire).
My expectation was for loads and loads of new graphics in the "Online Content Catalogue". But I've found that really disappointing and today was the final straw. I was looking for an image of a car I could use, and entered 'car' in the search for Photos and got nothing. Then I tried Illustrations, same again. So I tried 'Vehicle' in Photos as well as illustrations, again zero. That's pretty much how it has been for the last 12 months since I updated.
Also, there's been very little in terms of useful (for me at least) updates. I'm a designer but also do lots of photo selection and edits. If I go directly to free sources like Flickr etc. and enter 'car' I get loads of stuff. I was really hoping this would at least consolidate all that in the interface - then I would be happy. But right now, I can't see any point in continuing with the payments - unless anyone here knows if I'm doing something wrong (eg. if you type 'car' or 'vehicle' into the photo or illustration section of the online catalogue, do you get anything?).
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
I'm not a Designer Pro user (just a P&GD365 user who doesn't use the catalogue content much) but when my update guarantee expires, I shall wait. It seems you either have to take advantage of the initial discount, or wait, then pay the full upgrade price later (and probably utter a few offensive words).
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
if you click on the renew button in the program you should find you are taken to an offer page for renewal at £99.... I was
but I won't be doing it
I shall revert to ver 11 and stay there - there will be usefull updates for me, but they won't be for this program...
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
Quote:
Originally Posted by
browj2
You are paying for the new features and content that came out since you paid a year ago, i.e. to lock it all in, and you get an advance on what will come out over the next year. You will pay to lock in what comes out over the next year, if and when you pay again next year. If you don't like or use what came out over the last year, then don't renew. Just remember, if you have to reinstall, what you will have will be whatever the state was when you last paid, and you get to keep any new content that you downloaded. Also, you will no longer have access to on-line content, so you better have downloaded everything that you want. This has all been explained ad nauseum and is well-explained on the Xara site. So why is this so hard to understand?
+1
Users do not seem to understand they already have next year's upgrades, which they may have been seduced to use and so are tied in already.
Bowing out now loses on-line access. Yes, download everything you can but Xara has altered the base application by removing the Find capability.
Canny users can always resurrect Version 11 as it still can access its On-line Content Catalogue; this sadly has no Find but V11 itself has!
Acorn
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Acorn
+1
Canny users can always resurrect Version 11 as it still can access its On-line Content Catalogue; this sadly has no Find but V11 itself has!
Acorn
Awesome, thanks Acorn :) I also discovered that the reason the online content wasn't finding results for simple terms like 'car' etc. was that PixaBay were updating their search engine.
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
Not sure what went wrong I replied but has not appeared, my fault as not realy concentrating at the moment.
I have kept all the old vector drawings in a seperate folder that I can do a find on and the transport section has nearly 200 items including the old red mini.
So it is possible to extract the contents into a seperated folder.
I am of the age where I am not sure I will be upgrading and as the other person said have done so since the first software for the Acorn computer.
I would like to see improvments to the word processing so that it can replace Impression on the acorn computer and Ovation Pro on the PC which also came from the Acorn.
Is there a discount for loyalty??
Peter
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
Quote:
Originally Posted by
handrawn
I shall revert to ver 11 and stay there...
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Acorn
Canny users can always resurrect Version 11 as it still can access its On-line Content Catalogue; this sadly has no Find but V11 itself has!
..exactly...
until magix/xara change the rules once again....
oh and by:
Quote:
...there will be usefull updates for me, but they won't be for this program...
I mean, of course, useful updates in programs that are not magix/xara...
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
This thread just goes to show what a complete and utter lash-up the whole Magix/Xara business model is.
The confusion that has been caused over the past year or so is completely understandable.
The "improvements" that are supposedly worth the cost of upgrading have been underwhelming at best.
Things that are being sold as "must have" are anything but.
The fear factor of missing out on these benefits and the exorbitant prices being charged defy belief.
And to think Xara used to be a fine product back in the day. They have sold their souls to the devil.
Shame.
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
here are two quotes from the xara website:
Quote:
Don't let your software get in the way of your creativity!
nope surely won't be doing that :D... I'll be using software I can rely on in the future...
Quote:
You will have access to these new features and content as we develop them, rather than waiting up to a year for our next annual release*. Which means you can keep up with the latest trends in web and graphic design!
latest trends?... in graphic design?... where? ... even the ligature stuff is hardly up to date or fully implemented...
polite words fail me...
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
Quote:
Originally Posted by
handrawn
latest trends?... in graphic design?... where? ... even the ligature stuff is hardly up to date or fully implemented...
polite words fail me...
"By 2001 hundreds of OpenType fonts were on the market." (Wikipedia) ... that's 16 years late by my reckoning! >:)
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Peter Prewett
I would like to see improvments to the word processing so that it can replace Impression on the acorn computer and Ovation Pro on the PC which also came from the Acorn.
Is there a discount for loyalty??Peter
Peter, been asked before and ignored. Why do you think I use the sobriquet Acorn? (Ans: purely to tug Xara's heartstrings. Fail!)
Acorn
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
I am now getting the early notice to upgrade XDPX as shown below.
Attachment 118184
This works out to about 167 CAD.
On the Magix.com site:¨
Page & Layout Designer 11 is being offered for 90 CAD - Note version 11, not 12
On Xara.com they are selling the same program for 90 USD or 117 CAD
but the price to upgrade from 9 or 10 to 11 is 20 USD or 26 CAD
Looks like there is no version 12 except within XDPX.
Photo & Graphics Designer
On Magix.com it is on sale for 50 CAD and they include Photo Manager 16 Deluxe and PC Check as a bonus
but they want 60 USD on Xara.com
Upgrade price for this on Xara.com is 30 USD (39 CAD) before expiry, or 40 USD after expiry.
Web Designer Premium
On Magix.com is on sale for 70 CAD and includes bonuses of PC Check & Tuning, Fastcut, Photo Manager Deluxe
On Xara.com, is 50 USD (65 CAD) with no bonuses,
update is 45 USD (58 CAD) before expiry, 65 USD after expiry
Finally, Designer Pro X (XDPX):
New - Magix.com = 299 CAD
Xara.com = 299 USD, cannot get a price to renew like I did with the others. It asks to log in and still the only thing that I can do is buy a new version. So, the only way is to reply to the screen from the message that pops up in Xara DPX.
If I had the individual products, I could upgrade each for a total of:
0 CAD for P&L because there is no new version 12, but say the upgrade price of 26 CAD for the sake of argument
39 CAD for P&GD
58 CAD for Web Designer Premium (including Xara hosting)
Total: 123 CAD vs the 167 CAD that they want to charge me.
I do believe that they are overcharging for the renewal.
On the other hand, at the rates that I charge, just doing the above research and writing it up was time (and money) wasted.
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
WARNING!
I just accepted the update, put in the payment information and below is the last screen:
Attachment 118195
So I went back to the last screen, input my credit card information, next, and got the same 505 screen. A definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over, expecting a different outcome. Since I have been trying to cure myself of this, I didn't do it a third time and instead checked my credit card account only to find that I now had two identical Xara charges against it. As one other user had pointed out, the payment went through even though there was an error screen at the end. I should have paid more attention. Now I have to raise a ticket with Xara to get a refund.
For anyone else doing this, only do it once.
That said, the process is a letdown because you don't actually get anything tangible. I much preferred the Magix Video Pro X renewal where they gave me some new add-ons.
John
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
Totally agree. It's more enjoyable to renew my telephone subscription than having to fork over money for a service such as a search function that used to be part of the program itself or for contents that I already have in my 'possession.' It's a pretty crazy scheme, for the customer, that is.
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Boy
Totally agree. It's more enjoyable to renew my telephone subscription than having to fork over money for a service such as a search function that used to be part of the program itself or for contents that I already have in my 'possession.' It's a pretty crazy scheme, for the customer, that is.
I agree. It is unfair and morally wrong.
Bob.
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
Quote:
Originally Posted by
browj2
WARNING!
I just accepted the update, put in the payment information and below is the last screen:
Thanks for sharing that screen, I had the same at re-newing the Xara Designer Pro 365 subscription, because in that way it is general an happens also for others. Inspite of that it takes the money from the card and works, just a bit looks amateur.
Last year the Magnetic Lasso worth the upgrade for me, if in this year will be such inspirative improvement somewhere, then I will be satisfied. Finally I like Designer Pro and will not learn other program, Blender has enough learning curve for me to spend that time :D
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
I noticed that there was a June update to Photo & Graphics Designer that has not made it through to Designer Pro yet. It may be worth taking a look for those who are renewing and wondering if there is anything coming soon.
Amongst other improvements there is:
Ligature Support
Many modern OpenType fonts include typographical ligatures, which allow sequences of consecutive characters in text to be displayed with a single glyph. These are now supported in Photo & Graphic Designer, and they can be used to improve the legibility and presentation of text and to introduce stylistic flourishes.
John
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
ligature support was added to dessigner pro 365 in March 2017 - as mentioned on the what's new page beneath text handling, to the left of other text enhancements, here: http://www.xara.com/uk/designer-pro/whats-new/ - and same description as you quote for P&G
sadly it seems it's pretty basic in it's implementation from a typographical point of view [in both programs] - Bob and I mentioned that in passing in posts #16 and #17 above ;)
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
Quote:
Originally Posted by
handrawn
ligature support was added to dessigner pro 365 in March 2017 - as mentioned on the what's new page beneath text handling, to the left of other text enhancements, here:
http://www.xara.com/uk/designer-pro/whats-new/ - and same description as you quote for P&G
sadly it seems it's pretty basic in it's implementation from a typographical point of view [in both programs] - Bob and I mentioned that in passing in posts #16 and #17 above ;)
Hi,
Thanks for correcting me. I was assuming, incorrectly, that the new features first appear in the individual products, and then later in Designer Pro. I have since taken a look at both and it seems that new features can come first in one or the other, which makes it a little harder to follow.
John
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
under the old system, Designer Pro was the last in the annual cycle to be released, therefore last to get the features [usually]... but under 365 there is no annual release cycle [just an annual licence cycle per user] and so I guess the priorites have changed in respect of which program gets what first :)
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
Quote:
Originally Posted by
handrawn
ligature support was added to dessigner pro 365 in March 2017...sadly it seems it's pretty basic in it's implementation from a typographical point of view [in both programs] - Bob and I mentioned that in passing in posts #16 and #17 above ;)
But it is the only application I have that has implemented using human-readable names for stylistic sets as of yet...
So there is that.
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
I guess for the target market that will be good ;)
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
That capability will be nice in whatever application chooses to support it.
I mean, I have one font with 33 stylistic sets. Which is easier to know ahead of time:
Stylistic Set 4
Or,
End of Word Swashes
Mike
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
no argument with that mike... it's just interesting, and historically in keeping, that xara should have given that sort of thing priority as an implementation feature, didn't mean to imply it was a bad thing....
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
It is actually "easy" to implement. Windows can pass that information along with the rest of the font info. It's a matter of pushing that info into the variable.
It came about from me making a casual comment of "too bad XDP cannot display the human readable names" type of thing. Next thing I know, it's in the release.
As far as I can see, the basic implementation of these two OT Features has been implemented in a basic manner--if these features (ligatures & stylistic sets) make use of contextual look-ups, they fail to work. But to be fair, ID still cannot fully utilize certain contextual look-ups either. QXP can to a certain extent. Of what I have and use only CD and AD can truly use full OT Features. Even AD has an issue with certain features, like small caps/all caps (CD doesn't). It's not that they do not work, it's just that a certain person convinced the person implementing these features at Serif how they should work, which is technically incorrect (non-separable).
It's all a work in progress for every company. Some are just further down the implementation path than others are. Xara got an extremely late start in the OT Feature support. But if they choose to add some new support as they go back and work on existing support with each iteration, they can at least surpass Adobe products in a few years...if the will to do so is there.
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
yes xara is like that if they can help, they will - long ago I asked for a means to supress node visability when drawing in the freehand tool - it never made it to the UI, but a registry fix was made available and is still there
but that was years ago - there is still no fill an un-enclosed space tool; still no colour to transparency ramp - I sincerely hope you do not end up waiting years for the typography requirements that you would like...
to save time I started using other apps that can do the things I need in one go, and now I mostly only come back to mark up the pages [in the artistic sense] 'cos the UI is really great for that with soft grouping etc
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
$129 for the renewal... Up from $99 how it used to be.
Is it worth it? Tough one...
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
Perspective. Went out for supper and show at the Jazz Festival last night. Took along a 35$ bottle of wine to a BYOB restaurant. Supper was 100+tip$.
The wine was good, but which lasts longer, the Xara upgrade? Or the bottle of wine?
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
Quote:
Originally Posted by
browj2
Perspective. Went out for supper and show at the Jazz Festival last night. Took along a 35$ bottle of wine to a BYOB restaurant. Supper was 100+tip$.
The wine was good, but which lasts longer, the Xara upgrade? Or the bottle of wine?
A closer to the point perspective.
If one doesn't need web stuff, a software by another company is sub $50 and it will not take too much longer for it to be more capable in a broader sense than XDP. It's already more capable for most of what I make. Whenever their layout software hits the market, it will be far more capable than the seemingly defunct Page & Layout Xara application.
It's past time that Xara gut their product lineup and reconsider their pricing structure.
Dinner and entertainment it ain't. For me it's a livelihood.
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
I agree with mike
all I do with xara can be done in affinity which is a lot cheaper - I still much prefer the xara UI, but the more I use affinity the more I get used to it.. and the UI features of XDPX11/12 are still fine for me,, no reason at all to upgrade any further, and I don't see any stuff coming down the line to pull me back - it really would have to be something significant that was not covered elsewhere...
on the subject of dinner - that's not really relevant to me either - I might as well trade dinner against theatre [which for me is work related], or holiday against a new garden shed [which is another ongoing investment] - what matters is the overall expenditure budget, and xara does not fit in the moment [I hope you did enjoy the wine at 35 a bottle bought out though - city prices I assume :)]
@dutchim it should be offered at 99 when you get close to the end of your renewal - but maybe xara have not done the right thing in only offering this from within the program upfront ? - on that basis too late for me now, I bought on the 4th last year and it is now the 5th - I shall install xdpx365 fresh later and see what exactly it is that I still get ... :D
EDIT - now I am directed from the porgram link to an upgrade of 139 as I expected.... wil reinstall later...and before I do that... just to note that clicking on the design gallery 'more online' buttons, or the 'content catalogue' takes me straight to the upgrade page at 139 as well...
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
thinking further on this bottle of wine comparison.....
last time I bought 'expensive' wine was back end of last year in Central Liverpool - Chateau Pape... in the resturant 23.95 GBP a bottle - I can only assume if you are paying more you are in a high cost of living area, with wages to match... I might pay more in London, but not in the north of england... not willingly, I'd be going into the wrong sort of places...
you can't expect xara to adjust their prices on this basis of regional variation... but I think affinity have a better grasp of the realities ;)
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
Going slightly more off-topic, for which I apologise, 15 years ago when I still lived in the UK I would expect to pay £10.00 or so for 3 bottles of halfway decent wine in a high street chain of off-licences. Today it is still like going back in time as I can pop in to any Día supermarket and pick up a bottle of Marques de Caceres Crianza for €7.45. I'm neither gloating not pitying, it's just the way it is.
Software companies can (and do) charge what they like and I imagine that Magix/Xara have taken a hit with their Xara product range, which is exorbitantly priced. Karma, payback, you can call it what you like, but the customer is still king and will vote with their feet, (if I'm using mixed metaphors, please forgive me) and the result will benefit only Serif in the short to medium term.
Magix/Xara can do as they please, but the rumblings of discontent are increasing on TG and before too long there will be just tumbling tumbleweeds and web comments.
The only good thing to arise from this self-inflicted debacle of their own making is that Xara/Magix can concentrate on software for dummies, whilst the rest of us can stick with the iteration of the software that we have paid for and get our improvements from Affinity. It's not exactly Win/Win, but I will settle for that.
Bob.
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Re: Expiration of Designer Pro
At least they could have offered some new features to make the transition to this 365 sc*m,sorry scheme,more tolerable.
But even that isn't do-able.
Price increase should relate to feature increase,not third party blabla
@Bob,you're right,merely software for dummies.
Hans