Please help me turn off those big boxes and weird selection methods

Hi,

I can't find the post that allows you to unimprove and go back to working in the new improved xara DP latest. What the heck, guys? Anyway, against a big deadline. Please help.

Two problems - I can barely see the graphics for the selection outlines. (Does no one do precision work at Xara?!) How to turn off?

Also in previous version did we really have to rescale using only one corner. Spend half my life dragging around graphics so I can get the corner free to adjust.

I love Xara but it is driving me crazy.

Thanks for any help. x

Can't work out what is going on. Just updated to Dec and the corner handles for resizing seem to be working. It looks as though by accident when you select TWO bounding boxes are formed. What else explains the double circles in the corners. Also agree. Confusing to have a tool which rotates that uses the expand icon. Please please unimprove this. It is preventing working.

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Originally Posted by Artyboots

Hi,

I can't find the post that allows you to unimprove and go back to working in the new improved xara DP latest. What the heck, guys? Anyway, against a big deadline. Please help.

Two problems - I can barely see the graphics for the selection outlines. (Does no one do precision work at Xara?!) How to turn off?

Also in previous version did we really have to rescale using only one corner. Spend half my life dragging around graphics so I can get the corner free to adjust.

I love Xara but it is driving me crazy.

Thanks for any help. x

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is it post #5 here?:

https://www.talkgraphics.com/showthr...814#post631814

the new boundary boxes get some getting used to, and are badly implemented in places for mould tool and shape tool on bitmap

I wish their was a UI switch for this, I really need to work in both modes

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Originally Posted by handrawn

is it post #5 here?:

https://www.talkgraphics.com/showthr...814#post631814

the new boundary boxes get some getting used to, and are badly implemented in places for mould tool and shape tool on bitmap

I wish their was a UI switch for this, I really need to work in both modes

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Thank you so much. It looks to me like two boxes open. The little handles are doubled.

More annoying is I can no longer drag the page slider at the bottom to centre the graphics. Can still use the hand or the arrow keys but I miss that.

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Originally Posted by Artyboots

Thank you so much. It looks to me like two boxes open. The little handles are doubled.

More annoying is I can no longer drag the page slider at the bottom to centre the graphics. Can still use the hand or the arrow keys but I miss that.

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No idea what is happening now. After everything just about being usable, now text boxes won't scale. It is almost impossible to design. Have to use font size to change what I normally drag. Don't understand. It is really hard to know what is going on because the icon is wrong. All the corners show move. I have read the help and can't understand what I am doing wrong. I have had this program since 1995.

which version are you now using

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Originally Posted by handrawn

which version are you now using

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Hi. The regular ie desktop not the online. The 9 Dec update. I thought I would give these new corners a chance, so didn’t keep the blob removal,setting, but now struggling to resize rotate. I feel like the program is gaslighting me. It was ok earlier. Very time consuming having to scale via the measurements.

It’s been rebooted plenty but no reinstall. Have a deadline so can’t really experiment. Just have to do what the program wants. Hope you got sorted.

Ali

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Originally Posted by Artyboots

Hi. The regular ie desktop not the online. The 9 Dec update. I thought I would give these new corners a chance, so didn’t keep the blob removal,setting, but now struggling to resize rotate. I feel like the program is gaslighting me. It was ok earlier. Very time consuming having to scale via the measurements.

It’s been rebooted plenty but no reinstall. Have a deadline so can’t really experiment. Just have to do what the program wants. Hope you got sorted.

Ali

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yes but what version? XDPGD, XDP, 17 or what?

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Originally Posted by wizard509

yes but what version? XDPGD, XDP, 17 or what?

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My first message in the thread said XDP - the latest ie 9 nov update.

See this response from Eva-K https://www.talkgraphics.com/showthr...436#post628436

This registry change turns off the new "blob" handle settings.

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Originally Posted by Artyboots

Hi,
Two problems - I can barely see the graphics for the selection outlines. (Does no one do precision work at Xara?!) How to turn off?
Also in previous version did we really have to rescale using only one corner. Spend half my life dragging around graphics so I can get the corner free to adjust.

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I can just about manage with the new UI and I am able to work with and around it without too much bother.
I agree it is overwhelming most of the objects I need to work with.

I use a mix of changing the Zoom, shifting in and out of Outline View Quality and Solo mode.

For the other, I suspect you have not noticed the Show selection bound handles icon that toggles the smart UI when using the Selector tool with images.
When selected, all four corners can be dragged to resize.

You can also use the mid-controls (carefully) and double-click any to recover a full image if cropped by accident.

Acorn

I just cannot use the new blobs, smart selection feature. It makes it almost impossible to position one object next to another without having to select, deselect, select, etc. I like the idea of what they are doing but the execution makes it harder not easier to do the things I do every day.

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Originally Posted by gwpriester

I just cannot use the new blobs, smart selection feature. It makes it almost impossible to position one object next to another without having to select, deselect, select, etc. I like the idea of what they are doing but the execution makes it harder not easier to do the things I do every day.

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I completely agree, Gary. I wanted to like it. But you can’t see anything. Who thought by oblongs would be better than squares, anyway? I really rely on the former little squares in the middle of graphics, particularly, as a very quick alignment tool.Yesterday I had to work like I used to in the long distant past. There is no precision in the new tool because of the thickness of the lines and the fact that it isn’t actually working anyway. I’ve actually had to use the nudge feature in order to get any precision. And I resort to the measurements to change size. Not good. I think it will be an enhancement, but only if it’s re-designed to be very refined – and not so thick, cludgy, fashionable etc. Going to be very honest here, because I care about Xara. But you can’t market Xara as a high end graphics program, but present it as a tool for new users or children. If everything gets dumbed down then we can’t meet the needs of our clients. While I’m here, I also object to the thick, blue dotted borders. I like my bounding boxes subtle, thin, and not bright blue.

A

But BIG is better LOL ;))

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Originally Posted by gwpriester

I just cannot use the new blobs, smart selection feature. It makes it almost impossible to position one object next to another without having to select, deselect, select, etc. I like the idea of what they are doing but the execution makes it harder not easier to do the things I do every day.

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I think the current UI presentation needs a lot of work but I have no real problem and I am working to really exact dimensions and positioning.

I have just reworked my "Impossible Cubes" this afternoon and they are now on the button: http://www.acornucopia.space/Play%20area/.

Acorn

Nice play, Acorn. What else is in that play area?

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Originally Posted by Artyboots

I like my bounding boxes subtle, thin, and not bright blue

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he bounding boxes are hashed with white #ffffff and blue #5693cf

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Originally Posted by Boy

Nice play, Acorn. What else is in that play area?

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I've just bought the domain (acornucopia.space) and I was going to make it my repository.

I want to integrate Xara with WordPress, WordPress with Xara and throw in oodles of MarkDown to make it interactive and full of goodies.

Acorn

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Originally Posted by Acorn

I've just bought the domain (acornucopia.space) and I was going to make it my repository.

I want to integrate Xara with WordPress, WordPress with Xara and throw in oodles of MarkDown to make it interactive and full of goodies.

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Is that still play? ;-)

I'm looking forward to the goodies. If you manage to integrate all three platforms and make the combo user friendly, you might have created yourself a profitable new business.

Here’s an interesting thing. I quite like the new tool even though it’s a bit if a mess. I missed it when I turned it off. If improved I think it could be ok. Xx

If the ant line is thinner it will help much