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Bouton's Xara Stuff: Volume 3
Wow, if this wasn't art I'm posting I could be arrested for littering.
I might come back to this sometime in the future to fix a microbe here and there, but I feel it's ready for Prime Time, and ready to share.
Voila, a reproduction of one of the earliest Mason's emblem.
Attachment 125186
What I used for reference, and what I painstaking tried to reproduce in Xara. The file is attached here for you to see, use, awe at and so on.
What drew me to the emblem wasn't that it's found atop Masonic Temples, but that it's ornate while still being genuinely American.
At the time of the formation of the Mason's, it was called a "secret society" and speculated that it was a satanic cult.
Um, that is a load of ▒▒▒▒. The Masons began as a brotherhood of builders, masons. And it was a time in America when there were no unions, and masons, like railroad workers and farmers were put upon, abused. So the Masons created a secret UNION, so Union busters would not discover them organizing and bartering.
In fact, The Masons are indeed a Christian group: The emblem has an eye at center, the All-Seeing Eye (God's eye), surrounded by a three sided polygon, representing the Holy Trinity. These guys were one of the first groups to admit People of color among their ranks, and just as prompt to include women sometime mid-20th Century.
Okay, I should try not to wax poetic over a fraternal group. I was never in a fraternity back in college because I fit in precisely nowhere socially.
I'll be back with more drawings after I draw them.
Enjoy and cheers!
Attachment 125188
Gary
(not shown at actual size)
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Re: Bouton's Xara Stuff: Volume 3
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Re: Bouton's Xara Stuff: Volume 3
You're most welcome, Mike.
Now I created this in sections, progressively using a Boolean operation to make the thing one, big, probably unwieldy piece.
Anyone and everyone should feel free to Break Shapes, sent the largest piece to Back, give it a new light colorm and then knock yourselves out, figuratively, recoloring the interior of the emblem drawing.
Then Ctrl+A, then Ctrl+G because why not?
Oh, here's an oldie but mouldie I designed a good 10 years ago. This book was completely written, but at the very last moment, Microsoft totally changed the features and interface. No way Wiley and I could do day and date, I busted severely to both write the book (and do screen captures) and design the cover.
Attachment 125190
I DID get to play with the beta and it was a killer upgrade to Creature House Expressions 2. None of the killer features made it to the final shipping, Microsoft as always screwed up a graphics program and then gave it away for free, and about the only good thing about the 4 month adventure was getting paid for a book not published, and getting up to speed with the program. I took a liking to it after immersing myself in it.
So WHY am I posting this book cover here? Because the program wasn't fully functional as we worked toward our deadlines, so I used Xara to draw most of the cover and lay it out.
Wouldn't I make a great sniveling sidekick to a villain in cartoons?
-g
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Re: Bouton's Xara Stuff: Volume 3
Nice reproduction on the Mason's image Gary, especially from that old image.
The book cover looks good also.
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Re: Bouton's Xara Stuff: Volume 3
Eons ago, I posted some hand-made icons, and I'm now back with 12 more.
I made those and these because largely, icons created by engineers suck.
Icons are little pieces odf art and most of us are little pieces of artists.
I have no idea what that meant, sorry.
Anyhow, if you care to guess what programs or commands or files the icons represent, go ahead and post here.
Attachment 125588
Attachment 125589
—Gary
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Re: Bouton's Xara Stuff: Volume 3
I could guess at 2 or 3 maybe 4 but mostly I have no idea. the one I could guess at are transparency, clipview or cutout, security, slippery or slick floor, sleep mode. I am probably wrong on all counts but that's my guess on some of them.
thanks Gare
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Re: Bouton's Xara Stuff: Volume 3
Hey, Larry" it's the voyage, not the destination!~ Thank you for contribution!
I'll reveal my intentions for each icon, one day at a time:
Attachment 125593
You were vary close, aside from receipts, I keep all graphics files and photos in this folder. And I back it up much more often than other folders!
ii to go!
By Best,
Gary
Attachment 125594
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Re: Bouton's Xara Stuff: Volume 3
I like them, Gare. I can guess some. I'll wait in anticipation. It's like opening one of those Christmas calendars.
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Re: Bouton's Xara Stuff: Volume 3
I'm flattered that you'd compare ANY of my work to an advent calendar
I hope you enjoy them; they are 100% Xara vectors, not bitmaps so editing is a breeze.
And if anyone doesn't have a bitmap exporter to ICO, I'd do it for you. Actually, Xara can do this, no?
.
Never tried. I've used Icon Lover since it first came out in 1934.
Attachment 125607
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Re: Bouton's Xara Stuff: Volume 3
Quote:
Originally Posted by
gray
I like them, Gare. I can guess some. I'll wait in anticipation. It's like opening one of those Christmas calendars.
Yeah, me too.
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Re: Bouton's Xara Stuff: Volume 3
Hi Gary,
this is my first choice in my mind
Attachment 125613
igor
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Re: Bouton's Xara Stuff: Volume 3
Like Rik frequently does, here's a challenge for fellow Xarists.
Unlike Rik, this competition sucks.
Here goes: I found a free image of what appears to be a rendered model of a 1`950's type rocket ship.
The second or third thing I noticed about it, was that a rendering of this in Xara could easily replace the bitmap version here.
Attachment 125804
I think it would mage great practice on using to9ols you've ignored until now. At left here, I've begun the body, which required feathering and blend steps because there is no gradient that would imitate the slow fade from outside to in.
Why not?
My Best,
Gary
Attachment 125806
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Re: Bouton's Xara Stuff: Volume 3
Ahoj, Gary,
možno 50 krokov je lepšie, pretože 14
samozrejme pracuje pre jednoduché tvary,
ale ani zďaleka nie je nástrojom siete :)
Igor
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Re: Bouton's Xara Stuff: Volume 3
Good one, Gare. A fun exercise. Hope this is what you wanted.
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Oh, ricket ship, Oh rocket ship...
NOICE!
But the payoff isn't my critique or direction: it's yours, you created it, darn, but you're good!
All I did was find the image! :)
Attachment 125817
My Best,
Gary
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3D shapes drawn using XD
I was rummaging through some clipping in a folder I didn't even realize was on a drive, and discovered a small, blurry, low-res clip of some shapes. Not usable for anything except an eye chart, so I recreated them:
Attachment 126148
I think they make cool, graphic icons and text stuff like ornaments for call-out quotes.
And I see no reason to keep 'em to myself. See attached.
Mods: I'm not posting them on the ClipArt area, because no one visits there. I'm serious—look at the lack of hits the last time I posted there.
Attachment 126150
My Best,
Gary
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Re: 3D shapes drawn using XD
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Gare
I'm serious—look at the lack of hits the last time I posed there.
Therein lies the answer, it was your pose!
Acorn
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Re: 3D shapes drawn using XD
Those are interesting shapes, Gare.
Thanks.
Few people seem to draw anything on these graphic sites anymore. I guess everyone is playing on their phones. It's too bad, one just doesn't seem to see the interest now.More than a few have closed shop and gone.
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Re: 3D shapes drawn using XD
Funny guy, acorn.
You want my job? :)
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Re: 3D shapes drawn using XD
There's a clipart forum!?
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Re: 3D shapes drawn using XD
Sad, but true, Graham.
But sad.
Physical users groups gave way to forums, to social media. Post a bad photo rather than a profound reply to friends.
Tech has become a consumptive device for far too many. Yeah, mobile devices, mostly phones. More than 50% of phone users text. A very small percentage of owners use the phone to make and receive calls. Our nephew felt email was too slow and too much of a hassle, so he didn't replay to us when Barbara's dad was too old to drive and the car plates needed turning in.
He also didn't see the purpose in owning a workstation. So I showed him how I create animations and he told me he could see all the animations he wants on YouTube.
He's 23, BTW.
Okay, it's lamentable, in the literal sense of the word. It's not a pity, it's not a shame, it really doesn't affect me that no one will download free stuff crafted by real artists on TG.
I can't fight the entirety of our culture.
Not until someone is really, deeply hurt when someone tells them they aren't curious enough, and lack imagination.
[/ end rant]
Attachment 126152
My best impression an archetypal Olde Phart: You damned kids get off my lawn!!!
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Re: 3D shapes drawn using XD
Thanks Gary,
I think I can find some use for these.
Ray
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Re: 3D shapes drawn using XD
You're welcome and here is one link to the Clipart forum that has my LOVE iconic design as a giveaway:
download LOVE Xara filoe
-g
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Ampersands. 44 in fact.
This is more of a Clipart gift rather than a neat Gary Drawing.
But I drew it in Xara, I use it in Xara so tough ░░░░ ... darts :)
Attachment 126165
I either auto-traced copies of materials or drew each one by hand. I did not break a glyph out of any existing fonts.
The locked text descriptors (converted to curves) either reference from which font I "adopted" where applicable, or I suggest a typeface that will work well with a specific ampersand glyph.
Get inspired!
Attachment 126166
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Re: Ampersands. 44 in fact.
That's a very nice collection, Gare, and it's most gracious of you to share it here. Thank you!
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Re: Ampersands. 44 in fact.
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Re: Ampersands. 44 in fact.
You're welcome, folks—
Clipart is something that's pretty lame not to share. I get freemiums and freeware fonts and photography all over the web, and I'm just trying to balance the scales a little, as it were.
And to drum up a little ▓▓▓▓▓ traffic, because otherwise, tg is getting BOR-ING. 🌞
-g
Attachment 126167
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Re: Ampersands. 44 in fact.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Gare
And to drum up a little ▓▓▓▓▓ traffic, because otherwise, tg is getting BOR-ING.
It's boring because Xara is failing us in not engaging and assuaging concerns about its products, its direction and support. Rob-Xar does a great front act but without the rest of the cast showing up, all we see are curtains, metaphorical and literal.
I want the products to sing so true artists and designers can focus on their craft. Web presentation is a necessary adjunct as without the mechanism, all the art in the world would become niche.
Acorn
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Re: 3D shapes drawn using XD
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Gare
...Not until someone is really, deeply hurt when someone tells them they aren't curious enough, and lack imagination....
only a small percentage of the population have a truely creative imagination... when you think about it that makes sense, if all had one it would no longer be 'creative', it would be the norm
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Re: 3D shapes drawn using XD
Thanks for sharing Gary much appreciated.
Ray
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Re: 3D shapes drawn using XD
Thanks Gary, you're a generous man.
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Re: Ampersands. 44 in fact.
For me, acorn, I've tried to find a suitable backup program if MAGIX manages to sink Xara...have not found one.
Xara's not the only game in town, but I cannot throw away an investment of decades getting comfortable and productive. Moreover, I wrote a tutorial on how to do something I felt was not demanding, and I discovered Affinity Designer doesn't have Blends or Contours, Inkscape—admirably cobbled—is missing a few shape manipulation features, Illustrator doesn't have a color-tagging feature, CorelDRAW, in addition to being expensive and on a subscription plan...I could go on.
But won't.
Hey, I gave away some neat ampersands and really don't want to start lamenting over the very program I used to organize and refine the ampersands.
And I realize I started it.
My Best,
Gary
Attachment 126212
(Here's a good one for St. Valentine's Day)
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Re: Ampersands. 44 in fact.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Gare
For me, acorn, I've tried to find a suitable backup program if MAGIX manages to sink Xara...have not found one.
Gare, insightful as ever.
My backup solution is to keep my Xara Desktop applications accessible through their version 11 invocation as I don't think Magix or Xara can sink them as the Cloud linkage is nebulous.
Acorn
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Happy Birthday in Stained Glass
I forget the exact features, but I have version 16, all four of them I think (!) installed. And because Xara takes up so little hard disk space, and because you can but a 7TB drive for $100 here in the States, I leave several version on my system.
This card required I use Xara Designer, Photoshop, ArtRage, Corel Painter, and about 3 days of work.
Attachment 126214
Because it's my spouse Barbara's birthday!
Happy, Happy when you find this post, darling!
xoxox,
Gary
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Re: Ampersands. 44 in fact.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Gare
Gart
Gare, hijacking the alphabet too: Gary, Gare & Gart - the YET Triplets.
You did overlook a few useful metrics in your creation of that wonderful stained glass - innate talent and years of practice.
Acorn
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Re: Ampersands. 44 in fact.
my backup plan is to keep xara ver 11 and hope whatever direction the company goes they will say afloat so i will always have access to it
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Re: Ampersands. 44 in fact.
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Who put the X in Xara? :)
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Acorn
Gare, hijacking the alphabet too: Gary, Gare & Gart - the YET Triplets.
You did overlook a few useful metrics in your creation of that wonderful stained glass - innate talent and years of practice.
Acorn
I do not understand math in the least; that's why I use a computer. I expect metrics is a shortcoming across the board, in this instance a draughting board. :)
"Gart" is a mistyping of "Gary"; the T being next to the Y, on my keyboard at least.
I'm not being defensive (not, NOT, NOT!!!) but I do know how to spell, but I never learned how to type. I can hunt and peck with the best of them; when I received my first contract to write a book, and totally oblivious to the art of typing, I think Barbara and I shared several bottles that night!
Here is something I designed especially for my Desktop.
I'm probably alone in my hate, hate, HATE for the XD desktop icon. I've always felt there was some mysterious power to the character X.
I've also always believed TV works because there's little people inside it.
Attachment 126217
The design scales well to a 64 by 64 pixel size, as you can see at right here; I put the Taskbar vertically on my Desktop and you can see a custom toolbar featuring the icon.
Download it if you like, to see its simplicity, or use it as I've done. The text can be removed and it's curves, not text. The font is called Merlin Hand from Linotype.
Have a good beginning of the week!
Gary
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Happy Easter 2020
Easter is NOT called off. The way you can celebrate it and not die has just been modified a little!
Celebrate it in your hearts. You are blessed, you are connected.
Most of all, love yourself this Easter. There's only one of you, so #StayInside
Attachment 126761
Attachment 126762
My Best,
g-