Xara on Mac?

[Steve Newport]

Can the new XaraX CD be installed on Macs, if not, is there any future plans on this. This question is because most all graphics & design agencies use Macs for there work, and I'm sure XaraX would be more popular if we extended it to all the platforms necessary, thanks for your help

Steve Newport

[Steve Newport]

Can the new XaraX CD be installed on Macs, if not, is there any future plans on this. This question is because most all graphics & design agencies use Macs for there work, and I'm sure XaraX would be more popular if we extended it to all the platforms necessary, thanks for your help

Steve Newport

[Eric]

good question Steve,

if XARA X was ported to Linux maybe it would be goodbye to crashes?......erm ok maybe not.

Are Macs as prolific as they once were in the graphics industry or are the PC's taking over the share? I am led to believe that $ for $ PC's are superior to macs...yes? no?

cheers
Eric

[Steve Newport]

I believe PC's are cheaper, but I guess it's an unwritten rule for the graphics industry that Macs are the way to go!? However, 3D applications are almost entirely PC spawned and used.

Steve Newport

[qmr]

I use macs and pcs here at the university where I work. I've spread the xara word around through work I've done thats seen, so we're getting education bundles of the program, and other faculties are waking up too. The devout scotsmen in my midst do look rather glum when I say that a mac version of xara is nigh impossible, and become incensed when I suggest they sully their eclesiastical hard drives with windows emulation software. Sigh. Computers are tools, not religious icons.. but I've spent some time warring with service bureaus (all mac) trying to get a fair suck of the sav (antique antipodean expression) when dealing with them. I'd get comments like "oh, we leave all the ibm pc (read=corel) files until the end of the week because they are done by amateurs and usually need extra time. Get Freehand, its the industry standard".

Hallelujiah web.. no need for service bureaus and their snobby imagesetters. Freudhand?? get a life!!

Q.
http://www.Qdesign.co.nz

[a4hire]

Maybe someone can enlighten me. In my few years experience of computers and graphics I have always heard about Macs being better for rendering graphics. Is this true? What is this based on? I have always had a PC, that is a windows based computer. I have no exposure to using a Mac or apple computer so I do not understand the differences. There are some good programs for UNIX/ Linux too. Does the operating system really make a difference ?

[qmr]

OS does matter..

When crashed, if I see a smiley face onscreen (or some cute disclaimer) I'm likely to hurl..
<font size="1">(.. computer, OS, EVERYTHING.. out the window)</font>

macs can be injurious to your health, equipment, career.

Q.

[Ross Macintosh]

I guess I *have* to reply to this thread seeing that I am a Macintosh! My first computer was a 8mhz MacSE - I still have it along with the first powermac (a 6100/66). These days the macs don't get turned on much. Sometimes my three year old turns on the MacSE and uses the clunky one-button mouse to locate and open the games he likes. The 6100 gets even less use.

At one time I was a Mac-addict. I was in love with a vector illustration program called 'Dream' which was a pumped up variation of the original MacDraw. (Little known fact: the guy who wrote MacDraw is the same guy who created EBay). I was probably one of just hundreds of users worldwide who used 'Dream'. It was a good intro for me to vector object-based illustration software.

I still like Macs but am happy using a pc. I find the biases of both camps too extreme. I have no doubt that the skills someone like Steve is developing using a pc will serve him well no matter which platform he ends up working with in the future. Sure, get enough exposure to macs now (before the job interviews) to see for yourself that they aren't that different. To me the platforms themselves aren't important, its the ability to use your brain to develop a illustration. Of course, the software you use can make things easier or harder. IMHO the operating system is even less important. A good designer like Gary could probably develop quite a nice illustration with a program as crude and limited as Microsoft Paint.

Although there are still many die-hard mac-based graphic design firms out there, I believe pc users aren't completely shut out. If it seems like the whole graphics world uses macs - open your eyes wider and expand your perspective. Thinking that macs dominate graphics is falling into a stereotype that doesn't reflect reality. There are so many different opportunities. The world is your oyster - go out and find some pearls.

Ultimately what matters most is not what school you went to, the style of clothes you wear, or the computer you use - it is how good you are. How good you are depends on *you*. Push yourself, absorb knowledge, seek out mentors, and, open your eyes wide and see the wonder of life itself.

Regards, Ross

<a href=http://www.designstop.com/>DesignStop.Com</a>

[This message was edited by Ross Macintosh on July 04, 2001 at 20:02.]

[roman]

I think the most important is the perfect and skilled user, not the perfect system.

I know that it's my mistake that I can't get used to pshop and "industry standard" illustrator. But since I've got Xara everything looks so dumb and inefficient to me. Where is the problem? Please is there any serious article comparing possibilities and efficiency of Xara X and "Industry standard software" ?
[img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_frown.gif[/img]

[gwpriester]

I suscribe to Macworld and have owned Macs in the past. I say this because in spite of what people tell you about Macs and how stable they are, they crash just as often and even more disasterously than Wintel computers.

In the early 90s there was not comparrison between the Mac and the PC. This is when most designers and design professionals began using computers. Apple had the smarts to give Macs to schools so when the kids got out of school what kind of computer did they want to work on?

Basically there is no difference between platforms anymore. The major applications are written for both platforms and the files can be inerexchanged betweeen platforms more or less seamlessly.

The main difference between platforms these days is perceptual. Most Mac users still think we on the Windows side type in commands at the C:/
prompt.

Finally, and Thomas will probably jump in and post this before I finish this long-winded rant, Xara X can run on a Mac using a Windows emulator and Windows 98. It would run better if there was a native version, but the last I heard, and this was years ago, the effort to convert Xara to the Mac would require a lot more manpower than Xara currently has so I don't think we will see a Mac version soon.

On the other hand, the Mac has almost become extinct, compared to the number of people using Windows-based computers.

And finally, to paraphrase an old saw in Playboy, circa 1960, it is not the size of the wand that puts the rabbit into the hat but the skill of the performer (whatever that means ;-)

Gary

Gary Priester

Moderator Person

Be It Sever So Humble...