Tracing in Xtreme

[earwig]

Wonderful thing about the net: you query one thing and you get a solution for another. I'd never heard of the VM site, and you're right; it really can generate remarkable traces. I'd like to use those algorithms to vectorize and enlarge preliminary drawings made from photos done with a tiny Canon Elph I carry around on my belt. However, I can't get Xtreme 2.0e to import or show either the .eps or the format with the suffix .svg. (Xara seems to import the .eps, but the screen stays blank) Can you folks help?

Earwig

[Soquili]

I don't believe Xtreme supported svg until version 3. But my memory isn't as good as it used to be. Version 3.2.4 is the current version.

For eps files they should be compatible with Illustrator version 7 or 8. The newer versions will not import into Xtreme.

If you open an eps file with a text editor you can find out the version. The attached shows the data in an eps file.

[handrawn]

xar wont import svg yet [it only has an export filter for svg - still at early stage]

I use inkscape to convert svg to pdf, which is ok for xtremepro

[earwig]

Sorry to be so dense, but I take these last two responses to mean that I can't have the Vector Magic *vector* image in Xtreme (ANY version). Is that right?

[remi]

Sorry to be so dense, but I take these last two responses to mean that I can't have the Vector Magic *vector* image in Xtreme (ANY version). Is that right?

No, it's not possible to import these EPS or SVG files with the current import filters of Xara Xtreme (any version). See also this and this thread for some workarounds (Inkscape was already mentioned by Steve here).

Remi

[gwpriester]

Open your EPS file convert.nevia.com then export as PDF.

Import the PDF in Xtreme.

Only problem I have found is sometimes the EPS file crops off part of the image.

I'm currently writing a review of Vector Magic for Communication Arts Magazine. The fellow who developed VM is a PHD candidate at Stanford University and specializes in artificial intelligence. It's quite a story.

I have done traces on solid color low resolution GIF image with excellent results and then traced the same image in Illustrator's Live Trace and Live Trace does not even come close. I'm getting a copy of the new CorelDRAW X4 later in the week and plan to try the new and improved CorelTRACE. Should be interesting.

Gary

[Kurt8]

I'm finding this thread very interesting and the vector magic and conversion to PDF are working well for me, but what exactly are people doing with these traces? Maybe a silly question, but what are the benefits of importing a traced image into Xara and what and what type of output are people usually striving for when doing this sort of thing?

Kurt

[handrawn]

Hi Kurt

for example:

a pencil/pen cartoon drawing scanned in will be bitmap
so cannot use boolean [ctrl1-4] to slice out shapes for color fills.
could hand trace - but that can be tricky to get right with a complicated drawing
usually much quicker to convert to vector and then slice out fill shapes
also - the vector line is then scalable and can be edited like any other shape

[Albacore]

When you are asked by a company to modify a logo or make it larger this small programme will do it for you for you and you only need to spend 10 minutes tidying it up. Although I have not used it this way any one that goes on holiday and brings back a memorable picture and wants to blow it up, to frame it, could easily use this programme and get a good facsimile of their picture without any jaggies.

[ss-kalm]

Maybe a silly question, but what are the benefits of importing a traced image into Xara and what and what type of output are people usually striving for when doing this sort of thing?

Kurt

Another example is the import into Xara 3D6 - you can only import vectors, so if you have a logo that you want to "enhance" it has to be a vector format.

Have a look at some of the complex shapes in this thread (especially the one in post 78 on page 8) http://www.talkgraphics.com/showthread.php?t=23208 tracing them by hand would take forever.