XX5 - Woooo! Another Let Down

[JokeArtist]

No new vector tools. I don't know how they have the gall to give it a new version number.

The Headline features are :

Content-Aware Scaling (Auto-crop = useful)?!?!?
Better Object Gallery (How many people use this any way)
Website Export (Suprise Suprise)
Spell Check as you type (useful but doesn't really help you draw better)
Other Text Tool Enhancements (hahahhaha)

OMG, nothing new at all.

Looks like Xara Ltd have forgot about their core users yet again. Please who use the product to draw.

5.0? You have to be kidding me .... 2.4 more like.

What does everyone else think?

PS I feel sick to my stomach like the horrid feeling you get when you find out your girlfriend has been cheating on you.

[Xhris]

The majority of the development time since V4 I think was spent on improving the web export to produce a full web authoring tool. I read somewhere on TG a while back that this approach was because website making was a bigger deal nowadays than web graphics only. Now that this work is done with only the usual incremental improvements left, I'm guessing there'll be more of what you want in future versions. I understand where you're coming from, but I do like version 5 of what I've seen so far.

[Soquili]

The new Object Gallery is very useful if you use Groups, Bevels, Blends, Contours, or Layers. If you have need to modify a shape inside a complex group, select the beginning or end shape of a blend, etc.

Simply select it within the Object Gallery and it is selected in your work area. The popup thumbnail view when you hover your mouse pointer over a shape in the Object Gallery help identify the specific shape you desire to edit.

[Squeaky]

I am disappointed. Xaras drawing tools really need an update.
Should really be Xtreme 4.5

[handrawn]

well - there is the improvement to the freehand drawing, which will help me a lot

the graduated transparency

the object gallery [ie revamped/renamed layer gallery] looks good - and I use layers a lot

content aware scaling sounds interesting and useful...


so thanks to xara team for the release, and the work you have put in, I'm looking forward to giving it the road test

[MEB]

No new vector tools. I don't know how they have the gall to give it a new version number.

The Headline features are :

Content-Aware Scaling (Auto-crop = useful)?!?!?
Better Object Gallery (How many people use this any way)
Website Export (Suprise Suprise)
Spell Check as you type (useful but doesn't really help you draw better)
Other Text Tool Enhancements (hahahhaha)

OMG, nothing new at all.

Looks like Xara Ltd have forgot about their core users yet again. Please who use the product to draw.

I have to agree with you regarding the absence of new vector tools. I feel the same. But i´m confident that Xhris is right, now that the core tools of wysiwyg web authoring are in place. We just have to wait a little more... i know... again... true.

But you are going too fast about what they have implemented. The new object galley is great. You have to really try it to see its advantages in complex drawings. You now have much more control over all the objects.

The spell-checker is usefull and hopefully paves the way to an hyphenator, maybe still one of the biggest missing features in xtreme for desktop publishing (actually the justify button is useless)

Anchored objects (images shapes whatever that retain their position relative to text) makes the production of layouts for print and for web much more convenient and easy. Add repeating objects to that, plus a better control of pages trought the object gallery and you can start to get the picture (master pages coming?).

There´s some improvements to some drawing tools. Reposition a rotated object to his vertical or horizontal position is much more easy. Transparency now supports several steps (like gradients). Freehand Tool has been improved for sketching/tooning etc etc...

There´s tons of info at the Xara website and it´s worth to take a look at every single improvement they have made. And there´s tons of them

[Odat]

There seem to be a lot of new and useful features in this version, I can't wait to give it more of a workout!

I guess if there's one bad thing about it, it's that everyone in the forums is forced to purchase this new version even if they don't like the new features, which really seems heavy handed to me.

[Soquili]

Odat how are people forced to purchase the new version?

[ss-kalm]

..... it's that everyone in the forums is forced to purchase this new version ......

I really don't think that anyone is forcing people to buy this release ...

[JokeArtist]

Contour Default = 4

Nuff Said.