A feature I would like to see in xara

[Sheff]

Actually a spell checker would be a welcome addition. I recently had a job where I misspelled a word in a logo. Luckily it was caught before it went to print.

I don't consider a spell checker to be bloat as it would have saved me money had that misspelling gone to press.

As for a bitmap editor, if there was some way to edit bitmaps in Xara's gallery with Photoshop(or whatever bitmap editor) that would be the ideal way to go.

Or simply have links to external graphics with an update button. That would work as well and decrease file size.

[John Rayner]

Hi sheff,

Nix the idea of linked graphics. Hard drive space/CDs/DVDs are cheap enough that you can waste the space on a copy. When you accidentily delete a linked graphic you would be crying the other way.

Fonts are basically linked graphics, and see how much trouble they can cause when they are not installed...

[Sheff]

Hi John,

I have some massive Xara files that contain multiple 300 dpi files. As this file grows with more files, it becomes more unweildy and and slower to load. As I have all of these files as separate graphics that I have imported, what sense does it make to embed the file?

I would much rather Xara give you the option of linking or embedding a file. That way you could edit the file in Photoshop and rather than import it again, you could simply hit a button that would update the graphic.

Imagine if you have a bitmap that you use in multiple instances on multiple layers some hidden, not hidden. If you were to import an updated bitmap (client logo or something) you would have to hunt down each shape that had that bitmap as a fill and manually update it if you don't use the name gallery for that, but too many times the name gallery has crashed Xara on me so I don't trust it.

Linked files are for convenience as well as smaller files.

You really can't compare fonts to bitmaps, they're entirely different animals. You can't really edit and save a font the way you can edit and save bitmaps.

If a link to an embedded image is broken then it's the responsibility of the user to fix it. Just because people freak out because they don't have the same fonts on two different machines, it doesn't mean that it's Xara's problem.

[John Rayner]

Hi sheff,

You think that linked files will make it load faster? I take it you use photoshop, so to test your linked files make it faster theory uninstall the plugins in xara and and restart xara. It boots much faster, because it does not have to go out and find all those linked files. So... I would assume it would slow down, not speed up loading.

Working with large files is tough, you either get more machine or take smaller bites.

[Sheff]

Hi John,

Lets assume that Xara adds this feature. You don't have to use it. You don't have to use brushes, but they're there.

As far as loadup times, I believe Xara would load up just as fast and issue a message saying image/path/whatever- not found if it couldn't find an image. This would be similar to the message when it encounters a font not installed. If you opt to embed all your files by default, you'll never have to deal with the issue of broken links.

As far as smaller bites, that's what I've ended up doing, however, sometimes, when you're trying to find an image within a Xara file that isn't in the thumbnail because that wasn't the active layer when you saved it becomes a hassle. I much prefer to have fewer files.

I use Serif to create PDF files from exported Xara layers and it allows me to use linked files. I like the way this functions. I think Xara could have a similar function without the excessive overhead you seemed to be concerned about.

Honestly, I can't say whether Xara would be faster or slower with linked files.

But again, I think your comparison is faulty. You don't change fonts and save them. You don't change plugins and save them. You DO change bitmaps and save them.

This suggestion for linked files is another way of having a bitmap editor other than XPE. XPE is so limited, you might as well use Photoshop exclusively if you already have it.

[John Rayner]

Hi Sheff,

If they throw it in I would not use it. I do a little video editing and my video editor links the durn movies. So... I have to keep all the stock on hand in the HD. You delete 1 file because you think you are done with it, and pow! You have to rebuild everything based on it! Gimme a copy... do not like linked stuff. Personal preference I guess.

[J B Lansing]

jens
You are something else. The self apointed expert on EVERTHING!!
Spell checkers are standard in most graphics software. But of course YOU are the EXPERT.
I foolishly thought this forum was the place for free dicussion of Xara, but you put everybody down.
Jerk....
J B

[John Rayner]

Hi J B,

Engwish is a second language for Jens. I disagree with many things he says also, so I do not defend him because of friendship. He writes english well enough to be a concidered fluent, but he comes across much more gruff than he intends. So take his posts with a grain of salt.

[joroho]

I would vote against linked files as the only way of handling bitmaps. This is based on my experience using links all the time in multiple Excel spreadsheet files. It causes a big headache when a linked file has been deleted, renamed, or moved; as well, often times changes are made to the linked file that were never intended to be passed back to the referencing file. I realize this may not be a completely valid comparison, but it's all I have to work with.

JB, As a relative newcomer to the forum, I'd encourage you to refrain from namecalling. Those of us who've been here a while are familiar with Jens and understand a little better how he communicates. There's no denying he's extremely talented as an artist and knowledgeable about computing in general. He has made many very constructive and helpful contributions to the forum.

.joroho.

[xander11]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by joroho:
I would vote against linked files as the only way of handling bitmaps...

.joroho. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

And I'm against linking too! Usually I use Hi-Quality JPEGs to keep Xara in full speed. Also every day I dig a tons of FH and AI files and I know many problems with loosed and wrong images.

Xander11