New Xara user

[JimR]

Not being able to buy Illustrator I have been enjoying almost all of the 100 HeathenX Inkscape tutorials and learned a lot from them.

We began using Inkscape for technical illustrations at work and that lead to the search for a more general vector tool to supplement our present bitmap tool (Paint Shop Pro X2). As you know by now we chose Xara Xtreme 5

I have spent a lot of time with Inkscape now and the change to Xara is a little slow. There's a lot of little differences and several Inkscape features that you are doing in another way in Xara. Things like stroke and fill being separately able to use colour, fill, blur and transparancy in Inkscape.

Xara however has features that makes life a lot easier and faster and it has a nicely optimized user interface and that means a lot when you are using it at work. I can really feel the number of years going into all those shortcuts.

Today I was trying to redo HeathenX tutorial 46 and I fell on my face really fast There's a huge number of little things you have to do different to get to the same results and I will have to relearn a lot to be efficient in Xara. The first thing was the shape of the dogtag, in Inkscape you have two controls for corner radius and I hade to convert the rectangle to an edible shapoe to make the outer shape.

Just to let you know that there's a lot of newbie questions coming! I am a huge fan of video tutorials and I have seen every Xara tutorial I could find. If there are more tutorials on the subject of drawing illustrations, handling shapes etc. I would like to know where to find them.

best regards

JimR

[Soquili]

Hello Jim,

Welcome to Talkgraphics.

You may have already seen the video tutorials listed in the following threads.

http://www.talkgraphics.com/showthread.php?t=21893

http://www.talkgraphics.com/showthread.php?t=28298

[Burpee]

Welcome Jim, glad you decided to add XX to your arsenal of software. I was watching your tutorial. Very interesting to see the differences but also the similarities. The gradient screen reminds me of my color palette from PSP. I believe XaraX would just use the bevel tool to create that inset look the author was going for.

I downloaded an version of Inkscape and opened it a few times but I was lost with it. The version in the video seems more user friendly and easier to understand.

[steve.ledger]

Today I was trying to redo HeathenX tutorial 46 and I fell on my face really fast There's a huge number of little things you have to do different to get to the same results and I will have to relearn a lot to be efficient in Xara.

I'm not sure what this is all about??
You are viewing an InkScape tutorial and then appear to expect the same workflow using Xara Xtreme?
Of course you will need to do things differently.
Perhaps you can tell us what it is you need to achieve with Xtreme, we are more likely to be able to help.

I do recommend you watch Xara Xtreme tutorials and follow those Jim.

Welcome to the forum by the way

[JimR]

I did not expect the same workflow, I wanted to use all those great Inkscape videos to learn how to get the same result in Xara. It seems that I need to get better at Xara before attempting this.

JimR

[covoxer]

Hi Jim, and welcome to TG.

I have looked at the tutorial 46, and I may assure you that all steps taken can be reproduced in Xtreme. As you learn Xtreme you'll find out how exactly.
But the most important thing is that you should not really follow these steps in Xtreme since you have tools that make this easier and better.

Just a few hints:
1. Most of the tutorial describes manual creation of the bevel effect. First for the tag shape, then for the logo. While it's a creative technique and can be used in Xtreme, it is not very efficient and it produces mediocre result. Like Burpee had correctly pointed out, it's much better to use a bevel tool for this effect. It's quick, precise and non destructive - you can edit original shape after the bevel effect applied.
2. Another part of the tutorial describes manual creation of the shadow. You can do it this way in Xtreme but it's much quicker to get the same result with a shadow tool. And it's dynamic so yet again you can edit original shape and the shadow will follow it.

So, as you see, most of the techniques covered in this tutorial are inferior to what you can do in Xtreme.

[masque]

Hi and welcome
"There's a lot of little differences and several Inkscape features that you are doing in another way in Xara."

Round here we tend to think that everyone else is doing it a little different to the way Xtreme does it.

"Things like stroke and fill being separately able to use colour, fill, blur and transparency in Inkscape".
As you can in Xtreme; Inkscape just does it a little differently.
I'm sure you'll find the Xtreme way of working completely intuitive once you have spent sometime with it and also I'm sure the results you will obtain will ultimately be superior.

[gwpriester]

Welcome to TalkGraphics and Xara Xtreme, Jim R.

The first reaction that many new users have is to ask why does the application I am using work like the other application I have also been using.

Every application has it's pluses and minuses and every application has its own logic and rhythm. Every application has its own way of handling a task. Sometimes it is the same as other applications, drawing a circle or rectangle for example, and other times it is different.

When learning any new application, like learning a new language, you have to start simple and learn the basics. Then work your way up to more and more complex projects. Soon you get the personality of the application and you start to discover for yourself the rhythm and flow of the application.

Once this happens in Xara Xtreme, we are confident, you'll be as hooked as all of us are.

[JimR]

Thanks Gary, you are talking like a true Xara-Priest I think you pretty accurately described the slightly frustrated state of mind during un-hooking of one piece of software and on-hooking to another

I am sure that I will learn to use Xara and grow to like it even more. The speed and the user interface alone is very promising but it does have 'one extra layer of greatness' that you have to work you way into.

best regards

JimR

[Soquili]

As John (covoxer) said it is faster and easier to create something similar in Xtreme.

No time tonight (I work nights), I'll make a tutorial tomorrow morning.