Paid PREMIUM Support to Magix for Xara Web Designer

[iamtheblues]

I admit I am a fan of Xara software but I'm not sure I understand why you are professing the end is nigh. I'd say the opposite. All indications I've read from Xara management are that things have changed but it is business as usual. Xara and Magix have never excelled at customer relations and communications, but their desktop software is definitely still being updated and moving forward (albeit slowly and maybe not in the direction you or I want). I also don't believe there is a good alternative integrated web and design application available elsewhere just at the moment.

I am still a regular user of Xara for any work that requires vector tools and would probably never go anywhere else for that. It is a valuable tool for me in that respect.
However, all the other bells and whistles are, in my opinion pretty much irrelevent.
There is a lot that Xara excels in doing, with the notable exception of Open Type support, which is ill-conceived and useless for the intended purpose.

Affinity Designer and Photo are two programs that work seamlessly together and do most of what Xara's flagship program does, but are cohesive and integrated,
despite being 2 separate programs (also still far cheaper for the two than Xara Designer Pro).
The web stuff is of no use to me, so as it stands I can get by with just Photo and Graphic Designer. The problem is that good as Xara's design tools are, there has been
no advancement in the past five years or so. Far too long between updates and Xara staff tending to hide in the background (with the notable exception of Rob-Xar).
There should be profuse and heartfelt apologies for failing to deliver anything of value. (TABLES! Don't forget the TABLES!!) Really! You couldn't make it up.
The Affinity team on the other hand produce regular meaningful updates in a fraction of the time at a remarkable cost.
I have not even mentioned the farcical situation relating to the subscription model. That is what it is, despite denial. Nobody understands fully how it works and people are
shelling out for a promse of jam tomorrow and being let down when they do eventually add the bloody tables, which were never even asked for.

The end is nigh, although that isn't what I said, the end is nigh at the consumer end of things. The Magix Roundabout may well keep turning, but with meagre customer
support and no telephone response, they will have nobody to talk to when the customers all move on to something far better. But Magix won't be bothered,
they have many other interests, so the Xara side's failure won't worry them too much.
I still stand by my statement that Xara-Magix is very shaky but collapse may be avoided. But in the grand scheme of things it won't matter too much either way.
In all honesty with regard to Xara, there is nothing to see here, folks. Adobe can cope with the loss of customers as a result of their pricing policy, because Adobe's products are the industry standard. Xara-Magix are nowhere by comparison. The future of Xara looks pretty bleak to me.

[handrawn]

One should not lose sight of the fact that a new company was formed for xara cloud: Xara GMBH, based in Berlin

So that means there are now two 'Xaras' both apparently part of the Magix 'partnership'

On the one hand this might mean seperate devlopment teams result in resources not being diverted from one project to the other; on the other it means either project can be curtailed or abandoned independantly of the other...

Magix doing the marketing and support for the desktop project may just be an efficient way of avoiding a duplication of effort.. or it may be the first step in a transition... 'good' or 'bad'

[ernie-f]

According to me, Xara is a dying horse. Magix as stable owner lets it die. Xara alone does not have the strength (money) to keep the horse alive.
Affinity is too far ahead of Xara to even play. Adobe has stopped Muse. What did Magix/Xara do?
Nothing, because they always did nothing and waited for others to pick the apples.
Tare but true.

[Acorn]

...the bloody tables, which were never even asked for.

I understand your position well enough. Smart Tables, however, are Xara's attempt to reclaiming it has a professional DTP application, still a bit wide of the mark if you include the problems with Open Type features too. And don't forget we got Text Inside for our troubles as well.

Perhaps, as a demanding customer base, we are too rich a sauce for Magix.
I feel Xara has taken a drubbing over this painful transition. Let's give it the benefit of the doubt and see what it can produce for the next update. Matt Bolton was promising 3 to 4 a year, so early August is crunch time.

Acorn

[handrawn]

xara are also adapting to the modern 'egalitarianism' of things - ie professional now means it is a program intended to enable 'ordinary' users to make 'professional' level product, rather than a program for professionals themselves... hence the hiccup with squish methinks...

[behzad]

Serif took that place that once Xara occupied. The only way Xara can move forward is with the web designer, but that too has competition that are years ahead of what Xara offers. Therefore the Cloud came into play and soon that too will be gone. I love competition, for us we just spend money and learn a new tool and camp in another place for a while until they too go out of flame.

[iamtheblues]

xara are also adapting to the modern 'egalitarianism' of things - ie professional now means it is a program intended to enable 'ordinary' users to make 'professional' level product, rather than a program for professionals themselves... hence the hiccup with squish methinks...

I think it's the way of the world, Steve. Dumbing down is all around us. The BBC (especially TV) presenters talk to us as though we are six-year olds. It has been reported that IQ levels are falling, and have been doing so for many years since an all-time high around the 1960s.

In the world of vector graphics Adobe Illustrator is too complex and not user-friendly. Even Affinity Designer, which is definitely user friendly is considered by some to be unfathomable.

Xara Designer makes an easyish program to use far more recondite than it should be, by dint of adding bits and pieces to the vector drawing that should be straightforward but which palpably are not (witness the arcane idiocy that is Ye Olde Bitmap Tracer).

Xara is guilty of overthinking a relatively simple program to use, they seem to be wilfully ignoring requests for improvements by seemingly deliberately ignoring sensible suggestions in Dear Xara. Perhaps it is a coding issue, the whole thing seems to be a house of cards. Add a new feature and something else fails to work properly. Instead of doing the sensible thing and telling users that there will be an hiatus while the code is repaired/rewritten and extend existing licencing whilst it is sorted (which would take the pressure off the back-room boys immesurably) there seems to be a panic to introduce stuff (Tables) just as a pacifier, so they can stumble on to the next thing that nobody wants that might stop the complaints rolling in.

This is why I stated elsewhere that Xara looks extremely shaky to me, they are looking over their collective shoulders at Affinity which is growing in stature and reputation at a fraction of the price. There is only one possible winner in this particular two-horse race.
Bob.

[jaydear]

... Instead of doing the sensible thing and telling users that there will be an hiatus while the code is repaired/rewritten and extend existing licencing whilst it is sorted (which would take the pressure off the back-room boys immesurably) there seems to be a panic to introduce stuff (Tables) just as a pacifier...

Magix will be wanting a healthy return on their investment and that probably comes from new 'whizz-bang' features, so bug-squashing and streamlining go on the back burner. Let's hope it doesn't boil dry! Xara Clodd is yet another distraction.

[handrawn]

Hi Bob

I didn't really mean 'dumbing down'... more a case of 'enabling'... in the same way that my android phone enables me, someone who does not know one end of a camera from t'other, and has no time or inclination to learn, to take passable photos... xara cloud will eventually, if it succeeds, enable designs of a type to be made by those who are not 'designers' by nature or profession

We shall see what happens regarding the rest... certainly the 365 update model has so far turned out to be a cake not worthy of any candles at all from my point of view; not even worth the nibble...

[klowetx]

Starship Update, Thursday, 06/14/18. It has been a journey of unbelievable proportions. I find myself 10 days beyond my initial log in date for this issue. Yes, Jeff seems to have been a help with someone contacting me. Thank you Jeff. It was a long and brutal 7 days to due to misunderstandings of the issue in the original email. But once on track it was determined a variant on a hidden object was causing the problem. None of the other hidden objects had issues with the same variant and so I still do not understand why. Heck, I don't even understand the variant. Instead of working with something I did not understand it was simply deleted. Now I don't hide any objects, just delete them.

It's been a long road to resolve this issue with only one last task, the money. Yes, it's all about the money now! Normally I would simply let it go, but due to the lack of any support or the ability to reach out to support via email or phone. I want my money...show me the money. The person that emailed me for support is with Xara, not Magix, even though they are the same company. He referred me to the Magix Support Center yet there is no way to email them. The center (https://support2.magix.com/customer/en/request) has a link "New Request" that did not work with one of my browser, now that I have switched to another, I sent a request in for a refund. An automatic email reply said they would get back to me in a few days...seriously. Oh well, what's a few days right? Before clicking the submit button to send the ticket in, it showed me my original ticket and asked if it was related. I'm thinking, that was submitted 14 days ago yet I received a confirmation on this ticket saying it will be a few more days. Deja Vu.

Looking forward to posting my next Starship Update hopefully with a refund in the bank. Magix, it's time to COWBOY UP or make me walk the plank...what are you going to do?