Why I may abandon Xara

[Nathan Brazil]

There has been many similar comments. Xara appears to be at a crossroads at the moment and nobody is quite sure which way they plan to go..

I see no good reason why Xara can’t offer a stand alone, one time payment iPad version of products, perhaps with IAP extras, but full functionality included, and a pay-as-you go version of the same for those who like that kind of thing.

If there is an iPad version, then Xara should recognise the market, and price it at a similar level to other highly competent graphics apps already available, such a Affinity. Trying to squeeze desktop prices from IOS is another recipe for disaster. Indeed, there is a case for offering a significant discount to existing customers who have bought desktop versions of Xara products.

[gwpriester]

As you probably know, there was at one time some development of a Unix and Mac OS version of the product. But the economies were not there and development never went any farther.

I just don't think there is any interest there.

Does the online version of Xara work with the iPad?

[Nathan Brazil]

It is strange to think such a good product was not considered viable in a Mac OSX version, given that it was and to a large extent still is the preferred platform for designers.

As for the on-line version of Xara working on an iPad. Presumably it does, but to be honest I have zero interest in trying something that brands whatever I do, unless I pay a subscription fee!

As the mighty Slade sang “Nothing can change the shape of things to come.” Perhaps the future of web design for those of us who object to renting software, is not with Xara. Their choice whether to alienate people who have been supportive for many years, or be reasonable.

[handrawn]

as you may know having been around a long time, because of decisions made very early on and therefore the way the xara code is written it would need a major rewrite to port to mac - there may well not be available resource for that at this time

xara is a business, they will do what they think is best, and take what opportunities they see, for their business to survive in a changing market

unless we are inside the loop that is difficult to argue against from a commercial point of view, even if on a personal level we find it not to our liking...

to be brutally honest I reckon if losing old customers is out-weighed by gaining a lot of new ones, then the business heads in magix/xara will lose no sleep; that is par for the course in commerce...

[Nathan Brazil]

While taking your point, and understanding the economics, I seriously doubt that trying to shovel people into what the bean counters only guess as the best direction will prove massively profitable.

There is an on-line version of Xara already in existence. So the real question is whether the company wants to sell licenses for that version, on a one payment covers everything basis, or do they want to continue to push a subscription model where customers never own anything.

An on-line version that was fully functional, and stayed that way, giving me the choice as to whether I want to buy future versions, is something I’d be very keen to see. Otherwise, as I said earlier, there is already a pretty good alternative in Wolf Web Designer 2.

[handrawn]

it seems clear to me that Xara Cloud is being driven towards the corporate team based market; by and large companies are not so adverse to the subscription model, seeing the advantage of always being up to date and consistent across the team base, as more important

it's not my problem specifically as I do not use Xara Cloud; but as far as the desktop program goes I have made sure I can do everything I [prefer to] do in Xara in other program[s] just in case... be a pity, but life is short...

[Nathan Brazil]

Alas, I fear that you are probably correct. Xara, built on individual appreciation, headed toward corporate sales. A pity, as the company could do both. It reminds me of Apple, who used to accomplish great things, and now sell phones. (-:

There are some features which Xara products just do better and easier than other apps, and so I expect to continue using those desktop versions I bought. No upgrades required. As for web design, the app I named before, Wolf, is very similar to Xara, and clearly the makers see a gap in the market.