Responsive Web Design using Xara

[mwenz]

Live USPS, UPS and FedEx shipping options the customer can select.

Take care, Mike

[Big Frank]

I'll keep you posted. I have a project that I think would suit this well. I'll have to download the trial and have a play with it.

[BigWave]

Kicking and screaming will I let go of Xara, a company and product whose technology arrived just in time to save my web/graphics business, and my interest in it, quite a few years ago now, actually. But to continue with static web design today, with no regard to the twin juggernauts of CMS and responsive design, is to embrace a business model made famous by the US Postal Service.

After living in a state of denial for the past year, I spent the last month immersed in all things Wordpress, 75 million of websites today, and exploding. If you ignore this, and the other engines of web design change, you will have new careers faster than iPhone 5 is obsoleted, which, with Apple’s product cycle, won’t be long.

Even if you ignore CMS and responsive design, consider the evolving role that social media is sure to play in shaping the newer world of search, which will redefine SEO, and certainly design with it. Standalone devices, starting with digital cameras, are now getting their first smartphone OS’s (Android in Nikon). Cloud computing processes that are now enabling unlimited web-fonts now, all free by the way, will make possible in-browser editing next. Look at Adobe Edge, poised to tear off chunks of the mortally-wounded Flash market for clues to how that is done.

WYSIWYG is for designers, not visitors to websites. The internet is moving into people’s palms, where it was always destined to go. We either say 'hello' to this new canvas, or we all go back to business cards and trifolds.

[RedBopete]

I found a really great article that discusses the "need" for responsive web design. He makes some excellent points. In short, the author suggests that it's the user experience that counts - not how it's accomplished technically. I'd recommend this to anyone interested in responsive web design.

http://bradfrostweb.com/blog/web/res...ing-the-point/

[Big Frank]

In short, the author suggests that it's the user experience that counts - not how it's accomplished technically.

<joking> Let's all use tables to construct our websites! YAY - the good old days!! </joking>

[handrawn]

but only if we use word 97

[Big Frank]

No...

Publisher!

[rafsgrafx]

Very interesting comments on RWD! It's something I've been reading much about lately and gathering information. I think Xara is fantastic; I love using it but as Skech and Pauland well put it, the trend leans towards mobility and portability. We see its popularity growing in leaps and bounds among users from the youngest generation up to the baby boomers. Opensource RWD apps, plugins and software are becoming more readily available. These also have become more user friendly. The days of "pay no attention to the man behind the black curtain" are becoming a thing of the past. There is still some coding to fiddle around with but nothing tlike days past when you HAD to go to a web guru to produce a simple web site.

Maybe wishful thinking but I think Xara will come up with some sort of middle ground solution towards RWD. I've worked with Xara from its debut. I'd hate to give up such a great graphics software I enjoy so much.

[scruffy.thedog]

It would be nice if xara would give a hint of their R+D as to whether RWD or cms is in the pipeline or i see a lot of the web community here jumping ship before the next upgrade unless a carrot is dangled. Comments Xara?

[Cloud]

Last week a client asked for a responsive website and I decided on wordpress; but how to show the client how the site will work (on a desktop anyway) so I created the site (a prototype if you will) in webdesigner - all 9 pages of it with full links etc and all the content in a couple of hours, showed it to him, he loved it and the wordpress guy had something to reference to create the website.

Xara webdesigner does need some features but for the first time I realised how well it works as a prototyping tool, designers all over the world are using static photoshop images to show to clients.... Xara are really missing out on a trick here, I know it says the software is good for prototyping but they need to get in contact with professional web designers who are completely ignorant of it's offering.