Has anyone used either of these programs and been able to compare. I am wanting to do some nice vector graphics and such for my webpage, and I am wondering which is better. I got a free version of canvas6 with a magazine, so I am wondering if I need to buy Xara. I am trying to set up page to display my gallery of artwork and such.
The price for Canvas 6 is hard to beat, but newer versions have a number of features that one doesn’t have. It really depends on what kind of illustration you plan on doing with it. They have a demo version of Canvas 8 you can download for free, to see the difference.
Xara is AWESOME. There is a LOT more to that program than meets the eye at first sight. It’s interactive transparency features are better than ANY other vector drawing program. And the screen redraws, even when a bitmap is involved, are the fastest in the business. Try loading a large bitmap in Freehand, zooming in, and then panning the screen(go get a cup of coffee while the screen is redrawing). And antialiasing doesn’t get better than Xara’s.
Canvas isn’t bad, but has a problem with trying to be everything for everybody, kinda like CorelDraw, another very bloated program. Also, Illustrator is outstanding, since version 9 anyway, and version 10 has some really interesting features. But these are much more expensive programs than Xara. Please forgive me if this is more information than you asked for, but I’m very passionate about computer graphics programs and have a tendency to ramble a bit.
Xara is one of my favorite tools in my graphics toolbox, in case you hadn’t noticed, and is worth every penny. But NO program can compare to Zbrush for fun per dollar! If only Zbrush could do vector artwork… :eek: :eek: :eek:
I use Illustrator 9 and InDesign.
Those were my choices after testdriving Xara and Canvas.
I have Freehand 9, Illustrator 10, Photoshop 6 and CorelDraw 9. My favorite combo is Illustrator & Photoshop…most probably because the command flow between the two is so smooth. I also like the ability to drag images back and forth between them. They are very compatible/complementary to one another. Of course Freehand seems to handle complex paths much better and has a faster and friendlier print engine when ripping to film. Graphics programs can’t be everything to everybody but the developers sure do try hard…probably why there is a “new” version every twelve months or so!
I have to say that Xara is absolutely fantastic. After buying it I have hardly touched freehand. Not only that but there is a very strong community who are always willing to help out. Check out:
The Xara Xone
(Plug - I’m going to be featured artist here in april.)
and
Talk graphics forums
as well as Xara This one has a whole bunch of other graphics forums that are worth looking at. I first heard about ZBrush in the new gear forum.
I used XaraX to create the icons (exported as flash files)on My website:
Squeakypics.co.uk
Huge Regards
Dave
Thank you Thelonious and Squeakypics for reminding me about something I forgot to mention. GO to Talkgraphics and you’ll find the most productive,supportive and informative forum since here at ZbrushCentral. There is no forum I’ve ever seen nearly as good as ours here at ZBC, but this is probably the second best one of which I know. It supports many different brands and types of software, but of course supports Xara the strongest.
By the way, VERY cool website, Dave! Those squeaks kill me!
Yeah. I think a strong and generous community is a suprisingly important part of a good piece of software.
Thanks for those kind words about the site! It is always nice to get feedback and even nicer to get positive feedback!
Large Regards
Dave
I can’t believe the stuff in the Xara gallery. I had no idea that was possible with a vector graphics software. I thought those were just for logos and all the not-too-detailed stuff. I’m very impressed by this Xara and off course by the talent of the artists. 
And it’s extra-cheap too. only $149 ?? Or is that only a light version? I couldn’t find anything else on the site, so that must be it. I’ll download the demo version but I’m afraid that’s going to be one more program on my “to buy soon” list. Now if only I could find a way to fit 100 hours in a single day I’d be happy 
im with mental, i use illustrator and photoshop. fireworks is a good one 2.
Well for my money I’d go for Canvas.I think it’s a fantastically easy program to use and it’s ability to mix bitmaps with vector I find superior to Illustrator’s but each to their own.
For fun and personal work I often play around in Canvas and another goody Expression which is also a cheap and wonderful application to use.
However for professional work flow situations and colour space accuracy + web features I use Illustrator 10 within Adobe’s suite of tools.
If I was intending to output vectors to Flash my money would be on Freehand.