Workflow Improvements
We've introduced several useability improvements requested by frequent users that will enhance your working experience and save you time!- A much requested change: Web Designer will now keep your current settings and options when updating between minor versions (eg 17.0 to 17.1) including custom button bars
- When you insert SmartShapes in a document we now select the Selector tool (instead of the QuickShape tool), for a more efficient workflow.
- The size and offset of the selection bounding box now automatically increase in size on very small objects, making them much easier to select. No more zooming in, just to select small objects!
Document Design
- We've added 40 new Google fonts to increase your typographical choices, see the Release Notes for a full list. You can now access over 900 Google fonts, right within Wed Designer.
- Creating tables just got quicker, easier and more intuitive: you can now use the tab key to move backwards and forwards between the cells, and to add new rows.
New Content
We've added a selection of new photo frames, text and photo panels to the Online Content Catalog (available if you have an active subscription to Xara Cloud+ or an active Update Service for Web Designer):- 6 new text panels in Components > Print & Web Components
- 5 new photo frames & Photo Panels in Components > Image Resources
New & Improved Handles
Import & Export
- There is now an option to import images at original full size into web documents (where previously they were automatically reduced to full HD size), use with caution!
- As requested by frequent SVG users, SVG graphics are no longer scaled on import, they retain their original size (except Pixabay images).
- As always there have been other minor enhancements and bug fixes to all the formats, you can find more information in the Release Notes.
Web
A number of changes that will help your SEO efforts:
- Better handling of graduated fills mean smaller file sizes, and that means faster websites - a definite plus factor in Google ranking. And you’ll benefit from faster preview and publish times too!
- A new ‘No follow’ option in the Link Dialog (prevents passing on ranking credit, often recommended for things like testimonial pages and product listings)
- The option to add an image filename (include keywords in your filename to optimize your position in relevant image searchs).
Tab Leaders
Support for tab leaders (at last!) to make your content such as menus and programs look that little bit more professional.
Import / Export Filters
Improvements to several of the key import and export filters:- PDF import
- Word import and export
- SVG import and export
See the Release Notes for details.
Paragraph Borders & Backgrounds
Some great new styles, perfect for headings or highlighting paragraphs of text. You can have borders, either with or without backgrounds. Includes control over border style, color and width and background color.
Other Text
- You can now move embedded objects round in text by simply dragging them – a small usability improvement that will be a great time saver.
- 42 new Google Fonts offer new and interesting typography options (top 3 Lexend Giga, DM Sans and Crimson Pro).
New Content
The latest additions to the Online Content Catalog (provided as part of the Update Service):- A new single page website (Portfolio) in Websites > single page websites
Web Designer benefits from seamless integration with Xara Cloud, which makes it a great additional service.
Xara Cloud is an ultra-simple way to edit and share your Xara documents and websites online in a web browser, using any computer or tablet. The Team version of Xara Cloud also gives you the ability to work on Xara documents and sites or Xara Cloud templates in collaboration with friends, colleagues and clients, commenting and editing together in real-time.
Xara Cloud is being constantly enhanced, and new features are made available as and when they are ready - you can find news of the very latest updates here.
You can find out more about the Free and premium Xara Cloud options & register here.
