The Xara Xone Tutorials
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As always, we will be using Pixels as our units of measure. Right click on the screen and select Page Options... from the pop up menu. In the Units tabbed section, select Pixels for the Units and 0-255 for the Color Units. In the Grid and Ruler tabbed section set the Major Spacing to 100pix (key it in exactly like this please) and the Number of Subdivisions to 10. Press OK to close the dialog and apply the changes.

To see a tutorial on Xara Basics visit Workbook 20.

NOTE: You will notice from time to time I apply arbitrary colors to objects. I do this to make the objects easier to see. If I do not specify a fill for an object, you do not have to apply a fill or outline color.

When I show an ellipse or rectangle that has just been created, that has no fill, it is because I have set the fill to none before I exported the illustration. By default, all ellipses, rectangles and Quick Shapes have a black outline and a black fill. There is nothing wrong with your copy of Xara.

Naming Conventions. I use bold face to indicate the names of tools, galleries, keyboard shortcuts, and dialogs. Items such as unnamed icons and drop down lists, which have names when you let your cursor rest over them for a moment, are displayed in italics.

The Infobar is the context sensitive menu at the top of the screen and changes to reflect the options for the selected tool.

Some of the tool icons have changed in Xara X1, and this may cause some confusion for new users. If you are using an older version of Xara, click here to see my Rosetta Stone for translating the old buttons into the new.

New Users? I have created some quick start mini-tutorials to get you though the basics. Workbook 20, Workbook 30, and Workbook 31 cover the main things you need to know to get started.

This is the first tutorial created in Xara Xtreme. And while you should be able to create all the steps in previous versions of Xara, some of the tool icons have changed, and this may cause some confusion for new users. If you are using an older version of Xara, click here to see my Rosetta Stone for translating the old buttons into the new.


This month's tutorial is aimed at new users. I will do my best to explain the different tools as I go along. If you have any questions or problems while doing this tutorial, you can use the feedback form on page 12 to send me your comments and questions. If you are a new user and are not familiar with Xara or vector based drawing programs, please review the links above in the New Users section. These links should answer most of your basic questions.

In this tutorial, we will create an handwritten, addressed stamped envelope with a cancelation stamp and bar code imprinted on the envelope. We'll add a few effects with the new Xtreme Live Effects Tool. Let's get started.

November 2005 Xara Xone Tutorial

Using the Rectangle Tool (Shift F3), create a 252, 288 pixel rectangle.

TIP: Create a rectangle of any size, then enter the two numbers above in the Height and Width text entry boxes on the Infobar at the top of the screen.

Select the rectangle with Contour Tool (Ctrl F7). Drag any of the red arrow handles towards the center to apply an Inner Contour. On the Infobar, change the number of Contour Steps to 1 and press Enter to apply the change. Move the Contour Width slider to 20pix (or you can key in 20 in the Contour Width text entry box and press Enter to apply the change).

With the contour selected, from the Arrange pull down menu, select Convert to Editable Shapes. From the Arrange menu, select Ungroup (or press Ctrl u).

 

November 2005 Xara Xone Tutorial

Create two 30 pixel circles and space them apart. Select the Blend Tool (F7). Click on one of the 2 circles and then drag over to the other circle to create a blend. On the Infobar change the number of Blend Steps to 25 and press Enter. With the Blend Tool and the blend selected, hold down the Shift key and click on the large larger rectangle. Press the Blend Along a Curve Icon on the Infobar. The circles should arrange themselves around the rectangle as shown above.

With the blend selected, from the Arrange menu, select Convert to Editable Shapes. Then from the Arrange menu, select Ungroup. With all the circles and rectangle still selected, Shift click on just the rectangle (to deselect just the rectangle) and then group all of the circles (Ctrl g or Arrange > Group).

 

November 2005 Xara Xone Tutorial

Hold down the Shift key and click on the circles and the rectangle (to multiple select). From the Arrange menu, select Combine Shapes... Subtract Shapes or keyboard shortcut Ctrl 2 . The grouped circles will disappear as well as the area of the rectangle directly under the circles.

NOTE: The Arrange > Combine Shapes commands are Xara's path commands and are similar to Illustrator's Pathfinder commands, only Xara's path commands are not as fussy!

 

 

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