Three feature suggestions

[Vivi_Ram]

Can we get these three features that make Xara Designer such an absolute pleasure to use?

No 1: Middle click and drag to duplicate objects. Incredibly fast.
No 2: Non-modal window for gradients and using "tab" key as shortcut to move between gradient stops. Incredibly fast!
Here's how they work: https://imgur.com/a/qUfMUSE

No 3: Power copy/paste: https://imgur.com/a/GbQPUVf
You can copy/paste replacing selection, paste format and attributes, paste opacity mask, paste position, paste size, paste size and position.

I cannot begin to tell you how fast these features make it working in Xara. Despite missing many features, Xara is incredibly fast, and I think PhotoLine can be made a lot easier to work with if these three suggestions are implemented.

[shijan]

1. Middle mouse button reserved as Hand Tool document navigation. Alt+Shift+Drag to duplicate object in PhotoLine (but i like the idea to use Key Modifier with Middle mouse button).
2. Not sure exactly what is "Non-modal window", but visual overlay for gradients available if switch to Vector Points tool.
Currently Tab key navigates between vector points in PhotoLine, so i guess it could be done for gradient points too. Guess the main problem is that currently Gradient points can't be selected. I prefer to map Tab key to hide/show panels, same as Ps default, so if it happens, Tab key should not be permanently reserved.

Screen Shot 2024-10-26 at 7.31.54 PM.jpg

3. Layer-> Management-> Copy/Paste Styles or Attributes. You can add these commands to custom middle click menu (Preferences->Usage->Context Menu) But it is way less customized compare to Xara

[shijan]

Seems i understand. Currently Color Editor panel can't directly edit colors of gradient points. Only works if double-click and open full sized Color Editor window.
I agree, it could be nice to click on gradient point and quickly change color using Color editor panel.

Screen Shot 2024-10-26 at 7.51.45 PM.jpg

[Vivi_Ram]

Hey Shijan,

Thanks for the response. Xara can copy and paste more than just attributes. My suggestion was to increase the range of things you can copy and paste. But I'll try out your suggestions when I get home later.

[shijan]

I updated my reply a little bit. I agree that Copy/Paste Styles or Attributes is way less customized compare to Xara example

[Vivi_Ram]

Also, its not just duplicate with middle click drag. You can then use the two duplicates to power duplicate, adjust distance, and create grids of copies without ever switching tool. You can do this for shapes, texts and even combinations of shapes and texts.

I saw your update. Thanks.

[shijan]

In your first example video is that a group of objects scaled, but objects itself don't change size? Only distance between objects changes? If so, it is really interesting unique option in that Xara! Love to see something similar in PhotoLine. Guess it could be some toggle in Tool Settings to enable this special transform mode.

Also if imagine how is it could be in PhotoLine... It could be menu item to Copy/Paste Position, Size, Scaling, Angle attributes from one layer to another.

Screen Shot 2024-10-27 at 5.22.05 AM.jpg

[Vivi_Ram]

Yes. That's exactly it.

Let's say you've created a circle and a text label. Now, you can select both and middle click drag to create a copy. Then, select both, now you get a plus sign outside the bounding box of selection on the right, lift and bottom. You click on this plus sign and drag, you power duplicate the selected objects as many times as you need. Then you can also adjust the distance between the elements in one go.

Now you can select everything, and duplicate the whole set all over again. You started with one circle and label. And you now have hundreds of circles and labels, neatly arranged as a grid.

Within seconds. Also, Xara's handling of colour is incredibly powerful too.

You can change specific color across multiple selections with just one click. You can set line colours with just shift clicking on a colour. You can even drag and drop colours to specific parts of the object to change color.

Then there is also smart transform. Where you can select multiple objects and say resize and rotate them. Instead of rotating and resizing as a group. They'll rotate and resize around their centres, preserving their positions

Edit 3:

Xara's power is in its WYSIWYG logic. And allowing most operations to be done directly on the canvas, rather than through dialogue boxes.

Contouring, extruding, morphing, moulding, transparency, gradients, feathering, bevelling, shadows and blurs - everything is done directly on canvas without ever opening a dialogue box.

It means your screen is never cluttered. Also, it eliminates unnecessary tools. In xara you only have one line segment or pen tool. It can draw vector lines, edit and move lines, edit and move vector points, add and delete vector points, it can change the type of vector point from smooth to sharp— all without ever switching tool or using any modifier. Adobe's implementations of these and other tools are terrible and set a bad example.

[shijan]

I just discovered that you can right mouse click on gradient dot to show color editor and change color.

[shijan]

Also if right mouse click on gradient line guide, you can quickly edit gradient settings:

Screen Shot 2024-11-06 at 2.35.18 AM.jpg

[Vivi_Ram]

@Shijan: This is great! Thank you for finding it! PL is like hunting for eggs on Easter day. You never know where you are going to find the next hidden feature.

The ONLY THING Xara does better than PL at this point is Power Copying. Which I am sure Hubers will implement in due course. It is certainly not a deal breaker for me.

[shijan]

One more small but useful improvement i requested earlier - menu command "Paste at Mouse Position". Work could be very comfortable if use normal hotkey Command+V for Paste and some custom hotkey like Command+Shift+V for Paste at Mouse Position.
Currently "Paste at Mouse Position" toggle hidden deep in user settings and not too comfortable to reach.
Seems something similar also available in Xara and named "Paste" and "Paste in Place":

Screen Shot 2024-11-06 at 4.12.25 PM.jpg

"Paste Attributes" menu also organized very nice there:

Screen Shot 2024-11-06 at 4.16.09 PM.jpg

[Vivi_Ram]

Yup!

Xara does have that option with just a mouse click - but where is it in PL? I can't seem to find it.

There's yet another DTP implementation that I absolutely love in Xara. Let's say you want to treat an SVG or image as a part of the text. You can copy it, then get into the text tool, and paste the element within the text box at where the caret is. You might think, so what? It means, you avoid having to create an anchor and resize the graphical element every time you change the anchored text size. The graphical element will retain all it's properties and yet act as a part of the text box. You can increase the margin of wrapping, scale up or down. It's really nice! Affinity Photo and PL has it too, but they don't seem to have specific DTP control for elements that are embedded within text boxes. I use this quite often in my work. It would be nice to have - not a must have. Just another degree of control.

P.S: Noticed that PL does resize elements within text boxes. But I don't see how to set margins for objects embedded within text boxes. If you do find it out. Share pleej!

P.P.S: Affinity cannot resize the graphical element AT ALL. So that completely defeats the purpose of embedding. Yet another, final edit: Although, Affinity does have a dialogue box in a weird place (WITHIN LAYERS!!!) to control the margins and size. Terrible positioning.

Affinity Embed Graphics-min.jpg

See those three lines within the rectangle layer? That's inline dialogue box. What a weird place to put it!

Okay! Affinity does allow resizing of the embedded content too - I was wrong. I still like Xara's straightforward, simple implementation that does not scatter controls in a thousand different places.

[shijan]

Yup!
Xara does have that option with just a mouse click - but where is it in PL? I can't seem to find it.

Here. By the way, Paste Centered also works very strange in PhotoLine. It use center of the window instead center of Document.

Screen Shot 2024-11-06 at 4.43.30 PM.jpg

[Vivi_Ram]

Yup!
Xara does have that option with just a mouse click - but where is it in PL? I can't seem to find it.

Here. By the way, Paste Centered also works very strange in PhotoLine. It use center of the window instead center of Document.
Screen Shot 2024-11-06 at 4.43.30 PM.jpg

Thanks @Shijan! You're a star!