Xara X

Features in Common

• In brief: both are multi-platform and are protected by the GPL. Inkscape is free software; so is Xara Xtreme (currently only partially, as the renderer part of Xara is still closed and binary-only).

Inkscape Advantages

Fundamental

• completely free and open source (Xara Ltd. refuses to open-source its renderer library)
• open, text-based, XML-based standardized format (the Xar File Format is a published standard too, but not XML, and not widely adopted)
• scriptable (rich command line)
• extendable (perl/python extensions)
• more localisations
• ports for OSX and other Unixes, apart from Windows and Linux; all ports have the same functionality (Xara's Linux port is stagnating, only Windows version is being developed)

Features

• live XML tree editor
• gaussian blur (not the same as feathering; blurs everything, can be squeezed and rotated)
• live clones (copies that are linked to the original and update when it's changed)
• clone tiler (can be used for two-dimensional object scattering with randomization and coloring)
• tile tracing (tracing anything by a pattern of clones)
• unclumping (two-dimensional, incremental equidistant distribution of objects)
• randomizing object positions
• paint bucket tool to fill any bounded area with a path
• 3D box tool
• tweak tool to push, inset, outset, roughen paths and to paint/jitter colors
• live path effects
• OCAL integration [Xara can download stuff from its own site only]
• touch selection
• baseline snapping, alignment, distribution
• find dialog (find any object by type, style, id, etc)
• export and conversion from command line, including batch export with GUI and commandline [Xara has batch export via GUI only, using Names gallery]
• persistent per-object export hints (filename, resolution)
• command line query options to examine objects in a drawing
• command line access to verbs (commands) to automate tasks
• hierarchical layers, "enter group" command making it a temporary layer
• pattern fills from arbitrary objects
• gradients/patterns on stroke as well as fill
• transform/not transform switch for patterns and gradients
• switch to preserve rounded rect corners in transforms
• scale/rotate/skew any number of objects separately, each around its own center
• numeric skew (both axes; by angle, %, displacement)
• editing transform matrix
• persistent per-object rotation centers
• pasting of size, width, height
• simplify-like deletion of nodes
• node sculpting
• symmetric nodes
• different star/polygon rounding (both Xara's and Inkscape's approaches have their advantages)
• randomized stars
• spirals
• easy segment and arc from ellipse
• the ability to combine color and transparency in a gradient
• linked offsets and text-on-path remain freely transformable
• convenient calligraphy pen (sensitive to tablet pressure/tilt, speed and direction, with tremor/wiggle)
• guided drawing, tracing background in calligraphic
• flowing text into arbitrary shapes, chaining, exclusion
• one-command removal of kerns from text
• rotating characters in text (including text on path)
• whiteboard (interactive collaborative drawing across the net)
• connector tool for diagrams
• automatic diagram layout
• removing overlaps
• extension effects for paths: randomize, add nodes, swirl, fractal, function plotter and many others
• extension effects for colors (inverse, more saturation, replace etc) and text (sentence case, randomize case, replace etc)
• smoother and more powerful bitmap tracer
• icon preview
• masks separate from fill
• vector import of PDF and CS AI (Xara either fails or imports by rasterization)

convenience

• overall, times more keyboard shortcuts than in xara
• a large part of all keys are configurable (including Xara emulation option)
• keys for canvas scrolling (with acceleration)
• keys for scaling and rotating (including pixel-size)
• keys for scaling and rotating (including pixel-size) of nodes, including scale/rotate of node groups
• keys for letterspacing, linespacing, kerning in text (including pixel-size)
• nodes can be moved with snapping along the adjacent straight line segments or their Bezier controls
• gradient handles can merge and unmerge
• history of zooms (Xara has a single "previous zoom")
• zooming by single key (+/-, without ctrl)
• any kind of zooming (including area) without tool switching
• "bounding box" per-object selection hints
• cursor changes over selectable objects
• more precision in editable numeric fields

Xara advantages

• fast renderer
• blends [Inkscape has limited path+style blending via Interpolate extension]
• envelopes, including curvilinear and perspective [Inkscape has non-interactive analog via Envelope and Perspective extensions; also non-perspective distortions can be made via node sculpting or tweak tool]
• linked colors
• Pantone colors
• Photoshop plugins/Live effects
• editing "clipview" clippath without unclipping?
• integrated Picture Editor for embedded bitmaps
• can node-edit more than one path at a time
• brushes along path can be used for object scattering with randomization [Inkscape's pattern-along-path LPE has no randomization]
• variable stroke width, with selectable profiles or taken from pressure sensitivity [Inkscape can do this via pattern-along-path LPE]
• dynamic drop shadows [can be emulated in Inkscape via clones+blur]
• feathering objects' edges (not the same as blurring - only inward from edge, like a blurred transparency mask) [can be emulated in Inkscape via clone+blur+mask]
• more gradient types (conic, 4-point etc) [a limitation of the SVG specification, only linear and radial are defined]
• bevel tool (outer/inner; join types; size; light angle and elevation; flat/rounded/chiseled etc types (15 in total))
• "nav bar" tool for buttons (hidden in Xtreme)
• quick transparency gradients separate from fill [to some extent, can be emulated by SVG masks]
• gradient profiles [SVG limitation, in Inkscape can be approximated by multistage gradients]
• rainbow/alt-rainbow gradient options
• different star/polygon rounding (both Xara's and Inkscape's approaches have their advantages)
• fractal fill (two preset types, no parameters)
• more input and output formats (including Flash; but not yet SVG)
• non-AA display mode (note: anti-aliasing is _not_ a significant factor in the speed of Inkscape)
• linked stretching (autoscaling objects), e.g. stretching button to fit the text

3.2 features:

• integrates with external photo editors
• ms word copy/paste
• rtf, raw photo, xps import
• pdf x export
• multipage
• text tool: paragraph spacing, snapping to pixel grid, soft hyphens, smart quotes

Per-feature comparison:

Rectangle tool:

Xara:

• Corner radii only in relative units (% of width/height)
• Can create with rotation ("Radius creation" and "Diameter creation" options)
• Can edit centre X/Y numerically
• Can convert to ellipse by doubleclicking center

Inkscape:

• Preview as-you-draw
• Corner radii only in absolute units
• A switch to preserve corner radii in scaling

Rotation centers:

Xara:

• BAD: looks like once you move a center of an object, ALL objects will use the same center!
• BAD: does not survive save/reload - all objects are reset to geometric centers. (In other words, the center seems to be the property of the Selector tool, not of objects!)
• with Ctrl, center snaps to corners/midsides

Inkscape:

• Each object has its own center; if you want to rotate multiple objects around one center, just select them all (taking the object with the center first)
• Centers persist through save/reload
• Centers snap to edges and corners/midsides

Bitmap tracer:

Xara:

• BAD: all parameters are set in some relative values in the range 1..100, except for "number of passes" which does not correspond to anything quantifiable. There's no way I could find to set explicitly the number of colors.
• BAD: as a result, tracing a simple line art such as a two-color logo is nearly impossible. Xara almost always creates a bunch of dirt at the fringes due to antialiasing, and shapes get distorted a lot. The Monochrome option seems to be broken.
• BAD: for photos, there's no stacking option, so full-color traces come out very untidy. The shapes are also more distorted than in Inkscape. If you try to make them less distorted, they start getting pixelated.

Pen tool:

Xara:

• you can drag curve and nodes (with snapping and closing) while in the tool (but, strangely, not node handles)

Inkscape:

• live preview of the next segment
• you can create hor/vert straight line segments with Ctrl
• length/angle display in statusbar
• you can easily create disconnected subpaths (starting with Shift)

Path simplification:

Xara:

• slider for the just-drawn freehand line (only), to refit both ways (looser or tighter) while it's still selected
• interactive 0-100% slider in Node tool, looser only but remembers setting while you have the same nodes selected lets you de-simplify back
• works on selected nodes (actually, ONLY works on selected nodes)

Inkscape:

• Ctrl+L works in any tool, smoothing incrementally with acceleration
• has wider range and works more gradually
• works on multiple objects, and on whole object without node selection

Screenshots

Screenshots on the Xara site Page mirror: Web Archive

Screenshot showing Xara Brushes

Screenshot showing Xara Clipart Gallery

Screenshot of Xara depicting a Chevrolet Automobile Screenshot of Xara Wireframe View of Chevrolet Automobile

Links

official site

community site of artists

open source Xara Xtreme

Xar File Format

Xara at Wikipedia

A relevant thread on Talkgraphics

Another relevant thread on Talkgraphics