ATP

If you purchase individual licenses, they will be tied to your email address and Affinity Store account. You can't really gift licenses any more; they need to be purchased by the person receiving the license.

Hi All,
Below is the list of all new feature and improvements which are included in the 2.3 beta (bug fix list is available here).
To learn more about these features please click on the link to go to each feature's dedicated post. To give feedback or report bugs against any of these features please reply to that same post (also check out bug reporting and feedback tips).
• Move Data Entry improvements
• New tags panel for adding Alt Text to images and objects
• Spiral Tool
• Ability to change Asset Panel background colour
• Fields now available in Find and Replace
• Pixel grid added
• "Keep selected" preference now available in Pencil Tool
• Create and place password protected PDFs
I should say in general we are now aiming to do slightly smaller updates more regularly than before so we can test and release in smaller chunks. This will allow us to get improvements and fixes out quicker, as well as having overall benefit to the stability of the apps.
The beta phase will now be shorter (4-6 weeks) for any update, and for that reason we will be avoiding any significant changes to functionality during beta as we focus on fixing bugs and correcting unintentional behaviour. This does mean that more of your improvement suggestions may need to wait until a future update (e.g. like some of the Move Data Entry suggestions you made during 2.2 beta which have now been added to 2.3), but please keep those suggestions coming!
Getting the 2.3 beta
If you have not enrolled into the beta program yet and would like to take part, you can do so here. This will immediately give you access to the latest 2.3 beta builds to try for yourself.
If you are already enrolled in the beta program you have two options:
1. If you still have the 2.2 beta installed, you can now run up those beta versions and you will be prompted to update them to the 2.3 beta.
2. If you have uninstalled the 2.2 beta, you will need to go back to Your Account -> Downloads and product keys and find your previous order for the Affinity Beta Software Program, and you can download the 2.3 beta from there.
Thanks,
Ash

Ah, we got passwords. 🙂
Now I think the time is ripe for Designer and Photo (and a bit easier in Publisher) to allow the entry of elementary document metadata, so that exported PDFs contain absolutely critical and necessary information about the origin: title, author, URL, etc. Specifically, I'm thinking of the fields called Document Information in Publisher, if I'm correct in my assumption that it's the content from these fields that will be displayed in Adobe Reader when viewing document information there.
It's not fair for Serif's Designer and Photo customers to have to purchase Publisher just to add or edit this information, and it's too cumbersome to have to go through Publisher to add this information if one DOES have Publisher. Furthermore, I believe many might not even understand that they need to go through Publisher and deep into the References submenu to even find and edit metadata in 'Fields'. This isn't user-friendly, and the worst part is that it blocks the discovery and use of this feature.
And if you implement this, Serif, the primary document information should (also) be enterable and viewable under something similar to document info/setup from the file menu. Not hidden away in fields.
All three programs should provide easy and logical access to these document details, which are not only needed for PDF export, but also for regular use in companies and educational institutions, as well as for archiving and tracking the employees who have created the content in the documents. I've always missed this feature.

Excellent to see PDF 2.0 with AES-256 added!

It will be excellent for single-frame pixel art, nice addition.

It will be excellent for single-frame pixel art, nice addition.

Excellent to see PDF 2.0 with AES-256 added!

Apps: All
Platforms: macOS, Windows and iPad
A new pixel grid option is available in all apps under the View menu. When set to on this will expose a pixel grid (as per the dpi of your current document) when zoomed in beyond a certain threshold.
By default the grid is set to grey, but you can customise the colour and opacity of the pixel grid, along with the colour of standard grid lines, within Grid and Axis settings.

Apps: All
Platforms: macOS, Windows and iPad
All Affinity apps now allow you to both create and place password protected PDFs.
Create
In the advanced export options for PDF files you will see two new options:
1. Require password to open. If you set a password here that means anyone who tries to open that PDF will be prompted to give this password before they can open it.
2. Permissions password. Here you can further protect the PDF with options for restricting printing, modification, editing and copying with a secondary password.
You will also see the type of encryption being used for the file in question. This is based on the PDF compatibility being used in Export. PDF 1.6 & 1.7 both use AES-128, PDF 2.0 uses AES-256. Password protection is not available with PDF 1.4, 1.5 or PDF/X file compatibility.

Passwords can be saved with the document preset, so for example you could have a preset of “Company Internal PDF” which both specifies the export settings, DPI, etc. you want for that type of document, but also the password settings.
Place
Previously you could not place password protected PDFs in Affinity. Now you can - when you attempt to place the PDF you will get a prompt asking you for the password for the document you are attempting to place.
 

Apps: All
Platforms: macOS, Windows and iPad
 
We have now added a spiral tool which is available from the shape tools flyout. This is something we have had many requests for, but also varying requests as to the type of result wanted. For that reason we have tried to make this as flexible as possible, both offering different types of spiral and variables to adjust.
When you create a spiral you will see from the context toolbar the different options available. Here are some examples of what you can create with the tool:
Spiral Type: Linear

Spiral Type: Decaying

Spiral Type: Semi-Circular
This type replicates the way many people have been creating a spiral in Affinity - effectively by joining decreasing semi circular arcs together.  With this type we also offer a counter Semi-circular option which returns the spiral back on itself:

Spiral Type: Fibonacci

Spiral Type: Plotted

 
 

We have now released beta build 2.2.1.2075, which is Release Candidate 3 of the 2.2.1 patch
It includes the fixes listed above and has updated Help files in all languages, but is otherwise the same as 2.2.1.2063.
We think it is important to get these fixes above released as soon as possible, so 2.2.1.2075 is to be treated as a Gold Master (final release candidate) that we hope can be released next week.

The issue "Affinity apps affected by the latest exploit in Google's WebP Library: CVE-2023-4863" (REF: AF-207) has been fixed by the developers in internal build "2.2.1.2052".
This fix should soon be available as a customer beta and is planned for inclusion in the next customer release.
Customer beta builds are announced here and you can participate by following these instructions.
If you still experience this problem once you are using that build version (or later) please reply to this thread including @Serif Info Bot to notify us.

Yes, things obviously get now another dimension, the more becomes known about the libwebp security hole. - In order to be on the more safe & secure side here, any app which makes use of an older libwebp implementation should be updated to the newest release accordingly.
The whole reminds me somehow to the Apache Log4j Security Vulnerabilities, where thousends of server side apps (internal & external ones) used the Log4j API (for very long times) without knowing about the security hole in that one. Afterwards a lot of Java based services had to be changed world wide (step for step) in order to prevent the door opened by Log4j. - I see now the same coming for libwebp related software here!
.....................
Countless applications affected: Chaos at WebP gap
A security gap in the WebP graphics format affects significantly more applications beyond Google's Chrome.
Countless applications show pictures in Google WebP format. A weak point in the graphic format accordingly concerns all applications that use the format. In the beginning, Google only assigned the gap to the in -house web browser Chrome.
New gap = old gap?
In the meantime, however, Google has corrected itself and submitted the new entry CVE 2023-5129 with a critical classification (CVSS Score 10 out of 10) for the old security gap (CVE 2023-4863 "High").
However, this was declared invalid by Google after six hours. The reason is that the new entry twice with the old entry. For this purpose, the old entry has now been added that the gap in addition to Chrome also affects the complete Libwebp library that use many applications.
What an attack could look like is so far unclear. In the context of web browsers there is always talk of prepared HTML websites. It sounds like visiting a website with a malicious webp graphic can initiate an attack. If an attack is successful, malicious code gets to systems.
Affected applications
These include browsers such as Edge and Firefox, Linux distributions such as Debian and Ubuntu and applications such as LibreOffice, Slack and Signal Desktop. In addition, many applications that rely on the electron framework are affected. A security researcher on GitHub currently collects a list of vulnerable electron apps. The Electron version 1.3.2, on the other hand, should be secured.
The list of vulnerable applications is therefore long and not all security updates have been published. So users should look for patches and quickly install them. Safe expenses have already been published for Firefox, Thunderbird and Tails.
On X, a security researcher brings the webp gap in connection with the BlastPass baptized attacks (CVE-2023-41064 "high") to Apple systems by the controversial security company NSO Group. There are currently no further details.

It's fine being here. I have linked your request to the developer report, which is under consideration already.

>>You can now drag anywhere on the bounding box edges to resize the crop, rather than having to drag from a handle.
This feature has ruined me for other apps. I crop regularly in macOS Preview and now I keep trying to crop from the edges instead of the handles. 🙂 

Very professional, fantastic work you've done here.

Updated for Publisher 2.4 (February 2024)
This free in-depth manual is filled with steps, tips, and recommendations for:
Documents, Pages, Master Pages, Sections, and Baseline Grid Character and Paragraph Formatting Text Styles (paragraph and character) Text Frames, Text Flow, and Stories Images and Picture Frames Books and Chapters Cross-References, Table of Contents, and Index Notes - including Footnotes, Sidenotes, and Endnotes Fields - including Page Numbering, Running Headers, and Custom Variables Anchors and Hyperlinks Printing and Exporting Settings This manual does not cover objects, drawing, photo editing, or the other artistic features.
Download:
Publisher Manual Feb 26 2024.pdf
Q&A
Is this really free? Yes, I'm making it available free of charge. It's copyrighted to prevent others from publishing it as their own. Is there a longer manual I can purchase? No, this is it. Is there an iPad version? No, the steps and screenshots are for the macOS and Windows versions. Is there a version for Designer or Photo? No, but many of the features are the same so you should still find it useful. Why does it use a print layout if it's a PDF? It's a demonstration of how to use the features it describes to create a print book. Previous version for 2.3:
Publisher Manual Nov 29 2023.pdf

A number of vulnerabilities in Google's WebP image format have recently become known that allow attackers to trigger memory errors (heap buffer overflow) in unspecified ways. This usually means that malicious code can get onto systems and attackers can completely compromise computers. – Therefore, it makes sense to update the Webp library accordingly to prevent and close this WebP gap for Affinity products.

Hi All,
We have just made 2.2 live across all App Stores and our website. As always, the feedback we have received from you all during this beta has been an incredible help in both shaping the new features as well as squashing many bugs!
The build we have released is the same as RC3 (build 2005), meaning for the time being whether you use the latest beta version or switch to using the release version they are the same. If you anticipate taking part in the next beta you may wish to keep your current beta version installed, as this will be updated on auto update when a new beta is available. This will either be a 2.2 patch if we feel one is needed, or moving straight onto a 2.3 beta.
It would be impossible for us to do what we do without your support, and I just wanted to say a huge thanks for everything you have contributed to this release.
All the best,
Ash

Here's a list of some of the bugs which have been fixed in the beta build 2.2.0.1994, which is Release Candidate 2
(fixes since the post above for 2.2.0.1986)
Please only reply in this forum to comment on any fixes which are in this list (in particular to let us know if you notice that something we say is fixed isn't!) To report any new bugs please do that against the relevant new feature post, or if unrelated to new functionality in the Other bugs & issues forum.
Changes/Bugs affecting all platforms
Cross Reference - Numbered Paragraph will always stop after the first . by default  [AFB-8278] Bugs affecting Desktop (Windows and macOS)
Replacing a opened, but deleted file with an earlier version will cause the app to hang Cross reference - Above Below field not functioning Crash when pasting text frame containing a cross-reference to a master page Bugs affecting Windows
Using long press shortcuts can cause brush resize to switch between two tools [PD-981] Double error message when File > Saving a deleted file Unable to save and replace a file if it's opened by another user Bugs affecting macOS
Intermittent crash when trying to perform a batch export [AFP-6375] Lock Files are causing files in Batch jobs to fail  Editing an embedded document file will cause parent file to fail to save. [AFD-6819]  Bugs affecting iPad
None this week 

Hi All,
We have now made available another update (2.2.0.1994) which is our second release candidate. This includes some important fixes which are listed in this post.
Thanks,
Ash

Hi All,
We're pleased to let you know that we have just pushed another update to the 2.2 beta (2.2.0.1986) which we consider to be a possible release candidate. This does not include any new functionality, but does have many fixes - most of which are listed in Patrick's post here.
Thanks,
Ash
 

Here we go with the misinformation again.

You're either doing something wrong or choosing a very low quality target. Trust me, I know what I'm doing
Affinity doesn't help by having a bad implementation though, file sizes always seem high for some reason.

Please check real tests and comparisons before posting misinformation.