peaches

Hello Dan & Old Bruce,
Thank you for the suggestions.
Old Bruce... I couldn't do all that work, as I am on a very tight deadline.
Dan...  I think I have solved it & it might be a bug. When I hover over the pages in the left hand coloum it shows what Master Pages you have linked. What I found was, on the right-hand page, the Master pages were linked in a different order than the left ones. So, instead of: Master A left, Master A Right, Master Numbering left, Master Numbering right, there were multiple Master pages listed, even 3 or 4 of each. I tried only having the Master page A & clearing all the rest but it wasn't doing it.
So, I Added the Master A, unlinked the rest of them, then just added the Master for Numbering. I got the pages to work but all the other masters just haven't gone. I tried to take an image but none of them take an image automatically, you have to draw it & then the popup disappears.

This post is designed to be an aid to knowing if you are using the latest version of Affinity Version 2 applications on your platform.  The thread is now locked so if you "follow" it you will know then we release a new version on any platform. Version numbers are displayed on the About dialog (or preferences in iPad builds)
NOTE: I will update/edit this first post as new releases are added.
Product Name       | Purchase Store  | Platform   | Version | ===============================|=================|===================|===============| Affinity Designer 2 | Affinity Store | Windows 10, 11 | 2.4.2 (.2371) | Affinity Designer 2 | Microsoft Store | Windows 10, 11 | 2.4.2 (.2371) | Affinity Designer 2 | Affinity Store | macOS 10.15-14 | 2.4.2 (.2371) | Affinity Designer 2 | Mac App Store | macOS 10.15-14 | 2.4.2 (.2371) | Affinity Designer 2 for iPad | iPad Store | iPadOS 15,16,17 | 2.4.2 (.2371) | _______________________________|_________________|___________________|_______________| Affinity Photo 2 | Affinity Store | Windows 10, 11 | 2.4.2 (.2371) | Affinity Photo 2 | Microsoft Store | Windows 10, 11 | 2.4.2 (.2371) | Affinity Photo 2 | Affinity Store | macOS 10.15-14 | 2.4.2 (.2371) | Affinity Photo 2 | Mac App Store | macOS 10.15-14 | 2.4.2 (.2371) | Affinity Photo 2 for iPad | iPad Store | iPadOS 15,16,17 | 2.4.2 (.2371) | _______________________________|_________________|___________________|_______________| Affinity Publisher 2 | Affinity Store | Windows 10, 11 | 2.4.2 (.2371) | Affinity Publisher 2 | Microsoft Store | Windows 10, 11 | 2.4.2 (.2371) | Affinity Publisher 2 | Mac App Store | macOS 10.15-14 | 2.4.2 (.2371) | Affinity Publisher 2 | Affinity Store | macOS 10.15-14 | 2.4.2 (.2371) | Affinity Publisher 2 for iPad | iPad Store | iPadOS 15,16,17  | 2.4.2 (.2371) | _______________________________|_________________|___________________|_______________| [Please note that Microsoft Store presents the build number within the store differently so Affinity Store build 2.4.2.2371 appears as a Microsoft Store build number 20402.2371.0.0]
Legacy: For the latest version 1 releases please see this earlier thread
Patch Release notes
The fixes in 2.4.2 are in this post
 
Affinity Designer 2 for Windows (2.4.2)  previous patches: (2.4.1), (2.4.0), (2.3.1) , 2.3.0, 2.2.1, 2.2.0, 2.1.1, 2.1.0, 2.0.4, 2.0.3  Affinity Designer 2 for macOS (2.4.2)   previous patches: (2.4.1), (2.4.0), (2.3.1), 2.3.0, 2.2.1, 2.2.0, 2.1.1, 2.1.0, 2.0.4, 2.0.3   Affinity Designer 2 for iOS (2.4.2)   previous patches: (2.4.1), (2.4.0), (2.3.1), 2.3.0, 2.2.1, 2.2.0, 2.1.1, 2.1.0, 2.0.4, 2.0.3, 2.0.2   Affinity Photo 2 for Windows (2.4.2)   previous patches: (2.4.1), (2.4.0), (2.3.1), 2.3.0, 2.2.1, 2.2.0, 2.1.1, 2.1.0, 2.0.4, 2.0.3   Affinity Photo 2 for macOS (2.4.2)   previous patches: (2.4.1), (2.4.0), (2.3.1), 2.3.0, 2.2.1, 2.2.0, 2.1.1, 2.1.0, 2.0.4, 2.0.3   Affinity Photo 2 for iOS (2.4.2)   previous patches: (2.4.1), (2.4.0), (2.3.1), 2.3.0, 2.2.1, 2.2.0, 2.1.1, 2.1.0, 2.0.4, 2.0.3, 2.0.2   Affinity Publisher 2 for Windows (2.4.2)   previous patches: (2.4.1), (2.4.0), (2.3.1), 2.3.0, 2.2.1, 2.2.0, 2.1.1, 2.1.0, 2.0.4, 2.0.3   Affinity Publisher 2 for macOS (2.4.2)   previous patches: (2.4.1), (2.4.0), (2.3.1), 2.3.0, 2.2.1, 2.2.0, 2.1.1, 2.1.0, 2.0.4, 2.0.3   Affinity Publisher 2 for iOS (2.4.2)  previous patches: (2.4.1), (2.4.0), (2.3.1), 2.3.0, 2.2.1, 2.2.0, 2.1.1, 2.1.0, 2.0.4, 2.0.3, 2.0.2  Installation of Software and Updates
If you’ve purchased from the Affinity Store— each time you start the software it will check for updates and offer to download and install any available update. For the macOS release, in the application main menu there is an option "Check for Updates". Alternatively, you can download the latest installer by logging into the affinity store here and find the order in your account and use the "download" button in there. Updates are installed automatically (or manually by installing the new version over the old) Previous builds do not need uninstalling first. New installations of paid software downloaded from the Affinity Store requires LICENSE ACTIVATION to use.
Software downloaded from the Mac App Store, Microsoft Store and iPad store do not require a license activation and are updated through the relevant store: 
If you’ve purchased from the Mac App Store— updates are done automatically next time you run your software after it is available in the Mac App Store. However, you do need to be logged in with the same Apple ID you used to buy them. If this does not happen for you, open the Mac App Store app and go to the Updates page and then Store > Reload page or press CMD+R. This should hopefully force the update to show. Apple sometimes phase roll outs around the world which can mean it may take up to 72 hours for your update to be available.
If you’ve purchased from the Microsoft Store— Microsoft Store updates are done automatically by the operating system (each time you start the application). If this does not happen for you, open the Windows Store app and click the three dots in the top right corner of the app and then go to Downloads and Updates. Click Get Updates. This should hopefully force the update to show.
If you’ve purchased from the Pad Store— Your Affinity iPad apps should update automatically next time you run them. However, you do need to be logged in with the same Apple ID you used to buy them. If the automatic update does not happen for you, go to the iPad Store app and go to Updates. Once you’re there, tap near the top of the screen where it states 'Updates' and then hold, pull down and then release. This should manually refresh the updates page. However, don’t contact us if the updates are not available for you yet—Apple sometimes phase roll outs around the world and this can take up to 24 hours.
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This thread is locked and will only be posted to by Serif Staff as the released versions change.  Please follow this thread if you want to know about future version changes. If you think this post has got behind and needs updating please PM me.
If you are looking for the beta builds please see these forums 
https://forum.affinity.serif.com/index.php?/forum/32-beta-software-forums/
 
 

Hello Dan again,
I think I've solved my own problem.
This time I left the page spread as is inside of Publisher v2, & just exported as a PDF & it seems to have made the pages as singles & not as a spread.
Not sure why that has happened, but it solved my problem. Although if you wanted a spread it would cause an issue.
Anyway, fingers crossed it works when I upload it to KDP.
Peaches

Hi all. Thanks for your patience over the weekend when our offices were closed.
We've had a meeting this morning and decided to ALSO offer MSI installers to, those people who would like them. I can't tell you when this will happen, as there is engineering work that will be required to allow this to happen, but we hope it won't be long.
Thanks for your feedback!

Hi Patrick,
Screen Resolution: 1920 x 1080 @ 60Hz but I do have increased text size.
 
peaches

My scaling is at 125%   

I know of at least one developer who is eagerly waiting for Designer to be able to runs Scripts/Macros.
Please Serif - can you consider adding this function to Designer in the very near future?
 
 

I know of at least one developer who is eagerly waiting for Designer to be able to runs Scripts/Macros.
Please Serif - can you consider adding this function to Designer in the very near future?
 
 

Unfortunately, it appears that at present there will be no progress on this front.
Astute Graphics has just announced joint progress with Adobe to support the forthcoming XD release with plugin capability through its new Astui service:
Medium article, Building a Smart Points Removal Plugin For Adobe XD Using Astui Web API
We are also going to be supporting Bohemian Sketch with an Astui plugin (glimpses on the AG Tech web API page) along with Adobe Illustrator.
Other extendable design software, existing online services and formats will be catered for in the near future. It's very quick and easy to implement and we'll be open-sourcing the XD, Sketch and Illustrator plug-ins to demonstrate this.
Whilst the Affinity suite effectively remains closed to 3rd party extensions, the best we can offer users in the near future will be the SVG web-based file optimisation with the new Astui service. Details to come. Initially, this will encompass our Smart Point Removal and Move Points to Tangencies features, but will quickly expand with web APIs to more of our vector AG Tech.
Affinity remains on our radar.

Just to clarify, Affinity does not currently license or use any AG Tech. The suggestion on our site is that Affinity and other vector software can make use of it.
We’ve made things a little easier for developers since our original preview of the tech last November. A few weeks ago we demonstrated the tech running in Bohemian’s Sketch via our Web API. This approach is going to be deployed in various products including Adobe XD within the coming months and would be an ideal approach for Affinity on the iPad and desktop as explained here: https://astutegraphics.com/tech/sdk-web-api/
It is our understanding that Affinity don’t yet offer an ability for third party extensions. We’d naturally welcome this step, especially as we are now actively developing for products beyond Adobe Illustrator, whilst maintaining momentum in Illustrator itself.
Thanks to everybody’s continued interest; we receive more messages directly from Serif’s users about adding functionality than any other product!

Hi all,
I have been prompted to take a look at this thread.
Firstly, thanks to all for the interest from a user's level and kind comments about our products. We've had an amazing response since first posting the Astute Graphics Tech sneak peeks on YouTube a month ago.
Full disclaimer - I am the founder and MD of Astute Graphics, so my opinions are bound to be biased. But here's my thoughts and responses based on my personal experience in the market for years which includes considerable hours behind Affinity Designers since its original release:
Adobe Illustrator has a 25 year head start over Affinity. There is naturally overlap, but I have suggested - and have seen - users adopt both packages simultaneously for different reasons. I always encourage that creatives and technical users make use of the best tools that suit them. There are many reasons why Affinity will be the best for a specific workflow and/or budget. If you are a professional user, the opinions of cost (Affinity being low cost, Adobe Illustrator Cloud with its 20+ major apps also being very good value) can only be determined on the requirements of a user's workflow. If any tool saves time and money, it is worth its investment. When analysed fully (which is what we've been doing in detail for 10+ years), you may also come to the conclusion that the greatest investment is in the user's time becoming familiar with any new product. Affinity Designer is an incredible relative newcomer to the market. Long-established competitors to the clear market leader Adobe Illustrator, including CorelDRAW and XARA sadly only remained single platform (by and large). Affinity have taken a much longer view and invested heavily in both Windows and Mac OS platforms. That's not a small task and I personally hugely respect the results. Since Affinity's release, various other competitors have emerged, albeit for more specific markets such as UI/UX including Figma and Adobe's own XD. It will be interesting to see how these continue to develop and intertwine with Affinity's customer base. Why wouldn't a professional have Illustrator, Affinity and Figma all running in parallel? If one app saves hours on a specific task, then it's once more worth the investment. Adobe Illustrator is built around the concept of plug-ins. If you delve into the Ai package, you will find all the native plug-ins that make the default tools. This structure is largely opened out to developers over many years which allows Astute Graphics to integrate itself so deeply into the overall toolset. Several years ago, all our Ai panels had to have a colour banner added as customers were commenting that they didn't know what was native and what was Astute Graphics. I am not aware of Affinity's depth regarding extensions; they may feel they have no need to cater for "rich" plug-ins as it would require a significant amount of resources to bring about, maintain and provide 3rd party support for. This is purely a business decision for Serif. The functionality in our tools can be roughly split up between tools which require interaction (eg. brush-type tools) and "one-button wonders" (eg. path cleaning operations). For interactive tools - which is a significant number of our popular plug-ins - a deep integration would be required. In this case, from a development cost point of view, I am estimating it would be easier for Serif to develop into the core of the product rather than support a complex plug-in architecture. However, the one-button wonders should be easier to add as an extension. The Bézier vector technology available to license from Astute Graphics would naturally be a great asset to Affinity Designer and we've had too many messages to suggest this to count! But the requirement for an efficient, extensive and top-level workflow is not a requirement just for Affinity; Figma, Corel, Autodesk, et al, - and even Adobe Illustrator - could make immediate use of this. It's what the users are calling out for and has resulted in some very interesting potentials fro us. Please keep an eye out for news from ourselves on this front. I hope that we can work as well with fellow UK companies as we have proven to work for years with our US counterparts... I have reached out to Serif and look forward to hearing from them.
Thanks,
Nick

Since Astute has plugins for Adobe Illustrator, and people can just buy whichever plugins they want to use (I bought three when they went on sale Cyber Monday), and Astute has said they want to provide plugins for programs...what’s wrong with them and Affinity sharing APIs and there being Astute plugins avail for customers to purchase for Affinity?
 
Seens like many would want the option to try them out (Astute offers trial days), and some would buy certain ones. If you haven’t downloaded some of their plugins and do have IL...try them out, they’re amazing! 
 
That way Serif doesn’t need to make their price higher, and Astute gains a new market for their powerful plugins.
 
Win-Win?

I LOVE the tools Astute provides. I've used their trial period to work with many of them, but have only purchased a few as they're spendy! (Worth it, but spendy!) 
I would guess Affinity/Serif would just need to contact Astute and work out integration, but then let Astute provide the plugins. That way Affinity can stay the same price, and people can choose what plugins they want to buy from Astute.
 
I reached out to Astute to see if they'd be creating plugins for Affinity and this is their reply:
(Red and bold my emphasis.)
 
So how about it, Serif?? Are you going to contact Astute? Their plugins really rock, and this would really make huge strides in comparability between Illustrator and Designer. 
 
Here's their contact info:
enquiries@astutegraphics.com
Nicholas van der Walle
Managing Director

Astute Graphics Limited
Penn House, 9-10 Broad Street
Hereford HR4 9AP, ENGLAND
tel. +44 (0) 1432 341073

Question:
Your Roadmap doesn't give much clarity to whether you're even working on those items for the next major release or any guidance.  At least you seem to have realized that the feature is needed.
 
So... I guess I'll just have to check back in a couple of years and see if Affinity has become serious?   
 
Feedback:
I'm actually old enough to have used Illustrator '88 and even it had a blend tool (not to mention autotrace) !
I was very excited to have an alternative to illustrator since Adobe killed off Freehand, and wanted to love your product
... and you don't even have some of the most basic features that were introduced 30 years ago.
 
I'm very surprised because you've obviously declared that you're serious about providing at least an alternative for Illustrator, if not surpassing it. 
Generally speaking, your product trial shows that you are very close - but not close enough.
 
In my case, lacking this feature cost you a sale; lack of blend tool is a literal non-starter, and I'm very disappointed.
 
I read the forums, and apparently customers have been telling you this for 2 years:
(Take-away: your developer provides lame excuses about how they think there's a more elegant way - though they're not working on that, but don't worry: someday they'll come up with a genius solution.
Suggestion: Build the basics that are in virtually every other app, and THEN find a way to be smarter than every else.)
 
I'm pretty sure it doesn't take two years to implement basic blend functionality.  Simple step-wise interpolation.
(Since you don't provide an API for scripting, it's also not possible to relieve this need by doing what you ought be paying your programmers to do)
 
Feature that holds you back from even being in the running: 
  -  Blend tool.  
    I was VERY surprised that you don't have an equivalent functionality; I spent hours searching online and in your screens because I thought there's no way that Affinity positioned themselves as the real deal but didn't include something equivalent.
 
Features that you really need to even reach parity with Illustrator:
  - Autotrace
  - Scripting/Macro APIs