AD Beta version

[lepr]

22 minutes ago, Pšenda said:

... and Serif has always stated that Affinity applications will gradually add all the important functionality.

important functionality can mean entirely different things to different people, so the words give no real clue

Edited July 27, 2020 by anon2

[jackamus]

59 minutes ago, IanSG said:

I'm not sure what you mean by "cosmetic" - any change to the way the software behaves is functional.  Even if the intended change is limited to a single bug fix there's still the possibility of introducing new bugs.  What individual beta testers get out of it is up to them - I'm a hobbyist, so my reasons for beta testing will be very different from a commercial user whose livelihood might be impacted.

How did you reach that conclusion?

What I meant was that it didn't really add anything really new to AD. AD is not that much different as a result.

[jackamus]

40 minutes ago, Alfred said:

 

I think what Jack really means is that AD is currently lacking some of the features that DrawPlus had acquired by the time it reached version X8 (not version 8 without the ‘X’, which was released nearly a decade earlier!) but we have to bear in mind that DP is Windows-only and developed incrementally whereas AD is cross-platform and written from scratch.

Yes I know that. As a user it make no difference to me regarding what OS or platform is used, its what it does that matteres. I even added a 'Windows' partition on my Mac so I could use DP8 but it was so cumbersome swapping OSs that I have stuck, reluctantly with AD.

For a while I did save AD files  as pdfs and then reopen them in DP to use its extra features - mainly adding dimensions. But even that become a nuisance so now I complete the drawing in AD, print it and hand-write the dimensions in pencil! I do this to send to my CAD designer after scanning it to an email.

I've been waiting years for AD to include dimensioning as a feature.

[jackamus]

How do Serif decide what is important?

[jackamus]

16 minutes ago, anon2 said:

important functionality can mean entirely different things to different people, so the words give no real clue

I agree.

[Alfred]

7 minutes ago, jackamus said:

now I complete the drawing in AD, print it and hand-write the dimensions in pencil!

If you’re no longer depending on DP to add the dimensions automatically, why not ‘write’ them using the text tools within AD?

[Pšenda]

29 minutes ago, anon2 said:

important functionality can mean entirely different things to different people, so the words give no real clue

Of course, it is always up to Serif (generally producers and developers of anything) that he sees important (in terms of priorities, capabilities and development capacities), and whether he takes into account the wishes of users (often conflicting). If you do not agree with this model, then you must develop your own application or use another one - which exactly suits your needs.

[carl123]

4 hours ago, jackamus said:

So the bottom line is that the old DrawPlus8 is still a better graphics program than AD even with its frequent crashes.

 

 

36 minutes ago, Pšenda said:

... and Serif has always stated that Affinity applications will gradually add all the important functionality.

important - means adding the features in an order that will provide the best revenue stream to ensure the company's future long term existence

gradually add - means making a decision to add a feature as a free update to version one or as a paid upgrade to version 2, 3, 4 etc.

DrawPlus provided an important revenue stream to Serif for over 10 years (via sales and upgrades) supporting both the company as a whole and those that worked for it.

Don't expect to see everything that DrawPlus had in Designer anytime soon. It will be a gradual process and one that we will all (willingly) pay for should we wish to utilize the new functions that will come with each new upgrade.

[jackamus]

23 minutes ago, Alfred said:

If you’re no longer depending on DP to add the dimensions automatically, why not ‘write’ them using the text tools within AD?

In between using DP and then writing them by hand I created an 'Asset' that was a double headed arrow dimension line which I could set to various lengths with the Transform tab. Changing its length by dragging the Asset's handles was not practical as I had to enlarge it enough to see the handles. I added the dimensions using the Artistic text tool. Vary laborious.

[GarryP]

If your dimensioning needs are very basic you could try these: https://forum.affinity.serif.com/index.php?/topic/102574-very-simple-dimensioning-objects/

[jackamus]

24 minutes ago, carl123 said:

 

important - means adding the features in an order that will provide the best revenue stream to ensure the company's future long term existence

gradually add - means making a decision to add a feature as a free update to version one or as a paid upgrade to version 2, 3, 4 etc.

DrawPlus provided an important revenue stream to Serif for over 10 years (via sales and upgrades) supporting both the company as a whole and those that worked for it.

Don't expect to see everything that DrawPlus had in Designer anytime soon. It will be a gradual process and one that we will all (willingly) pay for should we wish to utilize the new functions that will come with each new upgrade.

That's an interesting comment. How do the developers work out will produce the best revenue?

Why not up the price of AD so that there will be enough revenue to create the best features? I would happily pay more for a serious upgrade. I could go for a competitors program but I'm not willing to retrain myself, at my age, to some thing new.

 

[carl123]

1 minute ago, jackamus said:

How do the developers work out will produce the best revenue?

It's not the Devs, it's down to the business acumen of the people behind the business

[jackamus]

Mmmm - OK so how do they decide what is best?

[carl123]

1 minute ago, jackamus said:

Mmmm - OK so how do they decide what is best?

 

Most have the natural ability to understand and adapt to a particular market or if not, most can start with business school and progress from there.

Experience is also key, what worked and what did not work previously.

[jackamus]

18 minutes ago, carl123 said:

Most have the natural ability to understand and adapt to a particular market or if not, most can start with business school and progress from there.

Experience is also key, what worked and what did not work previously.

It sounds all very vague and 'company man' type jargon.

When you say, "what worked and what did not work previously." If it wasn't there to start with then it is meaningless.

[lepr]

1 hour ago, Pšenda said:

Of course, it is always up to Serif (generally producers and developers of anything) that he sees important (in terms of priorities, capabilities and development capacities), and whether he takes into account the wishes of users (often conflicting). If you do not agree with this model, then you must develop your own application or use another one - which exactly suits your needs.

I merely pointed out that the phrase important functionality tells us nothing even remotely specific about which functionalities are coming to the apps.

[Jowday]

Another day on the Internet... 🗑️

[Jowday]

It would be more meaningful - and worth the cost of traveling - to have a beer with the Serif staff in a pub in Nottingham - debating all of these topics and more funny ones too instead of these endless generic debates with proxies and random customers. The hours lost on the Internet... much bigger expense.

The Internet is great for downloading software and purchasing exotic things from abroad. Otherwise... 🗑️

[Pšenda]

1 hour ago, anon2 said:

I merely pointed out that the phrase important functionality tells us nothing even remotely specific about which functionalities are coming to the apps.

However, this "phrase" did not aim to provide any specific information about the time schedule and scope of the functions added. It only followed on information from Alfred, that Serif started developing Affinity applications from scratch. Which was information about how Affinity applications were developed after a sigh of jackamus, that Plus applications were much better.
Nothing more, nothing less.

[lepr]

2 minutes ago, Pšenda said:

However, this "phrase" did not aim to provide any specific information about the time schedule and scope of the functions added. It only followed on information from Alfred, that Serif started developing Affinity applications from scratch. Which was information about how Affinity applications were developed after a sigh of jackamus, that Plus applications were much better.
Nothing more, nothing less.

Nothing, period.