Jump to content
You must now use your email address to sign in [click for more info] ×

Recommended Posts

If you had said, "This topic is about high quality, next-generation design apps for professionals," your context might have been clearer. As stated, the context seemed to be about the entire forum.

 

properso started with “I need a similar indesign similar program”. SP can’t be the answer.

 

“[…] basic features like optical margin alignment and baseline grid […]“ described the context in relation to SP. Probably Belight Software does not know what a baseline grid is.

 

If we only pick one sentence or word, we can misunderstand the meaning. Positive interpretation is the best way. We don’t forbid to use SP. And of course we are discussing, but not only in one way, but also in one way.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is one of my first few posts on this forum - I didn't expect such an aggressive reaction to what I thought was a helpful suggestion. Is this how you normally treat new users on here?

 

 

Not really. In comparison with other forums I've been at (many), is mostly peaceful  ;). And not even comparing it with some really non welcoming forums out there, but with an average, in general, instead. There are themes more touchy than others, specially if some have an strong desire to see their field of activity / profession having more attention ( problem is that this will always happen with one or another tool, that'll go swapping, as a staff that is not unlimited indeed very small in number, must go taking care of one or two products at a time as much, IMO), or, even matters non Affinity related, if is some theme that has a lot of potential to become a heated debate, then it will happen, in any forum on earth. Overall, I can describe you this forum as mostly full of helping and positive people  :)

AD, AP and APub. V1.10.6 and V2.4 Windows 10 and Windows 11. 
Ryzen 9 3900X, 32 GB RAM,  RTX 3060 12GB, Wacom Intuos XL, Wacom L. Eizo ColorEdge CS 2420 monitor. Windows 10 Pro.
(Laptop) HP Omen 16-b1010ns 12700H, 32GB DDR5, nVidia RTX 3060 6GB + Huion Kamvas 22 pen display, Windows 11 Pro.

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I don't know anything about Swift Publisher. All I know is that I came across that alternative when I was looking for alternatives to InDesign at the time. The first thing that sold for me is the UI, but I really can't give my say in the matter other than I like the way it looks. Even though we are discussing different good publication programs, I respect that some people are looking for more professional tools. It is definitely not easy to find. For all the times I searched for alternatives to Illustrator before the release of Affinity, I was given such awful results. Anything free or cheep is most of the time never what the designer is looking for, but it takes over the internet.

 

That's interesting. I took a look at their product and watched the video on their page but it seems PagePlus X9 does all that too and it is now only $25.00. I used Xara Draw and 3D way back years ago but it was too limiting compared to other options.  I sort of look at Xara as a me too company that focuses on that one niche tool that they build their software around to compete with the big boys but don't quite get there. At least that is my impression from using their software from years ago, I haven't worked with any of their software in years and probably won't be starting now.

 

Just say no to Xara p&ld. Really, don't trust that review. It is a small subset of XDP.

 

I would take Serif over Xara any day, myself. The reason I brought it up is because the Plus range is coming to a complete close. That way, I thought it would be appropriate to bring up the next best thing since Affinity Publisher is practically a year away for release. Also, even though the price for Xara's layout program is still expensive, it is far cheaper than their other programs.

The website is still a work in progress. The "Comics" and "Shop" sections are not yet ready. Feel free to connect with me and let me know what you like or what can be improved. You can contact me here, on my contact page, YouTube channel, or Twitter account. Thanks and have a great day!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I would take Serif over Xara any day, myself. The reason I brought it up is because the Plus range is coming to a complete close. That way, I thought it would be appropriate to bring up the next best thing since Affinity Publisher is practically a year away for release. Also, even though the price for Xara's layout program is still expensive, it is far cheaper than their other programs.

 

I decided on PagePlus X8 and X9 even though I knew they were end of life products because X9 was semi-recently released, a year ago, so I know it will have file format handling I need and also the promise of Affinity Publisher coming down the line. I was just about ready to buy X9 when they changed the price which made it a no-brainer, I was waiting on the update but pushed button on purchase after price change.

 

For those reading this just make sure whatever you are buying can do what you need it to, don't get caught up in bells and whistles or addon packages or even price for that matter. Affinity Publisher won't be released until sometime in 2018 and even beta's won't be available until end of 2017 so by all means research available  apps and get what you need now because this product is a long way off yet.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Affinity Publisher won't be released until sometime in 2018 and even beta's won't be available until end of 2017

 

I think the current expectation is that Affinity Publisher will go to public beta some time in the first half of 2017, with the commercial release to follow as soon as possible after that, but I don't know whether the Mac and Windows versions will come out at the same time. Setting aside the fine details of the timing, it's clear that an APub with all of the features of PagePlus X8 or X9 is several years away.

Alfred spacer.png
Affinity Designer/Photo/Publisher 2 for Windows • Windows 10 Home/Pro
Affinity Designer/Photo/Publisher 2 for iPad • iPadOS 17.4.1 (iPad 7th gen)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The further significant slippage to seeing Affinity Publisher, even as beta, is a big disappointment and the first negative aspect I have had to say about Serif Affinity.

 

From the start, for me, Designer was always the most needed application of the trio to breakaway from Adobe. But OK, Serif's Affinity roadmap doesn't have to be aligned to me. So until now I have been interested and so far pleased to support Affinity with buying Photo and Designer for occasional use and to start to master it. But I remain totally dependent on Adobe InDesign - and will now be for at least another year... This is far from the roadmap and claims being given by Serif Affinity at the start. 

 

I am sure it will be disputed that it is different resources, but it seems that the new Serif Affinity roadmap focusses on PC compatibility (which I believe is a positive for the longterm future of the products) rather than the original Mac user focus which was played heavily on at launch.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

But I remain totally dependent on Adobe InDesign - and will now be for at least another year...

 

I have no doubt that you would have been, anyway, even if the retail version of Affinity Publisher had been ready for release a year ago. ID is a very mature product, and APub is likely to take several years to catch up.

 

I am sure it will be disputed that it is different resources, but it seems that the new Serif Affinity roadmap focusses on PC compatibility (which I believe is a positive for the longterm future of the products) rather than the original Mac user focus which was played heavily on at launch.

 

I am sure it is indisputable that it is different resources. As I understand it, the Windows team don't have the necessary knowledge and experience to make a meaningful contribution to the development of the core code.

Alfred spacer.png
Affinity Designer/Photo/Publisher 2 for Windows • Windows 10 Home/Pro
Affinity Designer/Photo/Publisher 2 for iPad • iPadOS 17.4.1 (iPad 7th gen)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The further significant slippage to seeing Affinity Publisher, even as beta, is a big disappointment and the first negative aspect I have had to say about Serif Affinity.

 

From the start, for me, Designer was always the most needed application of the trio to breakaway from Adobe. But OK, Serif's Affinity roadmap doesn't have to be aligned to me. So until now I have been interested and so far pleased to support Affinity with buying Photo and Designer for occasional use and to start to master it. But I remain totally dependent on Adobe InDesign - and will now be for at least another year... This is far from the roadmap and claims being given by Serif Affinity at the start. 

 

I am sure it will be disputed that it is different resources, but it seems that the new Serif Affinity roadmap focusses on PC compatibility (which I believe is a positive for the longterm future of the products) rather than the original Mac user focus which was played heavily on at launch.

 

Still, the resources thing is key. I've been at several companies with just a handful of developers, for both applications and games. From 3 to 10. Even with 30, that's not too much, and also worked in that sort of company /studio slightly bigger size.  Is key and important to consider, as yeah, they said so, and other companies are not flexible under the storm, try to achieve the initial plan at all costs. And... CLOSE. Get bankrupt. No more option, not even in a year or a thousand, but stick to the subscription company only for us, users. Not my wish... Small companies, in my experience, do not have the support and capability to do the plans as they'd wish sometimes. What is funny is that I see huge companies NEVER having things in the date they promised (sometimes is a years "offset"), when not blatantly lying about promised features. But because is a big name, people -not from here!- that I hear crudely complaining when is a small company, just keep silent and wait patiently to the moment when their fan-adored huge distro decides when they are going to get the more cash / sink more the competitor, despite any freakin' promise they made. While here, I'm convinced is the case of physical/human/money limits.

 

IMO, the focus on PC compatibility might mean the survival long term of the company, and probably, key in the capability of growing (thinking here always in the money/number of developers, etc, issue, tho sometimes is also investors putting certain conditions to put money on the table, which often is needed even just to not close...), and so, have more frequent updates, etc. All is related.  

 

PD: I have NO idea on Serif/Affinity situation, not now, neither the past, and is sth quite private. I am only mentioning how things tend to work for companies in this size, sth I indeed know quite well. And how hard is to work inside them for all, : developers, graphic artists, testers, marketing people, web masters... All working super hard, unless UK companies are very different to what I know...

AD, AP and APub. V1.10.6 and V2.4 Windows 10 and Windows 11. 
Ryzen 9 3900X, 32 GB RAM,  RTX 3060 12GB, Wacom Intuos XL, Wacom L. Eizo ColorEdge CS 2420 monitor. Windows 10 Pro.
(Laptop) HP Omen 16-b1010ns 12700H, 32GB DDR5, nVidia RTX 3060 6GB + Huion Kamvas 22 pen display, Windows 11 Pro.

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I would take Serif over Xara any day, myself. The reason I brought it up is because the Plus range is coming to a complete close. That way, I thought it would be appropriate to bring up the next best thing since Affinity Publisher is practically a year away for release. Also, even though the price for Xara's layout program is still expensive, it is far cheaper than their other programs.

Xara products are conditionally compiled. XDP is the top product and everything else is a subset of it.

 

The so-called Xara layout application has too few features to be useful. Even so, XDP is not a layout application even though it has everything from all other Xara products combined.

 

And this is one of the things that works against Magix, the now parent company of Xara: Product dilution. There is a lack of product identity, overlapping features that even confuses longtime users as to what application has what features.

 

Xara needs to reassess its products, rip the web crap out of XDP, eliminate 2 or 3 products, change the pricing structure and begin fuller vector enhancements. But Magix will likely not do so and Xara Designer Pro will become a footnote.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I believe iStudio Publisher has very recently undergone an upgrade and possibly may now accommodate for professional printing. As I have said before, I have no experience of this software as I use InDesign so may be worth another look if it was sometime ago when you last looked at the software. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

ok, thank you for your answer, I make an option of iCalamus, I m not sure now, XPress or iCalamus, Affinity is not an option for the moment.

XPress have a lot of possibility like inDesign, iCalamus is for simply publishing and doing well...

Affinity Publishing is not an option for the moment, I will buy it when it 's will be on sales to have the trilogy...

 

XPress is just a pale shadow of what it used to be in the past. They are trying to do something now but I don't believe they could be better than InDesign anymore. They lost too many precious time. I gave them tons of suggestions but they don't answer to my posts or just simply ask me: "why do you need this feature?". Maybe they are tired of working, riched their programming limits... Their forum is almost dead, if I may say.

All the latest releases of Designer, Photo and Publisher (retail and beta) on MacOS and Windows.
15” Dell Inspiron 7559 i7 Windows 10 x64 Pro Intel Core i7-6700HQ (3.50 GHz, 6M) 16 GB Dual Channel DDR3L 1600 MHz (8GBx2) NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960M 4 GB GDDR5 500 GB SSD + 1 TB HDD UHD (3840 x 2160) Truelife LED - Backlit Touch Display
32” LG 32UN650-W display 3840 x 2160 UHD, IPS, HDR10 Color Gamut: DCI-P3 95%, Color Calibrated 2 x HDMI, 1 x DisplayPort
13.3” MacBook Pro (2017) Ventura 13.6 Intel Core i7 (3.50 GHz Dual Core) 16 GB 2133 MHz LPDDR3 Intel Iris Plus Graphics 650 1536 MB 500 GB SSD Retina Display (3360 x 2100)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

XPress is just a pale shadow of what it used to be in the past. They are trying to do something now but I don't believe they could be better than InDesign anymore. They lost too many precious time. I gave them tons of suggestions but they don't answer to my posts or just simply ask me: "why do you need this feature?". Maybe they are tired of working, riched their programming limits... Their forum is almost dead, if I may say.

 

Hah, now that was mostly funny. Yes, few people post on the forum. Many do use Quark's FB page, though.

 

As regards feature requests, yes they (like Serif, Adobe et al) do like to ask for use cases for requests. So did I when I wrote software. There is only X amount of time between releases and most every company is going to opt to integrate features they believe will enrich the most customers. Have you voted on the current wish-list?

 

Like my preferences in a vector design application, "better than" is a relative thing. Each year the percentage of work I do in ID and QXP changes, however, QXP use is rising and ID use is falling. I still use ID at a higher percentage than QXP but there is no longer a 60/40 split like it was just 3-4 years ago.

 

Mike

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My concern is legacy. To come out with a product line and disband compatibility to users documents has to be one of the worst ideas and a great way to set yourselves up for failure and lost customers. I have thousands of files tied up in DrawPlus and PagePlus. Many of those require updating year to year. It would be insane for me to start over and PDF isn't a viable option especially with PagePlus files that use databases and variable data inputs as well as master pages that would be surely lost in a pdf translation.

 

I really hope the people at Serif are going to come out with an importer so users don't lose their work. If not then I personally will discontinue using the series and start the painstaking process of converting what I have into another software suite and not something from Serif because I fear this will happen again.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I really hope the people at Serif are going to come out with an importer so users don't lose their work.

They have made it quite clear that at least for the foreseeable future, they are not going to do this. That is because there is no way to "import" features that don't exist in the Affinity product.

 

If you continue to use the older Serif products, you won't "lose" your work, but if you use the new app you will be limited to the features it supports. If you decide instead to quit using the older Serif products & convert everything to some other software suite, there is no guarantee that software will continue to be developed either, or that it will support the features missing from the Affinity app any better than via the same kind of export/import mechanism common to Affinity & many other apps.

 

They have also made it clear that developing the Serif product line is no longer profitable. No company can continue to exist for long without turning a profit so Serif would almost certainly fail if it continued to develop them. The new Affinity line may not offer everything you want but it is proving to be both profitable & well regarded, so it is unlikely they will stop developing it for many years to come.

 

Obviously, you should do whatever you think is best for you but it would not be a bad idea to consider the above when deciding what that should be.

All 3 1.10.8, & all 3 V2.4.1 Mac apps; 2020 iMac 27"; 3.8GHz i7, Radeon Pro 5700, 32GB RAM; macOS 10.15.7
Affinity Photo 
1.10.8; Affinity Designer 1.108; & all 3 V2 apps for iPad; 6th Generation iPad 32 GB; Apple Pencil; iPadOS 15.7

Link to comment
Share on other sites

When Affinity Publisher is out I'll look at it's features and see if it is worth going to. Functions I need are:

 

masterpage handling that PagePlus has (best of both worlds between Pagemaker and Quark)

 

variable data.

 

Color merging/replacement

 

PDF import as graphics (Same as PagePlus)

 

Imposition and N-up controls same or better than PagePlus.

 

Color separation.

 

I would rather quit my job of 30+ years than put Adobe's garbage on my system and hate to go back to Quirky Quark

Link to comment
Share on other sites

When Affinity Publisher is out I'll look at it's features and see if it is worth going to. Functions I need are:

masterpage handling that PagePlus has (best of both worlds between Pagemaker and Quark)

variable data.

Color merging/replacement

PDF import as graphics (Same as PagePlus)

Imposition and N-up controls same or better than PagePlus.

Color separation.

I would rather quit my job of 30+ years than put Adobe's garbage on my system and hate to go back to Quirky Quark.

 

You are absolutely right about this.

All the latest releases of Designer, Photo and Publisher (retail and beta) on MacOS and Windows.
15” Dell Inspiron 7559 i7 Windows 10 x64 Pro Intel Core i7-6700HQ (3.50 GHz, 6M) 16 GB Dual Channel DDR3L 1600 MHz (8GBx2) NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960M 4 GB GDDR5 500 GB SSD + 1 TB HDD UHD (3840 x 2160) Truelife LED - Backlit Touch Display
32” LG 32UN650-W display 3840 x 2160 UHD, IPS, HDR10 Color Gamut: DCI-P3 95%, Color Calibrated 2 x HDMI, 1 x DisplayPort
13.3” MacBook Pro (2017) Ventura 13.6 Intel Core i7 (3.50 GHz Dual Core) 16 GB 2133 MHz LPDDR3 Intel Iris Plus Graphics 650 1536 MB 500 GB SSD Retina Display (3360 x 2100)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

IMO, it is what it is (which ain't bad, at all, btw)... I doubt any of this would change a business/development plan (this company is already special for the large amount of attention it gives to users, very uncommon (remembering the two main monopolios in 2D and 3D, right now...), but even so, it'd be crazy to go changing investors and etc project plans depending on a forum) .  They are at this very moment building a pair of complex applications with an extremely small team (and development, I'm afraid, is one of the many tasks they need to accomplish in the usual day). And for the level of exigence, I bet in the end, no one here would want 3 apps full of problems never solved, but instead now two solid ones, later on a third app receiving a greater focus and with more resources (probably inheriting also a lot of the improved UI and other internal stuff learnt with these 2's experience), for publishing.  IMO there's no other option than to wait. (for the level of stuff you are requesting, Scribus, despite being free might not cover your demands. Even if it does technically in a wide range, wouldn't for being a very different UI ) .So, IMO you will need patience to see it at some point in several months (and who knows if later events might force it to delay one year...happens in every development company out there).

AD, AP and APub. V1.10.6 and V2.4 Windows 10 and Windows 11. 
Ryzen 9 3900X, 32 GB RAM,  RTX 3060 12GB, Wacom Intuos XL, Wacom L. Eizo ColorEdge CS 2420 monitor. Windows 10 Pro.
(Laptop) HP Omen 16-b1010ns 12700H, 32GB DDR5, nVidia RTX 3060 6GB + Huion Kamvas 22 pen display, Windows 11 Pro.

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've just found about about and bought Affinity Designer. I've been using serif programmes for a couple of decades - I didn't actually realise 'til I read it above that they are abandoning the Plus series. I produce(d) exam papers for an exam board, newsletters and pamphlets and websites for a Parish Council and a construction business and some techy manuals (high graphics content) for a small user base. I'm not a pro but I'm not a dabbler either. So I hope it's OK if I offer my thoughts here. :)

 

In terms of the grumbles about having to wait for the new affinity suite, if you are using the older Serif programmes then they will actually still work ... I guess I'll stick with the X9 versions of Draw/Paint/Publisher/Web until the Affinity set is complete and then transfer over. I bought Affinity thinking it was going to complement DrawPlus but it appears it's going to replace it, so I'll spend some time seeing how they are similar and how they differ and whether X9 programmes will see me out.

 

An alternative to releasing Affinity programmes as they are completed is to sit on them until they are all ready. Serif would lose (oodles) of money, we would lose access to programmes that are ready and the inevitable final debugging would be horrendous for a complete suite released all at once. It's the real world so I guess we just have to suck it up. ;)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

I just wish they would get on with it.  Like others, I purchased Designer and Photo expecting Publisher to follow, but "NO".  I have been a Serif user since PagePlus3 and now use X9 to produce, among other things, our parish magazine.  For me, a suite of compatible programs is essential but Serif seem to be doing all they can to drive me, and doubtless others, away to what I will call the dark side.

 

Come on Serif, let's at least get one complete suite in place before you start expanding your client base.  

 

For years there was only the "PLUS" programs available in Windows and I would suggest that with the Windows user base this was a very profitable and limited line.  Now that they have moved into the Mac arena they appear not to care about the needs of their former supporters.  Pushed back until the end of 2017?  How simply ridiculous.

I agree with everything you're saying.  I was in the same boat when I was doing desktop publishing.  I had the entire suite of Page Plus X9.  The whole time I constantly checked with Serif about coming out with something for Mac...they finally did, when I gave up desktop publishing.  Every now and then I need a design program but don't have one.  They really need to get it together.  They took to long to come out with AF and AP...seriously?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

I really like designer, and for many items that I had previously used PagePlusX9, I am transferring them to AD.

If I copy the text frame to AD, It often comes out as several items, and they are not text frames. If I create a text frame in AD and then copy and paste the text, it comes out as a different size and a different font.

This is unfortunate.

I really hope when APublisher comes out, the transfer will be easier.

 

C R Goss

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If I create a text frame in AD and then copy and paste the text, it comes out as a different size and a different font.

 

You might like to investigate the 'Paste Special' options if you haven't already done so.

Alfred spacer.png
Affinity Designer/Photo/Publisher 2 for Windows • Windows 10 Home/Pro
Affinity Designer/Photo/Publisher 2 for iPad • iPadOS 17.4.1 (iPad 7th gen)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You can also drag the text while holding Alt. That is a shortcut for copying.

The website is still a work in progress. The "Comics" and "Shop" sections are not yet ready. Feel free to connect with me and let me know what you like or what can be improved. You can contact me here, on my contact page, YouTube channel, or Twitter account. Thanks and have a great day!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You can also drag the text while holding Alt. That is a shortcut for copying.

 

You can't Alt-drag or Ctrl-drag text from PP to AD. whistling.gif (Just as an FYI, Alt-drag bypasses the system clipboard, so it isn't quite the same as copy/paste.)

 

In my previous post I suggested investigating the 'Paste Special' options. I've now done so myself, and I got less than satisfactory results. :(

Alfred spacer.png
Affinity Designer/Photo/Publisher 2 for Windows • Windows 10 Home/Pro
Affinity Designer/Photo/Publisher 2 for iPad • iPadOS 17.4.1 (iPad 7th gen)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Guidelines | We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.