AD for Windows features where is current Nov2016 list ?

[Steve1]

Hi,

I see a 2014 list of what is planned to be added.

 

Affinity Designer for Windows.

 

I would like to see a comparison list of what it has that Freehand had, and what Illustrator has, though I dont use Illustrator due to all the 'not as good as Freehand' aspects of it, still use Freehand but it needs far better trim and other tools now that I use CAD, it seems primitive in all but its lovely bezier curve tool , colour editing and object/layer feedback and layer ordering.

 

Its now 2 yrs on from that roadmap list.

 

TRIM/SPLIT

I am wondering if it now has a split or trim a line or curve option because it didnt have anything easy for this back then.

 

Pretty basic need in fact, Freehand had a scalpel tool which meant zooming right in to be sure of a cut on a junction when one line met another. Thats crude now. I recall the cut line could curl a bit !

In CAD I simply select the cutting line then the line to be split or cut and it happens exactly at the junction, wish this had existed in Freehand days !

Such gets done a trillion times so its a crucial tool and needs to happen fast and with one or two clicks at most. To not have such may well be a massive turnoff in fact, like a surgeon only allowed plastic scissors and not a scalpel !

 

COLOUR EDIT.

I also wonder if it can update/change all instances of a colour in use when that colour is replaced with another.

In Freehand there was a colour list, it showed colours in use, and a drag drop onto a colour by another from the colour mixer changed all instances of that colour.

 

It is vital to be able to change ones mind on a colour without having to try and find all shapes using that colour and edit them with another.

 

DISTORT TOOL.

Has it a distort tool that will allow independent sizing of all four sides of a photo, for matching an oblique shot to a 2D ortho view.

 

MM/INCH FOR LINE THICKNESS.

Does it allow mm or inch input for line thickness ? Pts is no use to me at all as I am drawing objects based on dimensions, giving them panel line gaps based on mm and inches etc. I know what a 0.3mm line will look like when printed or taken into CAD.  Freehand allowed for mm or inch line weights.

 

IMPORT OF 2D LINEWORK FROM CAD.

Having drawn items in CAD (Rhino3D)  and then create2D them , can these be brought into AD and will the lines be intelligent or must we trace the whole thing using AD tools ?

 

GUIDE LINES WITH PLACEMENT DIALOG BOX.

Ability to select a guideline and accurately place it by entering a ruler value for it.

 

REPLACE PHOTOSHOP

Can it in fact do what I would have used photoshop for, create sprayed lines, spots etc, lay a black line over e.g. yellow and show it as darker yellow . either as yellow with grey added, or as an oil-painter would do for shadow, yellow with more red added ?

 

PDF MANUAL.

To see a feature list of what it has would be good, or a pdf of the manual and tutorials, to be able to search for a feature and read about it ..vital.

 

Is there a pdf ?

 

Whilst there is a wishlist for features section here, to have a list of what it can do is also vital.

 

Cheers

 

Steve1

[Patrick Connor]

Steve1,

 

Welcome to the Serif Affinity forums :)

 

The date on that post is deceptive, as it was started in 2014, but has been edited many times since, each time features were added to versions 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4 & 1.5, more has come off that list and sometimes more added. So it currently represent the features that we have openly said are coming to version one, in the price at some point That doesn't mean that we don't have much bigger ambitions for our products, but some features will be in version 1.X and some in 2 or 3

 

Your list is well explained and a useful addition to this requests forum.

 

As it's late, I will leave replying to each if your questions to another day (or someone else may chip in) , I hope that's alright. I thought it was worth just explaining about the roadmap post.

 

Thank you

[R C-R]

MM/Inch For Line Thickness: see this post for a list of the standard units AD supports. Essentially anywhere you can input a units dimension as text, you can use any of the length units as a suffix. You can also change the document's default units from the File > Document Setup menu > Dimensions tab or in the Context toolbar when the View (hand) tool is selected.

 

Also, in Preferences > User Interface there are options to show lines (or text) in points. Make sure the one for lines is not checked if you don't want that to override the document default.

 

Import Of 2D Linework From CAD: What you get depends on the export format your CAD app supports & what (if any) comparable features AD supports. Typically, SVG gives good results for basic vector shapes & curves, but any "intelligent" features of the CAD app probably won't be supported.

 

Guide Lines With Placement Dialog Box: View menu > Guides Manager allows you to input text values for rectilinear guides. The interface is a bit clunky but it works.

[Steve1]

Hi,

 

As it's late, I will leave replying to each if your questions to another day

Hope you can find time, even on a few points. I tried finding a video on the cut/split but failed. Urgently looking forward to answers to my points raised as wishing and needing to use AD but need to see them first and have an urgent job to try AD on if it will be better than CAD into photoshop.

 

Others may also be encouraged from what they read as well.

 

I hope AD goes far, we need a decent prog.

 

Steve1

[Patrick Connor]

Sorry Steve1, I saw R C-R had told you what can be done and the rest are basically feature requests. The Distort tool is already part of Affinity Photo, and much requested in Designer too. Trim/Split is a knife tool which is on the roadmap and currently missing.

 

https://forum.affinity.serif.com/index.php?/topic/842-affinity-designer-feature-roadmap/

[Steve1]

Hi, I am hoping to hear about the following I raised.

 

TRIM / SPLIT...is there anything anywhere that shows how currently one goes about cutting a line where it goes beyond another, e.g. cutting a cross to become a T,

A video of chopping off parts of lines and curves would be good, any link to one would be MOST WELCOME.

 

COLOUR EDIT.

I also wonder if it can update/change all instances of a colour in use when that colour is replaced with another.

In Freehand there was a colour list, it showed colours in use, and a drag drop onto a colour by another from the colour mixer changed all instances of that colour.

 

PDF MANUAL

Is there a manual for the prog I can read and find about about features I hope are there ?

 

Cheers

 

Steve1

[R C-R]

Trim/Split: the closest to a knife tool we have for now is the "Break curve" action, but that only opens a path at an existing node, & it only works on one node at a time. The alternative is to use boolean operations to (for example) subtract one shape from another. The knife tool is on the roadmap but not here yet.

 

Color Edit -- you can create document, application, or system color swatches automatically from the existing colors in a document, but they are not searchable like in Freehand. You can create Global colors that update all instances when you change one but you must do that explicitly for each color.

 

No PDF manual as yet.