What I'd like to see in Web Designer

**nickydude** · 24 March 2009, 10:29 AM

The ability to mulit-select when using Import from the file menu (or am I missing something? Yes, I know you can drag and drop but that's flipping windows backwards and forwards).

**pauland** · 24 March 2009, 01:14 PM

A size report. One for each page and one for each image, perhaps with a threshold warning so that novices are aware of how long their pages may take to load and can find the culprits easily because the image sizes are listed.

Perhaps the size report could be generated on preview/demand.

**Teedee** · 24 March 2009, 02:04 PM

Wish list:
* Page Explorer which allows multiple page selection & actions.
* Page number in check box area would be nice. (I know it is on the bottom).
* Proper names for the resources instead of 138.jpg. Current naming makes it hard to manually upload individual pages.
* Synchronise option for upload instead of total upload each time
* Tables. The rulers & tabs go part way
* Easier setting of TABs on the rulers - too small & too finicky (have I missed a text box setting for them?) Perhaps like para spacing.
* Ability to set BOTH margin & first line Tab simultaneously a la Word. Set one relative to other and then drag pair.
* Drag & drop for video files.
* Multi-level menus (yes built-in Webstyle - I'm sure it will come)
* Publish location saved into each .WEB
* ABility to link multiple .WEB files so that updates of Repeating objects can be effected in multiple .WEBs. Single .WEB files do not cut it for reasonable sized sites as they bloat too quickly. Great for small sites of a few pages. Large .web files (>150MB) cause memory overflow during export.
* More control over where resources are located (instead of index_html...).
Now this is pie in sky
* Forms - feedback etc.
* Database (don't really care which) access. Would love to control display of photos from filtered list from database.
* Not altogether happy with Font rendering, especially light on dark. Handling of Font selection, esp Web Safe fonts is great.

I did say WISH and I am aware that this is a $50 program. This first pass, despite the length of my wish list, is excellent.
PS: What are PMs?

**cursor** · 24 March 2009, 02:29 PM

PMs are Private Messages. If you'll look at the upper-right corner of any screen, just under your Welcome message, you'll see a hyperlink that reads, Private Messages.

**jclements** · 24 March 2009, 03:47 PM

Now remember all this stuff is new to me so be kind.

3 Options for placeholder frames

1- Option to "Auto resize" the placeholder's frame to the aspect ratio according to sizing info included in the script or widget

2- Option to allow the placeholder's frame to crop the viewing window (and add scrollbars if necessary)

Not sure if the following is necessary, but if it would be good to have, then
3- Set the anchor point of the placeholder frame to one of its four corner selection handles (not just the upper-left).

**KWard** · 26 March 2009, 10:30 PM

Originally Posted by RSendek

Definitely miss the following from Webstyles and wish they were added back into Web Designer:

(1) The very easy GUI way to create drop down levels of menus

(2) The ability to import and use all those 5 Webstyle template packs I bought.

Seems a bit of a depressing trend lately that upgrades really end up removing some of my most used (and useful) features from the old version (Adobe did the same thing with its CS4 upgrade by removing all their starter pages from Dreamweaver).

I totally agree - while Web Designer looks absolutely AWESOME ! - After more exploration I was very dissappointed to find that it does not have the drop down menus built in like Webstyle did... I mean after all, Xara is boasting that you only need ONE program now to do everything... Apparently Not.

AND that I can't easily import any of my Webstyle Template packs, buttons, banners, backgrounds, icons etc... due to the weird coding used in Webstyle.

I would hope that Xara has a plan for future releases to somehow make those importable... or are they just going to charge me for new template packs all over again? That would really bite.

**jclements** · 27 March 2009, 05:38 PM

Sometime in the future, I'd like XWD flash animations to be able to do motion path animation.

Perhaps in could be done through Xara's Blend-along-path option; the path would be given a name and the beginning and ending objects would be linked to the path's name. A copies of the blend would then be placed in two consequetive frames. For it to work properly, there would have to better tracking of an object's orientation so, for example, if an arrow was blended along a path with a right-angle it could turn the corner without distorting.

**steve.ledger** · 27 March 2009, 05:53 PM

Already there John, it's called 'tweening' and it's available under file>>new>>animation (shift-ctrl-n)
Animation is then exported as a flash (.swf) and added to your page in a placeholder.

**jclements** · 27 March 2009, 05:58 PM

Steve, the examples I've seen can't track along a non-straight path. See my edit above about the arrow.

You can do it with two tweens but with complex paths I would hope for quicker and easier way to implement.

**steve.ledger** · 27 March 2009, 06:03 PM

Originally Posted by nickydude

The ability to mulit-select when using Import from the file menu (or am I missing something? Yes, I know you can drag and drop but that's flipping windows backwards and forwards).

Open WD - ctrl+select (or shift+select) your .web files in explorer and drop them onto the WD title bar.
Viola! Multi-import.

Just as simple as (or maybe simpler than?);
Open WD - go to: File>>Open>>Ctrl+Select (or shift+select) and pressing open.

And this is NOT a workaround.
It's a method to achieve the desired result.
A way to 'succeed'