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This article reviews the program "CorelXTRA", republished from the Northwest La. PC User Group (NWLAPCUG), Shreveport, La.

CorelXARA

Review by Glenda Conradi

CorelXARA (pronounced Corel Zar-uh) is a brand new offering from Corel Corporation. It is an advanced 32-bit graphic illustration program that may be the answer for the PC user who is interested in some of the basic applications available in CorelDRAW but does not need quite that much power and is looking for an easier learning curve. Don't misunderstand, CorelXARA appears to be a very powerful program that provides many of the same end results that may be obtained in CorelDRAW and it is surprisingly fast. It also seems to provide an abundance of short cut features that make some of the end results much easier to obtain with less mouse clicking and fewer steps.

Take the blend feature for example. You may blend two clip art images you have imported into your document from the graphics provided on the CorelXARA CD-ROM. This is as simple as selecting the Blend tool from the Toolbar, or pressing the F7 key, and then dragging the Blend Tool from one graphic to the other. The blend will work on pre-drawn graphics or shapes and graphics you create. By drawing interesting shapes and giving them different colors you will be able to come up with some really impressive effects very quickly. You are not limited to blending two objects. You may blend as many shapes, graphics or combinations of both as your page will hold and your computer memory will handle. CorelXARA also lets you produce your own art work with other easy to use tools from the Toolbar.

The Freehand tool gives you an icon that looks like a pencil. It reacts exactly like one, too, and by using the Smoothing slider bar you may adjust the smoothness of the lines and shapes you draw. The transparency tool is also quick and easy to apply and gives you great results. In fact, considering all the tools and options available in CorelXARA, you will probably be able to obtain almost any end result you might hope to achieve in a high end graphics illustration program without having to invest quite so much. You are also given a lot of freedom if you would like to customize the Control bars that contain buttons you click on to execute a command or the Toolbar that contains all the tools available in CorelXARA. I think this feature could be invaluable if you have younger members in the family and would like to present a more simplified drawing environment for them to get started in. You can add control bars and buttons as they learn to use them. If you like you can also return them back to their default settings.

This program should be a lot of fun for the whole family. It is very satisfying to be able to come up with some great results with very little time and effort. This should encourage you to unearth that hidden talent you didn't even know you had.

If you are really uninterested in "drawing from scratch" you will probably find enough clipart provided with the program (10,000 + images) to satisfy your urge to create an impressive document whether it might be a newsletter, certificate, sign, brochure, or an embellished letter to Aunt Kate. The manual is easy to follow, well illustrated, and will provide you with many step by step instructions on how to get the result you are looking for. Don't panic if you look something up in the index but can't find any reference to it on the page you were told to refer to. I quickly discovered that my manual was a couple of pages off. If you experience this problem just turn back a page or two and you will probably find the subject you want to read about. The manual contains both the instruction portion and fonts/clipart section with the index separating the two. I have found that it would be a little more convenient, in my opinion, to have the index at the end of the manual. I end up doing a lot of flipping through the pages to find the index. The online demonstrations provided through the Help menu are a nice addition. They give you a short tutorial on many of CorelXARA's features in an on screen video format.

One major drawback I have encountered with CoreXARA is its incompatibility, in some instances, with CorelDRAW. Drawings I have created in CorelXARA using transparencies, blends, and graduated fills are not accepted in CorelDRAW. This may be a problem CorelDRAW will have to address if they choose to do so. Both programs are products of Corel Corporation so it seems that it would be in their best interest make them compatible. Hopefully they will correct this situation. I know I would really benefit from it since CorelDRAW is the program I use for almost every thing I do and I am really impressed with some of the results I can obtain so easily in CorelXARA. I would love to be able to use those results in my CorelDRAW applications. I have not experienced any problems importing or opening my CorelDRAW5 files in CorelXARA. One thing that CorelXARA does not provide is a preview window to show you the files you want to open or import into the program. This can be a major drawback resulting in a lot of wasted time if you don't happen to know or remember the name of the file you want. It's a good thing it opens or imports the file onto the page so rapidly or it would be even worse.

CorelXARA may have a few features that could be changed or improved upon but even taking that into consideration I feel this is an excellent program and well worth the $189.00 asking price. It has so many outstanding features that make it a real pleasure to work with. It comes on one CD-ROM and may be installed onto your hard drive, or it can be set up to run directly from the CorelXARA CD-ROM. If you are ready to run out and buy your copy of CorelXARA check your system. Make sure you have a PC 486 or higher, at least 8 MB RAM, Windows 3.1X, Windows NT or Windows 95, a CD-ROM drive, VGA card and Monitor, Windows compatible mouse or other pointing device, and a sound board with speakers for the online demonstrations. You may even want to upgrade your computer for this one.

Glenda Conradi

This article maybe reprinted in non-profit User Group newsletters ONLY by Editors who are authorized AOL/GNN UG Ambassador account holders. When an article is reprinted, we hope the Editor will include the following information in their newsletter: from the Northwest La. PC User Group (NWLAPCUG), Shreveport, La. Home page location is: http://www.softdisk.com/comp/nwlapcug. The author is a member of the NWLAPCUG.

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