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Who is Xara? Xara has been developing software since 1981, one of the oldest continuously trading independent software developers in the UK. The company started by writing software for the BBC Micro and subsequently became the largest developer for the Acorn platform throughout the 1980s (a more detailed history of the Acorn products marketed under the Computer Concepts name is available on our Computer Concepts web site).
The first Windows product from Xara was launched in 1994, a mainstream graphics illustration package called Xara Studio. In November 1994, shortly after the release of Xara Studio version 1.00, an agreement was struck between Xara Ltd and Corel Corporation, as a result of which Corel is the worldwide distributor of the product now known as CorelXARA.
Xara is continuing to develop CorelXARA, but has also launched a range of graphic products aimed specifically at Web graphic designers, including Xara Webster, Xara3D and Xara WebStyle. These new products are marketed and distributed primarily over the Internet which has provided the opportunity for Xara to grow into an international company, selling over 90% of its products outside the UK. It is our aim to pursue this opportunity, establishing Xara as the foremost supplier of Web graphics software.
Xara is based at Gaddesden Place, a Grade 2 listed mansion standing in eight acres of parkland in the Hertfordshire countryside. It is a UK limited company (a privately held corporation), under the same ownership since 1981.
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