Printing Xara 3D Images

Several readers have written and asked how they can export a high resolution bitmap image for commercial printing. This doesn't seem like it would be all that hard, except that there is no resolution setting when you export. So albeit a bit convoluted, here is my suggestion.

Maximize the Xara 3D 4 window and select Fit to Width from the Font Size drop down list. This should fill the entire screen with your image.

Save your image with the Current Window Size and Crop options selected.

Open your image in a bitmap editing application such as Adobe Photoshop.

Change the Mode setting to CMYK.

Resize the image to the desired print size and change the resolution. In Photoshop, you can select Auto in the Resize dialog and key in the desired resolution and Photoshop will do the math.

While this is not a perfect solution, it will have to do until Xara comes up with something better.

HARD QUESTION: Why can't I open Xara XAR or WEB files in Xara 3D 4 like my editor says I can?

Your editor has heard this question from several of you perplexed readers and took it upon himself to investigate.

SIMPLE ANSWER:

You need to have Xara's Browser Plug In filter installed on your computer. Is that weird or what? What does a Browser plug in filter have to do with Xara 3D 4?

Lucky for you, and for your editor, the filter is free. CLICK HERE to download it. And there is an additional benefit to the filter. When the filter is installed, you will be able to view zoomable Xara WEB files from the Web in the privacy of your Browser.

For more fun with Xara 3D 4, check out this month's Trompe L'Oeil Room tutorial.