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Xara X. Glossary — J~L

JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) The JPEG file format allows bitmaps to be stored in compressed form. Unlike most other compression techniques, the amount of compression is user selectable. JPEG works by discarding redundant information (using 'lossy compression') although generally there is no noticeable reduction of image quality when moderate amounts of compression are used. Xara X can import and export JPEG bitmaps. For more information, see Bitmap File Formats in WebXealot 31.

Kerning allows you to alter the space between two characters in a line of text. Kerning is useful when two characters look unbalanced or too far apart. Small kerning changes between the two characters can improve their appearance. This is often necessary in very large headline or banner text where the "balance" of the characters is highly visible. Kerning is measured in em's (the width of an "M" in the current font and font size). Shown above are the Text Tool Infobar with the Tracking and Kerning controls highlighted. Tracking is similar to Kerning but instead of controlling the space between two characters, it controls the space between characters in a line of text or a text selection.

To adjust the Tracking of a text selection, highlight the text with the Text Tool cursor and click the tracking arrows. To adjust the Kerning between two characters, click the Text Tool insertion cursor between the two characters and click the Kerning control arrows. For a complete discussion of Kerning and Tracking, see WebXealot 20.

Key The Key component is used in the CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Key) color model, which is commonly used by printers. By mixing various quantities of these four inks, a large range of colors can be generated. Key is the black ink.
NOTE: The actual color of cyan and magenta printing inks is much deeper than the colors of the same name found on the Xara Color Line. To see what printed colors will look like when printed by a commercial printer, enable Show Printer Colors (Window menu).

Keyword All the Xara X clipart has Keywords associated with it. Keywords are associated words which help you to find documents more easily. As an example a document containing a picture of a puppy might contain the keywords "animal" and "dog". For information on adding keywords to your own files, see Adding titles, descriptions and keywords to documents in the Xara Help menu.

Laplacian (Bitmap Effect) highlights sharp color changes in bitmaps. This effect is found in Utilities > Bitmap Effects > Special Effects. For more details and a description of all Xara's Bitmap Effects, see Bitmap Effects and Plug-ins in WebXealot 27.

Layer Xara X drawings can be drawn in Layers with different objects in each and with the layers laid on top of each other. Layers can be named and can be locked and made visible or invisible. Layers may also be reordered by dragging their title bars up or down.

Lighten is one of 10 Transparency Types that appear on the Transparency Tool Infobar. It is useful for making underlying objects lighter. Usually you would use it on a separate object to modify the color of underlying objects (that is, you would use an object as a filter). Lighten is a grayscale version of Bleach transparency type.

The color of the object with Lighten applied:

  • Gray & White - lightens the colors of underlying objects.
  • Black - no effect on the colors of underlying objects.
  • Other colors - convert the color to the equivalent shade of gray. (Yellow gives light gray, Red dark gray.) Then lighten the colors of underlying objects.

For more information on Transparency Types and the Transparency Tool see WebXealot 21.

Line A Line can be straight, curved or contain a mixture of both straight and curved segments. A line must have a start and an end so it cannot be filled. (Although you can convert a line into a shape which can be filled.) You can apply a thickness, color, transparency and brush pattern to a line as well as line ends and patterns. When the two ends of a line are joined the line can be filled and is referred to as a shape. If a line has a fill applied to it, the fill will only be visible when the ends of the line have been joined. Lines can be created with the Brush and Freehand Tool, Shape Editor Tool and the Pen Tool. For more details, see WebXealot 18.

Linear Fill is one of 11 Fill Types found on the Fill Tool Infobar and is a smooth, linear graduation of color. By default, Linear Fills are two colors. Additional colors can be dragged and dropped onto the fill path arrow, or you can double click on the fill path arrow to add additional color stations. When you double click on the fill path arrow, Xara automatically applies the color that appears at that point when the 2-color fill was applied. This new color station may be repositioned and the color edited. For more information, about Fill Types and the Fill Tool see WebXealot 20.

Linear Transparency is one of 11 Transparency Shapes found on the Transparency Tool Infobar and is a smooth, linear graduation between two transparencies. You can alter the direction of the transparency by dragging the control handles at either end of the fill path arrow and the level of the transparency at either end by selecting either control handle then adjusting the Transparency slider on the Infobar. For more information on Transparency Types and the Transparency Tool see WebXealot 21.

Linked Colors are a type of named color and inherit components from another color (called the parent color). You define which components you want the linked color to take from the parent named color. For example, you could create a linked RGB color that shared the Red and Green components of the parent named color, but not the Blue. Any changes to the components of the parent named color would be reflected in the linked color. If you wish to create a set of shades of the same color which are all linked so their hue can be changed simultaneously, use shade colors. For more details, see the Color Editor overview and Linked Colors tutorial in WebXealot 29.

Local Colors Xara X has two types of color: Local Colors and Named Colors. Local colors are used in only one place in a document. This is useful if you want to change the color of an object without affecting other objects. Local colors are especially useful in simple documents that use relatively few colors. Local colors do not appear on the Color Line or the Color Gallery.

Luminosity is one of ten Transparency Types found on the Transparency Tool Infobar. This uses the grayscale equivalent of the color to control the luminosity (or Value) of underlying objects. Note that Luminosity has no effect on gray, white or black underlying objects.

The color of the object with Luminosity applied:

  • Gray & White - increase the luminosity of underlying objects. White has the greatest effect, producing saturated color.
  • Black - remains as a black object.
  • Other colors - convert the color to the equivalent shade of gray. (Yellow gives light gray, Red dark gray.) Then increase the luminosity of underlying objects.

For more information on Transparency Types and the Transparency Tool see WebXealot 21.