Vector Architect

Infobox_Software
name = Vector Architect



caption = Vector Architect Screenshot
developer = Owl Island Software
latest_release_version = 2.0.1
latest_release_date = release date and age|2008|06|01
language = English
operating_system = Microsoft Windows
genre = Graphic editor
license = Proprietary EULA
website = [http://www.vectorarchitect.com/ vectorarchitect.com]

Vector Architect is a vector graphics editor designed by Owl Island Software.

Availability

The first version of Vector Architect was released on 27 September, 2007 to coincide with the release of Silverlight 1.0 and Visual Studio 2008. Vector Architect has since been updated to version 1.5, adding a new user interface, several new tools, and a library of preset shapes. An upgrade from version 1.x to 1.5 was made available free of charge [ [http://owlisland.com/support.php?name=VectorArchitectUpgrade Vector Architect 1.5 Upgrade] ] , and an upgrade package to version 2.0 was made available to purchasers of the initial version. Early versions of the application were released under the name "Vectropy".

Vector Architect is available for WPF-capable platforms, such as Microsoft Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2008.

Functionality

Vector Architect is not a general-purpose vector graphics editor, but is specifically designed to create and edit XAML vector graphics for WPF and Silverlight applications. Vector Architect is itself based upon the WPF framework, using .NET Framework 3.5 to provide both its WYSIWYG front-end, and underlying editing engine.

In many ways, Vector Architect is similar to Microsoft Expression Design, offering manipulation of native WPF objects, as opposed to performing conversion to XAML. Editing native objects is often necessary as XAML does not have the exact same feature set as other popular vector image formats such as SVG and SWF, making the conversion process lossy in many cases. Although primarily focused on XAML, Vector Architect also supports the generation of PNG images with alpha channels, as well as the creation of icons containing alpha-blended images at multiple resolutions.

Licensing

Vector Architect is licensed on a per-user, perpetual license basis. The EULA also states that all included preset shapes are licensed to the purchaser for any purpose except isolated redistribution or resale.

Existing Uses

Vector Architect is has gained a user base as an alternative to the first-party XAML tools provided by Microsoft. Although pre-release licensing prevents widespread use, [ [http://www.microsoft.com/silverlight/overview/faq.aspx Silverlight FAQ] ] some Silverlight projects that make use of Vector Architect have been released. [ [http://www.smoothcosmos.com/FAQ.html Smooth Cosmos FAQ] ]

ee also

* List of vector graphics editors
* Comparison of vector graphics editors

References

External links

* [http://www.vectorarchitect.com Vector Architect] product site

Tutorials and guides

* [http://xamlgraphics.blogspot.com XAML Graphics blog (focused on Vector Architect)]