Why Hello Phil, for me a standard vector is a CDR file.
George
Phil1923 said:I just wanted to convert my .CMX and .CDR files to a universal format in case Corel goes out of business. They were very close to it only a short while ago.
I have heard that information back since when CorelDRAW 4.0 was launched , that means more than 20 years ago. Then this story is repeated many times, and possibly someone would have believed. But believe me, if that does not happen a few years back, now it is much less likely to happen.
The business world is changing. Many businesses grow quickly, others suddenly disappear and there are companies that buy other. Whole countries have emerged, while others have disappeared. Therefore, we can not know with certainty what will happen in a few years. But right now, Corel is on one of his best moments. It has increased its portfolio of programs, and has doubled the number of users in a short time. While rivals have made massive layoffs to offset losses, Corel has grown into new markets: China, Russia, India. Corel has a solid back, so that there are no logical reason to think you may have problems in the near future. But even if a meteor can fall over Canada some day, you can continue using your current program for several years more, until find a replacement. Several people still use CorelDRAW X3 or X4, Photoshop CS4 or CS5, etc.
So, the best "backup" for your files is... CDR file format
Wow, that is alot of work to do just in case the sky falls...even if the worst possible scenario happens you will still have the program to work with the files and can then export them to whatever filetype is popular in this murky distopian future you are imagining. Creating a duplicate for all your files would be insane especially because Corel files are usually smaller than most exported vector file types (some end up being huge...I am looking at you .EPS). As long as your files are backed up, don't spend a huge amount of time converting them unless you have to. Spend your time designing and making money.
Its not a big deal, you are free to spend your time however you like but in the end there is no perfect alternative to CDR, CPT or PSD or AI as they are all proprietary to the manufacturer so it seems to me like wasted effort with an inferior result. As with most software, someone somewhere is working at cracking CorelDraw even now so if they do go out of business this will go into high gear and a crack will be widely available if it isn't already. If you are still intent on extreme redundancy I would advise just back converting your files to an earlier time tested version of Corel without online copyright protection and then keeping backup copies of all your disks and a few extra computers in the bunker.
To have a open standard layered vector file format would require all or most of the design software companies to play nice and agree with each other over featuresets and formats...not going to happen.