Xara was the innovator of vector transparency, and Xtreme offers many options for transparency including transparency shapes, blending options, and transparency tiling. Transparency is controlled on-screen just by clicking and dragging control points on an object. There's also a feathering option that can be applied to any object whether it is a vector object or an imported bitmap. With the ClipView feature you can use vector shapes to clip another shape or imported bitmap.
Xara Xtreme offers a new PDF export tool with support for fully scalable vector graduated color fills, flat transparency and graduated transparency. The PDF exporter also improves Adobe Illustrator compatibility, allowing vector artwork with gradients and transparency to be imported into Illustrator versions 9 and up.
Xara Xtreme Review