Inkscape 0.42: The Ultimate Answer 577
bulia byak writes "After several months of frantic work by the evergrowing developer community, the aptly numbered Inkscape 0.42 is out. The amount of new features in this version is astounding. Quoting from the (gigantic!) Release Notes, "while some of the new features simply fill long-standing functionality gaps, others are truly revolutionary". Check out the screenshots and grab your package for Linux, Windows, or OSX." The screenshots are pretty mind-blowing; this isn't a 1.0 release, but I think you'll agree it's worth checking out.
Already using it (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Replacing? (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Replacing? (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Replacing? (Score:5, Informative)
Don't you hate it (Score:5, Informative)
Just including this blurb from the homepage would have been enough:
Inkscape is an open source drawing tool with capabilities similar to Illustrator, Freehand, and CorelDraw that uses the W3C standard scalable vector graphics format (SVG).
Re:Why is the version number apt? (Score:3, Informative)
You might want to disregard this comment. It only makes me want to wince. You were better off not knowing, probably.
Re:Why is the version number apt? (Score:2, Informative)
Keep in mind (Score:5, Informative)
Q: Is Inkscape ready for regular users to use?
Yes, while it's far from being a replacement for commercialware, the codebase provides for a large portion of basic vector editing capabilities.
Re:Already using it (Score:1, Informative)
for a better svg viewer, try java batik library and viewer. (xml.apache.org/batik/)
I was wondering what SVG was (Score:2, Informative)
Another common type of graphic is the raster bitmap in which the data file describes the absolute positioning of pixels in the resulting picture. Scaling (changing size) of such a picture is troublesome because it requires some loss of data if the graphic is shrunk and some interpolation of data if the graphic is stretched.
Vector graphics do not have this problem as they do not exist as mere picture elements in a determined plot. Since they are described in terms of elements with properties, the plotter is able to render the resulting graphic as it sees fit, to any level of resolution it can handle. In some ways, it is very much like povray graphics which are as detailed as you want to make it, at any resolution.
Using this type of graphic is especially helpful in document layout design like brochures and pamphlets where you don't know exactly how big your eventual product will be. I've never used it personally, but this seems like a very cool alternative to more unwieldy software packages like PS and Gimp.
#1 thing Inkscake is missing (Score:3, Informative)
OS X version not Aquafied. (Score:5, Informative)
For anyone who is thinking of grabbing the OS X version, please note that like OpenOffice, InkScape is using X11 to render its display.
I'm a bit disappointed, as this does make it somewhat less nice to use on OS X, however it isn't v1.0 yet, so I'll remain hopefully optimistic.
Yaz.
Re:#1 thing Inkscake is missing (Score:3, Informative)
Pressure (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Why not sodipodi (Score:5, Informative)
Oops.
Re:#1 thing Inkscake is missing (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Did you say OS X? (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Keep in mind (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Replacing? (Score:5, Informative)
Re: Scribus (Score:3, Informative)
www.scribus.org.uk
Re:Replacing? (Score:5, Informative)
Re:I was wondering what SVG was (Score:2, Informative)
Inkscape is pretty much strictly for working on vector graphics (aside from vectorizing a bitmap and rendering an SVG to bitmap I doubt it has any operations on raster formats--it didn't last time I used it), like the grandparent said. The Gimp is for doing raster graphics, though it does have some basic vector operations (paths and fonts, etc.), but they don't compare in strength to Inkscape's functions.
These tools do not have the same function or scope, and (naively) saying so implies that a chisel might work as well when the job calls for a hammer. Of course, when you realize that you can use two tools together, (hammer and chisel, Photoshop and Illustrator, The GIMP and Inkscape), well, there's alot less that you can't do. I.E. You can be effective at chiseling wood with your hands and a sharp instrument, good luck with granite, though.
Re:Replacing? (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Hmm... (Score:5, Informative)
http://inkscape.org/report_bugs.php [inkscape.org]
with as much details as possible, ideally with a backtrace.
> keyset that Adobe and Macromedia apps use?
Because there are many other nice apps that we borrow from. One is Xara X. Another is (yeah) Gimp and other Gnome apps. We can't be a monkey of a single app, and sometimes we can't be a monkey of anyone because we do some original stuff too.
> holding space should enable the panning tool
We don't have a panning tool because we have lots of other ways to scroll. The best of them are middle-drag and ctrl+arrows. Try them, you may like them better when you get used to them.
> holding alt (not shift) should make the zoom tool zoom out rather than in.
That one makese sense - alt+click is currently unused in zoom tool, so i think I'll enable it to zoom out _in addition_ to shift+click.
> Also, double-clicking on the zoom tool should revert to "standard" zoom--not open the preferences panel.
Just press '1' to get 100% zoom. And it would be horribly inconsistent to make doubleclick work different on zoom tool than on other tools.
To summarize, we welcome any feedback, and very often we honor it, but also quite often people just want us to imitate exactly their favorite app without realizing that (1) there are other vector apps which are just as worthy of imitation, (2) Inkscape's way of doing it may be actually better, or (3) we can't do that because that would break consistency of Inkscape behavior in unpleasant ways.
Re:#1 thing Inkscake is missing (Score:2, Informative)
Re:I was wondering what SVG was (Score:5, Informative)
To give a more concrete example of what the other folks are saying:
If you're designing graphics for a print brocure or (as in my case recently) wedding invitation, and you're not trying to do photographs, a vector graphics program is just the thing: You can edit your work easily, and the final result can be rendered at whatever resolution it's going to be printed at. Many effects which are a PITA if possible at all via raster software (such as shaped text) are standard features in good vector editors.
If you're retouching a photo, you need a raster editor. Period. So really, you can't replace one with the other. They both have their place, and both are necessary.
Re:I also hate it when... (Score:1, Informative)
sounds ok to me?
Re:I was wondering what SVG was (Score:3, Informative)
Not saying that Inkscape or SVG are great for photo editing, just wanted to point out that some of these things can be done.
SVG rasterisation (Score:4, Informative)
SVG is an XML format. You can describe arbitrary shapes using basic polylines, circles, squares, etc. and animate it too - all using XML. It's a W3C standard. You can even use CSS for your vector graphics!
I've been working on a very complex piece of software that does some work vectorising bitmaps. It has a non-standard (but basic) intermediate file format that I needed to visualise in a hurry.
By using Perl and installing the SVG lib from CPAN, I was able to write a program in just 3 hours that parsed this app's crazy intermediate line-vector files and turn it into industry standard SVG files that can be viewed with a web browser, or with Inkscape.
Because every element (every line, piece of text, circle, etc.) has an object ID, and being XML you can mash your own custom properties onto things, I found Inkscape very useful for not only visualising these files but exploring other non-visual things I was able to mangle into the line segments (open
SVG and Inkscape have been invaluable for exploring how my refactoring of this application has affected the output...
There was just one problem: For a program that uses
Also, I still cannot find a way to export
Re:I was wondering what SVG was (Score:2, Informative)
As I might have hinted, my interest in this area lies in why these two formats, being completely opposite in nature, would also end up complementing each other so perfectly, and of course, how to maximize the results of such a pairing--except, on a much more abstract level.
Well, no need to bore you with details, but to give a better example of how these two are completely opposing in nature, note that where one is discrete, the other is continuous, and vice versa. Vector graphics use curves defined by mathematical functions to generate an image (known as rendering). Yet, every element is discretely defined, as is the nature of curves from mathematical functions.
On the other hand, raster graphics are comprised of discrete pixels that, when put together, form a coherent image. Yet, the elements within the image are continuous--that is, there is no absolute position where one can assert that an element in the picture ends and another begins.
Yet only through combining the two forms in the manner I previous described can CG achieve an accurate visual representation of reality.
This kind of thinking, unfortunately, is at best ungeeky, and tends to bore or amuse more than interest.
Re:SVG rasterisation (Score:5, Informative)
Gradients in PS/EPS export work now (with some limitations, see Release Notes). But transparency does not work simply because PS has no such thing, and "emulating" it is an enormous hassle.
> all the output is always antialiased... any ideas?
That's one of the problems with our renderer currently. It only has the AA mode. Hopefully this will be fixed when Inkscape is ported to use Cairo.
Exporting (Score:1, Informative)
A mink, not a ferret (Score:2, Informative)
I can't remember the name of the painting off the top of my head, but that's a mink, not a ferret.
The symbolism of the painting is that the woman is so pure that a mink, usually very, very, very fastidious about the cleanliness of its fur, lets her not only touch but even hold it. These little critters don't like *anything* touching them.
If I remember the name of the painting in the morning I'll come back and post a follow-up.
Cheers,
E
Still funny? (Score:3, Informative)
The interface may take a while to get used to, but once you get there it is very professional and very clear. I believe this kind of joke may be historically funny, but eventually everybody who one day worked with Gimp 0.8 will be retired or dead and no one will remember exactly why it is funny. As I said, even today, someone who never used another drawing program would not see anything wrong or strange in Gimp's interface (any large program has a complicated interface - Photoshop's interface isn't exactly easy to learn).
Re:A mink, not a ferret (Score:5, Informative)
Re:Keep in mind (Score:2, Informative)
It certainly won't hold me back: Inkscape exports postscript & encapsulated postscript just like many other programs, and, more importantly, most people don't give a rat's ass about commercial print shops.
Re:What do you mean... (Score:1, Informative)
On the Mac,
[G5:~] daniel%
tcsh:
[G5:~] daniel%
tcsh:
Try instead:
[G5:~] daniel% open
Re:SVG (& hence Inkscape) excites me (Score:2, Informative)
Regards,
Steve
Re:Replacing? (Score:5, Informative)
BTW, I don't mean that in a condescending way; it's just a consequence of specialization and it's human nature to assume everyone has some passing interest in the stuff that fascinates or occupies us. I'm sure the proteomics folks here could rattle off half a dozen names of very cool molecular modeling apps, but as someone who spends his days writing Java web applications, not one of those names would ring any kind of bell for me. In return I expect most of the proteomics crowd has never heard of Tapestry or Wicket or the JSP Standard Template Library.
Now if only we could get the editors to realize they ought to include descriptions of the stuff they're posting about. It would not have been so much burden, I think, to add the words "vector illustration tool" right before the name of the program, especially since the editor edited the story anyway to add a comment to the end.
Re:Pressure (Score:3, Informative)
Look at any comic book - the ink lines (which are normally drawn with a brush) vary a lot in width to give the drawing a much more dynamic feel.
This is something that can be very useful for a vector-based drawing program.
That said, I have been using Inkscape for quite a while and am extremely happy with it. I wasn't even tempted to pirate illustrator or something similar. Big kudos to the Inkscape developers.
However, one very notable missing feature is the "Gradient Mesh" function found in illustator. After looking at the SVG standard, I understand why it is not there - the standard in its current form cannot support free-form gradients. I have been thinking of how to implement this, but I cannot think of a clean, non-hacky, non-workaround way of doing this...
This is very unfortunate, as this prevents you from drawing things with gradients that are not linear or circular (for example a shaded tube, where the shadow should follow the curve). I noticed in one of the screenshots (the chrome "pills") that the gradients on the pills seem to do just that - however, looking more closely (at the one pill in the bottom left corner), it appears that the caps on the pills are simply separate objects with a circular gradient applied.
Re:Looks cool, too bad it's completely useless to (Score:5, Informative)
since it assumes I want the interface to be in incomplete/poorly translated Japanese language, and doesn't seem to give me any way to change it to English.
Sounds like you want this [inkscape.org] page. First scroll down to the bottom and read "Locale Testing" to see how to set the language. Then scroll up and learn the process of making improvements to an Open Source application's translations. Remember that translations only improve when someone (such as yourself) contributes a few hours to help improve them. ;-)
Re:Replacing? (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Replacing? (Score:2, Informative)
Note: OpenOffice vs. NeoOffice/J on the Mac (Score:5, Informative)
Just so there are no misunderstandings here: Though there is an OpenOffice version for the Mac that is in fact only accessable via X11, everybody uses NeoOffice/J [planamesa.com] instead because it is aquafied to the point where it runs normally. Oh, and it is GPL.
And now back to your scheduled program.
Re:Did you say OS X? (Score:2, Informative)
A ferret, not a mink! (Score:1, Informative)
At the time the picture was taken, nearly all ferrets were albino - it was much preferred as a color for easy identification. It was some years later when ferrets began to catch on as pets and not just 'working' animals that color was bred back into the line from the tiny minority of pigmented animals.
Yes, the painting is called 'Woman with an ermine', but Da Vinci didn't label the painting himself, that's just the name it's been given over time.
That animal is far too large to be an ermine. Half a pound would be an amazingly large ermine, while male ferrets can reach up to 5 pounds. Females ferrets rarely reach one pound, and they're STILL all larger than ermine ever get.
Mink are also smaller than the mustelid in the picture, though larger than an ermine. I used to know a couple of people who raised mink and sometimes ferrets as well, and the mink were a good deal smaller, generally brown and rarely albino, unlike ferrets - and vicious as all get-out! There is no way anyone would get a mink to sit still in someone's hands long enough to pose for a picture, and whoever tried had REALLY better be wearing heavy gloves!
Re:Oh sweet mistress (Score:2, Informative)
Known bug on Windows, we even have a patch for it but that patch must go into Freetype, so it's not there yet.
Re:Already using it (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Replacing? (Score:3, Informative)
Before you ask why this isn't the default: it's because they received tons and tons of bug reports from people with broken window managers that don't support utility windows.
Re:Keep in mind (Score:2, Informative)
Its much better than it was, definitely. It's much closer to the functionality of earlier versions of programs like CorelDRAW and Adobe Illustrator than any of the previous versions. With support for
- layers (very important!)
- manual text kerning
- Put text on path
- flow text into frame
- 'live' gradient editor
- bitmap tracing
- support for union/difference/etc. of objects (already in 0.3x, but added late)
- export support for
.eps and .ps formats
Inkscape is on par with older versions of commercialware, with some support for newer-style features like the live gradient editor.Some features that are still sorely missing (compared to commercialware) are:
- Object/text morphing via 'envelope' and 'perspective' type functions
- support for automatic drop shadowing
- more export filters that just
.eps and .ps. Specifically, support for Windows Metafile (.wmf), Adobe Illustrator 88 (.ai), AutoCAD DXF (.dxf) (for 2D and 3D CAD conversion), HPGL and/or HPGL/2 (for output to plotters)
- ability to import at least
.eps, .ps and .wmf. .dxf and .ai would be nice.
- better clipboard support
... ability to integrate with desktop environments so that SVG objects can be embedded in other applications
with those additions and a few more, Inkscape could be well on its way to being a complete replacement for Adobe Illustrator and CorelDRAW. Already as a graphic designer I could probably spend most of my time in Inkscape and only have to bring in commercialware for a few little features.Re:Don't you hate it (Score:3, Informative)
You laugh, actually that is within the range of functionality we would ultimately like to have... comic work was the reason I got involved.
We already have bitmap tracing, but it's not refined enough for auto-inking yet. I do already use it for tracing scanned, hand-inked pages, at sufficiently high DPI.
Of course, yes, that's hardly the sole purpose of Inkscape.
Re:I also hate it when... (Score:1, Informative)
The key concept you miss is that "is" applies to "amount", not "features", therefore singular NOT plural.
Re:Replacing? (Score:3, Informative)
> add a comment to the end.
yeah, but the editor is Timothy. he's responsible for most of the sensationalist/biased/irrelevant articles on
Re:Panning tool problem (Score:3, Informative)
Re:If this is the "The Ultimate Answer" (Score:3, Informative)