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Inkscape

Beginner's Guide

Create attractive layout designs, logos, brochures, icons,
and more using the Inkscape vector graphics editor

Bethany Hiitola

BIRMINGHAM - MUMBAI

Inkscape

Beginner's Guide

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system,
or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the
publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embedded in critical articles or reviews.
Every effort has been made in the preparation of this book to ensure the accuracy of the
information presented. However, the information contained in this book is sold without
warranty, either express or implied. Neither the author, nor Packt Publishing, and its dealers
and distributors will be held liable for any damages caused or alleged to be caused directly
or indirectly by this book.
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companies and products mentioned in this book by the appropriate use of capitals.
However, Packt Publishing cannot guarantee the accuracy of this information.

First published: May 2012

Production Reference: 1170512

Published by Packt Publishing Ltd.
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ISBN 978-1-84951-720-1
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Cover Image by Asher Wishkerman (a.wishkerman@mpic.de)

Credits
Author
Bethany Hiitola
Reviewers
Mark Bystry

Project Coordinator
Joel Goveya
Proofreader
Chris Brown

Jose Olarte III
Richard Querin
Sylvia Slokker
Acquisition Editor
Sarah Cullington

Indexer
Monica Ajmera Mehta
Graphics
Manu Joseph
Valentina D'Souza

Lead Technical Editor
Hithesh Uchil

Production Coordinator
Melwyn D'Sa

Technical Editors
Ankita Shashi
Manali Mehta
Manasi Poonthottam
Copy Editors
Leonard D'Silva
Laxmi Subramanian

Cover Work
Melwyn D'Sa

About the Author
Bethany Hiitola is a working writer. She has worked as a technical writer and multimedia
developer for over 12 years. She spends the rest of her time as a wife, mother, and caretaker
to pets. She has written more user manuals than she can count, essays, short stories,
academic papers, press releases, and feature articles. More details about her writing and life
are at her website: www.bethanyhiitola.com
Without you Matt, this book wouldn't have been possible. You are
my everything.

About the Reviewers
Mark Bystry is a design engineer by trade. He is also an open source software enthusiast
with a penchant for graphic art. Drawing and illustration, 3D modeling, desktop publishing,
photography, and videography are just a few of his many interests. Those things also spill
into his daily work duties. Mark has come to rely on Inkscape as well as several other leading
open source applications to achieve a full range of graphic tasks.
Several years ago Mark teamed up with his online pal, Richard Querin, when they recognized
a void within the Inkscape user community, specifically the lack of educational information
dedicated to the use of Inkscape. Their vision was of a series of instructional videos geared
towards beginners.
Since that time Richard and Mark have made over one hundred videos demonstrating various
functions within the application. Though their video series has tapered off, mainly due to their
insatiable need to explore all that the technological world has to offer, they still remain avid
users of Inkscape and continue to guide novice users in the achievement of their goals.

Jose Olarte III is a graphic designer and photographer from Baguio City, Philippines. He
specializes in: user interface design for web, mobile and desktop platforms; print design for
magazines and other publications; logo and icon design. When he's not busy pushing pixels
and stretching ems, he gets his social fix by tweeting away his thoughts: twitter.com/
brownspank

I would like to thank my wife Vanessa for putting up with my extended
hours and sharing my passion for work, without which I wouldn't have the
strength and motivation to move forward with my creative endeavors.

Richard Querin is a practicing structural engineer with a passion for graphic design,
photography, and other creative pursuits. He has contributed graphic design work to several
different free and open source projects including websites, mobile and desktop applications,
conference graphics, and print advertisements. He has also done numerous Inkscape video
tutorials as a co-contributor to the screencasters.heathenx.org website.
I would like to thank my family for putting up with my creative antics and
providing me the time and space to take on creative pursuits such as
these. Thanks also go to my friend and Inkscape compatriot Mark Bystry
for his help throughout the years and to Joel Goveya for his patience when
it came to getting my reviews back. And finally, a special thanks to my
wonderful daughter Emily for making fatherhood an absolute delight.

Sylvia Slokker is a graphics freelancer and IT professional. She started her career in web
design and development in 2001, abandoning the career path of process engineer after
almost 10 years.
Sylvia moved continents to chase a dream and currently works as a web developer in
Australia. She has been creating vector designs since 1994, using both commercial as
well as open source software. Nowadays, she uses Inkscape almost exclusively for all
her vector work. Sylvia writes tutorials for the web under the nickname Syllie and runs:
verysimpledesigns.com as a tutorial site for the novice Inkscape artist.

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Table of Contents
Preface
Chapter 1: Getting Started with Vector Graphics

1
7

What are vector graphics?
Programs that use vector graphics
Vector formats
Scalable Vector Graphics
Advantages of an open-standard vector format

8
8
9
9
10

Additional advantages of SVG vector images over proprietary formats
Disadvantages of vector graphics over non-vector formats

Determining when to use vector or rasterized graphics
Time for action – basic design
Time for action – vector versus rasterized images
Time for action – building brochure files
Summary

Chapter 2: Installing and Opening Inkscape
Inkscape's features
Installing Inkscape
Time for action – downloading Inkscape
Troubleshooting installation
The basics of the software
Time for action – getting started with Inkscape
Understanding a new document
Time for action – learning more about the main screen
Summary

Chapter 3: How to Manage Files
Creating new files
Using predefined-sized document dimensions

10
11

11
12
13
14
16

17
17
18
19
20
21
22
28
28
34

35
35
36

Table of Contents

Time for action – creating a new CD cover
Custom document dimensions
Time for action – creating a new custom file size for a postcard
Saving Inkscape files
Saving in Inkscape SVG
Time for action – saving an Inkscape SVG
Exporting files
Time for action – exporting to PNG
Creating a customized default document
Time for action – creating a new default document
How to structure project files
Managing multiple file projects
Time for action – exporting a batch of images
Renaming object IDs

37
39
39
44
44
45
47
47
49
50
51
52
52
54

Importing non-native Inkscape files
Time for action – importing a PDF into Inkscape
Embedding and linking image files
Embedding files in Inkscape
Time for action – embedding a logo into your design
Linking external files in Inkscape
Time for action – linking a photograph into a brochure design
Summary

Chapter 4: Creating your First Graphics
Paths
Creating your first vector graphic
Creating a polygon
Time for action – opening a new document
Time for action – creating a star
Time for action – saving your graphic
Creating ellipses and arcs
Time for action – creating the Ellipse
Time for action – making an arc
Complex Shapes
Time for action – combining shapes
Freehand objects (Paths)

55
56
58
59
59
61
61
63

65
65
67
67
67
69
72
74
74
75
78
78
82

Time for action – creating a freehand object
Using grids and guidelines
Time for action – viewing the Grid
Time for action – making guides
Summary
[ ii ]

82
84
84
87
88

Table of Contents

Chapter 5: How to Work with Layers

Defining layers and how to create them
Time for action – creating a layer
Using Layers in an example drawing
Time for action – using Layers in web design
Locking layers
Time for action – locking a layer
Hiding layers
Time for action – hiding layers
Duplicating layers
Time for action – duplicating layers
Arranging layers
Time for action – moving layers
Time for action – nesting layers
Renaming layers
Time for action – renaming a layer
Deleting layers
Time for action – deleting a layer
Blend mode
Time for action – using Blend mode
Summary

Chapter 6: Building Objects

90
91
93
93
98
98
99
100
104
104
105
105
108
109
109
110
110
112
112
114

115

Working with objects
Time for action – creating a simple object
Fill and Stroke
Fill and Stroke dialog
Time for action – using the Fill and Stroke dialog
Color palette bar
Time for action – using the color palette
Dropper
Time for action – using the dropper tool
Grouping
Time for action – grouping objects
Clipping and masking
Time for action – clipping objects
Time for action – masking objects
Summary

[ iii ]

115
116
121
121
121
126
126
127
128
129
129
133
133
142
144

Table of Contents

Chapter 7: Using Paths

145

Working with paths
Time for action – using the Bezier tool
Transforming objects into paths
Stroke to paths
Time for action – creating spiros and swirls
Object to Path
Time for action – Object to Path
Path options
Time for action – creating an icon
Summary

Chapter 8: How to Style Text

145
146
155
155
155
163
164
166
167
170

171

Text and Font editor
Time for action – opening and using the Text and Font editor
Kerning
Time for action – kerning text
Text styling keyboard shortcuts
Using paths and text
Time for action – using a path for text
Placing text within a closed shape
Time for action – placing text in a closed shape
Spell check and find/replace
Time for action – performing a find and replace
Text effects
Time for action – using text effects
Creating text reflections
Time for action – creating a reflection
Summary

Chapter 9: Using Filters

171
172
173
174
176
177
177
179
180
181
182
182
183
184
185
189

191

What are filters?
Using the Filter editor
Time for action – using filters
Using filters with text
Time for action – using filters with text
Images and effects
Time for action – using filters with images
Tracing images
Time for action – using Potrace
Time for action – using SIOX
Summary
[ iv ]

191
192
193
197
197
198
199
201
202
205
207

Table of Contents

Chapter 10: Extensions in Inkscape

209

Templates
Installing and using new templates
Time for action – installing Inkscape templates
Creating your own custom templates
Time for action – modifying an existing Inkscape template
Time for action – creating a custom template
What are extensions?
Examples of extension tutorials
Installation extensions
Summary

Chapter 11: Working with Images

210
210
211
212
212
213
213
214
215
215

217

Importing from the Open Clip Art Library (Linux and Mac users)
Time for action – using the Open Clip Art Library (Mac users only)
Basics about photo manipulation
Time for action – blurring the background of a photograph
Converting raster logos to vector-based logos
Time for action – converting a logo to a vector-based image
Summary

Chapter 12: Using the XML Editor

217
218
219
220
228
228
229

231

Inkscape's XML Editor
Time for action – accessing the XML Editor
XML Editor basics
SVG basics
Attribute types
Basic attributes
Paths
Shapes
Images
Text

231
232
234
237
237
238
239
239
245
245

Using the XML Editor to change characteristics
Time for action – using the XML Editor to change object characteristics
Using XML and graphics with programmers
Summary

Appendix A: Where to Find More Information
Official sites
Articles and tutorials
Community
Blogs
Twitter

246
246
248
248

249
249
249
250
250
251

[v]

Table of Contents

Appendix B: Keyboard Shortcuts
Appendix C: Glossary of Terms
Appendix D: Pop Quiz Answers
Index

253
257
261
269

[ vi ]

Preface
Are you ready to jump into the world of graphic design and illustration? Or have you just begun
to explore new tools that can broaden your skill set in these specialties? Inkscape Beginner's
Guide is the perfect book to start this journey into the world of vector graphics. This book
starts at the very basics of a complex, open source tool on the market today – Inkscape 0.48
(current version as of the publication of this book). Learn everything you need to know from
setting up a document file to completing your first illustration.
The Inkscape graphics editor can be daunting when just learning the tool. There are so many
features one may not know where to start. Inkscape Beginner's Guide can help to alleviate
these fears; it takes a simple step-by-step approach to learning the software. It starts at the
very beginning, unlocking the secret to the software's interface, explaining menus and the
overall areas of the user interface, and then jumps into real projects that illustrate some
simple graphic-building concepts.
Expect to learn everything from using paths, text styles, filters, and images—while building
a brochure, logo, icons, illustration, and more—all in the context of real graphic design,
illustration, or web projects. Using an informative but simple approach, learning Inkscape
becomes a fun and interactive process.
Welcome to the world of Inkscape 0.48 and vector graphics! This book is an informational
step-by-step beginner's book for someone just starting their journey in using Inkscape 0.48
in the creation of vector graphics. No previous experience using Inkscape 0.48 or other
previous vector graphics programs are required. The book will be chalked full of real-world
examples, detailed step-by-step instructions and associated screen captures to keep the
information approachable yet easy to digest—and don't forget fun!

What this book covers

Chapter 1, Getting Started with Vector Graphics, starts before Inkscape, at the beginning
of vector graphics. We begin by defining vector graphics and how they are used online and
within print projects. Then we start digging into Inkcape learning about how the program
began and how it fits in the world of vector graphics today.

Preface

Chapter 2, Installing and Opening Inkscape, discusses where to download Inkscape 0.48, the
most recent version of the software and its unique features, as well as detailed descriptions
about how to install the software. Included in this are screen captures that define the
main areas of the program and menu items—all of which is very helpful when opening the
software for the first time.
Chapter 3, How to Manage Files, is all about files and managing them. Inkscape can import
a number of file formats and then edit them. Then, after completing a project Inkscape has
the ability to save and export graphics in a number of formats. We will discuss all of these
options as well as the native Inkscape SVG format and the benefits of using project folders.
Chapter 4, Creating your First Graphics, starts by defining paths and shapes, a basis for all
projects going forward in Inkscape. Then it focuses on creating your very first Inkscape object
– a star. Also discussed in this chapter are ellipses, complex shapes, freehand object, grids,
and guidelines.
Chapter 5, How to Work with Layers, is all about layers in Inkscape. You will learn the basics
like how to create new layers, delete, arrange, and blend layers, as well as hiding and
duplicating layers, all the while working on a sample blog header project.
Chapter 6, Building Objects, helps you learn about objects and how Inkscape interprets
them, how to change object features, change fill and stroke, grouping objects, combining
objects, and how to best use the masking and clipping features.
Chapter 7, Using Paths focuses, on using paths. Again we start with the basics: defining
paths, how to work with them in Inkscape, transforming, combining, and placing paths. The
bulk of this chapter will focus on an illustration project that will assist you in learning all you
need to know about paths.
Chapter 8, How to Style Text, teaches how you can manipulate and style text for any design.
It is a practical chapter that covers using paths and text to create visual appeal, text and
frames, the basics like spellcheck and find/replace, text effects, and a simple project to show
how to create a text reflection.
Chapter 9, Using Filters, focuses on using filters with text and images to give a further
dimension to your vector graphics. Projects will focus on using images and text—including
a detailed example with step-by-step instructions on using filters with text.
Chapter 10, Extensions in Inkscape, is as expected, about extensions or templates and
plugins that can assist in the design process for vector graphics. You will learn how to
install templates, extensions, and about the availability of certain extension or scripts that
might be useful.
Chapter 11, Working with Images, is all about importing photographs or images into
Inkscape and manipulating them. Specifically, you will be working on a few sample projects
that deal with photographs and filters.
[2]

Preface

Chapter 12, Using the XML Editor, teaches you about the XML editor that is included within
Inkscape. It covers the basic XML structure tree, as well as how you can manipulate this code
to change objects in your projects.
Appendix A, Where to Find More Information, provides web links to people and places that
can help you learn even more about Inkscape.
Appendix B, Keyboard Shortcuts, mentions the basic keyboard shortcuts for Inkscape 0.48.
Appendix C, Glossary of Terms, is a glossary of Inkscape and basic design terms used
throughout the book.

What you need for this book

You'll need the latest version of Inkscape 0.48 and Internet access (to download some
example clip art and projects).
If you are using a Mac, then you may also need the X11 app on your system to run Inkscape
(this typically comes pre-installed on Leopard OSX).

Who this book is for

This book is intended for novice graphic and web designers who want to expand their
graphic software expertise. General familiarity with a graphics program is recommended,
but not required.

Conventions

In this book, you will find several headings appearing frequently.
To give clear instructions of how to complete a procedure or task, we use:

Time for action – heading
1.

Action 1

Action 2

Action 3

Instructions often need some extra explanation so that they make sense, so they are
followed with:

[3]

Preface

What just happened?
This heading explains the working of tasks or instructions that you have just completed.
You will also find some other learning aids in the book, including:

Pop quiz – heading
These are short multiple-choice questions intended to help you test your own understanding.

Have a go hero – heading
This sets practical challenges and gives you ideas for experimenting with what you
have learned.
You will also find a number of styles of text that distinguish between different kinds of
information. Here are some examples of these styles, and an explanation of their meaning.
Code words in text are shown as follows: "Find the Inkscape icon in the Application or
Programs folder"
New terms and important words are shown in bold. Words that you see on the screen, in
menus or dialog boxes for example, appear in the text like this: "Open Inkscape, and from
the main menu, select File | New | CD_cover_300dpi.".
Warnings or important notes appear in a box like this.

Tips and tricks appear like this.

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[4]

Preface

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[5]

Getting Started with Vector Graphics
Inkscape is an open source, free program that creates vector-based graphics
that can be used in web and print design, in interface and logo creation, and
in material cutting. Its capabilities are similar to those of commercial products
such as Adobe Illustrator, Macromedia Freehand, and CorelDraw and can be
used for any number of practical purposes—creating vector graphics for use
in illustrations, business letterheads, computer and electronic wallpapers, and
designing web pages and the elements within them.
This is a beginner's guide to using Inkscape. This means you will learn all the ins
and outs of using this software—including all the details about the interface,
menus, buttons, as well as how to create graphics. We'll start with the very
basic parts of graphics and build up as we continue through the book to more
complex graphics projects pointing out how you would use these items in
everyday projects.
However, before learning the details on how to use Inkscape, let's take a step
back and define vector graphics, how a computer displays them, how vector
graphics work together, and why we want to use them in design.

Specifically, this chapter will teach you the following:

What vector graphics are

Scalable Vector Graphics and Inkscape

Reasons for using vector graphics over rasterized images

How vector graphics are used in design

Let's get started!

Getting Started with Vector Graphics

What are vector graphics?
A vector graphic is made up of points, lines, curves, and shapes or polygons, which are all
based on mathematical equations. Inkscape uses these objects and can convert them into
paths. A path is a line with a start and end, which are also calculated with a mathematical
equation. These paths are not limited to being straight—they can be of any shape, size, and
even encompass any number of curves. When you combine them, they create drawings,
diagrams, and can even help create certain fonts.
How does this all relate to vector-based graphics? Vector-based graphics aren't made up of
pixels. Since they are resolution-independent, you can make them larger (by scaling) and
the image quality will stay the same, lines and edges stay clean, and the same images can be
used on items as small as letterheads or business cards, blown up to be billboards, or used
in high-definition animation sequences. This flexibility, often accompanied by smaller file
sizes, makes vector graphics ideal—especially in the world of Internet, computer displays of
varying resolution, and hosting services for web pages. Inkscape can help in the navigation
of those waters of vector graphics and is a tool that can be invaluable when designing for the
digital world as well as print.
These characteristics make vector graphics very different from JPEGs, GIFs, or BMP
images—all of which are considered raster or bitmap images, made up of tiny squares
called pixels or bits. If you magnify these images, you will see that they are made up of
a grid (or bitmap), and if magnified further, they will become blurry and grainy as each
pixel with bitmap square's zoom level grows larger.

Programs that use vector graphics
As stated earlier in the chapter, many programs and applications are similar to Inkscape and
can open vector graphics. Some can only open these files for viewing purposes and others
can edit them.
Other applications typically used for page layout, but which can open and manipulate vector
graphics include Scribus, Quark Xpress, and Adobe InDesign. Scribus is unique in that it is also
open source (as Inkscape is) and can even import SVG files (the file type Inkscape uses) and
manipulate them. The other programs can open, import, place, scale, and distort .eps files,
a vector graphic file type, but unfortunately cannot create or otherwise modify vector graphics.
[8]

Chapter 1

To create vector graphics, you will use illustration programs like Inkscape—which this book
is about—or other programs like Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Freehand Corel Draw, Freehand,
XARA Xtreme, or Serif DrawPlus. These programs all have native file formats, but allow
you to export your graphics as .eps or .svg files, as needed. What is different about these
applications than those for page layout is that you start with a completely blank document
that allows you to fully design or draw what you would like, whereas the page layout
application focuses on full page layouts.

Vector formats
In the previous section, it was noted that .eps, an Encapsulated Post Script file, is a
common vector graphic format—or open format—that can be read by most applications
that open and/or create vector graphics. However, there are other file formats that are
also considered vector-graphic compatible. These include Inkscape's .svg format, Adobe
Illustrator (.ai), Adobe Freehand (.Fhx), and Adobe Flash files, which are mostly vector
data and are considered proprietary formats, tied more directly to the prospective software
that can open them.
There are a number of other proprietary graphic file formats which can include vector
graphics within them as well as rasterized (or bitmap) graphics. These include:

Adobe Photoshop (.psd): This includes vector layers such as text, shapes, and paths

Adobe Acrobat Portable Document Format (.pdf): This contains vector data
and bitmap images in different forms

The Encapsulated Post Script file (.eps): This, again, can hold both vector data
and bitmap images

Also note that .eps files are basically the same files a Post Script laser printer uses. Both file
types are developed by Adobe and are the foundation of the Adobe PDF format.

Scalable Vector Graphics
What does Inkscape use? A completely different file format—one that is fairly complex in
nature, but works well for the flexible nature of vector graphics. They can be edited within
Inkscape and can be opened in a text editor and edited at an XML code level. Inkscape uses
Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG), a vector-based drawing format that incorporates some
basic principles:

A drawing can (and should) be scalable to any size without losing detail

A drawing can use an unlimited number of smaller drawings used in any number
of ways (and reused) and still be a part of a larger whole

[9]

Getting Started with Vector Graphics

More specifically, Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) is an XML-based file format for describing
two-dimensional vector graphics. The specification defines an open standard that has been
in development with the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) since 1999.
Inkscape was built with SVG and the W3C web standards in mind, which give it a number
of features, including a rich body of XML (Extensible Markup Language) with complete
descriptions. Inkscape drawings can be reused in other SVG-compliant drawing programs and
can adapt to different presentation methods. The .svg format has growing support across
most web browsers (Firefox, Chrome, Opera, Safari, Internet Explorer).
The SVG files then, which are inherently XML, can be searched, indexed, scripted, and
compressed within a text editor. In fact, they can be created and edited with a text editor if
required, but drawing programs like Inkscape can create the SVG files. In fact, Inkscape has an
XML editor feature which allows direct edits to the XML files; more information on this is in
Chapter 12, How you can use the XML Editor.

Advantages of an open-standard vector format
There are some slight differences between traditional vector graphics and SVG. All vector
graphics are scalable, use smaller-sized files, and have the flexibility to be resized when
needed. However, the vector graphic format of SVG has even more detailed advantages
than the vector graphic native.

Additional advantages of SVG vector images over proprietary formats
SVG vector images, because they are based on XML, have some distinct advantages over
open standard vector formats. These are as follows:

They can be read and modified by a large range of tools (including browsers, text
editors, and other vector graphics software, as described previously)

They are smaller and more compressible than JPEG and GIF images which are often
used in web design

They are also scalable, like vector graphics

Text in SVG can be searched, edited, indexed, and more

SVG is an open-standard

SVG files are pure XML, which allows them to be opened in other programs (or even
a text editor) and edited in non-graphical UI ways (or by programmers directly)

Most modern browsers offer some support for SVG. Internet Explorer 8, however,
does not offer this support

[ 10 ]

Chapter 1

There are still some limitations in the Inkscape program, even though it aims to be fully
SVG-compliant. For example, as of version 0.48, it still does not support animation or use
SVG fonts within the software for design—though there are plans to add these capabilities
into future versions.

Disadvantages of vector graphics over non-vector formats
The biggest drawback to vector graphic formats is that they are not ideally suited to working
with photographs. Sure, Inkscape and other vector graphic applications can open, import,
or place photographs into projects, but the colors and complexities of displaying the
photograph will essentially overwhelm the application. Also, as stated earlier, as photographs
are very much rasterized images being imported into the vector-based application, once you
re-size or scale the photograph, the integrity of the photograph can be lost.
This same complexity will appear for advanced coloring and lighting effects when using
vector graphics as well—the more you try to make it look like a photograph, the more
you might need to rasterize part of the vector graphic as well, essentially making it a
non-vector graphic.
Another known drawback for vector graphics is interoperability. If you want to share files
between vector graphic applications, you might run into some issues, even when you use .eps
files which are more universally accepted as a vector graphic format. Vector information can be
lost during the conversion. All fonts, elements, and objects need to be embedded (not linked)
and tested thoroughly—however, this sharing is not impossible and entirely depends on the
applications being used. Using Inkscape across teams as the development tool can help solve
this problem as the application is open source and free to download.
If you are new to design, you might be surprised to learn that even when you are using a
word processing program, you are using vector graphics all the time—fonts! Fonts illustrate
two common properties of vector graphics:

An entire font, with all its letters, numbers, and symbols, has a very small file size

Fonts can be set to any size without losing quality

Some vector-based applications, including Inkscape, allow you to convert text to paths so
you can modify the shapes of the letters themselves.

Determining when to use vector or rasterized graphics
We've spent a lot of time discussing vector graphics and how they differ from rasterized
bitmap images. In doing so, it is also important to know when it is best to use each type,
because there are instances when it does make sense to use one over the other.

[ 11 ]

Getting Started with Vector Graphics

Let's say we're doing a project that will get printed; a brochure—and for best results, we'll
use both vector and bitmap graphics. We'll look at the most basic steps of how to put this
brochure together in the following section.

Time for action – basic design
For this example, let's look at the design elements and determine how we would put them
together in a design:

Determine the exact size of the brochure. For our example, we'll focus on creating
the outside of an 8.5 x 11 tri-fold brochure. Specifically, the cover design of this
brochure is as follows:

[ 12 ]

Chapter 1

Design a basic front cover layout. We'll use the following one for the cover:

Decide on the elements we will use for the design. For ours, we'll have a
photograph, company logo, brochure title, and some additional copy.

What just happened?
We just did the basic planning required to create a brochure in any graphics program.
We determined the physical size of the document, the basic layout, as well as the elements
we have available for use in the design.

Time for action – vector versus rasterized images
Now we need to figure out what elements go where and which graphic types will work best.
Determine what type of graphics each of our design elements should be to best suit our
needs (and the design) and make sure we have the files in that format.

Photographs naturally have a lot of colors and gradients, and are often taken in a
fixed size from a digital camera. That said, the files are rasterized bitmaps and can be
in any number of file formats—including .tif, .jpg, .gif, or .png, and are larger
in size. Photographs don't lend themselves to being vector graphics.

[ 13 ]

Getting Started with Vector Graphics

Logos should be portable, so that they can look clean at any size and resolution.
The graphics themselves are often simple with less color variation and therefore
lend themselves to being vector graphics as opposed to bitmaps. We'll use a
graphic-based on one in the Openclipart.org collection, which will be
explained later, as an example for a company logo. You can use files of the
SVG, AI, or EPS format.

The company name/title and copy will be text, which is a font and vector graphic.
It can still be scaled to accommodate both the boldness of the company name and
also be a body copy for the brochure:

What just happened?
We took each piece of the design puzzle and determined the best file types for each
element. We collected our files and got them ready for the design phase, which is up next.

Time for action – building brochure files
Take all of the elements we defined—both bitmaps and vector graphics—and create the
outside design of the brochure as follows:

[ 14 ]

Chapter 1

What just happened?
We looked at a full brochure design to determine which elements should be rasterized
bitmaps and which should be vector graphics. When done correctly, the graphics seamlessly
work together in a design.

Pop quiz – understanding vector graphics
What are the advantages of scalable vector graphics?
a. Smaller file sizes which can be compressed
b. Projects can be printed at any resolution
c.

Can be searched, edited, and indexed with a text editor

d. All of the above

[ 15 ]

Getting Started with Vector Graphics

Summary
This chapter was dedicated to teaching you the basics about vector graphics and how they
differ from bitmap images. We learned how vector graphics are resolution-independent and
why we might want to use them in design, how Inkscape supports Scalable Vector Graphics
(SVG), which is an open format, and the advantages of using these types of open graphics
instead of proprietary. We also took some practical time learning to distinguish when it is
best to use vector graphics and when raster images are needed.
Now it is time to learn how to install Inkscape 0.48 and begin creating vector graphics of
our own!

[ 16 ]

Installing and Opening Inkscape
To start using Inkscape, you must install it first! This chapter starts by explaining
where to download Inkscape from, the most recent version and its features, as
well as detailed descriptions about how to install the software. It also includes
a brief rundown of the application window and the main areas of where to find
items when opening it for the first time.

In this chapter, we will learn:

Inkscape 0.48's features

Where to download Inkscape

How to install Inkscape (Windows, Mac, Linux)

Potential troubleshooting items when installing

Basics of the Inkscape software

Opening your first document

Let's get started and start downloading!

Inkscape's features
Inkscape is a free, open source program developed by a group of volunteers under the GNU
General Public License (GPL). You not only get a free download but can use the program to
create items with it and freely distribute them, modify the program itself, and share that
modified program with others.

Installing and Opening Inkscape

Inkscape uses Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG), a vector-based drawing language, as
described in Chapter 1, Getting Started with Vector Graphics. The basic principles that
apply to SVG graphics apply to Inkscape principles as well:

A drawing can (and should) be scalable to any size without losing detail

A drawing can use an unlimited number of smaller drawings that can be used
in any number of ways (and reused) and be a part of a larger whole

The current Inkscape version at the time of this book being printed is 0.48.2.1 and the 0.48.3
version will be available before Inkscape 0.49 is released.

Installing Inkscape
Inkscape is available for download for Windows, Macintosh, Linux, or Solaris operating
systems. Before you install Inkscape, you will need to check that you have all of the required
elements, listed as follows:

Operating system: Windows XP, Vista, 7, Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger, 10.5 Leopard or 10.6
Snow Leopard, or higher. Most Linux distributions are supported. Note: Windows
98/ME and 2000 are no longer supported.

To run on the Mac OS X operating system, Inkscape typically runs under X11—an
implementation of the X Window System software that makes it possible to run
X11-based applications in Mac OS X. The X11 application has shipped with the Mac
OS X since version 10.5. Snow Leopard requires Apple X11/XQuartz 2.3.4 or higher.
Leopard requires Apple X11 2.1.6 or XQuartz. Tiger requires Apple X11 1.1.3.
When you open Inkscape on a Mac, it will first open X11 and run
Inkscape within that program. Loss of some shortcut key options
will occur, but all functionality is present using menus and toolbars.

Disk space: A minimum of 190 MB free. More free space is required to store your
graphics projects. You can, however, run a portable version of Inkscape on some
operating systems (like Windows 7). These installations can run on a portable USB
drive and only require 80 MB of space.

Inkscape requires an Internet connection if you plan to use the Open Clip
Art Library.

Open Clip Art Library is only available on a Macintosh installation.

[ 18 ]

Chapter 2

Time for action – downloading Inkscape
In a few simple steps, you will be able to download Inkscape 0.48 from the Internet and
install it on your computer:

Go to the official Inkscape website at http://www.inkscape.org/ and download
the appropriate version of the software for your computer.

Double-click the downloaded Inkscape installation package to start the installation.
For the Mac OS, a DMG file is downloaded. Double-click it and then
drag-and-drop the Inkscape package to the Application folder. For
any Windows device, a .exe file is downloaded. Double-click that file
to start and and continue to complete the installation. For Linux-based
computers, there are a number of distributions available. Be sure to
download and install the correct installation package for your system.

Find the Inkscape icon in the Application or Programs folder. It should look like
the following icon:

If you see this icon, you have a successful installation. Now it is time to open
Inkscape for the first time.

Double-click the Inkscape icon and the program will automatically open to the
main screen.
If you are using a Macintosh computer, Inkscape opens within
the X11 application and may take slightly longer to load.

[ 19 ]

Installing and Opening Inkscape

What just happened?
In a few simple steps, you downloaded the Inkscape installation package and installed it on
your system. When Inkscape opens for the first time, you will see the main screen, as shown
in the following screenshot, with a new blank document ready to go:

In this book, the screenshots will be specific to the Mac OS X software. Don't
be concerned if this is not your computer operating system of choice; the
software itself is very similar between them and notable differences in the
Inkscape software screens will be highlighted.

Troubleshooting installation
Installing Inkscape is generally pretty simple to do. However, if you run into any issues, take
note of the following tips:

Make a note of your computer's manufacturer, operating system type, and version
and make sure you downloaded the appropriate installation package.

Also remember once the installation has occurred, the Inkscape icon to launch the
software will be in the Application or Programs folder on your computer
[ 20 ]

Chapter 2

If you are still having issues, there are a number of useful articles, tutorials, forums, and
more that can help you in all matters of Inkscape—including installation. Here's the most
common and useful one:

The official Inkscape Homepage: http://inkscape.org/. It will provide you with
all the manuals, current download release information, forums, and every bit of
information about Inkscape you want to know.

Other important links from the official homepage are as follows:

Manual and documentation: http://tavmjong.free.fr/INKSCAPE/MANUAL/
html/index.html

Wiki: http://wiki.inkscape.org/

Forums: http://www.inkscapeforum.com/

Mailing list: http://inkscape.org

Blog: http://planet.inkscape.org/

For developers: https://launchpad.net/inkscape

Clip Art: http://www.openclipart.org/

Galleries: http://wiki.inkscape.org/wiki/index.php/Galleries
From forums to direct installation instructions, Inkscape.org is the
best place to find information about Inkscape as it compiles all of the
latest information about Inkscape from the developers to the users. The
mailing lists provide detailed information as well as numerous resources for
troubleshooting.

The basics of the software
The Inkscape interface is based on the GNOME UI standard, which uses visual cues and
feedback for any icons. For example:

Hovering your mouse over any icon displays a pop-up description of the icon.

If an icon has a dark gray border, it is active and can be used.

If an icon is grayed out, it is not currently available to use with the current selection.

All icons that are in execution mode (or busy) are covered by a dark shadow. This
signifies that the application is busy and won't respond to any edit request.

There is a Notification region in the status bar on the main screen that displays
dynamic help messages. These messages display key shortcuts and basic information
on how to use the Inkscape software based on which objects and tools are selected.
[ 21 ]

Installing and Opening Inkscape

Time for action – getting started with Inkscape
In order to feel completely comfortable using the Inkscape software, let's learn the basics of
the Inkscape interface. This will include menus, toolbars, and dialog boxes. Let's get started!
Find the Inkscape icon in the Application or Programs folder and double-click it to open
the program.
You will see the main window of the Inkscape software, as follows, with different areas of
the screen highlighted. Within the main screen, there is the main menu, command, snap
and status bar, tool controls, and a color palette, as shown in the following screenshot:

On some external resources, canvas and page are used almost interchangeably
in terms of the Inkscape interface. Technically, however, a canvas is the entire
editable area, whereas the page area is the area within the page borders.

[ 22 ]

Chapter 2

You will use the main menu frequently when working on your projects. This is the
central location to find every tool and menu item in the program—even those found
in the visual-based toolbars below it on the screen. When you select a main menu
item in Inkscape, you see a menu drop-down with a text description and shortcut
key combination for the feature. This can be helpful when first learning the program
as it provides you with easier and often faster ways to use the most commonly-used
functions of the program.

Let's take a general tour of the toolbars seen on this main screen. We'll pay close
attention to the tools we'll use most frequently.

The command bar toolbar contains the most frequently-used commands
in Inkscape.

As seen in the previous image, you can create a new document, open an existing
one, save, print, cut, paste, zoom, add text, and much more. Hover your mouse over
each icon for details about its function. By default, when you open Inkscape, this
toolbar is on the top of the main screen:

Found vertically on the right-hand side of the main screen, the snap bar toolbar is
designed to help with the snap to features of Inkscape.

It lets you easily align items (snap to guides), force objects to align to paths
(snap to paths), or snap to bounding boxes and edges. More on alignment and
snap to bounding boxes will be explained in later chapters of the book when we
start building example projects.
[ 23 ]

Installing and Opening Inkscape

The tool controls options change depending on which tool you have selected in the
toolbox (described in the next section). When you are creating objects, it provides
you with all the detailed options—size, position, angles, and attributes—specific
to the tool you are currently using. With the Select tool active, it looks like the
following image:

The tool controls bar is located on the top of the main window, just below the
command bar.
You have options to select/deselect objects within a layer, rotate or mirror objects,
adjust object locations on the canvas and scaling options, and much more. Use it to
define object properties when they are selected on the canvas.

You'll use the toolbox frequently. It is located on the left-hand side of the screen and
contains all of the main tools for creating objects, selecting and modifying objects,
and drawing. To select a tool, click the icon. If you double-click a tool, you can see
that tool's preferences (and change them).

[ 24 ]

Chapter 2

The palette bar of the Inkscape screen controls fill and stroke color options. Fill is
the color that fills the object or shape. Alternatively, stroke is the outline around the
object or shape.

Using the palette bar, there are a few ways you can set the fill and stroke
in Inkscape:

From the palette bar, click a color and drag it from the palette onto objects
to change their fill. If you hold the Shift key and drag a color box onto an
object, it will set the stroke color.
Select an object on your canvas by clicking it and then right-click a color
box in the palette. A pop-up menu appears with options to set the fill
and stroke.
Select an object on your canvas and then left-click a color box in the palette
to immediately set the fill of an object. Press Shift and left-click a color box
to immediately set the stroke color.

There are a large number of color boxes to choose from. Use the palette bar scroll
bar along the bottom to see more choices to the right of those displaying on the
screen. You can also click the small caret at the right end of the toolbar to allow
for a greater selection of colors—even customizable color palettes as well.

The status bar contains information relating to a selected object within the canvas
or page of your document. You can also use it to modify canvas settings:

Here are the details:

Style Indicator focuses a bit more on the selected object. If you select any
object on your canvas, you can change its fill (overall color of the object)
or stroke (border color). Drag a color from the palette to this section for
easy color changes. Right-clicking the Style Indicators provides a pop-up
menu, letting you make quick and easy coloring edits. Double-clicking the
[ 25 ]

Installing and Opening Inkscape

Style Indicators will launch the Fill & Stroke dialog box. If you right-click the
number next to the Stroke Style Indicator, you will get a choice of Stroke
thicknesses to choose from.

The Opacity Setting is the drop-down box near the Style Indicators.
Right-click the drop-down box to change the opacity (or transparency)
percentage (%) value (the default is 100%). A pop-up menu displays a
set of preset values to choose from. If you left-click the drop-down box,
it allows direct entry of a value or a change of the value with the
up/down arrows.

Layer information: Within Inkscape, when you create documents, you
can have many layers of objects. This gives great flexibility when creating
graphics of any kind. You can move groups of objects at once (placing a
group of them on a layer) and separate objects by layer to manipulate and
affect how they interact with one another when stacked, re-ordered, or
hidden. You can also set certain settings by layer. You can even create drafts
or different versions of mockups and keep all of this in one file.
The layer information lets you choose which layer you are currently using
and placing objects to—this is called the drawing layer. You can then
set whether this layer is visible or locked. Sometimes you can use your
documents as a working draft and decide to hide certain layers while
developing others. You might also lock layers when you have specified
the exact positioning that you require and you don't want it accidentally
changed while manipulating other layers. Changing the visibility of layers
can also speed up editing when working on large or very detailed objects.
Notification area: This contains hints or tricks about the objects or area you
currently have selected in your document. Keep an eye on this area because
it guides you with helpful information as you work within the layer. This
feature is unique to Inkscape and the help messages change and update as
you use the software to reflect your available options.

[ 26 ]

Chapter 2

Pointer or cursor position: When designing any space— either for print or
web—it is often important to get the precise placement of objects. To help
do this, sometimes you want to see when/where your cursor or pointer is
placed on the screen. This is the area on the Inkscape main screen where
you can always see the exact x (horizontal) and y (vertical) placement of
your cursor within the document. The given X and Y coordinates are relative
to the bottom-left corner of the document area.
Zoom: Use the zoom tools to magnify your canvas for super close-up work
or to zoom out to see the whole canvas in one shot. If you right-click the
zoom field, a pop-up menu with commonly-used preset zoom levels is
displayed from which you can select one to immediately adjust the canvas
to. This is particularly useful with illustrations containing lots of details
because you can customize your viewable magnification at any time
and to whatever level you would like.
Window resize: By default, Inkscape opens to a default window size. With
this resize window option in the lower-right side of this area, you can click,
hold, and drag the window to an appropriate size for your computer screen.
Alternatively, you can choose to make the window full-screen by going to
the main menu and choosing View and then Full Screen (press F11 on a
Windows or Linux-based system). When re-opening a .svg file, Inkscape
will resize itself to the size that the window was when the file was saved.
The window size information is stored in the Inkscape .svg file itself.

What just happened?
You opened the Inkscape application and familiarized yourself with the main
application window.
In Inkscape, we learned that the interface itself can be a tool to help us create better designs.
We reviewed:

The main menu and what each option allows us to do

Each of the toolbars: command, snap, tool controls, palette, and status bar and what
they offer us in Inkscape

[ 27 ]

Installing and Opening Inkscape

Pop quiz – using Tools
Which toolbar is the most used in Inkscape?
a. Palette bar
b. Snap to bar
c.

Command bar

d. Toolbox toolbar

Understanding a new document
Now that we have learned all the menus and toolbars, let's dig into what you can do with
your first open document.

Time for action – learning more about the main screen
When you open Inkscape for the first time, it opens a blank document automatically and you
are ready to roll. However, you can just as easily open another new document by going to
the main menu and selecting File | New.
You will be offered a number of choices of canvas sizes. Let's discuss the details of the canvas
and some additional properties of the interface that you will use when opening documents.
The terms 'canvas' and 'page' are used interchangeably within the Inkscape interface.
For simplicity, we'll refer to the canvas as the entire portion of the open document screen.
A page is the portion of the canvas that is contained within the printable area—seen as a
black-bordered box in the following screenshot:
With the main screen still open in Inkscape, let's discuss this portion of the application screen:

[ 28 ]

Chapter 2

You can always adjust the page—or printable area—size. Go to the main menu,
select File, and then select Document Properties. In the Document Properties
window Page tab, look in the Format field. You can select any number of
pre-defined sizes or change the Custom Size field measurements to your liking.
The pre-defined sizes are specific to print media, while those found in
the main menu, File | New path, give common web design, logo, or web
banner-sized templates.
As soon as you make changes to these properties, you can see them reflected
on your screen:

[ 29 ]

Installing and Opening Inkscape

Dockable dialogs are a great feature in Inkscape 0.48. They give you more freedom
in your screen layout. You can show (or hide) dialog boxes on the right-hand side of
your screen:

Useful dialogs that can be docked on the right-hand side of the screen are:

Layers

Transform

Path Effect

SVG Font Editor

Filter Editor

[ 30 ]

Chapter 2

The docked dialogs can be minimized, rearranged, stacked, and undocked into a
separate window on your desktop. Here's how to do some of the basics:

Showing dialog boxes: To show these dialog boxes, on the main menu,
select View and select Show/Hide Dialogs. Then go to the Layer, Object,
Path, or Text menus and choose the Editor, Layer, or Property options to
show the correlating dialog box.
Displaying more than one dialog box: If you open more than one dialog
box, they will stack in the order they were opened in the dialog area of the
main screen. Use the scroll bar to see those below the first viewable dialog.
Minimizing dialog boxes: You can minimize a dialog so it appears as an icon.
To do this, press the right arrow button, along the right-hand side of the
title bar of each dialog box. This places a shortcut along the right side of
the Inkscape screen. To re-open it, just click the text/icon and the dialog
re-opens to the large state on the screen.
Floating dialog boxes: Dialogs can also be dragged off the main window
into their own window. Each dialog can have its own window or they can be
grouped in floating docks.
Closing dialog boxes: To close the dialog window, you can click the X on the
title bar for that box. It immediately closes.
For initial designs of any kind, these Dockable dialogs can be extremely
useful. Having the Layers Dockable dialog visible is particularly useful,
as it lets you select layers and re-order them quickly:

[ 31 ]

Installing and Opening Inkscape

There are several ways to view your canvas or page in an open document.
Panning means moving left and right, or up and down on the main screen.

The easiest way to pan to the left or right is to use the horizontal scroll bar along the
bottom of your Inkscape screen. Panning up and down can be done with the vertical
scroll bar on the right-hand side of the screen. If you have a mouse with a scroll
wheel you can use it to pan as well. Just scrolling with the wheel moves the canvas
up and down. Pressing Shift on the keyboard and then using the scroll wheel moves
it sideways.
As discussed in the status bar overview, you can use the zoom tool to magnify your
canvas, so that you can see a lot of detail (zoomed in) or the entire canvas at a
glance (zoomed out). By default, Inkscape will open documents at about 35%. You
can also use the zoom tool on the toolbox [inline graphic], a mouse with a scroll
wheel and the Ctrl key, or use your keypad (= or + zoom in and - zooms out).

[ 32 ]

Chapter 2

For easy access to the Zoom to fit selection, Zoom to fit drawing, and Zoom to fit
page in the window options, see options in the command bar. These options can
also be set from the main menu by selecting View | Zoom.

What just happened?
The canvas or page in your Inkscape document can be a useful space, especially if you know
how to use it best. We learned that 'canvas' and 'page' are interchangeable terms, as well
as how to use scrollbars and all the intricacies of panning, zooming, and using Dockable
dialogs—which will be a common item that you will return to again and again as you work
on Inkscape projects.

Have a go hero – floating Dockable dialogs
Much like with the toolbars, you can move Dockable dialogs to be floating windows on your
screen as well:

To move any of the Dockable dialogs from their docking point on the left-hand side,
click-and-drag the title bar out of the window
To close the Dockable dialog, click the close button (outer-right) or click the dialog
close button (on the title bar, next to icon)
To re-dock the dialog, you must click-and-drag the title bar into the Dockable area

Pop quiz – new documents
What is the easiest way to open a new document within Inkscape?
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.

Close down the program and re-open it
There isn't a way to do this via Inkscape
Click the new document icon on the command bar
From the main menu, choose File | New
Open Document Properties from the File menu.

[ 33 ]

Installing and Opening Inkscape

Summary
We started this chapter by talking at a high level about Inkscape 0.48 and what you can do
with it. We then jumped right into learning how to download Inkscape, detailed descriptions
about how to install the software, and discussed all the main areas of the screen when
opening it for the first time. We even talked a little bit about how to troubleshoot the
Inkscape installation and where to find the best information about the software—no matter
what your issue.
After opening our first document, we talked about changing the document properties
and the value of scrolling, panning, and zooming. We even jumped into learning the basics
of the software that will be key in starting our very own project. This is where we will start
with Chapter 3, How to Manage your Files. Get ready to learn how to set up a project and
get started!

[ 34 ]

How to Manage Files
This chapter is all about files and managing them. Inkscape can import a
number of file formats, edit them, and save them in a number of formats.
We will discuss all of that as well as the native Inkscape SVG format, benefits
of using projects folder, and embedding versus linking image files.

The following topics will be discussed in this chapter:

Creating new files

Saving Inkscape files

Creating a customized default document

How to structure project files

Importing non-native Inkscape files

Embedding and linking image files

Creating new files
As previously, stated when you first open Inkscape, a new document is opened and ready to
start. However, it uses a default size of A4. You will likely need a whole array of other sizes for
print, web design, or even custom sizes. Here's how to access all of the predefined document
dimensions Inkscape offers and details on how to adjust them manually for your needs.

How to Manage Files

Using predefined-sized document dimensions
To see all predefined document dimensions Inkscape has to offer, go the main menu and
choose File and then New.

Inkscape has many predefined sizes already generated for you.
For web design, you can choose from the following:

Desktops with sizes 1024 x 768, 1600 x 1200, 640 x 480, or 800 x 600

Web banners with sizes 468 x 60 or 728 x 90

Icon sizes ranging from 16 x 16, 32 x 32, and 48 x 48

For print, there are many sizes you can choose from:

Letters: Standard US, A4

Business card sizes: 84 x 54mm, 90 X 50mm

CD Cover_300dpi: 343 X 340

CD label: 120x120

DVD covers: Regular, slim, super slim, and ultra slim

However, you can always change document dimensions to a custom size whenever you
like. Just go to the main menu and select File and then Document Properties. You'll see the
Document Properties window displayed with a number of options for customizing your
canvas and printable page.

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As shown in the preceding screenshot, within the Format field, you can choose any of the
predefined values for Page size. Alternatively, you can use the Custom size field to define
the size directly.

Time for action – creating a new CD cover
Imagine that you would like to use Inkscape to design and create a simple CD cover for
a new music compilation you created. Here's how to get started and open a predefined
template in Inkscape:

Open Inkscape, and from the main menu, select File | New | CD_cover_300dpi.

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How to Manage Files

A new document opens to the correct dimensions.

What just happened?
Quite simply, these steps just opened up a new file in Inkscape to the exact dimensions
of a CD cover.
With the autodefined templates, it takes the guesswork out of dimensions and lets you jump
right into the design. We'll get back to this CD cover and design in Chapter 4, How to build
your first graphic.

Pop quiz – how do you change the dimensions of a predefined graphic?
1. Once you open a predefined template and start working, what do you do if you need
to change the dimensions?
a. Start the design all over in a new document (from the main menu,
select File | New).
b. Copy and paste the design into another file.
c.

Go to the document properties (from the main menu, select File |
Document Properties) and adjust the dimensions and fit the design.

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Custom document dimensions
In the last section, we discussed creating a document that uses a predefined size already
provided in Inkscape, but what if you need to create a file that is custom or not listed in the
template list?
It's easy. You start with the default page size in Inkscape and then use the Document
Properties window to adjust to the exact size you need.

Time for action – creating a new custom file size for a postcard
We're going to create a file that will be the exact size for a postcard.

From the Inkscape main menu, select File | New | Default. This opens a file with the
default dimensions of A4.

Now we want to customize those document dimensions. To do this, go to the main
menu and choose File | Document Properties. You'll see the Document Properties
window displayed with a number of options for customizing your canvas and
printable page, as shown in the following screenshot:

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How to Manage Files

To change to the custom postcard size of 7 x 5 inches, we need to change the
following fields in the following order: Units to in (Inches), Width to 7, and Height
to 5. The changes on the Document Properties window should look similar to the
following screenshot:

Remember to change the Units first; otherwise the Width and Height fields
will adjust to the new unit of measure and you will have to readjust them.
Changing page orientation
Also note that you can change the Page Orientation from Portrait
to Landscape (or vice versa) from the Document Properties screen.
Change the field from below the Page Size selection box. When
you do this, Inkscape automatically changes the Width and Height
values already entered in the Custom Size section.

Close the Document Properties window/dock by clicking the X at the
upper-right corner.

Your page will be resized to the new postcard custom dimensions, as shown in the
following screenshot:

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Chapter 3

Keep this file open, as we will continue to manipulate it in the next section, Have a
go hero – adding a print-safe border.

What just happened?
In a nutshell, we opened a new Inkscape file and then adjusted the document properties so
that the page dimensions were set for our 7 x 5 postcard project. Now we are ready to start
designing the layout of the postcard.

Have a go hero – adding a print-safe border
So now you have the page dimensions set accurately. What about setting up the file for
the design? You'll need to create guides around the page edges—about one-eighth of an
inch—to accommodate for printing and then cutting off the paper to size. Any and all design
would need to stay within that border to be considered print-safe.
Here's how to set this up:
1. Open your 7 X 5 postcard file again (if it is not already open from the last exercise).
2. From the main menu, choose File | Document Properties.

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How to Manage Files

3. In the Document Properties window, in the General section, change the Default
units to in (inches), as shown in the following screenshot:

4. Now the ruler on the Inkscape screen will display units of inches.

5. Now it's time to create guides. Guides are lines on the screen that you will use for
aligning, that is, guiding objects. These lines are only seen while you are working
in Inkscape. To create a guide, make sure the Select Tool is selected, click inside
the ruler area on your main screen and drag towards your page, as shown in the
following screenshot. A red line represents the guide until you let go of the guide
and place it on the page. Then the line turns blue.

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Chapter 3

6. To make sure you position a right, left, top, and bottom guide one-eighth of an inch
from each of the edges of the document, as shown in the following screenshot, you
can hover over the guide line; when it turns red, double-click to bring up the dialog
box to make sure the measurement is set at one-eighth of an inch. Now all of the
space in the box is considered safe for design and will not be cut off during the print
production of the postcards.

Again, we will continue to work with this file in the following exercise. Keep it open and
ready for us to continue manipulating the file.

Have a go hero – adding a print bleed
What if you needed to adjust the postcard size to accommodate a bleed of the margins?
A bleed means when an image or element on a page touches the edge of the page, often
extending beyond the trim edge so there is no margin. Bleeds can extend off one or more
sides of a page.
Let's begin with our print-ready postcard file from the previous section.
1. Open our 7 X 5 postcard file with the guides in place (if it is not already open from
the last exercise).
2. From the main menu, choose Extensions | Render | Printing Marks. This will add
crop and bleed marks with a specified bleed area to our canvas.
3. Create new guides (while leaving our previously created print-safe guides as is)
that match the distance of the bleed marks (dotted marks).
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How to Manage Files

4. Now when you design, they can bleed past the Print Safe Area, so they bleed to the
edge of the paper when cut.

Saving Inkscape files
As you begin working on your projects, it is always good practice to save files often. Inkscape
has a number of save options, in a number of formats, as well as ways to export into other
common file formats.
By default, Inkscape typically saves files to your main documents folder. However, you are
given an option to change this during the saving process each and every time you save a file.

Saving in Inkscape SVG
By default, Inkscape files are saved as SVG files. The native Inkscape SVG format allows
editing at a later time. If file size is a concern, you can also save in the Inkscape-compressed
format of SVGZ and you will have no issues editing the file and resaving it for future use.
Inkscape can save as SVG, SVGZ, PDF, PostScript/EPS/EPSi, Adobe Illustrator (*.ai), LaTex
(*.tex), POVRay (*.pov), HPGL, and others. This is important because you can share files
with others, which they are able to then open and manipulate.
If you work in web design, note that it is possible that you can use the SVG files directly in
the HTML/XML code. However, you should work with your programming team to confirm
that they can use the SVG format. (Not all browsers or platforms support this).
Saving a file in any other non-Inkscape-SVG-format could potentially make it uneditable to
the extent of the original. So, always save the native Inkscape document and then export
bitmaps and other graphics and/or use File | Save Copy As to save it in another format.

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Time for action – saving an Inkscape SVG
Since you have just started using Inkscape, let's use an example file to learn about the save
features of Inkscape. Open your browser and go to the following link:
http://www.openclipart.org/people/kuba/LGM_poster2.svg

Right-click on the image and select Save As. When prompted, save the file to a location on
your computer (for example, your desktop). We will use this OpenClip Art Inkscape file for
this exercise:

Open the example file in Inkscape.

Once open, from the main menu, select File | Save.

In the Select file to save to window, type a new name for your file (for example,
drawing.svg).

Choose a folder to save the file to—including choosing Browse for other folders
if you'd like to choose another location.

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How to Manage Files

Again, note, by default the file will be saved as Inkscape SVG (*.svg), but there are a
number of other formats to choose from in this menu. However, as stated, you may
lose editability of the file once saved in another non-SVG format.

Click Save.

What just happened?
We just saved our current working file as an Inkscape (editable) SVG file—the native file
format of Inkscape—to a specified location on our computer for future use.

Pop quiz – editable Inkscape file formats
1. What is the native or default Inkscape file format?
a. VGS
b. SVG
c.

PNG

d. PDF
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Chapter 3

Exporting files
Inkscape's Export Bitmap option only allows you to export to Portable Network Graphics
(PNG). This is an image format that uses lossless data compression.
However, there are a number of exporting options that are available.

Exporting a page: Exporting the page (the bordered area) in PNG format is useful
when the client wants to see a mockup of the final design for review comments or
approvals—especially in web design. Mockups or wireframes allow someone to see
a layout without having a need to interact with a live website.

Exporting a drawing: This will export all objects in a drawing, including those placed
outside the page (bordered area).

Exporting a selection: If you have an object selected on or off the canvas, and
choose this option, it will be saved as a PNG file. This is most useful for elements
of a web design such as logos, wordmarks, and various other web graphics.

Time for action – exporting to PNG
Let's give this Export functionality a try. We'll use the postcard file we created in the previous
section with a very simple design added to show how this is done.

With the postcard file open from the previous section, from the main menu, select
File | Export Bitmap.

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The Export Window is displayed, as shown in the following screenshot:

On this window, you will see a number of options along the top that detail how you
might want to export the screen contents.

If you want to export the entire document, as shown in one bitmap image, then
select Page.

If you want to export all objects in a drawing, including those placed outside the
canvas/page, select Drawing.

If you want to export only a selected object (which you would see with an outline
and nodes on the screen), select Selection. However, this option is only available if
items are selected in the drawing before you start the export process.

Click Browse to change the default filename and/or the location where you want the
file to be saved.

Click Export.

Your new PNG file is saved. Remember the PNG you exported from these steps won't be
editable in Inkscape and the layers will not be intact, but you should be able to import it for
use in another SVG file.

What just happened?
You took a project file and exported it as a PNG file type. This file type is a bitmap or rasterized
graphic file type that is not editable in Inkscape, but can be imported into Inkscape to be used
as part of another project.
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Pop quiz – Export versus Save As
1. If you want to save a file as a PDF in Inkscape, what would you need to do?
a. Use the File | Export Bitmap feature.
b. Find another program that can open SVG files to do it for you.
c.

Use File | Save or File| Save As.

Have a go hero – saving your Inkscape file as a PDF
Since we have discussed PDF files and their importance for mockups as well as transferability
between compatible software, let's learn how to save an Inkscape file as a PDF for this same
purpose. PDF file sizes can typically be small and they can be opened by many programs
(that are not graphics-based). In fact, you can even use PDFs for print projects or simple
review files.
1. With Inkscape open and the postcard file active, from the main menu, select
File | Save.

2. In the Select file to save to window, choose Portable Document Format (*pdf)
as the file format.
3. In the Name field, type a name for your file (for example, postcard.pdf).
4. Choose a folder to save the file to—including choosing Browse for other folders,
if you'd like to choose another location.
5. Click Save.

Creating a customized default document
When working in print design, often you might need to create a particular size document
again and again. Perhaps, Inkscape does not offer this as a default size. You can then create
a custom document and force Inkscape to use it as the default document size.
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How to Manage Files

Time for action – creating a new default document
We're going to create a new default document with a custom size.

From the Inkscape main menu, select File | New | Default. This opens a file with the
default dimensions of A4, as shown in the following screenshot:

Now customize those document dimensions. From the main menu, choose File |
Document Properties. You'll see the Document Properties window displayed, as
shown in the following screenshot:

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Chapter 3

Change the Units to in (Inches), Width to 7, and Height to 5. The changes on the
Document Properties window should look similar to the following screenshot:

Remember to change the Units first; otherwise the Width and Height fields will
adjust to the new unit of measurement and you will have to readjust them.

Close the Document Properties window/dock by clicking the X at the
upper-right corner.

From the main menu, select File | Save As. Choose the following directories to save
as a new default:
For Windows, save to the share directory within the Inkscape directory.
C:\Program Files\Inkscape\share\default.svg

For Mac and Linux users, save the file to: /usr/share/inkscape/templates/
default.svg

Once saved, when you open a new Inkscape document and choose File | New |
Default, a document with your specific dimensions will be opened.

What just happened?
We created a new default document in Inkscape and then saved it so that it will
automatically open when you choose Default from the new file menu.

How to structure project files
The last section was about saving individual files. However, you may find yourself designing
entire web pages or large projects that require more than one Inkscape file. To do this, it
requires some basic organization of files within directories or folders to make finding (and
using) the Inkscape files easier to use—specifically when saving entire pages of content as
individual graphic files. The following section details how best to manage multiple file projects.

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How to Manage Files

Managing multiple file projects
Simply put, if you create one directory or folder where you store all of the files for one
project, you can minimize mismanagement of files. Within that directory, you will have
more control over how you structure your files for revisions and drafts for work.
As stated, it starts with a project folder placed on your computer in an easy-to-access
location. Whenever you create a new file in Inkscape for this project, you can save those
source Inkscape files in a folder named Source. Then you can also create a Deployment
folder (or another intuitive name) where you export all the files in the various formats you
need to hand off to a developer for website integration or as print-ready files for a printer.

This can get a bit complicated when you decide to save all selected files on a page as individual
images. Inkscape allows you to do what is called a batch save process. This means you save all
the files with just one button press. Where it gets tricky is the save location and thus it is good
practice to have directories in which to save files. Let's see how this is done.

Time for action – exporting a batch of images
We're going to look in detail at how to save an entire page or canvas of images as separate
graphic files. This practice is common in web design when each image needs to be called to
action in the HTML code. It can also be useful if you have developed a print design and want
to save a logo, a block of text, and some graphical elements for use in another piece of the
same client.
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Chapter 3

We will use the sample file from the previous section again for this exercise. If you
have not downloaded the file, open your browser and go to the following link:
http://www.openclipart.org/people/kuba/LGM_poster2.svg

Right-click the image and save to a location on your computer.

Open the example file in Inkscape.

On the main menu, select Edit | Select All in All Layers. Now all the objects
within this example file will be selected. You should see dashed borders around
each object.
We will discuss Layers in detail in Chapter 5, Working with
Layers.

It's time to export. From the main menu, select File | Export Bitmap.

The Export Bitmap window displays.

This time, we want to choose Selection from the top bar.

In the Filename field, type the directory folder that you want all object images to be
saved to. If you choose to browse to a directory, you may need to select a file for the
path to be accepted in this field.

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How to Manage Files

Enable the Batch export 8 selected objects checkbox.

Click Export.

What just happened?
With a few simple steps in the Export Bitmap window, you were able to save eight objects
as separate PNG files in a specified directory.
Inkscape uses object IDs when automatically assigning filenames during an export.
The object IDs, by default, aren't descriptive and are often a basic description of the
object with a number. However, you can rename the object ID on your canvas easily.

Renaming object IDs
In an open Inkscape document, select the object you want to rename. From the main menu,
select Object | Object Properties (or use the Shift + Ctrl + O keyboard shortcut key). The
Object Properties window is displayed. Change the Id field to be a descriptive filename.

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Chapter 3

Now when you export, the filename will be pulled from this Id field and thus be descriptive
in nature for your project.

Importing non-native Inkscape files
In the previous section, we imported a previously-created Inkscape SVG file into the program.
Inkscape supports a number of other graphic formats too. It can open or import SVG, SVGZ
(gzipped SVG), PDF, and AI (Adobe Illustrator) formats. In particular, it can import bitmap-based
graphic formats such as JPEG, PNG, and GIF, but it can only export PNG bitmaps.
With the help of extensions and plugins, Inkscape can also open a number of other vector
formats. The following are some examples:

For importing PostScript or EPS, install Ghostscript (http://pages.cs.wisc.
edu/~ghost/)

For formats of Dia, XFig, or Sketch, you need to have those programs installed on
your computer

For CorelDraw, CGM, and SK1 files, install Uniconverter (http://sk1project.
org/). For Windows users, Uniconvertor is pre-installed with Inkscape and no
additional installation is needed.

See this version of the Inkscape manual for the fully-supported formats and the caveats of
importing each: http://tavmjong.free.fr/INKSCAPE/MANUAL/html/File-Import.
html.
Remember, if you import and open a non-native Inkscape file, you may not be able edit
all of the elements. Inkscape imports non-native files as flattened graphic files, so you
can't edit anything within the graphic, but you can manipulate or use the flattened image
within Inkscape.
The recommended format for transferring non-native Inkscape files is to use
the original source program and files to create a PDF. Then open the PDF in
Inkscape. PDF files, when imported into Inkscape, allow for editability to remain
with vector-based objects.

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How to Manage Files

Time for action – importing a PDF into Inkscape
Let's import a non-native Inkscape SVG file into Inkscape—as you may need to do this for
client logos, photographs, and any number of other real-world examples. Open a browser
and go to this link: http://db.tt/xR0ZlBRL
A PDF will be downloaded and saved to your computer. It will be our sample file to work
with during this exercise.

Open a document in Inkscape. This can be any in-progress file that we have used
previously in this chapter, or a new document.

From the main menu, select File | Import.

The Select file to import window displays, as shown in the following screenshot:

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Chapter 3

Locate and select the sample PDF file you just downloaded and select Open.

When the PDF Import Settings screen displays, adjust settings as needed
and click OK.

Within Page settings, you can choose whether you want all pages of the PDF to be
imported or just a specific page number. The Clip to field has various options (media
box, crop box, trim box, bleed box, art box, and so on), allowing you to determine
how the file is imported into your current canvas.

Within Import settings, you can set the Precision of Gradient Meshes. Any gradients
seen on your objects are converted to tiny boxes. The higher the precision, the more
boxes will be used to illustrate the gradient (also, the larger the file size, the slower
the load time in Inkscape).

Depending on the source application that created the PDF, you can adjust Text
handling. If you choose Import text as text, all the text objects will be brought
in as such in Inkscape and then become editable.

The checkboxes on the screen allow for you to replace fonts to the closest match
(checked) and to embed images (checked).

In a few moments, the PDF file you selected will display within the page of your
Inkscape project.

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How to Manage Files

Note that this imported PDF is fully editable if the objects are vector-based. Rasterized
images are more limited to the following:

Moving the object: Click to select it and move it to where you want it to be on
the canvas.

Making the image smaller: Double-click the object to select and click-and-drag an
arrowed corner to shrink it.

Any detailed edits such as changing color or moving lines within the PDF are not permissible.
However, the object is fully usable within the Inkscape file for design purposes. Photographs
and similar rasterized images can all be used in this fashion.
Edit text blocks
To edit an imported block of text like a typewriter, select the text block
and Remove Manual Kerns from the Text Menu.

What just happened?
We imported a sample PDF file into Inkscape to demonstrate the flexibility of this file format.
If objects are vector-based, they maintain editability. If rasterized images are included, then
they have more limited editing capabilities.

Pop quiz – file format portability
1. What is the ideal format for transferring non-native Inkscape files to Inkscape?
a. SVG
b. JPG
c.

GIF

d. PDF

Embedding and linking image files
When you import files into Inkscape, you are prompted about linking or embedding them.
Linking a file means that the file is essentially displayed within your Inkscape document and
there are associated properties (location, size, and so on) to that linked object. The original file
must remain in the exact location on your computer or you will not be able to view it in the
Inkscape file and any changes you make to the original file will be seen in the Inkscape file.

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Embedding a file means that the file itself is brought into the Inkscape document and it
resides there. All changes made to that file within your project stay within your project
and the original source file can be moved to any location on your computer.
The advantage to embedding images is that they are not tied to the original source.
You can move the source file or the Inkscape file anywhere on your computer or even
send a co-worker the Inkscape file and there is no need to worry about the linked file.
However, this also means your file sizes will be larger.
There are some limitations to embedding images into the Inkscape SVG files. They are
as follows:

For SVG files used directly on the web, increasing the file size increases bandwidth
usage on the server or host.

Embedded images can't be shared across documents. For example, if you have one
PNG image as a background file, you can't share it across SVG files.

Sharing copyrighted fonts or images in a document could be illegal (depending on
how extensive the rights you have purchased to use these items are to begin with).
This is particularly important when working on commercial or widely-used projects.

If there is extensive text editing within the SVG files themselves, this can be
complicated and time-intensive.

Linking keeps file sizes small, but you must remember to send all additional files along with
your Inkscape SVG files when you go to production or create print-ready PDFs; otherwise all
linked objects will not display.

Embedding files in Inkscape
The best examples for embedding files in Inkscape are when you want one all-inclusive file
that can be sent or posted individually without worrying about additional source files or
directory structures. Another example could be when you know that you will change the
location of the linked or Inkscape file frequently, as you work with different versions.

Time for action – embedding a logo into your design
Let's learn how to embed a logo file into a design. We'll start by downloading a sample logo.
Open a browser and go to this Open Clipart sample logo at the following URL:
http://www.openclipart.org/image/800px/svg_to_png/vetlogo.png

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How to Manage Files

Right-click on the logo and save it to your computer.

Open a document in Inkscape.

From the main menu, select File | Import. Alternatively, you can drag-and-drop a file
from your desktop onto an open Inkscape file.

The Select file to import window displays.

Locate and select the Sample logo file you just downloaded and select Open.

When the input screen displays, select Embed.

Click OK.

In a few moments, the logo you selected displays and is embedded within the page
of your Inkscape project.

What just happened?
In the preceding steps, you embedded a logo image into your current Inkscape document.

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Linking external files in Inkscape
Linking certain files can be useful—particularly if the source file you want to link to is a large,
high-resolution photograph.

Time for action – linking a photograph into a brochure design
Now let's try to link external files into an Inkscape project. For this example, we will just use
the same logo as the previous example. If you did not download it yet, open a browser and
go to the following Open Clipart sample logo:
http://www.openclipart.org/image/800px/svg_to_png/vetlogo.png

Right-click on the logo and save it to your computer.

Open a document in Inkscape.

From the main menu, select File | Import.
The Select file to import window is displayed.

Locate and select the Sample logo file you just downloaded and select Open.

When the input screen displays, this time select Link.

Click OK.

In a few moments, the logo you selected displays and is embedded within the page
of your Inkscape project.
You moved your source file and now need to change the link path to
your file?
Right-click on your linked object in your Inkscape file and select Image
Properties. Change the URL field to match the new path to the file.

What just happened?
You linked an image file into your current open Inkscape project and learned a special tip for
fixing a broken image link in any of your old files.

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Pop quiz – linking versus embedding images
1. Why would you want to link an external file instead of an embedded one?
a. A large image size
b. The image will be constantly changing and you want the changes to be
reflected instantly in your Inkscape file
c.

Project file structure will remain the same and there are a limited number
of images

d. All of the above

Have a go hero – changing your mind, embedding files after the fact
What if you initially linked all files and then decide that you would rather embed them all?
The following are the steps to take to make this happen:
1. Open an Inkscape document.
2. From the main menu, select Extensions, then Images, and Embed Images....

3. Do not check the Embed only selected images box.

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Chapter 3

If you want to embed only certain images in the document, then you
must select those images first. You should then go to the main menu,
select Extensions | Images | Embed Images..., and check the Embed
only selected images box.

4. Click Apply.

Summary
We spent the majority of this chapter discussing how to create new files in Inkscape. You
learned how to use predefined page/canvas sizes in Inkscape, how to customize the file size,
and even how to create print bleeds and the setup for print-safe space on your documents.
Then we jumped into saving Inkscape files—paying close attention to discuss the advantages
of keeping a source version of all documents in Inkscape's native file format of SVG, so you
can continue to edit your files. Along with that topic, we jumped into managing multiple
file projects and best practices, the details regarding which formats in which Inkscape can
save, as well as importing file types. Finally, we talked about embedding and linking files
and images in your Inkscape files. We detailed the advantages and disadvantages of each
approach as well as how to work with both in your files for the best experience.
All of this is leading up to the next chapter, which deals with starting your very first Inkscape
project. We've done a lot of preparation; now it is time to start designing!

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Creating your First Graphics
We're now ready to create some graphics. We'll start with some basic shapes
and then move on to freehand objects, using grids and guidelines to help to
create better graphics better create graphics.

The following are the specifics about what we will learn:

Paths and Shapes

Creating your first vector graphic

Ellipses and Arcs

Complex Shapes

Freehand Objects

Using Grids and Guidelines

Paths
Vector graphics are made up of what are called geometrical primitives such as points, lines,
curves, and shapes. These primitives then have a start and end point, curves, angles, and
points that are calculated with a mathematical equation. These paths are not limited to being
straight—they can be of any shape, size, and even encompass any number of curves. When
you combine them, they create drawings, diagrams, and can even help create certain fonts.

Creating your First Graphics

Inkscape uses both paths and a series of pre-determined shapes when creating graphics.
Paths have no predefined lengths or widths. They are arbitrary in nature and come in three
basic types:

Open paths (have two ends)

Closed paths (have no ends, like a circle)

Compound paths (use a combination of two or more open and/or closed paths)

Open

Closed

Compound

In Inkscape, there are a few ways we can make paths such as with the Pencil (Freehand),
Bezier (Pen) , and Calligraphy tools—all of which are found in the toolbox located at the left
side of your screen.

You can also convert a regular shape or text object into a path.

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In general, we use paths to build unique objects that aren't part of the SVG standard shapes
in Inkscape. Since we can combine paths and make them closed objects—they again can be
resized, manipulated, and then exported in a number of formats.

Creating your first vector graphic
In this section, we will show you how to create some basic vector graphics with shapes and
paths in Inkscape (which thankfully doesn't require you to do any mathematical equations
when using it) and export them in a couple of different formats.
Here are the standard shapes that are part of the SVG standard:

Rectangles, squares, and 3D boxes

Circles, ellipses, and arcs

Stars and polygons

Spirals

Creating a polygon
Let's break down creating our first graphic—a star—into many smaller substeps just to get
started. We will do the following:

Open a new document

Create the polygon object

Change the object properties

Save our graphic

Let's get started!

Time for action – opening a new document
When you first open Inkscape, a new document is opened and you are ready to start.
However, it uses a default canvas size of A4 and you may need to change the orientation
and size for the graphic you are creating, as follows:

Open Inkscape.

If you need to create a new document, go to File | New. A menu appears with the
predefined sizes Inkscape has for you.

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If you want to manually change your document properties, just go to the main
menu and select File | Document Properties. You will see the Document Properties
window displayed with a number of options for customizing your canvas size.

If you want to change the default background color (default in Inkscape is a
transparent background), you change it in the General, Background section.
Click the color swatch to change it.

If you want to adjust any Border settings, check the appropriate checkboxes.
The options include:

Showing a page border

Showing the border on top of any objects on the canvas

Showing a border shadow

When complete, close the Document Properties window by clicking the X in the
upper-left corner and your changes will be reflected in the main window.

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What just happened?
We opened Inkscape and adjusted the canvas size for your graphic. We also discussed
additional document properties that can be changed such as background color, page
border options, and border shadows.

Pop quiz – displaying borders
1. Why might it be important to have borders show on top of your drawing objects?
a. If you are using page borders as cropping/print guidelines, you know where
the final paper will be cut
b. It isn't important at all
c.

Gives great artistic flare to the graphic

Time for action – creating a star
Now, we will create a shape that is a part of the SVG standard that is inherent in Inkscape.
These standard shapes include rectangles/squares, circles/ellipses/arcs, stars, polygons,
and spirals. We will create a star. Here's what you need to do:

Select (click) the shape tool icon (A) and the polygon icon (B) in the toolbox,
as highlighted in the following screenshot.

Then draw the shape on the canvas by clicking, holding, and then dragging the
shape to the size you want on the canvas:

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Creating your First Graphics

To switch between creating stars and polygons, select the star/polygon icon in the
toolbox on the left-hand side of your screen, and then select either the polygon or
the star icon in the Tool controls (just above the canvas).

You can also change the number of corners this polygon has by changing the
number in the Corners field in the Tool controls.

If you had wanted to draw a circle, square, or cube—you would have selected those icons on
the toolbox.
It is possible that your star doesn't match the one shown in the preceding screenshot.
Maybe your color or border is different. That is because, when you opened Inkscape, your
color palette settings were set to the last used style. The Have a go Hero – changing the unit
of measure, section explains how to change those settings—Fill and Stroke—so your star can
look similar to the example.

What just happened?
You created a star object on your blank canvas.

Pop quiz – switching shapes
1. What if you decided instead of a star, you would like to draw a cube. In which screen
toolbar would you look for the correct tool?
a. Palette bar
b. Tool controls
c.

Toolbox

d. Object dialog

Have a go hero – changing shape options
Shapes have a number of attributes or options. By default those attributes will be the
last-used style (for example, color). In Inkscape, the user interface gives you easy-to-use
tools to change options such as fill color, stroke color, size, and placement of the shape.

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1. Change the fill color of the shape by selecting a color in the color palette.

2. Change the stroke or border color by pressing and holding the Shift key and then
selecting that color from the color palette.
3. Change the position of the shape on the canvas by choosing the Select tool in the
toolbox, clicking and holding the shape, and moving it to where you need it to be.

4. Change the size of the shape by also choosing the Select tool from the toolbox,
clicking and holding the edge of the shape at the handles (small black square or
circles at the edges), and dragging it outwards to make it larger or inwards to shrink
until the shape is of the desired size.
The shape is still fully editable and the number of tips in the star is adjusted through
the tool controls bar. You can also switch between polygon and stars.

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Time for action – saving your graphic
After you have created an initial version of your graphic, it is best practice to save your file so
that you don't lose any work. This is a simple example graphic, so you may not want to save
the file, but for any future work, this step is critical.

With your latest project open, from the main menu select File | Save. Inkscape will,
by default, give options to save projects in its default format, SVG. Choose a file
location and click Save.

However, you might also want to export in a bitmap graphic format such as PNG.
To do this, choose File | Export Bitmap.

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In the Export Bitmap window, you can choose to save the Page (all objects within
the page/black border, the Drawing (all objects), the Selection (only the object you
have selected), or customize it.

Choose the Export area, the graphic size you want (will select predefined size by
default), and click Browse to choose the same location.

Verify the filename in the textbox and click Export.

To save in another format besides PNG, go to File | Save As and choose the file
format of your choice. Inkscape allows you to save in a number of formats such as
PDF, EPS, ODG, WMF, among others. However, remember that if you want to save
the file in a format that will allow you to edit in the future, you need to save it in
Inkscape SVG.

What just happened?
You saved your graphics file as a native Inkscape SVG file so you can edit it later, and then
exported it into another format (as needed).

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Creating your First Graphics

Pop quiz – image formats
1. What is the only bitmap format that Inkscape can export to?
a. JPG
b. GIF
c.

BMP

d. PNG

Creating ellipses and arcs
Now, we're going to get a bit fancier and create ellipses and arcs. Ellipses are of oval shape.
To start, we will create an ellipse and explain how to make perfect circles and then details
about creating an arc.

Time for action – creating the Ellipse
Let's start by creating an ellipse.

With a new document open in Inkscape, select the circle tool or ellipse tool.

On the canvas, press the Ctrl key, click, hold, and drag the shape to the size you want
on the canvas.

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What just happened?
You created a circle on your canvas.

Pop quiz – circles
1. How can you make a perfect circle in Inkscape?
a. Freehand it with the freehand tool.
b. Use a star and clipping masks.
c.

Use the circle tool in the toolbox and press the Ctrl key while resizing it.

d. None of the above.

Time for action – making an arc
Now, we will take our circle and convert it into an arc.

Make sure that the Circle/Ellipse tool is still selected and you can see the handles on
the shape on the canvas.

Notice, there are three handles which are top (square), left (square), and right
(circle). To control the horizontal and vertical dimensions, you use the top
(horizontal) and left (vertical) handles.
Dragging the right circle handle of a whole ellipse creates an arc or segment.
To switch between an arc or pie segment, drag the handle inside or outside of the
ellipse. Let's give it a try.

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Creating your First Graphics

Drag an arc handle (the circle one) to set one end of the arc. Once you pull or drag
one of the arc handles, you will see that there are actually two overlapping arc
handles for you to manipulate. (as shown in the following screenshot, this is
now a closed path).

Drag the second arc handle (in the original position) to the other end of the arc,
The arc will be closed and a pie shape will be created (an open path).

Hold the Ctrl key while dragging an arc handle to force the angle of the arc to begin
or end at a multiple of the rotation snap angle (15 degrees by default). To precisely
place objects on the canvas, an object is made to snap to a target that is an object,
guide, grid, or in this case an angle. Drag one of the arc handles outside the curve
of the original ellipse (outside the dashed box); the arc handle icon turns blue and
a wedge is created at the center of the shape (again, a closed path).

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If the arc handle is dragged with the cursor inside the curve, the segment defining
the arc starts and stops at the two arc handles, as shown in the following screenshot
(now an open path).

Once the arc is created and selected on the canvas, you can use the Tool controls
bar to set specific locations (in degrees) for the start and stop arc handles.

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Creating your First Graphics

Also, note in the toolbar, the buttons that can quickly change an ellipse into a
closed path or an open path. The one selected in the preceding screenshot is an
open path; whereas the one to the left is a closed path.
The full circle button resets the ellipse to whole. When creating ellipses, the
next one you create will use the last used style (for example, after this exercise it
would be an arc). The Reset ellipse button will then become handy to start anew.

What just happened?
You took a simple circle and created a number of arcs—essentially learning the skills that you
need to manipulate arcs in Inkscape.

Complex Shapes
As a designer you will often want to create logos or shapes that are outside the standard
ones provided in the software. Since Inkscape is vector-based, you can combine simple
shapes, masking, hiding, and layering them to create more complex shapes. Let's perform
a simple example to see how this can be done.

Time for action – combining shapes
One of the simplest ways to create complex shapes in Inkscape is to combine other shapes
into one or merge the shapes. Let's learn how we can do this by creating an arrow with
a polygon and rectangle shape.

Open a new document (any size will do, since we are just practicing).

Select the Polygon tool from the toolbox.

Create a polygon shape.

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From the Tool controls, change Corners to 3, as shown in the following screenshot:

The octagon polygon shape changes to a triangle.

From the toolbox, choose the Select tool and click the triangle object twice.
The handles turn to curved arrows so you can rotate the triangle as shown
in the following screenshot:

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Creating your First Graphics

Rotating an object
While drawing the polygon on the canvas, you can swivel it up, down,
left, and right. Use the Ctrl key while performing the following actions
and it will make rotations snap in 15 degree increments.
It is okay if you don't do this while drawing it initially, you can always
choose the Select tool from the toolbox, and click the polygon until
the handles turn to arrows with curves (this might require you to click
the polygon object a couple of times). When you see the curved arrow
handles, click-and-drag on a corner node to rotate the object until it is
positioned correctly.

From the toolbox, select the rectangle tool and draw a rectangle just below the
triangle on the canvas.

Now, choose the Select tool from the toolbox, and drag the rectangle so it creates
the stem of the arrow as follows:

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To readjust the size of the rectangle, make sure the Select tool is active, and click
the rectangle. The resize handles appear. Click the handle on a side that needs to be
adjusted and drag it to resize.

With the rectangle still selected, press and hold the Shift key, and click the triangle
so that all objects are selected.

10.

From the main menu select Path | Union:

This merges the two shapes into one... and voila, it's an arrow!

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Creating your First Graphics

What just happened?
You created a polygon, changed the number of corners, created a rectangle and combined
them—or joined them—into a union to create an arrow object. Technically, the shapes were
transformed into a path. The shape tools no longer work on this object and it is its own
object in Inkscape that can be resized and manipulated like any other object.

Pop quiz – joining objects
1. How do you join more than one shape in Inkscape?
a. Select all the objects you want to join together and then on the main menu
select Path | Union.
b. You can't.
c.

You have to draw an object freehand.

Freehand objects (Paths)
You can also use the Bezier (Pen) or Freehand Tool to create objects in a bit more freehand
form. This tool allows you to create straight lines and curves and connect them to create a
freehand object.

Time for action – creating a freehand object
Here's an example of how to create a lightning bolt.

From a new document, choose the Bezier tool from the Tool Box.

Click somewhere on the canvas to start drawing a straight line, click to establish a
node, click again to change direction of the straight line to create an angle in our
lightning bolt, as shown in the following screenshots:

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Continue to create the lightning bolt object by creating the shape segment
by segment.
Don't worry if you stop a line and realize you need to extend its
length, just click and move a straight line to add on to the original
to make it as long as you need. Click again when you are ready to
change direction. If you made a mistake, press the Backspace or
Delete key and it removes the last line segment.

To close the lightning bolt, just create a line segment and join it to the starting point
with a final click. The start node will glow red in color when the mouse is hovered
over it for easy identification. This is helpful to make sure that the close of the object
is done correctly. You will see that all the lines are combined into one continuous
closed path—a lightning bolt.

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Creating your First Graphics

When you select the lightning bolt, the entire object is selected. You can resize it, fill
it with a color (select it and choose a color from the color palette), and move it to
another location on the canvas. It has become a unique object for you to work with.
The Bezier tool also allows you to create controlled curves to create even more
complex and unique objects. Try creating objects on your own and experimenting.
These complex objects can be used for icons, banners, and for unique logo designs.

What just happened?
You used the Bezier tool and created, in multiple small steps, a lightning bolt.

Pop quiz – deleting
1. What are the important keys to remember if you want to delete the last line you
drew with the Bezier Tool?
a. D key
b. Shift key
c.

Enter key

d. Backspace or Delete key

Using grids and guidelines
When designing, we often need to align objects for a clean look. To do this, grids can be used
to help in alignment. We will start this section by learning how to turn the canvas grid on, set
up snap to alignment, and then how to set up guidelines.

Time for action – viewing the Grid
We will start with the easiest task, turning the Grid on (or making it viewable).

With your new document still open on your computer, on the Inkscape main menu
select View | Grid:

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What just happened?
You'll see that a blue grid will appear across the entire canvas area. We will use these
grids to create basic areas of our layout and then create guides to begin creating our
actual layout elements.

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Creating your First Graphics

Have a go hero – changing the unit of measure
By default, Inkscape keeps all dimensions—even the unit of measure—in pixels. Do you want
your grid to be in inches? There is an easy way to do this.
1. Go to the main menu, choose File | Document Properties. You'll see the Document
Properties window displayed.

2. Change the Units field to in (Inches). This will change the grid, the canvas
dimensions, and all units of measure to inches in this document.

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Pop quiz – viewable grid
1. What is the shortcut key for making Grids viewable in Inkscape?
a. The G key
b. F1
c.

d. Enter

Time for action – making guides
Now it's time to create guides. Guides are lines on the screen that you will use for aligning,
that is, guiding objects. These lines are only visible while you are working in Inkscape and we
can set objects to snap to them when we are designing. Both of these simple tools (guides
and the Snap to feature) will give you automatic alignment for the basic areas of your web
page layout—which in turn will help make the design process much easier.

To create a guide in any open document, drag from the left or top ruler toward your
page as in the following screenshot. A red line represents the guide until you let go
of the guide and place it on the page. Then the line turns blue.

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Creating your First Graphics

You can move the guides after placing them on the page by using the Select tool and
clicking-and-dragging the circle node on the guide. Also, double-clicking directly on a
guide will bring up a dialog box which lets you change the guide positions and angle
very accurately.

What just happened?
You created two guidelines on your current canvas: one from the right ruler and one from
the top.
One note here, if you want to make multiple guidelines, even on the right
side of the canvas, it is easy. Just drag from the left ruler onto the canvas
over other guidelines and all rulers currently placed on the page and
drop it where you need it on the page. There is no maximum number of
guidelines that you can create.

Summary
We created our very first graphics from polygons, ellipses, circles, arcs, and even an arrow
by combining shapes. To do all of this, we used the basic shapes available to us through
Inkscape but also worked with the Bezier Tool to create freehand shapes (such as the
lightning bolt).
We also took some time to turn on grids and to learn how to create guides for better aligning
and designing. Next up, we shall be learning all we can about layers.

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How to Work with Layers
If you have used any other graphics program, you are likely to be familiar with
layers. Layers are like stacks of transparent paper with drawings on them. Each
layer stacks, and thus objects on each of the layers also stack on top of one
another. Of course when using layers in Inkscape, you can manipulate all of the
objects in one layer the same way.

This chapter will cover:

Defining layers and how to create them

Using layers in an example drawing

Locking layers

Hiding layers

Dockable Layer dialog

Duplicating layers

Arranging layers

Renaming layers

Deleting layers

Blend mode

How to Work with Layers

Defining layers and how to create them
Within Inkscape when you create documents you can have layers of objects. This gives great
flexibility when creating any Inkscape project. You can place groups of objects on a layer
based on function or placement on the design. Then you can separate the objects by layer,
and stack or reorder, or hide layers. A setting can be adjusted on each layer, so you can save
drafts or different versions of mockups and keep all of this in one file.
The layer you are currently using is called the drawing layer. It is selected in the Layer dialog
and shown in a darker color.
Also note, you can view Inkscape layers in the Layer dialog or in a drop-down menu in the
status bar:

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Time for action – creating a layer
Let's start by creating a customized layer. We'll call it Basic Layout.

First, let's make the Layers dockable dialog viewable. From the main menu, select
Layer and then select Layers. The Layers dialog is displayed on the right-hand side
of your screen as follows:

You can also press Shift + Ctrl + L on your keyboard or click the Layers
icon in the command bar (as shown in the following screenshot) to
display the Layers dialog.

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How to Work with Layers

In the Layers dialog, press the + button to create a new layer or use the Shift + Ctrl
+ N shortcut keys. The default layer is called Layer 1. However, you can rename it,
move it up and down in the stack, and it is treated no different than any other layer
you create in your projects.

In the Layer name field, type the name: Basic Layout and click Add:

You will notice the new layer is added above the existing one in the Layers dialog
as follows:

What just happened?
You created a new layer in an open document in Inkscape called Basic Layout. You will need
to repeat the steps mentioned earlier every time you want to create a new layer.

Pop quiz – Layers dialog
1. How do you close the Layers dialog?
a. From the main menu, select Layer and then select Layers.
b. Press the X on the upper-right side of the Layers dialog window.
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Once it is open, you cannot close the Layers dialog window.

d. Close Inkscape all together and re-open it.

Using Layers in an example drawing
Let's create the basic links for a blog. Some common parts of many blog sites are the blog
header or banner, a sidebar with recent posts (or archives), an about section, recent posts,
blog roll and/or a Links section, and a main content section that will contain all of the blog
posts. Of course, you can get as fancy as you like here, or as simple, but let's design a site
based on these simple sections so we can demonstrate how to use layers to create a design
layout mockup.

Time for action – using Layers in web design
To start, we will create the very start of a website, or more specifically a blog, and create
three layers in the design:

Open Inkscape, and create a new document. From the file menu, select File | New |
Desktop_800x600.

From the main menu, choose File | Document Properties.

Click on Background. The Background color dialog will be displayed.

Change RGBA from ffffff00 to ffffffff. This will change the background color of this
screen mockup to white.

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In the Layer dialog, click the + sign to create a new layer (or use Shift + Ctrl + N)
and call it Header.

Click the Create and Edit Objects tool and enter the header title for the blog.

You could try creating something similar to the following screenshot:

Highlight the text with the Create and Edit Objects tool and use the control
bar located above the canvas area and adjust the font type and size. In the
previous example, the font type is Arial and it is 36 points in size, as shown
in the following screemshot:

Then, still using the Create and Edit tool, type the subtitle as shown in the example.
Remember to use the control bar to adjust the font type and size. In the same
(previous) example, the font for the subtitle is Apple Chancery with an 18 point font.

Next, we want to center both of these titles on the vertical axis of this document.
Use the Select tool, press the Shift key on the keyboard, and click both titles
(this will allow you to select both objects).

10.

Click the Align and Distribute Objects icon on the command bar to display the
Align and Distribute dialog, as shown in the following screenshot:

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11.

Click the Center on Vertical Axis icon. This will center both title objects on the page:

12.

Now we will add a new layer yet again. Create the new layer by using the Layer
dialog, + sign, or the Shift + Ctrl + N shortcut keys. Let's call the layer Navigation.

13.

For the navigational elements, we will import some ready-made icons.
First download the icons to your hard drive from http://dl.dropbox.
com/u/565455/iconpack.zip.

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How to Work with Layers

14.

Unzip these icons to your hard drive, preferably on your desktop. From the desktop
then drag-and-drop your icon files onto the Inkscape canvas. Repeat this until you
have all five icons on the canvas. See the following sample screenshot:

15.

To make sure you have everything evenly spaced, we need to align them. Click the
Align and Distribute Objects icon on the command bar to display the Align and
Distribute dialog if it is still not displayed.

16.

Choose the Select tool, press the Shift key and click on all icons.

17.

In the Align and Distribute dialog, click the Distribute Centers Equidistantly
Horizontally button.

This will make sure all of the icons are spaced equally apart from one another
to make a clean design.

What just happened?
In the small example mentioned earlier, you created three layers: Background, Header,
and Navigation, each with the object associated with them. If you continue this process,
you can build something similar to what is given in the following screenshot that has
additional layers side content, body content, and footer, for example. To see this project
in its complete form, you can download it from http://dl.dropbox.com/u/565455/
exampleprojectlayout.svg.

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Now, let's dig a bit deeper into how you can manipulate layers to help you design. Make each
layer behave independently of the others and therefore, manipulate what your final design
will look like.

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Locking layers
The idea of locking a layer—making it not editable—can be valuable when designing
backgrounds, footers, or headers.

Time for action – locking a layer
Let's look at how you can lock a layer in Inkscape using the same design used previously.
You can download the full project from http://dl.dropbox.com/u/565455/
exampleprojectlayout.svg.

With the blog mockup from the pervious exercise open in Inkscape, open the Layer
dialog. From the main menu, select Layer and then Layers. On the right side of your
screen, the Layers dialog will be displayed and it will look something similar to the
following screenshot:

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You will notice that each layer has icons to the left of the layer name. Go to the
Background layer and click the Lock icon. You will see that once you click that icon,
the lock now looks closed or locked, shown as follows:

This means that the Background layer can no longer be selected from the canvas,
nor will any objects on this layer be able to be moved or edited.

For example, go to your canvas and try to select the Background objects. You will
not be able to move this layer until you unlock it in the Layer dialog.

To unlock an item, click the Lock icon. Again, you will see the icon change to the
unlock state, opening the layer objects for manipulation again.

What just happened?
In the previous example, we locked the header layer in the working document. This means
we can't edit any objects on that layer, or move them to a new location on the canvas.
Essentially, all items are locked into place.
This helps keep items that are "in place," stay in place while you work on the rest of the
design. This can be especially handy when working in a series of designs where certain
items will always stay in the same location.

Hiding layers
Another great feature when working with layers is to hide them. This means that while
working with interim drafts of projects, you could create a layer for the first draft, and then
another for the second—or you could even use layers for certain design elements that you
want to turn on or off. All these are beneficial because the layer will hold objects' locations,
but all you need to do is click a button to turn them on or off.

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Time for action – hiding layers
To really show how powerful a feature hiding layers can be, let's walk through this example.
We're going to change the design of the blog that we have been featuring in this entire chapter.
In fact, we will change the navigation icons so that we can make two different designs:

With the blog mockup from the previous exercise open in Inkscape, reopen the
Layer dialog if it is not open.

Select the Navigation layer.

Click the Eye icon to the left of the layer name.

The eye will close and essentially hide all objects on that layer—as shown in the
previous screenshot.

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Now, you can create a new layer with the different navigation elements and make
that viewable. This creates another design option to choose from. To do this, create
the new layer by using the Layer dialog and the + sign or the Shift + Ctrl + N shortcut
keys. Let's name the layer Navigation Option 2:

Make sure this layer remains selected and import some new navigational
elements. Download the new icons from http://dl.dropbox.com/u/565455/
Newnavbuttons.zip.

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Unzip the new icons to your desktop and drag-and-drop the files to your canvas
(again, making sure the Navigation Option 2 layer is active). You'll notice that since
the original Navigation is still hidden, you don't see the icons:

This is an ideal way to give certain design options to a client.

You can now save a PDF with the new navigation design. From the main menu,
select File | Save As | *.Portable Document Format. You can leave all default values
on in the PDF dialog to save the file.

Hide the layer Navigation Option 2 (click the eye) and unhide the layer Navigation
(click closed eye) to see the original design. Then save this version also as a PDF.
From the main menu, select File | Save As | *.Portable Document Format. Of
course, remember to give this new version a different PDF filename:

10.

Also, saving this project as an Inkscsape SVG file would be beneficial, so all objects
and this overall design can be edited later. From the main menu, select File and then
select Save.

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What just happened?
You hid one layer, created another layer, made a new design element, and learned how to
switch between the two layers to show off two different designs.

In Inkscape, layer selection happens automatically when you select an object. This is
different in comparison to many bitmap editors in the market, where you first have to select
a layer to work on and then the object. With Inkscape, you can select any object and it will
be immediately set as the current layer by Inkscape.

Have a go hero – show all but current layer
You can also hide or show all layers other than the current.
The following points explain how it is done:
1. Open the sample file that we created previously.
2. In the Layer dialog, right-click the layer name and choose Show/hide other layers.

3. If the current layer is viewable (not hidden) it will hide all others except your
working layer giving you access to that layer's content in isolation.
4. If the current layer is hidden, selecting the Show/hide other layers field, will unhide
the current layer and then hide all others. Again, allowing you to work in only that
layer with no other layers and their objects viewable.

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Duplicating layers
Much like hiding layers, it can be very useful to duplicate certain layers so you can keep some
of the same object attributes as the original (for example, opacity) or for the use of creating
design mockups of multiple pages of a website, which have common elements. Also note
that when you duplicate a layer it will duplicate all objects, including hidden or locked ones
on any sub-layers as well. More information is given in the section Time for action—nesting
layers later in this chapter in regard to sub-layers.

Time for action – duplicating layers
Here are the simple steps for duplicating a layer. We'll use the same example blog page as we
have throughout this chapter.

Open the blog mockup from the previous exercises.

If your Layer dialog is open, you can right-click any layer and choose Duplicate
Current Layer.

Alternatively, make sure the layer you want to duplicate is selected and from the
main menu, choose Layer and then Duplicate Current Layer.

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What just happened?
You have just created a literal duplicate of the layer on your screen to edit.
Note, however, that the duplicate layer is also right above the existing layer, so you may
not be able to see which is selected. Look at the Layer dialog. It renames the duplicate layer:
copy.
All objects on that layer are duplicated as well and will be placed on the canvas in the exact
location of the original. If you move an object, you will see the other one below it.
Now you can move and/or edit objects as needed on this new layer without disturbing
the original.

Arranging layers
You can also rearrange layers. Let's learn how to re-order the stack of layers, and move
a layer to the top or bottom.

Time for action – moving layers
We're again going to use our blog design mockup file as an example. As the current screen
stands, the layers don't overlap much—as all objects have a place. However, if we add a layer
for a swirled background, it automatically places this layer on top, shown as follows:

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The following steps explain how to move it down to place it behind the main design:

Download a sample of the swirl background here: http://dl.dropbox.co/u/565455/
swirlbackground.svg.zip

In inkscape, in the layer dialog, add a new layer called Swirl Background.

Select the Swirl Background layer, and from the main menu choose File | Import.
Select the Swirl Background SVG file.

Once the image is imported, select Swirl Background in the Layer dialog and use the
arrow icon to move this layer just above the Background layer.

You could also use the move to bottom icon (just to the right of the move down
icon)—since our background was set to white in the document properties.
Now your canvas should look something similar to the following screenshot.
Note, how the swirls are now behind the navigational buttons:

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Make sure the Swirl Background layer is selected and move the Opacity bar at
the bottom of the Layer dialog to 15% (or type 15 in the Opacity field box). The
opacity of the Swirl Background will change and you will now have a pattern-type
background for this blog:

What just happened?
We took an additional design element, swirl objects, and made them part of the background
in our blog design. We did this by creating a new Swirl Background layer and then moving
that layer lower in the layer stack.
Then we decreased the opacity of that layer to 15 percent, so that it could be subtler in
the design.

Pop quiz – background colors
1. What is the default background color of an Inkscape file?
a. White
b. Red
c.

Transparent

d. Black

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Time for action – nesting layers
You also have the option of nesting layers in Inkscape. Nesting is the idea of creating
sublayers in Inkscape. You might want to do this if you want all sublayers to be virtually
grouped with a parent layer and carry some of the parent layer's attributes.
Here's how we can create sublayers within the Header layer in our current project:

With the example project open, go to the Layer dialog (from the main menu,
select Layer and then Layers or use the Shift + Ctrl + L keyboard shortcut to open it).

Right-click the Header layer and choose Add Layer....

The Add Layer dialog is displayed.

Type a new layer name into the Layer name field and then select Position:
As sublayer of current.

Click on Add.

The new sublayer displays as a nested layer beneath Header.

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Unfortunately, at this time, there is no way to convert an existing Inkscape
layer into a sublayer in the graphical interface. You can, however, go into the
XML editor and make this change directly if needed. More information about
sublayers can be seen in this online tutorial at http://tavmjong.free.
fr/INKSCAPE/MANUAL/html/XML.html.
Also note, a sublayer cannot be moved outside of the parent layer it is under.
Again, advanced use of the XML editor is needed to do this functionality.

What just happened?
We learned how to create nested sublayers in Inkscape.

Have a go hero – moving objects from one layer to another
Now that you have layers created—and objects on each layer—what if you want to move an
object from one layer to another? Here's how it is done:
1. In an open Inkscape document with multiple layers, select an object.
2. If you want to move this object to the layer above the current layer, use Layer |
Move Selection to Layer Above or the Shift + PageUp keyboard shortcut
(for Macintosh users the keyboard shortcut is Shift + Fn + Arrow up).
3. If you want to move this object to the layer below the current layer, use Layer |
Move Selection to Layer Below or the Shift + PageDown keyboard shortcut
(for Macintosh users the keyboard shortcut is Shift + Fn + Arrow down).

Renaming layers
Sometimes while working within a document, you might find the need to rename a layer to a
more descriptive name to the layer's contents.

Time for action – renaming a layer
The following steps explain how you would rename an existing layer in Inkscape:

Open an Inkscape document from previous exercises.

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How to Work with Layers

If your Layer dialog is open, you can right-click any layer and choose Rename Layer.
Alternatively, from the main menu, select Layer | Rename Layer....

The Rename Layer dialog is displayed.

Type a new name for the layer and click Rename, as shown in the
following screenshot:

What just happened?
We renamed an existing layer in Inkscape to the new name body copy.

Deleting layers
There are also times you might want to delete a layer. Just note that when you delete a layer
if there are any objects on that layer, they will also be deleted.

Time for action – deleting a layer
1.

Open an Inkscape document from a previous exercise.

If your Layer dialog is open, select the Swirl Background layer.

Then click the – icon as follows:

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The selected layer is deleted.

If you decide you don't want to delete that layer, go to the main menu and
select Edit | Undo: Delete Layer or use the Ctrl + Z keyboard shortcut to undo
the last action:

What just happened?
We deleted the layer named Swirl Background in our Inkscape document. We also learned
that if we want to undo any action, we can use the Undo functionality in Inkscape.

Pop quiz – undo last action
1. What is the shortcut key combination to undo the last action in Inkscape?
a. Ctrl + Z
b. Shift + Z
c.

Fn + Z

d. None of the above

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Blend mode
In the Layers dialog, you may have noticed the Blend mode field, shown as follows:

This field is a shortcut to apply the Blend filter to an entire layer. This means that if any
objects overlap on the selected layers, Inkscape will do a pixel-by-pixel blend of the two
objects. Here's what each Blend mode option means:

Normal: No filter added to the layer

Multiply: Objects on the top layer filter the light from the objects on the
bottom-most layer. (or from the background if a bottom object does not exist)

Screen: The top objects add light to the bottom object

Darken: The objects on top darken the bottom objects

Lighten: The top objects lighten the bottom objects

If at any time you return the Blend mode back to Normal, the blend filter disappears.

Time for action – using Blend mode
Let's add in a Multiply blend filter to two simple objects as an example:

Open a new document in Inkscape.

Use the Circle/Ellipse tool and create one red circle and one yellow circle,
shown as follows:

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Now move the yellow circle so it overlaps the red circle:

Open the Layers dialog and go to the Blend mode drop-down menu. Select Multiply
as follows:

The two objects combine as if light were shining through both. The red and yellow
objects—where they overlap—display orange, shown as follows:

If you now change the Blend mode back to Normal, the two objects now go back to
being normal, or just simply overlapping.
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What just happened?
We learned how to adjust the Blend mode between layers. We took two example objects
(circles in this case) and gave them the Multiply blend. Then we learned how to turn the
blend back to Normal mode.

Summary
We learned essentially everything there is to know about Layers in this chapter. We
discussed how to create new layers, lock them, hide them, nest sublayers, and even how to
duplicate and arrange layers. We even spent a bit of time discussing the Blend mode feature
when using layers—which can be a helpful tool to get text or object effects. Up next, we are
going to learn about building objects.

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Building Objects
This chapter is all about objects. We'll learn about what objects are and how
Inkscape interprets them, how to change object features, change fill and stroke,
grouping objects, combining objects, and how to best use the masking and
clipping features.

Details in this chapter include:

Working with objects

Fill and Stroke

Grouping

Clipping and masking

Working with objects
Objects in Inkscape are any shapes that make up your overall drawing. This means that any
text, path, or shape that you create is essentially an object.
Let's start by making a simple object and then changing some of its attributes.

Building Objects

Time for action – creating a simple object
Inkscape can create predefined shapes that are part of the SVG standard. These include
rectangles/squares, circles/ellipses/arcs, stars, polygons, and spirals. To create any of these
shapes, you can select items from the toolbar:

However, you can also create more freehand-based objects as well. Let's look at how we can
create a simple freehand triangle:

Select the Bezier tool:

Click once where you want the first corner and then move the mouse/pointer to the
next corner. A node appears with the click and then a freehand line:

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When you have the length of the first side of the triangle estimated, click for the
second corner:

Move the mouse to form the second side and click for the third corner:

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Move the mouse back to the first corner node and click it to form the triangle,
shown as follows:

Now save the file. From the main menu, select File and then Save. We will use this
triangle to build a graphic later in this book, so choose a location to save so that you
will know where to find the file.

Now that the basic triangle is saved, let's also experiment with how we can
manipulate the shape itself and/or the shape's position on the canvas. Let's start
with manipulating the triangle.

Select the triangle and drag a handle to a new location. You have essentially skewed
the triangle, as shown in the following diagram:

To change the overall shape of the triangle, select the triangle, then click the Edit
path by Nodes tool (or press F2):

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10.

Now the nodes of the triangle are displayed as follows:

11.

Nodes are points on a path that define the path's shape. Click a node and you can
drag it to another location to manipulate the triangle's overall shape as follows:

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12.

Double-click between two nodes to add another node and change the shape:

13.

If you decide that you don't want the extra node, click it (the node turns red),
press Delete on your keyboard and it disappears.

14.

You can also use the control bar to add, delete, or manipulate the path/shape
and nodes:

15.

If you want to change the position of the shape on the canvas by choosing the Select
tool in the toolbox, click and drag the shape and move it where you need it to be.

16.

Change the size of the shape by also choosing the Select tool from the toolbox,
clicking and holding the edge of the shape at the handle (small square or circles at
edges), and dragging it outward to grow larger or inward to shrink until the shape is
of the desired size.

17.

You can also rotate an object. Choose the Select tool from the toolbox and
single-click the shape until the nodes turn to arrows with curves (this might
require you to click the object a couple of times). When you see the curved
arrow nodes, click-and-drag on a corner node to rotate the object until it is
rotated and positioned correctly.

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18.

No need to save this file again after we have manipulated it—unless you want to
reference this new version of the triangle for future projects. But we will revisit the
original triangle shape in Chapter 7, Using Paths.

What just happened?
We created a free-form triangle and saved it for a future project. We also manipulated
the shape in a number of ways—used the nodes to change the skew of the overall shape,
added nodes to change the shape completely, and also how to move the shape around on
the canvas.

Fill and Stroke
As you've already noticed, when creating objects in Inkscape they have color associated with
them. You can fill an object with a color as well as give the object an outline or stroke. This
section will explain how to change these characteristics of an object in Inkscape.

Fill and Stroke dialog
You can use the Fill and Stroke dialog from the main menu to change the fill colors of
an object.

Time for action – using the Fill and Stroke dialog
Let's open the dialog and get started:

Open your triangle Inkscape file again and select the triangle.

From the main menu, choose Object | Fill and Stroke (or use the Shift + Ctrl + F
keyboard shortcut).

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The Fill and Stroke dialog appears on the right-hand side of your screen.
Notice it has three tabs: Fill, Stroke paint, and Stroke style, as shown in
the following screenshot:

Select the Fill tab (if not already selected). Here are the options for fill:

Type of fill: The buttons below the Fill tab allow you to select the type of
fill you would like to use. No fill (the button with the X), flat color, linear or
radial gradients. In the previous example screenshot, the flat fill button
is selected.
Color picker: Another set of tabs below the type of the fill area are
presented; RGB, CMYK, HSL, and Wheel. You can use any of these to choose
a color. The most intuitive option is Wheel as it allows you to visually see all
the colors and rotate a triangle to the color of your choice, as shown in the
following screenshot:

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Once a color is chosen, then the exact color can be seen in various values on
the other color picker tabs.
Blur: Below the color area, you also have an option to blur the object's fill.
This means that if you move the sliding lever to the right, the blur of the
fill will move outward. See the following diagram for examples of an object
without and with blur:

Opacity: Lastly, there is the opacity slider. By moving this slider to the right
you will give the object an alpha of opacity setting making it a bit more
transparent. The following diagram demonstrates opacity:

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In the Fill and Stroke dialog, if you select the Stroke paint tab, you will notice it
looks very much like the Fill tab. You can remove the stroke (outline) of the object,
set the color, and determine if it is a flat color or gradient:

In the last tab, Stroke style is where you can most notably set the width
of the stroke:

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You can also use this tab to determine what types of corners or joins an object
has (round or square corners) and how the end caps of the border look like.

The Dashes field gives options for the stroke line type, as shown in the
following screenshot:

Start, Mid, and End Markers allow you to add end points to your strokes, as follows:

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10.

For our triangle object, use the Fill tab and choose a green color, no stroke, and 100
percent opacity:

What just happened?
You learned where to open the Fill and Stroke dialog, adjust the fill of an object, use blur
and opacity, and how to change the stroke color and weights of the stroke line.
Next, let's learn other ways to change the fill and stroke options.

Color palette bar
You can also use the color palette bar to change fill color:

Time for action – using the color palette
Let's learn all the tips and tricks for using the color palette bar:

From the palette bar, click a color and drag it from the palette onto the object to
change its fill, as shown in the following diagram:

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You can also change an object and the stroke color in a number of other ways:

Select an object on the canvas and then click a color box in the palette to
immediately set the fill of an object.
Select an object on the canvas and then right-click a color box in the palette.
A popup menu appears with options to set the fill (and stroke).
If you hold the Shift key and drag a color box onto an object, it changes the
stroke color.
Shift + left-click a color box to immediately set the stroke color.
Note, you can use the scroll bar just below the viewable color swatches
on the color palette to scroll right to see even more color choices.

What just happened?
You learned how to change the fill and stroke color of an object by using the color swatches
on the color palette bar on the main screen of Inkscape.

Dropper
Yet another way to change the fill or stroke of an object is to use the dropper:

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Let's learn how to use it.

Time for action – using the dropper tool
Open an Inkscape file with objects on the canvas or create a quick object to try this out:

Select an object on the canvas.

Select the dropper tool from the toolbar or use the shortcut key F7.

Then click anywhere in the drawing with that tool that has the color you want to
choose. The chosen color will be assigned to the selected object's fill. Alternatively,
use Shift + click to set the stroke color.

Be aware of the tool control bar and the dropper tool controls, shown as follows:

The two buttons affect the opacity of the object, especially if it is different than the
100% setting.

If Pick is disabled, then the color as chosen by the dropper looks exactly like
it is on screen
If Pick is enabled and Assign is disabled, then the color picked by the
dropper is one that the object would have if its opacity was 100%
If Pick is enabled and Assign is enabled, then the color and opacity
are both copied from the picked object

What just happened?
By using the dropper tool, you learned how to change a color of another object
on the screen.

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Pop quiz – changing Fill and Stroke
TRUE OR FALSE: No matter what way you use to change fill and stroke of an object in
Inkscape, it all has the same outcome for the object on your canvas.

Grouping
You can combine several objects into what we call a group. The group then, can be moved or
transformed (made larger/smaller) as if it were one object.

Time for action – grouping objects
When grouping objects, there is no limit to the number of objects that can be grouped
together. You can also take multiple groups and group them together as well. Let's start with
a simple example of how to group objects:

Open an Inkscape document and draw separate objects to create the shape of a sun
as follows:

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Now select all the objects on your screen. Click the select tool and then click and
drag a bounding box around all objects that you want in the group or press the
Ctrl + A key and select all objects on the canvas:

Once all the objects are selected, from the main menu select Object | Group or use
the Ctrl + G shortcut keys, as shown in the following screenshot:

You'll notice the bounding box that was once around each individual object has now
bound around the entire group of objects. You'll also notice in the status bar that a
group is selected and the number of objects it contains (group of objects in layer
).
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Now you can select the group and move it on the canvas. Notice, all of the objects
move as one:

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Building Objects

You can also transform the object by dragging any corner node to make the group of
objects smaller or bigger. You can even drag those handles and skew and rotate the
group of objects as follows:

To add additional objects to this group, double-click the group itself then draw
or paste the new object to be included.
To ungroup, select the group and then from the main menu select Object | Ungroup
(or use the shortcut keys Ctrl + U). If you have grouped more than one group,
ungrouping will only "disconnect" the topmost level of grouping; you'll need to
ungroup repeatedly to keep ungrouping objects.

If you want to edit an object within a group, you don't have to ungroup it. Just press
the Ctrl key and click that object and it will be selected and editable. Alternatively,
select the node tool and click the individual object within a group for editing.

What just happened?
You were able to group several objects and then manipulate that group of objects as
one—moving, transforming, and editing it. We even discussed a little trick about editing
individual objects within a group.
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Pop quiz – shortcut keys to quickly ungroup items
1. What is the shortcut key combination for quickly ungrouping items?
a. Shift + G + U
b. Ctrl + G
c.

Shift + G

d. Ctrl + U

Clipping and masking
Another way of joining objects is to use clips and masks. These features are used to
determine which parts of an object are visible. Clips define what areas of another object
are fully visible. Technically speaking, Inkscape takes the top object's path in and clips all
the paths below it (in the selection) to the shape of the top path.
When you use a mask it visually crops objects with transparent areas to become fully
transparent in the masked object, white areas become fully opaque, and all other colors
translate into different levels of opacity in the masked object. To make sure this is clear,
we'll do a few exercises.

Time for action – clipping objects
Let's build out our triangle object and create a tree that has a pattern of leaves in it:

Open your triangle Inkscape file.

Use the Bezier tool and create a rectangular shape below your triangle, as shown
in the following diagram:

Remember if you don't get the lines exactly right the first time, select the Edit Paths
by Nodes tool and adjust by dragging the nodes to the appropriate locations.

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Draw another rectangular object below the previous one, as shown in the
following diagram:

And draw the final rectangle below the last one as follows:

Now we are going to focus on making the left sides of the three rectangular objects
more rounded and smooth. Select the first rectangle and choose the Edit Paths by
Nodes tool.

Add a node on the left side of that rectangular object:

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Select the smooth node option from the control bar:

Your left side will now become a curve, as shown in the following diagram:

10.

Repeat, adding a node and smoothing the left side of each of the remaining two
rectangles as follows:

11.

On the bottom rectangle, add another node in the middle of the bottom side and
smooth it so it has a more rounded side to it, as shown in the following diagram:

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Building Objects

12.

Now it is time to adjust the color and stroke of each of the objects on the
canvas. Move the color palette bar scroll bar to the right to get to a set of
green colors as follows:

13.

Select the top triangle and choose a light color green for it:

14.

Select each of the rectangles and give an increasingly darker green color to
them as follows:

15.

Now select all objects on the canvas (Ctrl + A) and remove the stroke:

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16.

With all of the objects still selected on the canvas, create a duplicate of them.
From the main menu select File | Duplicate (or use the Ctrl + D shortcut keys).

17.

Click the flip horizontally button:

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Building Objects

18.

Move the objects so they mirror the original shapes, as shown in the
following diagram:

19.

Add a long vertical rectangle at the bottom for the leaf stem:

20.

Again, select all objects on the screen by pressing Ctrl + A and group them so they
become one object. From the main menu select Object | Group or use the Ctrl + G
shortcut keys. You have created one leaf!

21.

Select your leaf, press the Shift key, and then drag the handle of the bounding box
inward to scale your leaf smaller.

22.

With the leaf still selected, from the main menu choose, Edit | Clone | Create Tiled
Clones... as shown in the following screenshot:

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23.

From the Clone dialog, for Rows, columns: adjust to 10 x 10 and click Create,
as shown in the following screenshot:

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Building Objects

24.

Your canvas will now have a pattern/grid of leaves on it:

25.

Press Ctrl + A to select all of the leaves and then use the Ctrl + G shortcut keys
to group them.

26.

Use the Bezier tool and create a simple triangle tree shape, as shown in the
following diagram:

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27.

Make sure that the basic tree you just created (that will be used as a clip or mask)
overlaps the others. You can use the Ctrl + Page Up keys to ensure an object is the
topmost object.

28.

Press Ctrl + A to select all objects on your canvas.

29.

In the main menu select Object | Clip | Set, as shown in the following screenshot:

30.

You can see how the top object becomes the shape of the object with the bottom
object peeking through. Note, if you select three objects (instead of grouping) and
perform a clip, you'll end up with two separate clipped objects:

Just like in a group, if you double-click a clip, you will be
able to select and edit the objects within it.

31.

To edit the actual clip (or mask), you will have to release it first. From the main menu
select Object | Clip | Release.
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Building Objects

What just happened?
We took some objects, built a leaf object, cloned it to make a pattern, and used that to
create a clipping mask. We even learned a few details about how to edit objects within the
clip as well as releasing.

Time for action – masking objects
Here are some quick steps to see what a mask will look like:

Use the same objects in an open Inkscape document as in the previous example.
This time, however, let's make the background leaves black and the tree in front
a grayscale color as follows:

Press Ctrl + A to select all objects on your canvas.

In the main menu select Object | Mask | Set.

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In this result, the top object also becomes the overall shape, while the bottom
peeks through. However, you will notice the degrees of grayscale setting over
the entire object now. Masking depends only on grayscale. Thus, when using white,
the objects below will be fully visible; when using black, the objects below will be
fully blocked; and any gray level in between, the objects will be partially masked as
in our example:

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Building Objects

Just like in a group, if you double-click a clip, you will be able
to select and edit the objects within it.

One other item to note here is that the resulting masked object will have a bounding
box that will be as large as the largest object, which will make it hard to scale and
align in some design situations.

To edit the actual clip (or mask), you will have to release it first. From the main
menu, select Object | Mask | Release.

What just happened?
This time we created a mask and learned how to edit and release it in Inkscape.

Summary
You should be ready to move forward and learn even more about creating paths into
complex shapes. We spent most of this chapter learning about the nuances of objects in
Inkscape; how to build the predefined shapes and then how to combine and alter them
using fills, strokes, clips, masks, and more. Now, we will learn about paths and how to
manipulate them.

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Using Paths
This chapter will focus on using paths. Paths are a critical element to Inkscape.
We will focus on learning what paths are, working with them in Inkscape, and
transforming, combining, and placing paths.

The following will be covered in the chapter:

Working with paths

Transforming objects into paths

Using stroke to paths

Path options

Combining and breaking paths

Path placement

Working with paths
As stated previously, vector graphics themselves are made up of paths. Paths can be used to
create unique text styling when tracing other images like photographs, and when building
icons, buttons, and logos. By adding and manipulating nodes, you can transform simple paths
into elaborate illustrations.
The most common tool used to create paths in Inkscape is the Bezier tool and this is
what will be used in most of the examples seen throughout this chapter. You can also
use the Pencil (Freehand) and Calligraphy tools to create paths. All of these tools are
found in the toolbox.

Using Paths

Before we get started, here are some key items to remember when using the Bezier tool
when creating paths:

To start creating a path with the Bezier tool, click each spot you want a node to
appear in

A single click creates a straight line and a sharp node creates a "corner"

To create a smooth node or a curve--click, hold and drag your cursor to create
the curved/smooth node

Double-click to finish the path (for an open object)

To "close" a path, double-click on the starting node

Also, when you are drawing lines, the green lines are the completed segments and
the red lines are those that you are still making

Let's jump in and start by learning how to build multiple paths into an interesting object. In
the following examples, we will build a caricature of a woman's face. Each exercise will build
on the next until we have a full image.

Time for action – using the Bezier tool
To begin, we will use the Bezier tool to create a woman's face shape:

Open a new document in Inkscape.

Now select the Bezier tool from the toolbox bar:

Using a series of straight paths, using single-clicks to create nodes, create a head
shape, similar to the one shown in the following image:

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Make sure to close the path by double-clicking on the first node when complete.

Select the head object and choose the Edit Paths by Nodes tool:

All nodes on the object appear in a gray color.
From the main menu, choose Edit | Select All or use the Ctrl + A keyboard shortcut
to select all nodes.

From the control bar, select the make selected nodes smooth icon:

All of the "angles" on your head shape will become smooth and have
rounded corners:

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Double-click a node to adjust its position (if needed). The node turns into a red square
when it is "active" for you to edit its location. Now click-and-drag it to a new location.
As shown in the following image, the lower or chin portion of the head was adjusted
to make it a bit more rounded. All of this is done by double-clicking the lower two
nodes and moving their positions:

If, for any reason, you move a node and an undesired effect results,
you can always undo the last node movement by using the keyboard
shortcut Ctrl + Z or from the main menu, select Edit | Undo.

You can also adjust the curves of each node/path by moving the circular
handles on each node. Select the node you would like to adjust, and instead
of clicking-and-dragging the node, click-and-drag a handle (it will also turn red
when active) to a new location.
You can also adjust the curve placement by moving the node along the path
in either direction.
On the example, the node and its respective handles on the left side of the face
were adjusted to make the face shape a bit more round:

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The shape of the face should now look similar to the following image:

Select the face object and choose a white fill from the color palette.

10.

To work more easily with the facial features, let's lock this layer and create a new
one. Press the shortcut keys: Shift + Ctrl + L to open the Layers dialog.

11.

Press the lock key for Layer 1.

12.

Create a new layer for the eyes. Press the + button in the Layers dialog. Name the
layer Features and click Add.

13.

Within the new layer, select the Bezier tool and create a diamond-like eye shape
to start. In the following example, use four nodes (four clicks) to create this shape:

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14.

Again, click the Edit Paths by Nodes tool to edit the nodes of the eye object.

15.

Select the top and bottom nodes of the eye object (use the Shift + click to
select both nodes) and click the make selected nodes smooth icon to smooth
the node angles:

16.

To stylize the eye, let's pull the left node out to create a point as follows:

17.

From the main menu, select Edit | Duplicate (or use the Ctrl + D keyboard shortcut).

18.

Click the flip object horizontally button on the control bar:

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19.

Place the right eye so that the middle edges are along the same horizontal plane.
However, note, this horizontal line will be at a slight angle to accommodate for the
tilting of the face:

20.

Select the face object from Layer 1 (if you locked Layer 1, remember to unlock it first
from the Layers dialog).

21.

From the main menu, select Edit | Duplicate (or use the Ctrl + D keyboard shortcut).

22.

Press Shift + Page Up (for Mac computers, press Shift + Fn + up arrow) to move
the face object to the Features layer. Your screen should look similar to the
following image:

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23.

Hold the Shift key and also select the "tail" of the eye that is seen from underneath
the duplicate face object.

24.

From the main menu, select Object | Clip | Set:

25.

Hold the Shift key and select the other eye object. From the color palette, click black
to fill both objects' color to black:

26.

Click the Bezier tool and create a diamond shape, similar to what is shown in the
following image, for the lips:

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Notice, this shape has six nodes. These were created with six clicks (double-click at
the end to close the object).
If you had missed adding a node to form the lips, there is no need to
delete the object and start over. You can double-click on any path to
add a new node. Also, if you added too many nodes, you can always
select the extra nodes and press the Delete key to erase them.

27.

Select the lips and click the Edit Paths by Nodes tool to edit the nodes of the
lip object.

28.

Select the top two nodes and bottom node of the lip object (use Shift + click to
select all three nodes) and click the make selected nodes smooth icon to smooth
the node angles as follows:

29.

Now move the nodes accordingly to adjust the lips to the right size and proportion.
Notice, in the following example, the left and right nodes were pulled outward
to broaden the lips. Also the two top rounded nodes were pulled left and right
respectively to move the curve of the lips outward and the handles of both curves
were used to get the appropriate curves of the lips:

30.

Select red color from the color palette to fill the lip objects with color.

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31.

Right-click the stroke color from the status bar and choose none to remove the
stroke from the lip object as well:

32.

If you made it this far, save your file so we can move on to the next step in the
process—creating the hair. From the main menu, select File | Save.

What just happened?
We started a new project: a stylized image of a woman's face. This project, so far, was
created mostly using the Bezier tool. In fact, we used that as the base tool for creating
every object on this canvas so far.
We learned the Bezier tool basics—what a single-click versus a double-click accomplishes
(creating nodes on a path versus closing/ending a path), how to make a straight versus
curved node, how to adjust node placements, add new nodes, and how to delete nodes.
We created the very basics of a face at this point in the project. Now we will move into
the second part of the project where we will add hair to this project. In doing so, we will
continue to use the Bezier tool, but also add in the use of spiros and swirls.

Pop quiz – remove the last node movement
1. If, for any reason, you move a node and an undesired effect results—what can you
do to "undo" it?
a. Use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + Z
b. From the main menu select Edit and Undo
c.

Delete the entire path

d. Both a and b

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Transforming objects into paths
In Inkscape, any shape, text, or object that you created can be converted to a shape. Don't
be fooled when it doesn't look like anything has happened because any capabilities that you
had before (dragging corner nodes to scale larger, editing text, rounding corners on a square)
can be lost, but now, you would be able to edit the object's nodes just like any other path
(such as in our previous example).

Stroke to paths
You can convert the outline or stroke of any object and convert that to a path. Select an
object with a stroke set—then from the main menu, select Path | Stroke to Path.
Again, the overall appearance on the canvas does not change, but how you can manipulate
the object. Take a look at the number of nodes before this spiro was converted into a path,
versus after:

After

Before

Time for action – creating spiros and swirls
Let's open our previous project of the woman's face and give her some hair. In doing so, we
will use the Bezier tool and the spiral object in Inkscape (as shown previously), convert it to
a path, and manipulate it to create curls as follows:

Open the woman's face project we've been working on.

Press the shortcut keys: Shift + Ctrl + L to open the Layers dialog.

Create a new layer for the hair object(s). Press the + button in the Layers dialog.
Name the layer Hair and click Add.

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Select the Bezier tool and create a general shape for her hair, as shown in the
following image:

A few items to remember here are that you can add nodes, delete them, move
and adjust them, so that you get a general hair shape that you like.

Now let's work some more with the nodes on the hair. You can select specific nodes
(use Shift + click to select multiple nodes at the same time) and click the make
selected nodes smooth icon to smooth the node angles. Also, just as in the previous
exercise, feel free to move nodes and handles as needed for your desired effect.

You can also work with a number of smaller paths and then combine them as you
need to. Important tools to remember are the join selected nodes, break path at
selected nodes, join selected end nodes with segment, and delete segment between
two non-endpoint nodes tools—all found on the control bar:

These buttons allow you to connect (or disconnect) two separate paths you have
created with the Bezier tool.

For example let's break apart nodes near the neckline area and combine them so
it looks like she has full flowing hair across her neck. Use Shift + click to select the
nodes you want to break apart and then click the break paths and selected node
button on the control bar as follows:

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Perform the same steps for two nodes on the right-hand side hair as well:

Now select the top node from the left-hand side and the top node from the right
and click the join selected end nodes with segment button. The nodes are joined,
as shown in the following image:

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10.

Repeat the process for the remaining two "open" nodes.

11.

Give the hair some color as we work the shape a bit more. From the bottom color
palette, choose black to fill this object with color and to give a more realistic view
of the final project, as shown in the following image:

12.

Continue to delete, move, and adjust nodes again to get a look of full hair at the
neck because next we will be adding in some curls:

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13.

Select the spiral tool icon from the toolbox bar:

14.

In the control bar, change the Turns, Divergence, and Inner radius settings to your
liking. For our purposes, we'll change them, as shown in the following screenshot,
to create a smooth curve:

15.

Now, draw the spiral on your canvas outside of your face objects for now:

16.

If you want to adjust the spiral, select the end nodes tool and start changing it to
your liking:

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17.

Click twice until you see the rotation handles. Float your mouse pointer over the tiny
cross hair (center of rotation) in the center of the object. Now use Shift + drag to
place the center of rotation above the location where the inner path ends, as shown
in the following image:

18.

Now we need to change the spiral object to a path. From the main menu, select
Path and then Object to Path.

19.

Next, from the main menu, select Edit and then Duplicate. We now have two spirals
(one on top of another).

20.

Choose the selector tool and then double-click the top duplicated spiral so the
rotation handles appear, and rotate it just a bit as follows:

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21.

Now click the original spiral, so that it is selected and scale it to a size that makes the
swirl interesting. It might look something like the following image:

22.

Now still with the selector tool, select both spirals (hold the Shift key and
click-and-drag a bounding box over both spirals).

23.

From the main menu, select Path and then combine.

24.

Press the F2 key to switch to the Edit Path by Nodes tool and then select both
outer end nodes and click the join selected end nodes with a new segment button
as follows:

This joins the two nodes.

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25.

Do this with any other end nodes that aren't joined, smooth out any areas of the
spiral to make it look more appealing, and delete any overlapping or crossovers of
the lines:

26.

Click white on the color palette bar to add a fill color to this spiral and remove
the stroke.

27.

Now drag it onto the hair of your image as follows:

28.

Scale, rotate, skew, mode/delete nodes, and/or duplicate the swirls or other similar
objects to use them as other "curls" and "highlights" in the hair object.

29.

Again, adjust nodes in the hair as needed to achieve a pleasing effect for your image.
See the following image for a version of this project. Note, all highlights and curls in
the hair were adjusted, duplicated versions of the first. Nodes were deleted, added,
and moved to create the others:

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30.

From the main menu, select File | Save to save this project for future use
and reference.

What just happened?
We spent even more time using paths. This time we started again with a Bezier tool and
created a shape for the hair, but we then joined nodes with additional segments. Then we
used a spiral object and converted it into a path to manipulate it and use it as curls within
our project's hair.
Next up, we will work with text and convert it to a path.

Object to Path
To convert an object, we just select it and then from the main menu, choose Path | Object
to Path or the Shift + Ctrl + C keyboard shortcut.
Note the following when you convert any text to a path:

The text becomes non-editable as a normal object.

The result will be a group of paths (one path for each letter). Then you
can manipulate each letter by dragging nodes and editing the shape of each
one individually.

You can always ungroup the letters. On the main menu, select Object | Ungroup.

Let's convert an object to a path and then demonstrate how we can edit it differently now
that it is a path.

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Time for action – Object to Path
We'll add stylized text to our current project of the woman's face to illustrate how to use
the Object to Path functionality and how we can further manipulate the text when we
use this feature:

Open your previous Inkscape project.

Press the shortcut keys: Shift + Ctrl + L to open the Layers dialog if it is not
already open.

Create a new layer for the hair object(s). Press the + button in the Layers dialog.
Name the layer: Text and click Add.
Locking layers
To prevent accidentally selecting other objects, lock all other layers
except the one you are currently working on. In this case, lock all
layers except the Text layer.

In the Add Layer, select the create and edit text button from the toolbox:

Click on the canvas and type the word: SMILE:

SMILE
6.

Now we are going to convert the text to a path. From the main menu, choose
Path | Object to path.
Now when you select the word, the bounding box has changed and you can only
select individual letters as follows:

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SMILE
SMILE
7.

You can manipulate or add effects to individual letters, or scale and transform each
letter differently.
In the following example for the S and E, the outside nodes were "pulled" into
a smile.
The letters MIL were stretched to larger sizes based on the placement. For the M
and I, we also moved the outside nodes to make the letters wider. The letter I also
had its fill color changed to red and a drop shadow added (Filters | Shadows and
Glows | Drop Shadow):

From the main menu, select File | Save to save this project for future use
and reference.

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What just happened?
We created some sample text within our current project and then converted the text
into paths. Once converted into paths, there were examples given on what you can do
to each letter.

Pop quiz – paths
1. What can you convert to paths?
a. Text
b. Shapes
c.

Objects

d. All of the above

Path options
Paths can be combined in a number of ways:

Here's what each of these joining options mean:

Union: When you make a union of one or more paths, a new path is created that
contains all areas of other parts. For example, the arrow we created earlier in this
book joined all paths into one object.

Difference: When you complete the difference between two paths or objects—the
top path is removed from that of the bottom one.

Intersection: When you perform an intersection of two paths, all that will remain is
the area that was overlapping in both paths.

Exclusion: When two paths are combined using the exclusion function, the resulting
path keeps everything except the portions of the paths that were shared.

Division: The first path as "drawn" will be split by the second and the outcome will
be two or more paths.
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Cut Path: The first path is cut by the second drawn path, but the new paths have no
fill, so the second path is a "cut out" of the first.

Time for action – creating an icon
We'll create an icon that has a border and star cut out. Let's get started:

Open a new document in Inkscape.

Select the create circles, ellipses, and arcs tool and draw a simple circle on the
canvas. Hold the Ctrl key as you draw the circle to make it a perfect circle as follows:

Use the Fill and Stroke dialog to remove the stroke and add an orange fill, as shown
in the following image:

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Select the star tool from the toolbox:

Make sure that you have the star option selected in the control bar as well:

Draw a star in the middle of the circle. This star can have any color fill and stroke,
as shown in the following image:

Select the circle and the star. From the main menu, select Object | Align
and Distribute.
In the Align and Distribute dialog, click center on the vertical axis and then click
on the horizontal axis as follows:

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From the main menu, select Path | Exclusion.
You should then see that the circle has a "cut out" of a star in the middle as follows:

Select the create circles, ellipses, and arcs tool again and draw a simple circle just
smaller than the first and overlap it on the circle/star icon. Make this circle have no
fill, but a white stroke that is 1px in weight:

From the main menu, choose File | Save to save this project for future use.

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What just happened?
We created a simple icon that used the exclusion feature for paths.
There is also an Icon View option in Inkscape. If you want to see how your project would
look as an icon, select all objects on all layers (Ctrl + Alt + A keyboard shortcut), and from
the menu, choose View | Icon Preview. Check the selection box. A preview of your icon is
displayed in the most common size.

Summary
We learned a lot about paths in this chapter. We first just learned the basics about using
them and the Bezier tool. Then we learned about transforming paths and how to convert
shapes and strokes into paths so we could adjust them using nodes. We explored all path
options, combining and breaking paths, as well as path placement and how it transforms
shapes. Next up is styling text.

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How to Style Text
The idea of text styling is to manipulate text so that it creates a certain feel
when seen in an overall design. In the graphic design world, text styling is called
typography and is a form of typesetting. Compare the look and feel (or design)
of your local newspaper with that of children's magazines or start comparing
web designs of the same—a newspaper site or a children's television network
and compare it to a sports website. As seen, text is an important element
in design.

Let's use this chapter to learn more about how we can manipulate and style text for any
design. Here's what we will cover:

Text and font editor

Using paths and text

Text and frames

Spell check and find/replace

Text effects

Using text reflections

Text and Font editor
The Text and Font editor allows you to create text on your canvas and format it with the
right font, size, and even kern. Let's open the editor and get started.

How to Style Text

Time for action – opening and using the Text and Font editor
Creating text in a project is simple—select the Create and Edit Text tool in the toolbox, click
at the insertion point within an open project, and start typing.

The text is immediately displayed on the canvas.
The text tool (A icon) in the toolbox is the only way of creating new text on
the canvas. The T icon shown in the command bar is used only when editing
text that already exists on the canvas.

Then you can use the Text and Font menu to change everything from the font, style, size,
and justification. To open this window, from the main menu, select Text and then Text and
Font (or use the shortcut keys and press Shift+Ctrl+T, or the T icon in the command bar).

This window dialog also has a useful feature where you can edit your text directly. Click the
Text tab and select the text you want to change or add/delete.

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Back in the Font tab, you can change the font itself, the point size, alignment, line spacing,
and even change from a horizontal to vertical text layout. But note, even though there are
options for Bold, Italics, and Bold Italics, there is no option for underline. You can, however,
use the Bezier or line tool to give you the same effect as the underline feature.

Spacing shortcut keys
You can also change the spacing of selected text by using shortcut keys. Use
the Alt + > or Alt + < keys to try it out. For more information about keyboard
shortcuts, see Appendix A, Keyboard Shortcuts.

What just happened?
You opened the Text and Font editor and added some text to your canvas. We also saw
how you can change the font, point size, alignment, line spacing, and even how to adjust
horizontal and vertical text layout.

Pop quiz – font options
1. What font options do you have available in Inkscape?
a. Bold
b. Bold Italics
c.

Underline

d. Italics
e. A, B, and D

Kerning
One of the more important items in typography and working with text that you will want to
learn about is kerning—or the ability to adjust the spacing between letters.

There is no menu path to perform this in Inkscape. Instead, you can use handy shortcut keys.
For more information about keyboard shortcuts, see Appendix A, Keyboard Shortcuts.

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How to Style Text

Time for action – kerning text
Here's how to kern text that already exists on your canvas:

First, double-click some text you have already entered in an open project.
This will take you into the Create and Edit Text tool, allowing you to edit the
text letter-by-letter.

Using the arrow keys, move the cursor between the two letters you want to add
or diminish space between.

Then, press the Alt + right arrow key to add space between the letters. Alternatively,
press the Alt + left arrow key to lessen the space between those two letters. Keep an
eye on the kerning value in the Tool control bar A | A. It is set in pixels and displays
fractions of the value of space between the letters.

Alternatively, if you want to move individual (or multiple) characters up and
down—just move your cursor near the letter (or letters) you want to move vertically.

Select the letter(s) by using the Shift key and the right/left arrows or drag your
mouse over the character(s) you want to edit.

Then press Alt + up key to move the letter(s) up from the horizontal baseline.
Again, see the Tools control bar setting A|A for the specific spacing.

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Alternatively, you can use the Alt + down key combination to move a letter down
from the horizontal baseline.

You can even rotate letters. Select a letter you want to rotate left or right and then
use the Alt + [ or ] key to start moving it. The Tools control bar can, again, help you
with exact spacing information.

Feel free to save the file now if you think you might want to use this going forward.
Baseline shift and letter rotation functions are only
available to text that is not inside a flowed text frame.

What just happened?
You created some text on your canvas and then adjusted the kerning (or spacing) of
letters. We even rotated and dropped lettings below (and above) the horizontal baseline
for a different sort of text styling technique.
When adjusting kerning in Inkscape, it is convenient to leave the letters as text—instead
of the alternative of converting the text to paths—as the text remains editable. You can
easily switch fonts, change font sizes and styles, all without removing the kerning and
spacing information that you have already set. One small disadvantage to this approach is
that when you reopen (or deliver) an SVG file, you must have the original font used in this
file's creation on the computer. Just remember when providing and saving the SVG file to
keep all graphics and fonts used in the creation of the web design or graphic together and
available for any future use.
You can also create a duplicate layer (File | Layer | Duplicate) and then hide it to
preserve text styling for future rework of the document and text information.
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How to Style Text

Text styling keyboard shortcuts
Since not all text styling options are available via a menu item, here's an overview of most
text options available via keyboard shortcuts. Also refer to Appendix A, Keyboard Shortcuts
for all key combination shortcuts available for Inkscape.
Text Selection Shortcut Keys
Ctrl + left/right arrows

Cursor moves word-by-word

Shift + left/right arrows

Selects/deselects letter-by-letter

Ctrl + Shift + left/right arrows

Selects/deselects word-by-word

Double-click on letters

Selects the word

Triple-click

Selects the entire line of text

Shift + Home

Selects from the beginning of the line up to the cursor
position

For Mac OS: Shift + Fn + left arrow
Shift + End

Selects from the cursor to the end of the line

For Mac OS: Shift + Fn + right arrow
Ctrl + Shift + Home
For Mac OS: Ctrl + Shift + Fn + left arrow
Ctrl + Shift + End

Selects from the beginning of the text up to the cursor
position
Selects from the cursor position up to the end of the text

For Mac OS: Ctrl + Shift + Fn + right arrow
Hot Keys
Ctrl + B

Applies bold style to the selected text

Ctrl + I

Applies italic style to the selected text

Alt + right or left arrows

Increase or decrease the space between characters
(kerning)

Alt + > or < keys

Changes the overall letter spacing within a text box

Alt + [ or ] keys

Rotates letters

Alt + up or down arrows

Changes the vertical position of the selected text,
relative to the baseline

Alt + Shift + arrows

Moves position by 10 pixel steps

Ctrl + [ or ]

Rotates 90°

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Chapter 8

Using paths and text
Using paths with text is a great combination to make unique designs for banners, logos, and
headings or footers, on various business documents. They work together and allow you to
have complete control over how the text will look. Let's review how we can make them
work together.

Time for action – using a path for text
In Inkscape, you can put text onto a path and have it follow its shape—and when you do this,
the text and the path remain editable, which means you can still change the text, the shape
of the path, kerning, and spacing elements in the text. Let's look at an example:

To start, draw a path with the Bezier tool or in the case of the following example,
the spiral tool.

Then use the text tool and type the text that you would like to place on the path.

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How to Style Text

Select both the text and path.

Then, from the main menu, select Text and then Put on Path. You'll see that the text
then is literally placed on the path of the line you had drawn.

You can now move the original path and the text moves along with it. Alternatively,
you can move the text away from the path, edit the text, or transform the text using
kerning, text size, rotating letters, or moving them from the baseline—but it will still
hold the shape of the path.

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If you need to remove the shape from the text, from the main menu, select
Text and then Remove from Path. You'll see that the text will turn back to
a regular text object.

If you want the text to maintain the shape of the path, but hide the actual shape,
select the path and change its opacity to 0, in essence, hiding the path.

What just happened?
You placed some text on a path of an object or shape. You also learned how to manipulate
the text while it is placed on the page, as well as how to remove the text from the shape and
hide the path itself so that you keep the text shape.

Placing text within a closed shape
Another unique form of text styling can be done by placing text within a shape. Words will
automatically wrap so that the text fits as best as possible within the shape. You can, of
course, still edit the text after this, and even change some of its features.

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How to Style Text

Time for action – placing text in a closed shape
Let's walk through an example of how to place the words "Twinkle, twinkle little star" into
a star object:

First create a star in a new Inkscape document.

Select the Create and Edit Text tool from the toolbox and type the text onto
the canvas.

Select both the text and the star. Then from the main menu, choose Text and then
Flow into Frame. Instantly, you'll see that the text is placed, as best as it can be,
within the confines of the shape.

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Feel free to manipulate the text to make it look just right, even changing color,
kerning, and spacing if needed. Similarly you can change the color, stroke, and
position of the shape to see how the text reacts as well as the impact on the
overall design.

If you ever want to remove the text from the shape, from the main menu,
choose Text and then Unflow.

Save the file in the Inkscape SVG format if you plan to use this file in any
future projects!

What just happened?
We took some simple text and then placed it within a shape. Then we took that text and
manipulated it so that it would take the shape of another object. Lastly, we rotated and
manipulated the container shape to have the best impact on the design.

Spell check and find/replace
Just like in a word processing program, you can find and replace a word (or term) in the text
box of an Inkscape document.

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Time for action – performing a find and replace
We will perform a simple find and replace in the following example. To do this:

In an open project, choose the Create and Edit Text tool and select an
already-created text box with content residing in it.

From the main menu, select Extensions and then Text and Replace Text.

In the Replace text dialog box, place the word you want to replace in the first
field and the new word in the second field.

Click Apply and every instance of the old word will be replaced within the selected
text box.
Remember, using this process will replace every single instance of a word
in the selected text. If you only want to replace certain instances of the
word, this process might be superseded by some careful proofreading of
the content.

What just happened?
We found the menu options in order to perform a search and replace for words within a text
frame in Inkscape.

Text effects
Inkscape gives a variety of options for manipulating text within its extensions. Let's go
through a few examples.

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Time for action – using text effects
We will perform a number of text effects that are available in Inkscape. Let's get started:

Sentence case: This simply means using capital letters as you would in sentences—it
replaces lowercase characters with capitals at the beginning of every sentence.

To use this in Inkscape:

From the main menu, select Extensions and then Text and Sentence Case.
All capitalization rules will change to sentence case.

Title case: Instead of capitalizing the first word in every sentence like the previous
example, this text effect capitalizes the first letter of every word in the text box.

In an open project, choose the Create and Edit Text tool and select an
already-created text box with content residing in it.

In an open project, choose the Create and Edit Text tool and select an
already-created text box with content residing in it.
From the main menu, select Extensions, Text, and Title Case. All
capitalization rules will change to be title case.

Uppercase and lowercase: These effects simply change the case of each letter in the
text box. The uppercase effect makes each letter a capital, whereas the lowercase
effect changes all letters to their lowercase form.

As with the other effects you do this as follows:

In an open project, choose the text tool and select an already-created text
box with content residing in it.
From the main menu, select Extensions, Text and then Uppercase
or Lowercase. All capitalization rules will change as specified.

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How to Style Text

Flipcase: This is a fun effect for text. It reverses the written letter case, so all capitals
will become lowercase, and all lowercase letters become uppercase letters. It looks
like this:

Again, this is accessed from the Effect menu:

In an open project, choose the text tool and select an already-created text
box with content residing in it.
From the main menu, select Extensions and then Text and fLIP cASE.

Random case: This is also a fun text effect; it takes the text contained in a text box
and arbitrarily toggles the letter case throughout. To use it:

In an open project, choose the text tool and select an already-created text
box with content residing in it.
From the main menu, select Extensions and then Text and rANdOm CasE.
The result looks something like this:

What just happened?
We learned the basics of creating text and manipulating it in Inkscape with extensions.
Specifically, we dived into text effects, learning the differences between title case, sentence
case, upper and lowercase, flip case, and random case in Inkscape. We even worked on
examples of each type for reference.

Creating text reflections
One common effect seen with text elements is creating a reflection or shadow of the
letters in the word. This effect gives the words more presence without much additional
work (and doesn't overdo the text). We'll learn how to do both with some example text.

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Time for action – creating a reflection
In this example, we're aiming to create a simple text heading that has a reflection below it
and then to add a little something special (but very simple) to the text to make it stand apart
with very few additional effects. Here's what we'll create:

Open a new document in Inkscape, create a text box, and enter some text. In our
example, we'll use the word: REFLECTIONS.

Next, we are going to clone the image. From the main menu, select Edit, Clone,
and then Create Clone.

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How to Style Text

Now we need to flip the cloned image vertically to create the basics for our
reflection. An easy way to do this is to press the V key (or from the main menu,
select Object and then Flip Vertically).

Move the flipped image below the original text.

From the toolbox, select the rectangle tool and create a rectangle that covers the
reflected (or cloned) image.

Now we need to set a gradient on this rectangle. To start, make sure to set the
fill to black.

Click the gradient tool near the bottom of the toolbox.

Click near the middle of the rectangle and drag upward to set gradient
(from dark on the bottom to light on the top).

By default the Inkscape gradient applies an alpha setting of 0 to the stop gradient,
which will be fully transparent. This means, in the preceding image, the top side of
the rectangle and the gradient would be transparent. Click Edit in the control bar to
change this setting.

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10.

Choose the transparent stop to edit.

11.

Now change the R, G, and B values to 255, so that it is white.

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How to Style Text

12.

Select both the rectangle and the reflected text behind. Use the select tool, and
drag a bounding box around the rectangle. You should see a dotted line around
the rectangle and the text behind it. Alternatively, you can select the text below by
using Alt and clicking the text's approximate location and then pressing Shift and
clicking on the rectangle.

13.

From the main menu, select Object, then Mask, and then Set. Essentially you are
masking the reflection (cloned) text with the gradient box. Thus the reflection text
takes on the levels of gray of the object in front of it. That is why it looks very much
like a reflection.

14.

If the reflection still seems a bit dark for your taste, change the opacity from the
Fill and Stroke dialog box.

15.

But let's spice up this text just a little bit more. Select the first letter and let's change
the color and also increase the point size of that letter by at least 8 points—voila!
Since you cloned the image, any change you make to original text will also be
changed in the reflection automatically.

16.

Feel free to save this file for future reference or to use in your current projects.

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What just happened?
We created a reflection of text in Inkscape. We did this by creating text, using a clone, and
then using a mask in order to create the actual reflection text. There are a number of other
ways to create a reflection—that involve just creating a gradient on the cloned/flipped text
itself. However, the process described in the preceding section allows you to still edit the text
directly and the reflection will update as well.

Pop Quiz – transparency
1. In Inkscape, by default, the Alpha setting or Stop of gradients is white.
a. True
b. False

Summary
You've learned a lot about text editing and styling in this chapter. Specifically, there were details
about the text editor, methods of using and manipulating text such as kerning, rotating, and
moving letters from the baseline. You even learned how to have text follow a path and create
text frames for larger blocks of text and finally create a reflection with the text. We will expand
upon what we have learned and do more of this in the next chapter, Using Filters.

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Using Filters
This chapter will focus on using filters with text and images to give a further
dimension to your vector graphics. We will start by explaining what filters
are, how to find them in Inkscape, and then dive into specific filter examples
with both images and texttext, including a detailed example of step-by-step
instructions on using filters with text.

Here are the details of what we will discuss in the chapter:

What are filters?

Using the filter editor

Using filters with text

Images and effects

What are filters?
In Inkscape, think of a filter as something superimposed on top of a vector object giving
it features that are much like a raster-based image. Examples of filters or filter effects are
blurring, shadows, and glows. These effects are only an overlay—so can be turned on/off
at any time and modified whenever needed, in essence, giving the vector-object properties
most commonly seen on other graphic types.

Using Filters

Using the Filter editor
To view all the filters that Inkscape has to offer (there are hundreds of them installed
by default), on the main menu, select Filters:

There are two categories of filters: the ones that work with normal objects (such as a created
vector object in Inkscape) and the others that work with bitmaps (such as images or PNG files
you have imported into Inkscape). Watch the notification area along the bottom of the screen
when you use the filter menu for which filters will work on your selected objects as follows:

Since there are many filters to use with Inkscape, it may seem overwhelming to know
which one to use. You should explore and test to see which ones work best for your
design or drawing.
Let's work through an example about how to use one of the filters in Inkscape.

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Chapter 9

Time for action – using filters
In this example, let's create an icon, such as the example shown as follows:

Let's give it a drop shadow, which is one of the more common filter effects used in Inkscape
and almost all image editing software as it is an essential filter for creating a sense of realism:

Open a new Inkscape document.

From the main menu, select File, New, and then icon_64x64.
Icon sizes can vary depending on your design (or what operating
system you might be creating them for), so feel free to change
your canvas sizes accordingly.

From the main menu, select View and then Grid. Having the grid viewable will help
us with the spacing of all the objects.

Let's again set the grid properties. From the main menu, select File and then
Document Properties.

Select the Grid tab and verify that Spacing X and Spacing Y are both set to 1.0
and that Major Grid Lines is set to every 4 pixels.

Close the Document Properties dialog by clicking the red X in the upper-left corner.

Make sure the snap bounding box corners icon is selected.

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Using Filters

Let's start by creating the main part of the icon. Use the rectangle tool to draw
a rectangle in the center of the canvas (there will be one box grid around the
rectangle) as follows:

Double-click the square, so the handles change to corner nodes:

10.

Drag the upper-right circle handle inward. You will see that the corners of the
rectangle now become rounded, as shown in the following image:

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Chapter 9

11.

Use the Fill and Stroke dialog to give the rectangle a bright fill color.
This will keep the edges of the icon clean and crisp.

12.

Next we'll add our first filter. Select the rectangle object and select
Filter | Blur | Evanescent:

13.

Select the star tool and draw one within the rectangle, as shown in the
following image:

14.

Select all of the icon elements using the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + A, then use the
keyboard shortcut Shift + Ctrl + A to open the Alignment menu. Choose the Page in
the Relative to: drop-down menu and then click the center of the vertical axis icon.

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Using Filters

15.

Now let's give the star a drop shadow. Select the star and then from the main menu,
select Filters, Shadows and Glows, and then Drop Shadow. Use settings similar to
that shown in the following screenshot:

16.

Let's give our overall rectangle object a drop shadow as well. Keeping the
Drop Shadow window displayed, select the rectangle.

17.

Click Apply in the Drop Shadow window (to keep the same Drop Shadow settings
as the star):

18.

Save your file using a nomenclature that represents a collection of icons that you
can create with these same document properties, color characteristics, and similar
styles for future project use.

What just happened?
We created a simple icon, used an image filter, and the drop shadow filter effect—a complex
filter – to give the icon some depth.
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Chapter 9

To preview this as an icon, select all objects on all layers (Ctrl + Alt + A is the keyboard
shortcut), and from the menu, choose View | Icon Preview. Check the selection box.
A preview of your icon is displayed in the most common size.

Pop quiz – common icon sizes
1. What icon size below is NOT found in the icon preview option in Inkscape?
a. 16 x 16
b. 40 x 40
c.

48 x 48

d. 32 x 32
e. 24 x 24
f.

128 x 128

Using filters with text
We created a reflection in Chapter 8 that used filters in Inkscape and you can use the same
principles for creating text shadows as well. Let's work through an example and see whether
other filters work well with text.

Time for action – using filters with text
We will create one example of how we can use filters with text to create a mood or feeling
with text in design:

Open a new document in Inkscape, create a text box, and enter some text. In our
example, we'll use the word: BOO!.

With the text selected, from the main menu, select Filters, Textures, and then
choose Ink Paint:

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Using Filters

There are a lot more filters here that you can use that will give neat effects for your
text. These include Cutout, Cutout & Glow, Dark & Glow, Drop Glow, Fuzzy Glow,
Glow, In and Out, Inner Glow, Inner Shadow, and Inset. See the following graphic for
what each of these filters looks like when applied to our text examples. You can find
these specific text filters on the main menu under Filters | Shadows and Glows:

The effects strongly depend on the objects and their colors in the background.
The examples were only rendered without objects in the background and thus
some of the filters may require some tweaking in the Filter editor for a more
refined look.

What just happened?
We added a simple Ink Paint filter to a set of words to add to the visual feeling we wanted
to achieve in a design. Then we learned about other filters that might work well with text.

Images and effects
Inkscape doesn't allow for extensive photo manipulation. However, here are some basic
effects to use with photographic images:

Blurs

Bumps

Color

Distort

Image Effects
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Chapter 9

Image Effects, Transparent

Transparency Utilities

Overlay filters

For some fun, try Scatter and Texture filters and Clip with photographs as well.

Let's walk through using one of these filters as an example.

Time for action – using filters with images
Let's work with a photograph of a couple and see if we can enchance it for use on
a cooking website:

Open a new Inkscape document and import a bitmap image. From the main menu,
select File and then Import.

Select the correct bitmap file and click Open. Make sure your imported bitmap file
is selected and then select File and then Document Properties. In the Custom Size
section, click Resize page to content.

Click Resize page to drawing or selection.

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Using Filters

Your document page size will now be adjusted to match that of your imported
bitmap image, as shown in the following screenshot:

Select the image and then from the main menu, select Filters and then Image
Effects and Soft Focus Lens. This will create a "soft" image and give a dreamy
effect as follows:

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Chapter 9

Next, we will create a "torn edge" effect around the photo by making sure the photo
is selected and then from the main menu, choosing Filters and then Distort and
Torn edges as follows:

Now the photo can be saved as a PNG and placed in an overall design. To save this
file, from the main menu, select File and then Export. Give it a filename and save it
within the project file folders.

What just happened?
We imported a bitmap image (a photograph) and then added two filters to it—a blur and
distortion filter of torn edges.

Tracing images
Tracing essentially creates the paths (and nodes) it identifies within a bitmap image and then
uses those paths to create a vector-based image from the bitmap. Rendering in Inkscape
is always done using Potrace, but there is an extra option called Simple Interactive Object
Extraction (SIOX) that allows separation of an object from the background bitmap image.
The results of this tracing process depend heavily on the quality of the original images.
Potrace works best for black-and-white line drawings or black-and-white pictures with
high contrast. It can be used for screened color prints and color photography as well,
but it can require a bit more careful detail and work to make it happen. Let's go through
a couple of examples.

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Using Filters

Time for action – using Potrace
We will start by importing another photograph bitmap image and then using Potrace:

Open up the bitmap image you want to trace in Inkscape. You can drag-and-drop
an image onto the Inkscape window to import it.

Make sure the image is selected and then from the main menu, choose Path
and then Trace Bitmap. The Trace Bitmap dialog box appears.

The Mode tab defines characteristics of the tracing mode as follows:

For this picture, we will set the following:

Single scan

Brightness cutoff: Threshold 0.450

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Chapter 9

Click the Options tab to set some additional options as follows:

These options are used across either the single or multiple scan mode.
For this sample, we'll select the checkboxes for all options (essentially turning them
on) with these settings:

Suppress speckles: Size 2

Smooth corners: Threshold 1.00

Optimize paths: Tolerance 0.20

When all settings are in place, click OK to perform the conversion.

Within a few moments, you will be able to see the results.

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Using Filters

You'll notice your original image will still be viewable on the canvas. Click to select
the traced paths and then drag it off of the original image (which is underneath).
Alternatively, from the main menu, select Object and then Lower—to lower the
new image below the original:

Select the original image and hide it in the Layers dialog. Your new vector image
should be viewable.

Save this new file (choose File and then Save As…) with a new descriptive filename
and be sure that the file type in the bottom-right is Inkscape SVG:

What just happened?
In this example, we kept the background in place and created a vector image from
a photograph.
However, another scenario is that you want to take one object from the picture and create
a vector object from that one object. That is where using the option SIOX comes into play.
Let's learn how to use it in the next section.

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Chapter 9

Time for action – using SIOX
SIOX means Simple Interactive Object Extraction. It lets you separate an object from the
background in a bitmap image. If you paid close attention to the steps performed to do a
trace in the previous section, you'll notice that the option to use this feature is within the
Tracing Bitmap dialog box.
Using SIOX depends on the characteristics of the bitmap image. If you have a photograph
where an object is clearly distinguished in color from the background—you have a great
chance for success in recreating it with a trace using this feature. Here's how it's done:

Open up the bitmap image you want to trace in Inkscape.

Make sure the image is selected and then from the main menu, choose Path
and then Trace Bitmap. The Trace Bitmap dialog box appears.

Check the SIOX foreground selection box to turn it on, as shown in the
following screenshot:

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Using Filters

Now, use the freehand tool or a box, circle, or another object, and select an area
of the image that includes the entire object you want to extract, and some of the
background, as follows:

Give the path an opaque fill if it doesn't already have one.

Select both the bitmap image and the path and then perform a trace by clicking
OK in the Trace Bitmap dialog box:

Within a few moments, you'll see the background disappear from the canvas.
Select the opaque object used in the process and delete it to show your final image:

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Chapter 9

Save your new image in SVG format – it's now a vector graphic!
In the example, we used a rectangle object to select the main point of
interest and some of the background. However, you can use the freehand
Bezier tool as well to draw around irregular objects and do the same process.

What just happened?
We took a full photograph image and then essentially pulled an object from that photograph
and made it a vector graphic via the tracing effect.
Ultimately, tracing bitmap images so that they can be turned into vector graphics takes some
practice and trial-and-error. However, if you can do this well, you will use it in a variety of
projects—anywhere from web design to helping to create and clean up logos and more.

Summary
We spent this entire chapter discussing filters and filter effects, learning where they
are used in Inkscape, and then how to create a filter effect for a vector object.
The last half of the chapter was dedicated to examples of using Potrace and SIOX.
The next chapter will be dedicated to extensions in Inkscape.

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Extensions in Inkscape
In Inkscape there are a number of extensions—templates and plugins that can
assist in the design process for vector graphics. At the very least, they decrease
preparation time when starting a new mockup.

This chapter will discuss templates in detail, and then plugins and scripts. Specifically:

What templates are

Installing and using new templates

What extensions are

Available extensions and scripts

Installing and using extensions

Extensions in Inkscape

Templates
Inkscape has some pre-defined templates you can use to start your development.
To access these templates, go to the main menu and select File and then New. A pop-up
menu appears showing a number of default page (or canvas) sizes to choose from, as shown
in the following screenshot:

Installing and using new templates
Most templates are pre-loaded into the Inkscape release and installation. However,
if you find additional Inkscape templates you want to use, they can be easily installed.

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Chapter 10

Time for action – installing Inkscape templates
To install a template in Inkscape, do the following:

Download the new template file. If it is in a compressed format (ZIP, RAR, and so
on), uncompress or extract the SVG template file. You can use applications such as
WinZip, WinRAR, or 7-Zip to extract files such as these.

Open the SVG file itself in Inkscape to view the template to make sure it fits
your needs.

From the main menu, select File and then Save As. Choose a save location in your
computer operating system's Inkscape template directory:

For Windows, that directory is the C:\Program Files\Inkscape\
share\templates folder
For Mac OS, the directory is /Applications/Inkscape/Contents/
Resources/Templates/

For Linux, the directory is typically /usr/local/share/inkscape/
templates or /home/user/.config/inkscape/templates

Click Save.

If you restart Inkscape and go to the main menu and select File and then New,
the new custom template should be in the submenu.
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Extensions in Inkscape

What just happened?
With a few simple steps, you downloaded new templates for Inkscape, uncompressed those
files, and saved them to your hard drive. Then, after restarting Inkscape, the new templates
were installed and available for use.

Creating your own custom templates
If you need to create your own template, or modify one of these existing options, there
are a few ways you can then save it for use in future projects. Let's see how to start a
custom template.

Time for action – modifying an existing Inkscape template
To modify an existing template:

Open the template that most resembles the new one you would like to create.

Modify the Document Properties (choose File and then Document Properties
or use the Shift + Ctrl/Option + D keyboard shortcut) or other settings applicable
to the template you want to create, as shown in the following screenshot:

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Chapter 10

From the main menu, choose File and then Save As, choosing to save the file to your
computer operating system's Inkscape template directory.

Once saved, restart Inkscape and go to the main menu. Select File and then
New—and the new custom template should be in the submenu.

What just happened?
We modified an existing template in Inkscape to use as a base for others. We then saved the
template so we can use it for other projects.

Time for action – creating a custom template
If you want to create a new template from scratch, this is almost as easy:

1.
2.

Open a new Inkscape file.
From the main menu, choose File and then Document Properties or use the Shift +
Ctrl/Option + D keyboard shortcut.

Adjust all settings applicable to the template you want to create and save the file to
your computer operating system's Inkscape template directory.

Once saved, restart Inkscape and go to the main menu. Select File and then
New—and the new custom template should be in the submenu.

What just happened?
A template file of any kind (used from default, created for your use only, or modified
templates) contains the document settings and normally does not contain SVG objects.
When saved in the template folder, you can select the template from the drop-down menu
for new documents.
In the previous steps, we created a custom template for Inkscape.

What are extensions?
Let's first understand what extensions are in Inkscape. Extensions add new capabilities
to software programs—thus customizing what you want them to do for you.
When you use scripts with Inkscape, you essentially add new features to the existing
software. A script takes control of the Inkscape software to perform a certain feature.
Scripts themselves differ from extensions in that they are usually written in a different
programming language from the main program (Inkscape in this case) and can be modified
at any time—mostly by Inkscape developers.
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Extensions in Inkscape

Extensions "extend" Inkscape's features or functionality .If you used an extension outside
of inkscape, it wouldn't work correctly. An example of an extension for Inkscape is one that
allows importing and exporting of non-SVG file types into the program. Most extensions
require external programs, usually written in Perl or Python.
You can find common extensions here: http://wiki.inkscape.org/wiki/index.php/
ExtensionsRepository#Extensions. Although they are not all-inclusive lists of what is
available, they give you a healthy start in your search for customizing Inkscape.
Inkscape also comes with some pre-installed extensions. You find these in the main menu.
Click Extensions and the submenu appears as follows:

Examples of extension tutorials
There are many valuable extensions in Inkscape such as interpolate, scatter, and render.
Here's a quick look at some tutorials online that can help you understand some of
these extensions:

Inkscape tutorial: Interpolate
http://inkscape.org/doc/interpolate/tutorial-interpolate.
en.html

Inkscape 'Pattern along Path and 'Scatter' scripts:
http://math.univ-lille1.fr/~barraud/Inkscape/pathdeform/

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Chapter 10

Inkscape: Generate from path
http://tavmjong.free.fr/INKSCAPE/MANUAL/html/ExtensionsGenerateFromPath.html

Inkscape tutorial: Fancy Borders
http://verysimpledesigns.com/vectors/inkscape-tutorial-fancyborders.html

Installation extensions
The procedures for installing plugins vary because there are some dependencies on your
computer's operating system and on what software you already have installed on your
computer. The best rule of thumb is to read the plugin installation instructions.
Script installation is a bit easier—it requires the script code file itself and an INX file. It is as
simple as copying both files and placing them into the extension folder directly. In Windows,
this directory is C:\Program Files\Inkscape\share\extensions. In the Mac OS and
Linux, this is typically in the home/.inkscape/extensions directory.
You should always be sure to read script installation instructions because they often have
dependencies. For example, they may require additional programs to be installed before
they can work. If you don't know these dependencies up front, you can try an install and
then read the error message after you run the script from a command-line interface.

Pop quiz – what are extensions?
True or false: Extensions add new capabilities to Inkscape and thus extend its features or
functionality and on their own, outside of their use in Inkscape, wouldn't work correctly.

Summary
We dug right in at the start of this chapter and reviewed how to access the pre-installed
templates in Inkscape. Then we took a look at how to install new templates that we might find
online. We discussed in detail how to modify a standard template, save it as a custom one, and
how to start from scratch and save a custom template. We also jumped into learning about
extensions. Some sample tutorial links were also given to provide examples of how to use
extensions in Inkscape as well as installing additional ones in Inkscape.

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Working with Images
We talked a lot in the first chapter about rasterized versus vectorized images
and how Inkscape is best used for vector graphics. But what if you only have
rasterized images? Can you import them into Inkscape, manipulate them, or even
save them as vector images? Of course you can. There are some minor limitations
on how you export rasterized images, but this feature is often used to import the
image and then manipulate it a bit for the vector use you need.

This chapter will focus on:

Rendering a bitmap image

Working with photographs and filters

Importing from the Open Clip Art Library (Linux and Mac users)
The Open Clip Art Library is an open source, free clip art image library that you can search
directly from Inkscape.
Unfortunately, the Open Clip Art Library menu options do not exist for Windows
users. However, you can always go to www.openclipart.org in a web browser to
view all available clip art, download, and then import into your projects.

This clip art library is searchable and most of its graphics can be used in your designs
as needed (and as seen throughout this book). Let's see how we can use it.

Working with Images

Time for action – using the Open Clip Art Library (Mac users only)
Here's how it works:

In an open Inkscape project, from the main menu, choose File and then Import
From Open Clip Art Library.

In the Import From Open Clip Art Library dialog box, in the Search for: field, enter a
keyword to describe the clip art you want to place in the document and click Search,
as shown in the following screenshot:

Inkscape then connects to the Open Clip Art Library website. Previews of files
are shown in a window on the right-hand side of the dialog.

Try other keyword searches until you find one you like and then double-click
the name of the image to place it in the document.

What just happened?
You opened the Open Clip Art Library via Inkscape, searched for a clip art image, and placed
it on an Inkscape canvas.
The clip art library can be useful in a number of ways:

It allows for free use of a number of images that you may like to use in a web design
mockup, for placement or for end use.

You can also ungroup the pieces of the image and adjust colors, remove items,
edit the overall image, and use it in your own design:
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Importing clip art images can give you a starting point for your own designs—as well as give
great layout perspective when creating website mockups.

Pop quiz – Open Clip Art
1. Graphics downloaded from the Open Clip Art Library are:
a. Free to use
b. Editable (ungroup, adjust colors, remove items, edit the overall image)
c.

Downloadable in SVG format

d. All of the above

Basics about photo manipulation
Inkscape doesn't allow for extensive photo manipulation, but these filters will work
with photographs or non-vector based images. These are basic and fun effects for your
photographic images. Filters that are photo (and bitmap) friendly are:

Blurs

Bumps

Color

Distort

Image Effects

Image Effects, Transparent

Transparency Utilities

Overlay

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Working with Images

For some fun, try Scatter and Texture filters and Clip with photographs as well.
Let's walk through using one of these filters in a practical example.

Time for action – blurring the background of a photograph
We will take the same photograph we used from a previous exercise and manipulate it
differently here. We will select the foreground that we want to keep crisp, and clear and
then blur the background. Here are the steps on how this is done:

Open a new Inkscape document and import a bitmap/photograph you want to use
for this exercise. From the main menu, select File and then Import.

Select the correct bitmap file and click Open. Make sure your imported bitmap is
selected, and then select File and then Document Properties. In the Custom Size
section, click Resize page to content, as shown in the following screenshot:

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Click Resize page to drawing or selection.
Your document page size will now be adjusted to match that of your imported
bitmap image, as shown in the following screenshot.

Select your photograph objects in the window and now choose Edit and Duplicate
as follows:

Select and then drag the top duplicate photograph off to the side of the canvas
as follows:

Image credit Photostock at Freedigitalphotos.net
We will need to adjust that one later. It will be our "background" image.

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Working with Images

Now we will need to create a clipping mask of the portion of the people we want to
remain in the foreground of our picture. Select the Bezier tool and trace around the
people's faces as follows:

You may need to zoom in to the photo to get a more detailed view to work with.

Note, when you use the Bezier tool, every time you click-and-drag, a new curve
node is created.

You can also create rough shapes and then click between nodes to add new nodes
and adjust as necessary. An example is shown as follows:

10.

Once you "connect" the last node to the beginning one, it will "close" the tool
and make a selection:

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11.

Now with the traced object and the original photo selected, from the main menu,
select Object | Clip | Set as follows:

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Working with Images

12.

You will now see a clip of just the selected portions of the couple that you
outlined previously:

13.

Select and move the duplicate/background image back into place above the
clipped image:

14.

To make sure it all aligns properly, click the Align and distribute objects icon in
the toolbar. The Align and Distribute dialog will appear on the right-hand side of
your screen as follows:

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15.

Make sure the Relative to: field is set to Page and click the align vertically and align
horizontally icons as follows:

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Working with Images

16.

Click the X icon in the upper-right corner to close this dialog box.

17.

Choose the Fill and Stroke icon on the toolbar. The Fill and Stroke dialog
will now also appear on the right-hand side of the screen as follows:

18.

Make sure the full photograph duplicate is still selected on your canvas and move
the Blur slider bar to the right until you like the blur amount:

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19.

Again, with the image still selected, choose the Lower selection to bottom icon in
the top toolbar as follows:

20.

You will see that this duplicate photograph will now drop behind the clipped image
and we have a "blurred" background in our photograph!

21.

Now the photo can be saved in a native Inkscape format for future editing or as a
PNG file and placed in another design. To save this file, from the main menu, select
File and then Export. Give it a filename and save it within the project file folders.

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Working with Images

What just happened?
You took a standard photograph, brought it into Inkscape, and edited it so that the
background was more blurred than the foreground.
We applied some non-destructive clipping and filtering to a photograph. That said, the image
itself is untouched, and if you want to see the full effects of the background blurring, don't
forget to export the image as a PNG file (File | Export Bitmap).
To edit the images directly, use the image extensions. Import the photograph and use the
extensions found in the main menu option: Extensions | Raster.

Converting raster logos to vector-based logos
Many clients might only have their logo images in raster or bitmap formats—JPG, GIF, PNG,
or BMP, which as we defined in Chapter 1, Getting Started with Vector Graphics, are a grid
of pixels that are set to certain colors. When these logos are made larger, there's a loss of
quality (remember the boxey, pixelated look?). Often, you might need to scale a logo larger
so it fits in your new design and want to maintain smooth edges. You do this by converting it
to a vector-based image.

Time for action – converting a logo to a vector-based image
Here's how you use Inkscape to convert a raster image logo into an SVG image in vector
graphic format (that will be scalable!):

Open the logo you want to convert in Inkscape. Whenever possible use an image
that is of as high resolution as possible. This will ensure the best possible recreation
of the logo. You can see from the enlarged screenshot that the edges are not
smooth, as shown in the following image:

Select the entire image (Edit and then Select All) and then perform a trace by
choosing Path and then Trace Bitmap.

In the Trace Bitmap dialog box, select Multiscan Colors as the mode and be sure
that Smooth is unchecked. The Scans can be set to 15.
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Click OK to start the conversion.

(Optional step) As needed, adjust the new vector conversion of the image.
Add, move, and adjust the nodes to match the original raster more closely.

Next you need to delete your original image. From the main menu, select Object
and then Lower—you will now see that your new vector image was "lowered"
beneath the original jagged-edged image.

Select the original image and then press the Delete key on your keyboard.
Your new vector image should be viewable as follows:

Tracing the image may not be enough to fully recreate the logo. Further
clean-up and coloring of the image may still be required to obtain a
high-quality logo.

Save this new file (choose File and then Save As… ) with a new descriptive filename
and be sure that the file type in the bottom-right is Inkscape SVG.

What just happened?
You took a logo file in JPG format and converted it into an Inkscape vector image that can be
scaled larger (or smaller) and used like all vector graphics.

Summary
In this chapter, we learned a lot about working with images—raster and vector—in Inkscape.
We looked at importing bitmap images, embedding images, rendering bitmap images,
working a bit with photographs and filters, importing clip art, and all the tips and tricks for
"tracing" bitmap images to convert them into full vector graphics for both photographs and
logos. Now we can recreate all of those non-editable images and make them resizable and
thus enhance our current design projects.

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Using the XML Editor
Now we're ready to dig, just a little bit, into some code. We're going to learn
about the XML Editor that is included within Inkscape. This feature helps us
perform cool tricks that can help with global changes in web development
and when working with a programming team that can also create scripts to
automatically make some changes.

The goals of this chapter are to:

Learn how to access the XML Editor

Understand the basics of the SVG coding language Inkscape uses (which is an
iteration of XML)

Learn how to edit some of the object XML code

Review the essentials for handing off files to make sure the XML/SVG code can be
fully-functional and usable for any backend programming that needs to be done.

Let's first learn a bit about the editor.

Inkscape's XML Editor
One of the features that sets Inkscape apart from other vector graphics programs is the
XML Editor. The XML Editor is a code-based version of your canvas, all objects, properties,
and more. Within the XML Editor, you can change any aspect of the document and see it
immediately reflected on your canvas.

Using the XML Editor

The catch here is you need to learn a bit of SVG code in order to be able to do this fun
editing. And, if you learn it, you can do even more within the XML interface than you can
through the main Inkscape interface as it stands today. But, again, it takes a bit of learning on
your part to learn SVG attributes and how best to edit them for your needs. To start, you can
view the W3C web site (http://www.w3.org/) directly from Inkscape at any time to see
the SVG specifications. From the main menu, select Help and then SVG 1.1 Specification.
Understanding and using the SVG code allows you to create consistent shadows for objects
in your web page design without having to fiddle with a number of menus and settings, or
create rectangles that always have the same rounded corners—again, without menus, fields
and settings. However, let's just start at the beginning and open the XML Editor.

Time for action – accessing the XML Editor
To begin we will open the XML editor in Inkscape:

Accessing the XML Editor is the easy part. From any open Inkscape document,
on the main menu, select Edit and then XML Editor.

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You can also open the XML Editor using the keyboard
shortcut Shift+Ctrl+X.

What just happened?
The XML window opened, and if your Inkscape canvas is blank, it will look something like the
following screenshot:

On the left-hand side of this screen is the SVG code and on the right-hand side of the screen
you see the attributes and values associated with the selected line of code. You can also
select line items on the right-hand side of the screen and reset the values—in essence,
editing the code directly.

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Using the XML Editor

XML Editor basics
Let's look at a more complicated Inkscape document that is populated with a web design.
Then we can discuss the screen basics, the SVG code, and understand how we might be able
to edit it for our use. The following screenshot shows the open Inkscape document and the
associated SVG code, side-by-side.

As you select items in the SVG code, you will see that Inkscape selects the items in the design
(and vice versa). Also, if you were to edit any of the object properties, all changes would
happen in real time on the canvas. But let's not get ahead of ourselves. First we need to
understand the basics of the XML Editor screen:

The structure or tree of the XML is shown on the left-hand side of the screen
(see the following screenshot). This XML tree is the entire canvas shown in
SVG code.

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A layer is essentially a node in the tree. If the layer contained drawn objects, there
would be additional nodes embedded beneath the layer node. Each node represents
an object on that layer.

These nodes are expandable by clicking the arrow on the left-hand side. When
pointing down, all objects are viewable (and editable). When the arrow is sideways,
the objects are hidden.

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Using the XML Editor

The attributes or properties of a selected object are on the right-hand side of the
screen. This is where you would edit the properties.

You select an attribute of the object to edit, and then in the bottom portion of the
screen, you make your changes and click the Set button to commit to the change,
as seen in the following screenshot:

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Chapter 12

SVG basics
Let's take a step back for a moment and understand the attributes—or the SVG code—found
in the XML Editor. We'll still keep it in the context of the Inkscape XML Editor window, so you
won't have to know all of the SVG syntax code, but still enough to understand the common
attributes and what they mean to your web designs.

Attribute types
First, attributes fall into two categories: those that are SVG standard attributes and then
those that can only be found in Inkscape. For those that fall within the SVG standards, they
will be recognized by other SVG-rendering programs, and thus can be edited by them as well.
However the others—the Inkscape only attributes—are only recognized in Inkscape. What
does this mean if you export and use them in other SVG-rendering programs? Not much,
they'll just be ignored. Alternatively, you can export the drawing in a way that will not even
include these elements.
Thus, when you are saving a document in Inkscape, you are given the option to save as
Inkscape SVG or Plain SVG.

To maintain editability, we recommend saving in Inkscape SVG.
How can you can tell which attributes are Inkscape only and which are SVG standard? The
sodipodi tagis found only on attributes that are Inkscape only. The sodipodi tag comes from
the roots of the Inkscape application. It was branched from the Sodipodi program and thus
the sodipodi tag in the SVG editor.

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Using the XML Editor

In the following example, you can see that the icon's width (sodipodi: rx) and height
(sodipodi: ry) are both Inkscape-native SVG code. The circle attribute cx gives the exact
location of the Circle's Height Transformation node and cy gives the position of the Circle's
Width Transformation node.

Pop quiz – sodipodi tag
1.

How can you can tell which attributes are Inkscape only and which are
SVG standard?
a. The sodipodi tag
b. The rx and ry values
c.

Location on the XML tree

d. None of the above

Basic attributes
There are books that can explain how best to code and script using SVG. Here, we
will aim to give you a very brief overview of the code and how you can read it, and the
attribute properties.
This isn't intended to show you how to hand-code the SVG data, as it is rarely done that
way. As with Inkscape, you would use an SVG-authoring environment with a graphical
interface that creates most of the code and then you would go in later and edit the attribute
information. But even with this, it helps to understand the very basics of the attribute
properties and how they are structured.
To start, we will discuss objects. SVG offers four data types to work with; namely, paths,
shapes, images, and text. For each of these objects, you have a number of attributes you
define to actually create, define, and position the images you see on the canvas.

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Chapter 12

Paths
In SVG (and Inkscape), paths are outlines of shapes. These paths can be filled (add color)
and/or have a stroke associated with them—and thus paths are critical objects to create
shapes and other items in Inkscape.

Shapes
How does SVG allow you to create all these pictures? Well, each object is made up of
a number of shapes. And thus, SVG also uses six predefined shape elements within its
code for you to manipulate. These basic shape elements are:

rectangle (rect)

circle

ellipse

line

polyline

polygon

Each SVG shape has a number of attributes associated with it and once those attributes
are defined, the code can be made into an actual shape. Let's go through each of these
as an example.
Rectangles have four attributes—x, y, width, and height—which define the placement
and dimensions of the rectangle. The x attribute is the distance from the left-hand side of
the canvas, the y attribute is the distance from the top of the canvas. Using x and y together,
you are defining the top-left corner of the rectangle. This leaves the width and height
attributes—and, they define exactly what you would assume: the dimensions of the two
dimensional object.
Here's how you would see the code in the XML Editor:

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Using the XML Editor

Notice the rect ID is the object information, and is shown on
the left-hand side, whereas all of the attributes (x, y, height, and width) are shown on the
right-hand side. There is also an id and style attribute which is common to all objects. The
id attribute is either automatically assigned in Inkscape or set when making the object in the
graphical interface (from the main menu, choose Object | Object Properties).

The Id field (highlighted above) can be changed and thus reflected in the SVG code.
Back in the XML Editor, the style attribute captures all of the color, stroke, opacity,
fill information, and more. As you select any attribute, you can see all the details in the
bottom of the screen (this is where you would edit that information, too).
What would the rectangle, as seen in this SVG code example, look like? See the
following screenshot:

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Chapter 12

Next let's discuss a circle. It uses the pathid to create it and has four attributes: cx, cy, rx
and ry. The cx and cy attributes define the exact center of the circle (placement), while the
rx and ry values are the radii of the circle. An example of the SVG code in the XML Editor
would look similar to the following screenshot:

From this code, we see that the center of the circle is at 100, 50 and the circle would have a
radius of 40. We can also see from the style attribute that there is color in the circle, but it
is at 40 percent capacity and has a stroke outline that is 2 pixels thick.
On the canvas, this all translates into a circle looking similar to the following screenshot:

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Using the XML Editor

The ellipse is similar to the circle, except that it has four path id attributes in Inkscape: cx,
cy, rx, and ry. Again, cx and cy specify the center of the ellipse. The r attributes—rx
and ry—give the x-axis and y-axis radii of the ellipse. Again, unless geometry is a favorite
pastime, typically you would create this object using the graphical interface and then refine
it in the XML Editor code. So, let's see what the code would look like:

We see here, for this example, the center of the circle is at 110, 55 and it has an x-axis radius
of 70 and y-axis radius of 35.
The ellipse would look similar to the following on the canvas:

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Chapter 12

Next up, we will learn about the path object. Essentially, you will map every "point" or node
on the object. That means you will have many x and y coordinate pairs in the code for these
types of objects. Here's a sample of the code in the XML Editor:

And here is the corresponding line on the canvas:

Now for the details about polylines and polygons. The attributes are the same as those of
the path object. Every point or node on the object is mapped with x and y coordinate pairs
in the code for these types of objects.
But what is the difference between polygons and polylines if the attributes are the same
(an x and y value for every node of the shape)? It's the stroke outline—for polylines, it
doesn't automatically close the shape as the polygon element automatically does.
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Using the XML Editor

Here's a simple code example for a polyline (again, this would be the same for a polygon,
except the stroke would close the shape:

This is how it would look on the canvas:

With this example, you can see how difficult it would be to hand-code all of the nodes of
the star to make the image. In fact, you would be likely to spend more time trying to find
coordinates and mapping them instead of actually drawing the shapes. This is why Inkscape's
interface is best for drawing and using the XML Editor to edit or manage some settings which
we'll talk about next.
You always have to make sure you have an even number of coordinate
values, meaning, for every x value you have, you must specify a
corresponding y coordinate. SVG coding programs will prompt you for
this and in Inkscape, it is recommended you draw the graphics using the
interface and then go into the XML Editor to change any specific settings.

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Chapter 12

Images
As you have seen, SVG files are considered the source files for Inkscape. They are graphic
images themselves, but they can also contain other graphic formats (such as PNG, JPG, or
other SVG files). You can even transform and animate those graphics as well (and even use
some scripting to work with them).
In order to do all of that, there is an image object in Inkscape. The attributes for it
are: x and y, which again define the top-left corner of the image; width, and height
attributes that give measurements; and the xlink:href attribute which defines the
actual path or location of the original image. Think of it as the link to the original image
file, as in HTML code.
A code sample in the XML Editor will look similar to the following screenshot:

Text
Lastly, as you know from the many examples we have created so far, you can create text in
your drawings. Much like the image attribute, there are x and y values that set the top-left/
starting point for your text and then the actual text that is displayed. Here's a sample of what
that looks like in the XML Editor:

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Using the XML Editor

Using the XML Editor to change characteristics
Now, suppose you have created a mock website using the graphical interface of Inkscape and
you have handed off all of your files to the programming team. Suddenly, your client decides
that they want all heading text to be a specific color of gray (4d4d4d).
Do you have to open each graphic file and make this change? Maybe. But you can also
change it right in the XML Editor (and if your programmers are using your SVG files directly,
they might even be able to make the change).

Time for action – using the XML Editor to change object
characteristics
Here's how you would use the XML Editor to change heading text to a specific web color:

Open up the XML Editor (or an SVG authoring tool) and open your website file.

Find the headings you want to change. To do this, find text objects that match what
you are looking for. Programmers may have named all of these HeadingXX, where
XX is a number to identify each of them.

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Chapter 12

Expand the object and find the style attribute.

Then look for the fill information and change that web color to the new gray one:
4d4d4d.

Click on Set.

What just happened?
You changed the heading text characteristics so that it is now gray in color, as seen in the
following screenshot:

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Using the XML Editor

You can even write scripts that are able to automatically search and find all heading IDs
(as described in step number 2) and change them! Work with your programming team if you
want to learn how to do this. Lots of tools can help you learn the XML/SVG code side of this.
The main use for the XML Editor is to correct flaws that cannot be corrected through the
interface or through advanced features (which do not have a menu item). An example of this
is applying a filter and having the boundaries chopping off a part of the visual output due to
the offset. For more examples, see some online tutorials here: http://tavmjong.free.
fr/INKSCAPE/MANUAL/html/XML-Examples.html

Using XML and graphics with programmers
XML, SVG code, and scripting typically land in the laps of those who actually code the web
page. Sometimes they can all be the same person—but in larger corporate or consulting
groups, it is a split responsibility. And the one major point to remember is that when you
hand off your design mockup files, you include everything!
All SVG source files, all output PNG files, every graphic you used to create the mockup, and
more. And in fact, if you created object properties (names) for your layers and objects—give
the programming team a cheat sheet of that information as well. All of this will make the
transition from web design mockup to real web page easier, cleaner, and more efficient.

Summary
This chapter was full of the technical—XML and SVG code, objects, attributes, x and y values,
and more. First we learned how to open the XML Editor. Then we took a step back and
learned a bit about SVG coding; all about the shape, image, and text attributes. We even dug
further into the code a bit to edit some text. Of course, there is a lot more that can be done
with the code version of your graphics—but we left most of that to a programming team, or
for more investigative work on your part.

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Where to Find More Information
If you need help with Inkscape, here are some links to people and places, which will prove
invaluable. You can also use the tutorials that are within Inkscape itself. You can find these in
the main menu, Help | Tutorials.

Official sites
The site that you will find most valuable of all is, of course, the Inkscape homepage at
http://inkscape.org/. It will provide you with all the manuals, current download
release information, forums, and all the information about Inkscape that you might want.
Other important links from the official homepage are as follows:

Manual and documentation: http://tavmjong.free.fr/INKSCAPE/MANUAL/
html/index.html

Wiki: http://wiki.inkscape.org/wiki/index.php/Inkscape

For developers: https://launchpad.net/inkscape

Clip Art: http://www.openclipart.org/

Galleries: http://wiki.inkscape.org/wiki/index.php/Galleries

Articles and tutorials
Inkscape has a number of official tutorials, which the developers helped create, which teach
you about the software. You can find these here: http://inkscape.org/doc/index.
php?lang=en

Where to Find More Information

However, you might like some other self-guided tutorials. You can find some in
these locations:

Inkscape Tutorials weblog: http://inkscapetutorials.wordpress.com/

Floss Manuals: http://en.flossmanuals.net/Inkscape/

35 Tutorials to create amazing Vector Graphics using Inkscape: http://
speckyboy.com/2009/04/28/35-tutorials-to-create-amazing-vectorgraphics-using-inkscape/

Community
As with many open source programs, there are a number of mailing lists and forums you can
join as a user, for more resources. You can find key ones here:

Official mailing lists: http://inkscape.org/mailing_lists.php?lang=en

Official forums: http://www.inkscapeforum.com/

Inkscape Development Online Discussion: http://inkscape.org/discussion.
php?lang=en

User FAQ: http://wiki.inkscape.org/wiki/index.php/FAQ

Blogs
There are also a number of blogs and screencasts (video blogs) that teach you how to use
Inkscape. You can find my favorites here:

How-to category: Screencasters.Heathenx.org: http://screencasters.
heathenx.org/. HeathenX screencasters is a video collection on Inkscape tutorials.
He uses an older version of Inkscape, but the tutorials are still useful in learning the
basics and some advanced techniques.

Informational/How-to category: Tavmjong Bah's Blog: http://tavmjong.free.
fr/blog/

Tavmjong Bah is a developer for Inkscape and he represents Inkscape in the SVG
working group. The blog talks a lot about Inkscape features as well as the SVG
applications of the program.

Design/Graphic category: 365 Sketches: http://365sketches.org/
365 sketches from John LeMasney was a project that started in 2010. The mission
was to create a small sketch using Inkscape each day. The site is the result of that
project. Through a portion of 2011, he used primarily Inkscape, but more current
work is done using GIMP. He used two of my tutorials for response.
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Appendix A

Twitter
Here are some of the best Inkscape resources on Twitter:

For education and tutorials:

The official Inkscape twitter feed: http://twitter.com/inkscape

Inkscape Tutorials: http://twitter.com/inkscapetuts

For design examples:

FossGrafis.com: http://twitter.com/fossgrafis

Linux Artist: http://twitter.com/linuxartist

For fun:

Inkscape Mag: http://twitter.com/inkscapemag

John Lemasney: http://twitter.com/lemasney

For Open Source information: http://twitter.com/PacktOpenSource

[ 251 ]

Keyboard Shortcuts
Following are the basic keyboard shortcuts for Inkscape .48 release of the software. For a full
list of keyboard shortcuts from the Inkscape developers directly, see http://inkscape.
org/doc/keys048.html

If you are using a Macintosh computer, all instances of (Ctrl) should
be replaced with the Command (Cmd) key.

You can also download and use a graphical version of the Inkscape Keyboard Layout from
http://Ctrl.openclipart.org/detail/81331

The list of keyboard shortcuts is given as follows:
Keyboard shortcut

Feature function

File menu shortcuts
Ctrl + N

Create new document

Ctrl + O

Open an SVG document

Shift + Ctrl + E

Export to PNG

Ctrl + I

Import bitmap or SVG

Ctrl + P

Print document

Ctrl + S

Save document

Shift + Ctrl + S

Save under a new name

Shift + Ctrl + Alt + S

Save a copy

Ctrl + Q

Exit Inkscape

Keyboard Shortcuts

Keyboard shortcut

Feature function

Tools shortcuts
F1, s

Selector

Space

Switch to the Selector tool temporarily;
another Space switches back

Shift + F2, Ctrl

Tweak tool

F3, z

Zoom tool

F4, r

Rectangle tool

Shift + F4, x

3D box tool

F5, e

Ellipse/arc tool

F6, p

Freehand (Pencil) tool

Shift + F6, b

Bezier (Pen) tool

Ctrl + F6, c

Calligraphy tool

Shift + F7, u

Paint Bucket tool

Ctrl + F1, g

Gradient tool

F7, d

Dropper tool

F8, t

Text tool

F9, i

Spiral tool

Shift + F9

Star tool

Ctrl + F2, o

Connector tool

Dialog windows
Shift + Ctrl + F

Fill and Stroke

Shift + Ctrl + W

Swatches

Shift + Ctrl + T

Text and Font

Shift + Ctrl + M

Transform

Shift + Ctrl + L

Layers

Shift + Ctrl + A

Align and Distribute

Shift + Ctrl + O

Object Properties

Shift + Ctrl + H

Undo History

Shift + Ctrl + X

XML Editor

Shift + Ctrl + D

Document Preferences

[ 254 ]

Appendix B

Keyboard shortcut

Feature function

Dialog windows
Shift + Ctrl + P

Inkscape Preferences

Shift + Ctrl + E

Export to PNG

Ctrl + F

Find

Shift + Alt + B

Trace Bitmap

Shift + Ctrl + 7

Path Effects

Basic object shortcuts
Shift + Ctrl + Y, Ctrl + Z

Undo

Shift + Ctrl + Z, Ctrl + Y

Redo

Ctrl + C

Copy selection

Ctrl + X

Cut selection

Ctrl + V

Paste clipboard

Ctrl + Alt + V

Paste in place

Shift + Ctrl + V

Paste style

Ctrl + 7

Paste path effect

Ctrl + D

Duplicate selection

Alt + D

Clone object

Shift + Alt + D

Unlink clone

Shift + D

Select original

Alt + B

Create a bitmap copy

Shift + Alt + B

Trace bitmap

Alt + I

Object(s) to pattern

Shift + Alt + I

Pattern to object(s)

Shift + Ctrl + U, Ctrl + G

Group selected objects

Shift + Ctrl + G, Ctrl + U

Ungroup selected group(s)

Home

Raise selection to top

End

Lower selection to bottom

PageUp

Raise selection one step

PageDown

Lower selection one step

[ 255 ]

Glossary of Terms
Alignment makes sure all of the elements line up on the screen. Use natural alignments
within an entire web space when you use more than one graphical element such as photos,
graphics, and/or text.
Attributes are the properties of an object, as seen in the Inkscape XML editor. Selecting an
attribute (such as stroke or fill) will then let you see the detailed properties (such as color
codes and line thicknesses).
Backgrounds are "behind" the overall design of a web page. They can be any design, shape,
size, or color, but as a rule of thumb, should not distract from the overall design of a web page.
Blogs, now commonplace on the web, are websites or portions of websites that
offer commentary on personal events, politics, videos, pictures, and anything
else that can be "posted" online. The structure of blogs is around posts that are
published in reverse-chronological order and allow readers to provide comments
and sometimes ratings.
Buttons are used on forms found in web pages where a user needs to "submit" information
that will be stored.
Canvas is the page or document in Inkscape where your objects and shapes are created.
Cascading Style Sheet (CSS) is used with the HTML/XML coding to define the look
and formatting of an entire website. One style sheet determines fonts, colors,
spacing, placement, and more, reducing complexity and repetition in the coding
of the pages themselves.
Contrast is a state of being different from something else, for example, abstractly different
sizes, colors, directions, shapes and fonts (for example mixing modern with old style), font
weights, and more.

Glossary of Terms

Diagram is a graphical representation of information that uses shapes, images, and more
to create a cohesive thought. There are a number of diagram types like Venn, Activity, Tree,
Network, and more.
Dialogs are vernacularly used in Inkscape to describe specific windows or portions of
the screens.
Extensions in the world of Inkscape are like scripts. They are created, installed, and
then incorporated into the Inkscape software itself to "extend" the software's features
or functionality.
Fill is the terminology to describe the color of an object or shape.
Font when using text, it specifies a certain size and style of type.
Flow Chart is one of the most common types of diagrams. It shows the general process
for completing a task or decision. It shows each step, decision, and option as a particular
box/option/connector. In general, it represents a step-by-step solution to a given problem.
GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program) is an open source photo manipulation software
program. This is used in this book for the process of creating an animated GIF. More
information can be found at: http://www.gimp.org.
Grid is a tool in Inkscape to help alignment and exact measurements. It can be particularly
useful in creating web page designs because there are "snap to grid" options to help with
exact alignment.
Guides are also tools in Inkscape in Inkscape that can be user-generated. You can create
guides on your canvas to help with alignment and object placement.
Handle is a term used to describe small squares or circles at edges of an object in Inkscape.
Handles are often used to change the size of an object or change the shape of a path.
Icons is a graphical representation of text, usually smaller objects that represent a certain
feature or function on a web page. They can be completely graphical or a combination of
graphics and text.
Layers in the Inkscape software allow stacking of objects on a canvas for easier creation.
Each layer can be locked, viewed, moved, and more. You must select a layer before you
can start manipulating objects within that layer. This selected layer is then termed the
drawing layer.
Lock is used to lock objects, shapes, text, and layers in Inkscape. Once this setting is in place,
these objects become un-editable until unlocked.
Logo is a visual representation of a company or brand.
[ 258 ]

Appendix C

Lorem Ipsum is a text effect that displays a pseudo-Latin form of text that is used as a
"placeholder" in the larger context of the web page design. It allows visual correlation
of text content, without having to create actual text for that space in the design.
Open Clip Art Library is an open source, free clip art image library that you can search
directly from Inkscape.
Organizational Chart or "org chart" shows the structure of an organization. It also details
roles, job titles, and sometimes the relationships between the jobs.
Panning is moving left, right, or up and down on the Inkscape main screen.
Paths in general terms, are lines that have a start and end point, curves, angles, and points
that are calculated by a mathematical equation. However, paths are not limited to being
straight—they can be of any shape, size, and can even encompass any number of curves.
When you combine them, they create drawings, diagrams, and can even help create
certain fonts.
Plugins are additional software that you install to add new capabilities to Inkscape.
Properties define details regarding an object created in Inkscape. These are typically
editable and can be changed with the software interface or within the XML editor.
Proximity is a design term used to describe grouping of similar information together
on a web page.
Rasterized images are images that are created by tiny rectangular dots, which we call pixels.
File types like JPG, FIG, and BMP are all rasterized images.
Repetition the idea of repeating elements like buttons, shapes (graphical or just placement),
or colors in a design to make a pleasing impact.
RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feeds is a basic way to continually broadcast (or publish)
blog entries. These feeds are in a standardized XML format and pull the metadata tags
you assigned when publishing your blog post and display them in "readers" for others to
automatically receive.
Scalable Vector Graphics or SVGis a vector-based drawing language that uses some basic
principles: it can be scalable to any size without losing detail, and a drawing can use an
unlimited number of smaller drawings used in any number of ways (and reused) and still
be a part of a larger whole.
Scan is a process Inkscape uses to describe a "pass" over a bitmap image in order to create
a trace of the image. Single scans are done with a single pass (or scan) to create the paths.
Multiple scans, in turn, use multiple passes using different settings each time to create
different paths that are then stored and displayed in a group to create the trace.
[ 259 ]

Glossary of Terms

Scripts add new features to Inkscape. They must be installed after the initial Inkscape
installation and are typically written in a different programming language from the main
program (Inkscape, in this case) and can be modified at any time.
Shapes in Inkcape and SVG, are basic shape elements; these include rectangles, circles,
ellipses, straight lines, polylines, and polygons. They have different attributes from paths, and
can have fill and stroke information edited via the software interface as well as with the XML
editor directly.
SIOX (Simple Interactive Object Extraction) is a process of separating an object from the
background in a bitmap image.
Site tree/Site Map is a list of all the individual pages of a website. Typically, the site map
outlines how each page is linked to the others. It can be used for website creation and,
planning, but also as a user interface aide to help website users find where they need
to be on the site.
Storefronts are any websites that sell a commodity. They often allow you to search through
products and then purchase a product through a "shopping cart".
Stroke is the term in Inkscape to describe an object or shape border. You can often change
the stroke color and thickness.
Template is a base document that has been created to simplify the design process. Basic
settings like canvas size, fonts, colors, and placement are pre-defined and set in the document.
Text styling is the term used to describe manipulating text, so that it creates a certain feel
when seen in an overall design. Sometimes it is also called typography or typesetting.
Tracing is the process of creating paths (and nodes) to represent an underlying bitmap image
and then using those paths to create a vector-based image.
Vector graphics is the use of points, lines, curves, and shapes or polygons, which are all
based on mathematical equations to represent images in computer graphics.
Wallpapers are images used as desktop backgrounds. These are also commonly used
(and downloaded) for use with cell phones and other electronic devices.
XML Editor is the code-based version of objects and drawings on your Inkscape canvas.
Within the XML Editor, you can change any aspect of the document and see it immediately
reflected on your canvas.
Zoom describes magnifying your canvas to see more detail (zoomed in) or the entire canvas
at a glance (zoomed out).

[ 260 ]

Pop Quiz Answers
Chapter 1, Getting Started with Vector Graphics
Pop quiz – understanding vector graphics
1

Chapter 2, Installing and Opening Inkscape
Pop quiz – using Tools
1

d
This is the most used toolbar in
Inkscape because it gives you the
tools to create shapes, paths, and
more. All you have to do is select
(click) a tool and then use it on the
open document page.

Pop Quiz Answers

Pop quiz – new documents
1

c
Click the new document icon on the command bar.
It just takes one click!

Chapter 3, How to Manage Files
Pop quiz – how do you change the dimensions of a predefined graphic
1

c
Just adjust the document dimensions of
the current document to fit your needs.
Remember, you’ll likely also need to
move objects on your page to reflect the
new dimensions.
However, for any of the objects that you
have drawn, there will be no stretching
or manipulation.
The page dimensions just change (the
black borders).

Pop quiz – editable Inkscape file formats
1

b
You can also save in the Inkscape compressed
format of SVGZ if minimizing the file size is
important.

Pop quiz – Export versus Save As
1

c
Inkscape only supports exporting PNG files.
However, the File | Save/Save As function will allow
you to save files as PDFs.
[ 262 ]

Appendix D

Pop quiz – file format portability
1

d
PDF files, when imported into Inkscape, allow for
editability to remain with vector-based objects.

Pop quiz – linking versus embedding images
1

Chapter 4, Creating your First Graphics
Pop quiz – displaying borders
1

a
Since a border is essentially the end of your graphic
you can use it for a number of purposes—most
importantly to show the boundary for where you
can create graphics that will be printed or exported
when your file is saved.

Pop quiz – switching shapes
1

c
You would use the toolbox and select the cube
icon (6th icon from the top).

Pop quiz – image formats
1

[ 263 ]

Pop Quiz Answers

Pop quiz – circles
1

c
Use the circle tool in the toolbox and press the Ctrl
key while resizing it.

Pop quiz – joining objects
1

a
Make sure all of the objects are selected on your
canvas that you want to join together in a union
first and then select Path | Union. More details
about this, grouping, and combining paths will be
discussed in Chapter 7, Creating paths into complex
shapes" to "Using Paths"

Pop quiz – deleting
1

Pop quiz – viewable grid
1

Chapter 5, How to Work with Layers
Pop quiz – Layers dialog
1

[ 264 ]

Appendix D

Pop quiz – background colors
1

c
All Inkscape files are transparent by
default. We had set the document
properties to have a white solid
background for our web design mockup
so that it would be consistent with how
the web page would be coded.

Pop quiz – undo last action
1

Chapter 6, Building Objects
Pop quiz – changing Fill and Stroke
TRUE or FALSE: No matter what
way you use to change fill and
stroke of an object in Inkscape, it
all has the same outcome for the
object on your canvas.

TRUE.
By using the Fill and Stroke dialog,
the dropper tool, or the color
palette you are changing the same
attributes on the object.

Pop quiz – shortcut keys to quickly ungroup items
1

[ 265 ]

Pop Quiz Answers

Chapter 7, Using Paths
Pop quiz – remove the last node movement
1

d
Either using the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + Z
or Edit | Undo works!

Pop quiz – paths
1

d
Almost any object you create in Inkscape can be
converted to a path so you can add effects or
move nodes to get the desired effect

Chapter 8, How to Style Text
Pop quiz – font options
1

e
There is no option to underline in Inkscape.
Instead you can use other tools to draw a line
under any text you wish to have underlined.

Pop Quiz – transparency
1

b
It is actually transparent. For a mask to work,
like in the example in this chapter, you need to
change the Alpha setting to white. Masking takes
the shades of gray onto the “bottom” object. If
the Alpha setting was set at transparent then the
reflection would also be transparent.

[ 266 ]

Appendix D

Chapter 9, Using Filters
Pop quiz – common icon sizes
1

b
All the others listed can be seen in the icon
preview option in Inkscape (View | Icon
Preview).

Chapter 10, Extensions in Inkscape
Pop quiz – what are extensions?
TRUE OR FALSE: Extensions add
new capabilities to Inkscape
and thus extend its features or
functionality and on their own,
outside of their use in Inkscape,
wouldn’t work correctly.

TRUE.
Most Inkscape extensions are
created using Python or Perl
programming languages.

Chapter 11, Working with Images
Pop quiz – Open Clip Art
1

d
You can indeed use any image from the Open Clip
Art Library in your work—all are downloadable in
SVG format, editable, and you can adjust them as
necessary for your own designs.

[ 267 ]

Pop Quiz Answers

Chapter 12, Using the XML Editor
Pop quiz – sodipodi tag
1

a
The sodipodi tag is the only one attribute that
is Inkscape-only. It comes from the roots of the
Inkscape application which was branched from
the Sodipodi program, and thus the sodipodi tag
in the SVG editor.

[ 268 ]

Index
Symbols
3D box tool 254
365 Sketches blog, Design/Graphic Category 250
.ai. See Adobe Illustrator
.eps. See Encapsulated Post Script file
.Fhx. See Adobe Freehand
.pdf. See Adobe Acrobat Portable Document
Format
.psd. See Adobe Photoshop
.svg file 9
.svg format 9, 10

A
Add Layer dialog 108
Adobe Acrobat Portable Document Format 9
Adobe Freehand 9
Adobe Illustrator 9
Adobe Photoshop 9
Align and Distribute dialog 94, 96, 168, 224, 254
Align and Distribute Objects icon 94, 224
alignment 257
Alt + B 255
Alt + D 255
Alt + I 255
Alt + [ or ] keys, hot keys 176
Alt + > or < keys, hot keys 176
Alt + right or left arrows, hot keys 176
Alt + Shift + arrows, hot keys 176
arc
creating, steps 75-78

attributes
about 257
types 237
attributes, XML editor screen 236

B
b 254
Background layer 99
backgrounds 257
basic object shortcuts, keyboard shortcuts
Alt + B 255
Alt + D 255
Alt + I 255
Ctrl + 7 255
Ctrl + Alt + V 255
Ctrl + C 255
Ctrl + D 255
Ctrl + V 255
Ctrl + X 255
End 255
Home 255
PageDown 255
PageUp 255
Shift + Alt + B 255
Shift + Alt + D 255
Shift + Alt + I 255
Shift + Ctrl + CTRL, Ctrl + Z 255
Shift + Ctrl + G, Ctrl + U 255
Shift + Ctrl + U, Ctrl + G 255
Shift + Ctrl + V 255
Shift + D 255

batch images
exporting 52-54
Bezier (Pen) 66, 82
Bezier tool
about 84, 254
womans face shape, creating 146
bitmap
tracing 255
bitmap copy
creating 255
blend mode
about 112
using, steps 112, 113
Blend mode drop-down menu 113
Blend mode option 112
blogs, InkScape
365 Sketches, Design/Graphic Category 250
about 257
Screencasters.Heathenx.org, How-To category
250
Tavmjong Bah’s Blog, Informational/How-to
Category 250
URL 21
blur 123
Blur slider 226
borders
displaying, pop quiz answers 263
brochure files
building 14, 15
buttons 257

C
c 254
Calligraphy tool 66, 254
canvas 257
Cascading Style Sheet. See CSS
CD cover
creating 37, 38
Center on Vertical Axis icon 95
circle tool
about 112
pop quiz answers 264
clip art
URL 21, 249

clipboard
pasting 255
clipping
about 133
objects 133-141
clone
object 255
unlink 255
closed paths 66
color palette bar
about 126
pop quiz answers 265
using, steps 126, 127
community, InkScape
Inkscape Development Online Discussion, URL
250
official forums, URL 250
official mailing lists, URL 250
User FAQ, URL 250
compound paths 66
connector tool 254
contrast 257
Create and Edit Objects tool 94
Create and Edit tool 94
CSS 257
Ctrl 254
Ctrl + 7 255
Ctrl + Alt + V 255
Ctrl + B, hot keys 176
Ctrl + C 255
Ctrl + D 255
Ctrl + F 255
Ctrl + F1 254
Ctrl + F2 254
Ctrl + F6 254
Ctrl + I 253
Ctrl + I, hot keys 176
Ctrl + left/right arrows, keyboard shortcuts 176
Ctrl + N 253
Ctrl + O 253
Ctrl + [ or ], hot keys 176
Ctrl + P 253
Ctrl + Q 253
Ctrl + S 253
Ctrl + Shift + Home, keyboard shortcuts
about 176
for Mac OS 176
[ 270 ]

Ctrl + Shift + left/right arrows, keyboard
shortcuts 176
Ctrl + V 255
Ctrl + X 255
current layer 103
cut path, path option 167

D
d 254
Dashes field 125
deleting
pop quiz answers 264
diagram 258
dialog boxes
closing 31
displaying 31
floating 31
minimizing 31
multiple dialog boxes, displaying 31
dialogs 258
dialog windows, keyboard shortcuts
Ctrl + F 255
Shift + Alt + B 255
Shift + Ctrl + 7 255
Shift + Ctrl + A 254
Shift + Ctrl + D 254
Shift + Ctrl + E 255
Shift + Ctrl + F 254
Shift + Ctrl + L 254
Shift + Ctrl + M 254
Shift + Ctrl + O 254
Shift + Ctrl + P 255
Shift + Ctrl + T 254
Shift + Ctrl + X 254
difference, path option 166
Distribute Centers Equidistantly Horizontally
button 96
division, path option 166
DMG file 19
Dockable dialogs
about 30, 31
floating 33
document
customizd default document, creating 51
customized default document, creating 50

printing 253
saving 253
documentation
URL 249
document dimensions
custom file size, creating for postcard 39-41
customizing 39
print bleed, adding 43
print-safe border, adding 41-43
Document Preferences 254
Document Properties window 68
Double-click on letters, keyboard shortcuts 176
drawing
exporting 47
drawing layer 26, 90
dropper
about 127
using, steps 128
Dropper tool 254

E
e 254
Edit Paths by Nodes tool 147, 150, 153, 161
ellipse
about 74, 112
creating 74
Ellipse/arc tool 254
embedding
about 59
logo, into design 59, 60
embedding images
versus linking 62
Encapsulated Post Script file 9
End 255
exclusion, path option 166
Export Bitmap option 47
exporting
drawing 47
page 47
selection 47
to PNG 47, 48
versus save as 49
versus save as, pop quiz answers 262
extensions
about 213, 214, 258
installation 215
[ 271 ]

pop quiz answers 267
tutorials, examples 214, 215
URL 214

F
F1 254
F3 254
F4 254
F5, e 254
F6 254
F7 254
F8 254
F9 254
file formats
pop quiz, answers 262
portability, pop quiz answers 263
file menu shortcuts, keyboard shortcuts
Ctrl + I 253
Ctrl + N 253
Ctrl + O 253
Ctrl + P 253
Ctrl + Q 253
Ctrl + S 253
Shift + Ctrl + Alt + S 253
Shift + Ctrl + E 253
Shift + Ctrl + S 253
files
creating 35
embedding 59
embedding, in Inkscape 59
linking 58
pop quiz, answers 262
predefined-sized document dimensions, using
36, 37
fill 258
Fill and Stroke dialog
about 121-124, 167, 195, 226, 254
blur 123
color picker 122, 123
opacity 123
pop quiz answers 265
type of fill 122
using, steps 121
Fill tab 122, 126
filter editor 192

filters
about 191
pop quiz answers 267
using 193-196
using, with images 199-201
using, with text 197, 198
find 255
find and replace
performing, steps 182
flipcase, text effects 184
Floss Manuals
URL 250
flow chart 258
font 258
font options
pop quiz answers 266
for developers
URL 21
forums
URL 21
freehand object
lightening bolt, closing 83
lightening bolt, creating 82, 83
freehand tool 82, 254

G
g 254
galleries
URL 21, 249
geometrical primitives 65
GIMP 258
GNU General Public License. See GPL
GNU Image Manipulation Program. See GIMP
GPL 17
Gradient tool 254
grid
about 258
pop quiz answers 264
viewing 84
Group selected objects 255
guides
about 258
creating 87, 88

[ 272 ]

H
handle 258
height attribute 239
Help | Tutorials 249
Home 255
homepage, InkScape
clip art, URL 249
for developers, URL 249
galleries, URL 249
manual and documentation, URL 249
wiki, URL 249
hot keys
Alt + [ or ] keys 176
Alt + > or < keys 176
Alt + right or left arrows 176
Alt + Shift + arrows 176
Alt + Up or down arrows 176
Ctrl + B 176
Ctrl + I 176
Ctrl + [ or ] 176

I
i 254
icon
about 258
creating 167-169
icon sizes
pop quiz answers 267
Icon View option 170
id attribute 240
image files
embedding 59
image embedding, limitations 59
linking 58
image formats
pop quiz answers 263
image object 245
images
about 245
filters, using 199-201
tracing 201
tracing, potrace used 202-204
Import From Open Clip Art Library dialog box
218

Inkscape
about 7
arc, creating 75-78
blogs 250
community 250
dialog box, closing 31
dialog boxes, displaying 31
dialog box, floating 31
dialog box, minimizing 31
dockable dialogs 30, 31
document, opening 67, 68
downloading 19, 20
drawing layer 26
ellipse, creating 74
extensions 213
external files, linking 61
exiting 253
features 17, 18
files, embedding 59
filters 191
getting started 22-25
grid, viewing 84, 85
guides, creating 87, 88
Help | Tutorials 249
homepage 249
homepage, URL 21, 249
installation, troubleshooting 20, 21
installing 18
keyboard shortcuts 253
layout information 26
logo, embedding in design 59, 60
main screen 28
multiple dialog box, displaying 31
notification area 26
objects 115
opacity setting 26
PDF, importing 56-58
pointer or cursor position 27
pop quiz, answers 261
pre-requisites 18
running on Mac OS X, requisite 18
shape options, changing 70, 71
shapes, combining 78- 81
software basics 21
star, creating 69, 70
style Indicator 25

[ 273 ]

SVG, files saving in 44
SVG, saving 45, 46
templates 210
tutorials 249
tutorials, examples 214, 215
twitter, resources on 251
unit of measure, changing 86
vector graphic, creating 67
vector graphic, saving 72, 73
website, URL 19
window resize 27
XML editor 231, 232
zoom tool 27
Inkscape Development Online Discussion
URL 250
Inkscape, external files linking
photograph, linking into brochure design 61, 62
Inkscape file
non-native Inkscape files, importing 55
saving 44
saving, as PDF 49
saving, in Inkscape SVG 44
Inkscape Preferences 255
Inkscape SVG
about 237
files, saving in 44
saving 45, 46
Inkscape Tutorials weblog
URL 250
intersection, path option 166

K
kerning
about 173
text 174, 175
keyboard shortcuts
basic object shortcuts 255
Ctrl + left/right arrows 176
Ctrl + Shift + End 176

for Mac OS 176

Ctrl + Shift + Home 176
Ctrl + Shift + left/right arrows 176
dialog windows 254, 255
Double-click on letters 176
file menu shortcuts 253
from developers, URL 253

graphical version, URL 253
Shift + End 176
Shift + Home 176
Shift + left/right arrows 176
tools shortcuts 254
Triple-click 176

L
last node movement
pop quiz answers 266
Layer 1 92
Layer name field 92, 108
layers
about 89, 90, 254, 258
arranging 105
creating, steps 91, 92
deleting 110
deleting, steps 110, 111
dialog 92
drawing layer 90
duplicating 104
duplicating, steps 104
hiding 99
hiding, steps 100-103
locking, steps 98, 99
moving 105-107
nested 108
objects, moving from one layer to another 109
pop quiz answers 264
renaming 109
renaming, steps 109
using, in example drawing 93
using, in web design 93-96
Layers dialog 91
Layers icon 91
layout information 26
lightening bolt example, freehand object
closing 83
creating 82, 83
linking
about 58
versus embedding images 62
versus embedding images, pop quiz answers
263
lock 258
logo 258

[ 274 ]

Lorem Ipsum 259
Lower selection one step 255
Lower selection to bottom 255

M
mailing list
URL 21
manual
URL 249
manual and documentation
URL 21
masking
about 133
objects 142, 143
Multiply blend 114

N
non-vector formats
vector graphics, disadvantages 11
notification area 26

O
o 254
object characteristics
changing, XML Editor used 246-248
Object Properties 254
objects
about 115
converting, to paths 163-165
creating 116
creating, steps 116-120
grouping, steps 129-132
masking 142, 143
pop quiz answers 264
rotating 80
transforming, into paths 155
Object(s) to pattern 255
object to path 163-165
official forums
URL 250
official mailing lists
URL 250
opacity
about 123
setting 26

Open Clip Art Library
about 18, 217, 259
pop quiz answers 267
uses 218
using (Mac users only) 218, 219
open paths 66
open-standard vector format
advantages 10
SVG vector images, advantages 10
org chart. See organizational chart
organizational chart 259
original
selecting 255

P
p 254
page
exporting 47
PageDown 255
PageUp 255
Paint Bucket tool 254
panning 259
pasting
in place 255
path effect 255
style 255
path effects 255
pathid attributes 242
path options
about 166
cut path 167
difference 166
division 166
exclusion 166
intersection 166
union 166
paths
about 66, 239, 259
Bezier (Pen) 66
Bezier tool, using 146
Calligraphy tool 66
closed paths 66
compound paths 66
creating, ways 66
open paths 66

[ 275 ]

Pencil (Freehand) 66
pop quiz answers 266
using, for text 177-179
working with 145, 146
Pattern to object(s) 255
PDF
importing, into Inkscape 56-58
Pencil (Freehand) 66
Pencil tool 254
Pen tool 254
photo manipulation
about 219
background, blurring 220-227
photograph, blurring 220-227
Plain SVG 237
plugins 259
PNG
exporting to 47, 48, 253, 255
pointer or cursor position 27
polygons
and polylines, differences 243
creating, steps for 67
polylines
and polygons, differences 243
pop quiz
answers 261-268
postcard
new custom file size, creating 39-41
potrace
about 201
used, for tracing images 202-204
predefined-sized document dimensions
using 36, 37
print bleed
adding 43
print-safe border
adding 41- 43
project files
batch images, exporting 52-54
multiple file projects, managing 52
structuring 51
properties 259
properties, XML editor screen 236
proximity 259

R
r 254
Raise selection one step 255
Raise selection to top 255
random case, text effects 184
rasterized graphics
usage determining 11-13
rasterized images
about 259
versus vector 13, 14
raster logos
converting, to vector-based image 228
converting, to vector-based logos 228
Really Simple Syndication. See RSS feed
rectangle tool 254
redo 255
reflection
creating 185-188
Rename Layer dialog 110
repetition 259
RSS feed 259

S
s 254
save as
versus export 49
Scalable Vector Graphics. See SVG
scans 259
Screencasters.Heathenx.org blog, How-To category
URL 250
Scribus 8
scripts 260
Search for
field 218
selection
copying 255
cutting 255
duplicate 255
exporting 47
selector 254
sentence case, text effects 183

[ 276 ]

shapes
about 78, 239, 260
circle 239
closed shape, text placing within 179, 180
combining 78-81
ellipse 239
line 239
options, changing 70, 71
polygon 239
polyline 239
pop quiz answers 263
rectangle 239
switching 69, 70
Shift + Alt + B 255
Shift + Alt + D 255
Shift + Alt + I 255
Shift + Ctrl + 7 255
Shift + Ctrl + A 254
Shift + Ctrl + Alt + S 253
Shift + Ctrl + CTRL, Ctrl + Z 255
Shift + Ctrl + D 254
Shift + Ctrl + E 253, 255
Shift + Ctrl + F 254
Shift + Ctrl + G, Ctrl + U 255
Shift + Ctrl + L 254
Shift + Ctrl + M 254
Shift + Ctrl + O 254
Shift + Ctrl + P 255
Shift + Ctrl + S 253
Shift + Ctrl + T 254
Shift + Ctrl + U, Ctrl + G 255
Shift + Ctrl + V 255
Shift + Ctrl + X 254
Shift + D 255
Shift + End, keyboard shortcuts
about 176
for Mac OS 176
Shift + F2 254
Shift + F4 254
Shift + F6 254
Shift + F7 254
Shift + F9 254
Shift + Home, keyboard shortcuts
about 176
for MAC OS 176

Shift + left/right arrows, keyboard shortcuts 176
Simple Interactive Object Extraction. See SIOX
SIOX 201, 205, 206, 260
site map 260
site tree 260
sodipodi tag
pop quiz answers 268
space 254
spiral tool 254
star
creating 69, 70
star tool 254
storefronts 260
stroke
about 260
to paths 155
Stroke paint tab 124
stroke to paths
about 155
spiros and swirls, creating 155-162
structure, XML editor screen 234
style attribute 241
style Indicator 25
SVG
about 9, 18, 259
exporting to 253
open-standard vector format, advantages 10
SVG basics
about 237
attribute types 237, 238
basic attributes 238
SVG document
opening 253
SVG vector images
advantages, over open standard vector formats
10
swatches 254

T
t 254
Tavmjong Bah’s Blog, Informational/How-to
Category 250
templates
about 210, 260
custom template, creating 213
custom templates, creating 212
[ 277 ]

existing template, modifying 212, 213
installing 210
installing, steps 211
text
about 245
filters, using with 197, 198
path, using for 177-179
placing, within closed shape 179, 180
Text and Font 254
text and font editor
about 171
opening 172
using 172, 173
text effects
about 182
flipcase 184
random case 184
sentence case 183
title case 183
uppercase and lowercase 183
using, steps 183
text styling 260
text tool (A icon) 172, 254
T icon 172
title case, text effect 183
tools shortcuts, keyboard shortcuts
b 254
c 254
Ctrl 254
Ctrl + F1 254
Ctrl + F2 254
Ctrl + F6 254
d 254
e 254
F1 254
F3 254
F4 254
F5 254
F6 254
F7 254
F8 254
F9 254
g 254
i 254
o 254
p 254
r 254

s 254
Shift + F2 254
Shift + F4 254
Shift + F6 254
Shift + F7 254
Shift + F9 254
space 254
t 254
u 254
x 254
z 254
Trace Bitmap dialog box 228
tracing 260
transform 254
transparency
pop quiz answers 266
tree, XML editor screen 234
Triple-click, keyboard 176
tutorials, InkScape
Floss Manuals, URL 250
Inkscape Tutorials weblog, URL 250
Vector Graphics, 35 tutorials for creating 250
tweak tool 254
twitter resources, InkScape
for design examples 251
for education and tutorials 251
for fun 251
for open source information 251

U
u 254
undo 255
Undo History 254
undo last action
pop quiz answers 265
Ungroup selected group(s) 255
union, path option 166
unit of measure, changing 86
uppercase and lowercase, text effect 183
User FAQ
URL 250

V
vector-based logos
raster logos, converting to 228
vector formats 9
[ 278 ]

vector graphics
about 8, 260
Adobe InDesign 8
brochure files, building 14, 15
characteristics 8
creating 9, 67
disadvantages over non-vector formats 11
new document, opening 67, 68
polygon, creating 67
pop quiz, answers 261
Quark Xpress 8
saving 72, 73
Scribus 8
shape options, changing 70, 71
star, creating 69, 70
usage determining 11, 13
used, by programs 8
versus rasterized images 13, 14

W
wallpapers 260
web design
layers, using 93-96
width attribute 239

wiki
URL 21, 249
window resize 27

X
x 254
xlink:href attribute 245
XML editor
about 231, 232, 254, 260
accessing, steps for 232, 233
basics 234
pop quiz answers 268
screen 234
using, to change object characteristics 246,
247, 248
XML editor screen
attributes 236
layer 235
properties 236
structure 234
tree 234

Z
z 254
zoom tool 27, 254, 260

[ 279 ]

Thank you for buying

Inkscape Beginner's Guide
About Packt Publishing
Packt, pronounced 'packed', published its first book "Mastering phpMyAdmin for Effective
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Inkscape 0.48 Illustrator's Cookbook
ISBN: 978-1-84951-266-4
Paperback: 340 pages
109 recipes to create scalable vector graphics with
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Create interesting illustrations and common web
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Inkscape 0.48 Essentials for Web Designers
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Paperback: 316 pages
Use the fascinating Inkscape graphics editor to create
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The first book on the newly released Inkscape
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Please check www.PacktPub.com for information on our titles

GIMP 2.6 cookbook
ISBN: 978-1-84951-202-2

Paperback: 408 pages

Over 50 recipes to produce amazing graphics with
the GIMP
1.

Recipes for working with the GIMP, the most
powerful open source graphics package in the world

Straightforward instructions guide you through the
tasks to unleash your true creativity without being
hindered by the system

Part of Packt's cookbook series – practical and
efficient

LaTeX Beginner's Guide
ISBN: 978-1-84719-986-7

Paperback: 336 pages

Create high-quality and professional-looking texts,
articles, and books for business and science using
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Install LaTeX; download, set up, and use additional
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