Book Image

Inkscape Beginner's Guide

By : Bethany Hiitola
Book Image

Inkscape Beginner's Guide

By: Bethany Hiitola

Overview of this book

Learning to use Inkscape, an exciting open-source vector graphics program, broadens your software toolkit as a graphic designer. Using practical, real-world examples, you'll learn everything about the software and its capabilities so you'll be able to design anything from logos to websites.Inkscape Beginner's Guide is a practical step-by-step guide for learning this exciting vector graphics software. Not only will it take you through each menu item and toolbar, but you will also learn about creating complex shapes, text styling, filters, working with images, extensions, and the XML editoróall using real world examples.The book starts with an overview of vector graphics and how best to use them when designing for digital and print mediums. Then we install Inkscape and start learning all the ins and outs of the software. You'll build your first vector graphic while learning best practices for using layers, and build simple and complex objects with shapes and paths that will ultimately become exciting graphics to be used in your designs. Beyond designing sample logos and brochures while learning the software, you'll also learn how to use filters, install and use extensions, and the ins-and-outs of SVG and the XML Editor in Inkscape.
Table of Contents (18 chapters)
14
B. Keyboard Shortcuts
15
C. Glossary of Terms
17
Index

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...