On Fri, 2013-11-22 at 21:58 +0100, Tavmjong Bah wrote:
Hi,
Paul Krill from InfoWorld.com is preparing an on-line presentation of SVG tools. He has indicated that he wants to include Inkscape in his presentation and has contacted us through the Software Freedom Conservancy. I volunteered to answer his questions. I could use some help (and some feedback). I hope to be able to send him a reply in the next day. His questions are indicated by *'s with my tentative replies following. There are a couple of places I could really use some help as indicated.
Thanks for all the great feedback! Here is an updated version.
* What is the purpose of Inkscape? What are its main functions?
Creating vectorized drawings, anything from doodling or making a flier to serious artwork or technical illustrations.
A good summary of Inkscape functions can be found at:
http://staging.inkscape.org/en/about/features/
(We will be going live with a new website in the near future.)
Inkscape provides an easy to use interface for creating complex drawings. While Inkscape supports most of the SVG 1.1 standard, knowledge of the standard is not directly required.
* What does Inkscape do that other SVG tools do not?
Inkscape uses SVG as its native file format making it easy to publish documents on-line.
Inkscape has the widest support for creating documents targeting the SVG 1.1 standard.
Inkscape allows direct editing of the drawing source code through the XML editor.
Inkscape allows you to add scripts to the SVG code, both inside and outside of the program. The scripts are preserved during opening and saving files when editing the drawing.
Inkscape can edit SVG files created by other editors or by hand with minimum disturbance of the existing SVG file structure.
Inkscape can directly create complex filter effects. (It also includes a couple hundred canned effects.)
Inkscape has a well developed plug-in system that allows users to extend Inkscape's functionality in many unique ways. One area that has been particularly popular is directly driving plotters and engravers including the "Egg-Bot". See:
http://shop.evilmadscientist.com/productsmenu/tinykitlist/171-egg-bot
* Who developed it?
A team of volunteer developers. The developers have ranged from illustrators, graphic designers, and comic artists to scientists and programmers; each looking for a tool that they could expand to meet their needs.
* Is Inkscape an open source or commercial product? If it is commercial, can you provide a price range per-seat?
Inkscape is Free/Libre Open Source Software, and is licensed under an OSI and FSF approved license (GPL v2). Inkscape is available for free and the license permits free commercial use of the program. Inkscape can be downloaded from:
* How important is SVG, from your perspective?
Originally SVG was chosen as the native file format for Inkscape as it is an open standard. In a more general historical perspective, SVG did not gain the popularity on the Web it deserved due the lack of support in Internet Explorer and due to Adobe losing interest after purchasing Macromedia (i.e. Flash).
The inclusion of SVG as part of HTML5 and the addition of SVG rendering support in IE9 has resulted in a dramatic increase in interest in SVG. Adobe is once again on board and sees SVG (and HTML5) as the future. SVG is starting to appear on major websites such as this graphic from the New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2013/02/20/movies/among-the-oscar-contend...
and the home page of PBS Kids:
* Can you provide some screen shots or URLs with visuals of Inkscape?
There are screen shots at:
inkscape.org/screenshots/index.php
The screen shots are generally not licensed for commercial use. If you can be more specific about what you want, we can probably provide it.
* I understand from a user of Inkscape that it has not been upgraded in a while. Are there any plans to upgrade it soon?
We will have a major upgrade in the very near future. Inkscape's rendering engine underwent a complete rewrite resulting in a significant speed up in rendering complex drawings while reducing memory use. There were a number of regressions that have had to be dealt with. We are down to two blocking bugs and an assortment of other less serious bugs.
* Who is your employer and what is your title there?
I am self-employed as a writer and software developer. I represent Inkscape on the W3C SVG working group.