I'm a newcomer to Inkscape so apologies if this is obvious... is it possible to set up a bunch of "custom" objects? i can do it by putting them in a separate window and copying them, but it'd be handy to have them tucked in below box, circle, star, etc. i was thinking about this because i just recently did that in visio {i think they're called "stencils" there}. thanks
{and kudos:Inkscape is really quite amazing}
/Bernie\ Bernie Cosell bernie@...3350... com — Too many people, too few sheep —
Hi Bernie, Could you elaborate a little bit more about what you're doing. Could you give us a link to an example or something? I can't quite imagine what you mean by "custom object" and "tucked in below box, circle, star, etc...."
With Inkscape, you could click on the Rectangle tool, and draw a rectangle. Ellipse tool and draw a circle or ellipse (or wedge or arc); Star tool and draw all kinds of stars, and by using Shift or Alt keys, make some really amazing kinds of designs.
I always suggest Help menu > Tutorials > Basic and Shapes, for beginners. After that, move on to Advanced (and don't worry, it's not really advanced - it's an introduction to paths, which I tend to think of as the most basic elements of vector drawings). Those 3 tutorials are how I first started with Inkscape.
Or maybe someone else might be familiar with Visio and already understands what you're asking? But if your answer isn't posted, if you could explain a little more what you're doing, it would help me to give a better answer.
All best, brynn
-----Original Message----- From: Bernie Cosell Sent: Saturday, July 28, 2018 12:03 PM To: inkscape-user@lists.sourceforge.net Subject: [Inkscape-user] custom objects?
I'm a newcomer to Inkscape so apologies if this is obvious... is it possible to set up a bunch of "custom" objects? i can do it by putting them in a separate window and copying them, but it'd be handy to have them tucked in below box, circle, star, etc. i was thinking about this because i just recently did that in visio {i think they're called "stencils" there}. thanks
{and kudos:Inkscape is really quite amazing}
/Bernie\ Bernie Cosell bernie@...3350... com — Too many people, too few sheep —
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On 29 Jul 2018 at 6:17, brynn wrote:
Could you elaborate a little bit more about what you're doing.Could you give us a link to an example or something?
I want to do something akin to what I've done in apps like Illustrator and Visio. For those, one big convenience is being able to define "custom" objects [e.g., if you're doing a floor plan, you have things like outlines of tables, chairs, etc] What I would like to do [don't laugh..:o)] is make crochet charts. They look like this:
http://rukodelie.by/02/v600141_1.gif
They're pretty awful to do by hand, and there are tools that do it but very badly. Inkscape can easily do the kinds of things you need for that sort of thing.
What I'd like to do is "predefine" all of the different stitch graphics, and the be able to drag-and-drop them easily into the graphic. I know how to do paths and such and I can make the various stitches and my plan a for doing this is to have on inkscape drawing that has only the various stitches in it. Then when I start another, I can open a second screen and copy the various glyphs over into the new screen as I need them. But what would be cool would be to somehow load that little "library of glyphs" in Inkscape so I could do everything in just one window and in one drawing directly.
If not, that's OK: the two-pane solution works. I was just wondering if there might be a trick to be able to drag-and-drop the new glyphs.
/Bernie\
Bernie Cosell bernie@...3349... -- Too many people; too few sheep --
I'd look into "symbols" ... (Menu: Object>Symbols, or Ctrl+Shift+Y).
Symbols are objects saved in a dialog that can be dragged into the workspace. Custom symbols can be created, saved and used across documents.
TD
On Sun, Jul 29, 2018 at 8:59 AM, Bernie Cosell <bernie@...3349...> wrote:
On 29 Jul 2018 at 6:17, brynn wrote:
Could you elaborate a little bit more about what you're doing.Could you give us a link to an example or something?
I want to do something akin to what I've done in apps like Illustrator and Visio. For those, one big convenience is being able to define "custom" objects [e.g., if you're doing a floor plan, you have things like outlines of tables, chairs, etc] What I would like to do [don't laugh..:o)] is make crochet charts. They look like this:
http://rukodelie.by/02/v600141_1.gif
They're pretty awful to do by hand, and there are tools that do it but very badly. Inkscape can easily do the kinds of things you need for that sort of thing.
What I'd like to do is "predefine" all of the different stitch graphics, and the be able to drag-and-drop them easily into the graphic. I know how to do paths and such and I can make the various stitches and my plan a for doing this is to have on inkscape drawing that has *only* the various stitches in it. Then when I start another, I can open a second screen and copy the various glyphs over into the new screen as I need them. But what would be cool would be to somehow load that little "library of glyphs" in Inkscape so I could do everything in just one window and in one drawing directly.
If not, that's OK: the two-pane solution works. I was just wondering if there might be a trick to be able to drag-and-drop the new glyphs.
/Bernie\
Bernie Cosell bernie@...3349...-- Too many people; too few sheep --
Check out the vibrant tech community on one of the world's most engaging tech sites, Slashdot.org! http://sdm.link/slashdot _______________________________________________ Inkscape-user mailing list Inkscape-user@lists.sourceforge.net https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/inkscape-user
On Sun, 29 Jul 2018 08:59:43 -0400 "Bernie Cosell" <bernie@...3349...> wrote:
On 29 Jul 2018 at 6:17, brynn wrote:
Could you elaborate a little bit more about what you'redoing. Could you give us a link to an example or something?
I want to do something akin to what I've done in apps like Illustrator and Visio. For those, one big convenience is being able to define "custom" objects [e.g., if you're doing a floor plan, you have things like outlines of tables, chairs, etc] What I would like to do [don't laugh..:o)] is make crochet charts. They look like this:
I'm sorry, I laughed. :-)
They're pretty awful to do by hand, and there are tools that do it but very badly. Inkscape can easily do the kinds of things you need for that sort of thing.
What I'd like to do is "predefine" all of the different stitch graphics,
Your pattern looks pretty mathematical to me. Wouldn't "all" be a mighty big number?
I'm sure others on this list will steer you exactly where you want to go, but in case they can't, I have an idea (discussed later).
and the be able to drag-and-drop them easily into the graphic. I know how to do paths and such and I can make the various stitches and my plan a for doing this is to have on inkscape drawing that has only the various stitches in it.
Here's my idea. Your pattern is really just math with a few variables. For instance, the one you showed us appears to split the circle into 8 arcs. Not 4, not 6, not 12, but 8. You have number of arcs, you have number of rings, and I'm sure you have some variables about what tiny shapes to construct the rings with.
You could pretty easily write a Python program that inputs those variables and outputs a piece of SVG representing your pattern, which can be pasted into your Inkscape drawing's text representation. From there it can be used in a purely Inkscape context.
One benefit of doing this is you could easily make pattern's you've never dreamed of. I bet you never made a pattern with 7 arcs, right?
For what it's worth, I don't crochet, but I find the pattern you referenced very visually pleasant and entertaining. It's like a pattern that would have appeared on the box for the playing cards tucked away in my grandmother's mothball-smelling closet.
SteveT
Steve Litt Author: The Key to Everyday Excellence http://www.troubleshooters.com/key Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/stevelitt
On Sun, Jul 29, 2018 at 4:51 PM, Steve Litt <slitt@...2357...> wrote:
I'm sorry, I laughed. :-)
Hmph. Crochet is no laughing matter. ;)
Here are some of mine: http://www.yakyak.org/viewtopic.php?f=32&t=86850
Your pattern looks pretty mathematical to me. Wouldn't "all" be a
mighty big number?
It may look mathematical, but each symbol just represents a different type of stitch - of which there are a practically limited number. There are only a few basic stitches: chain, double crochet, treble crochet and (rarely used) quadruple crochet (UK naming convention), with some minor variants on some of those (half treble crochet, for example). Each symbol is drawn roughly in proportion to the length the final stitch occupies, such that the final pattern of the work is visible in the chart (with a little imagination).
This particular pattern happens to be broadly symmetrical but that doesn't have to be the case. Any flat crochet pattern can be represented in this way. Most are square, rectangular, circular or hexagonal, but they don't have to be (e.g. for clothing, such as jumpers/sweaters). So trying to write a python script to create them might work for a small subset of patterns, but I can't see it ever being a general purpose answer.
As others have mentioned, the Symbols dialog is nominally the way to go for this - although I would be inclined to just have a second file with the symbols in, and copy/paste a "master" copy of each stitch into your working document, then use the "stamp" capability to place them. This is where you drag an object, then hit the space bar wherever you want a copy placed. Unfortunately it won't handle rotating them for you, so you'll have to go through and sort them out afterwards.
[Aside: Actually that might be an interesting feature to add to Inkscape - a "Polar Mode". This would require the ability to set a global centre of rotation and a toggle that, when enabled would mean that moving an object also rotates it. Perhaps in that mode CTRL would limit the movement to radially/circumferentially (that's a word, right) rather than horizontally/vertically. It would make creating circular designs so much easier.]
For largely symmetric designs you can potentially save a lot of time by creating one section, grouping it so it's easier to work with, then copy-pasting (and rotating) to create the other sections. You can then enter each group to make any fine adjustments you need.
Mark
Ooohhh, now I understand!
I learned how to crochet as a teenager, but I've never seen a chart like that. Actually I remember how to perform the stitches more than I remember how the instructions were written. But they weren't in a chart like that. Well plus, I've only ever made things like scarves and afghans - nice square things, haha. I can see how that kind of chart would be helpful for more complicated things.
Well anyway, Symbols, as TD suggested, would be one good solution. Object menu
Symbols.
Unfortunately, the Symbols dialog has been added to Inkscape after the last manual update, so there's nothing in the manual about it. But I seem to recall a wiki article about it. Let's see if I can find....
Yes, here we go: http://wiki.inkscape.org/wiki/index.php/SymbolsDialog That will give you the basics for making and using symbols on the canvas.
Without re-reading that page, I seem to recall that Inkscape give the symbols some generic names, or IDs. If you would like custom names for them, you can do that as well. With the symbol selected, Objects menu > Object Properties > ID and/or Label
And then.....it seems like I've seen a tutorial for making a custom symbols file, which you could install in Inkscape. That would make it available in every file; whereas, if you use only the info in that wiki article, the symbols will only be available in the document where you create them. I don't know if I can find it, let's see....
Oh wow, I found it! https://medium.com/@xaviju/creating-your-own-symbol-library-in-inkscape-0-91...
Oh, actually there's one bit of incorrect info in it. The author tells you to save the file in the program directory (inkscape/share). But it really should be saved in your user directory, which can be found in Inkscape Preferences > System > User Config. At the end of that path, add \icons It should already exist, but if it doesn't, you can create such a folder there.
(If you put it in the program directory, the file might be lost the next time you install a new version of Inkscape. In the user directory, it will always be available, no matter how many times you upgrade Inkscape.)
Getting back to the main subject, there is another, older solution for this, which is covered in an excellent, 3-part tutorial. It was written waaayy before the Symbols dialog existed. But just in case you might prefer this technique instead, for some reason, here's the first tutorial of that series.
http://verysimpledesigns.com/vectors/inkscape-tutorial-fancy-borders.html
I don't know if you could utilize a custom template for this kind of work. But just in case, here's a tutorial for making a custom template:
http://libregraphicsworld.org/blog/entry/using-templates-in-inkscape
More than you ever wanted to know, right? :-D
But let us know if you get stuck or need other resources. Also, the website has a lot helpful info: inkscape.org
All best, brynn
-----Original Message----- From: Bernie Cosell Sent: Sunday, July 29, 2018 6:59 AM To: Inkscape User Community Subject: Re: [Inkscape-user] custom objects?
On 29 Jul 2018 at 6:17, brynn wrote:
Could you elaborate a little bit more about what you're doing.Could you give us a link to an example or something?
I want to do something akin to what I've done in apps like Illustrator and Visio. For those, one big convenience is being able to define "custom" objects [e.g., if you're doing a floor plan, you have things like outlines of tables, chairs, etc] What I would like to do [don't laugh..:o)] is make crochet charts. They look like this:
http://rukodelie.by/02/v600141_1.gif
They're pretty awful to do by hand, and there are tools that do it but very badly. Inkscape can easily do the kinds of things you need for that sort of thing.
What I'd like to do is "predefine" all of the different stitch graphics, and the be able to drag-and-drop them easily into the graphic. I know how to do paths and such and I can make the various stitches and my plan a for doing this is to have on inkscape drawing that has only the various stitches in it. Then when I start another, I can open a second screen and copy the various glyphs over into the new screen as I need them. But what would be cool would be to somehow load that little "library of glyphs" in Inkscape so I could do everything in just one window and in one drawing directly.
If not, that's OK: the two-pane solution works. I was just wondering if there might be a trick to be able to drag-and-drop the new glyphs.
/Bernie\
Bernie Cosell bernie@...3349... -- Too many people; too few sheep --
------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Check out the vibrant tech community on one of the world's most engaging tech sites, Slashdot.org! http://sdm.link/slashdot
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" ...But it really should be saved in your user directory, which can be
found in Inkscape Preferences > System > User Config. At the end of that path, add \icons It should already exist, but if it doesn't, you can create such a folder there."<<<
Actually,
All my custom symbols are saved in the user-profile's symbols folder: C:\Users\tylerdurden\AppData\Roaming\inkscape\symbols
And that article is truly over complicated... saving a custom symbols file is not much more than adding a title in the document properties panel and saving in the user-profile symbols folder.
Pro-tip: It's often a good idea to 'unset' the colors when adding symbols to the dialog... that way symbols can be colored at-will after dragging onto the canvas.
TD
On Sun, Jul 29, 2018 at 7:17 PM, brynn <brynn@...3089...> wrote:
Ooohhh, now I understand!
I learned how to crochet as a teenager, but I've never seen a chart like that. Actually I remember how to perform the stitches more than I remember how the instructions were written. But they weren't in a chart like that. Well plus, I've only ever made things like scarves and afghans - nice square things, haha. I can see how that kind of chart would be helpful for more complicated things.
Well anyway, Symbols, as TD suggested, would be one good solution. Object menu > Symbols.
Unfortunately, the Symbols dialog has been added to Inkscape after the last manual update, so there's nothing in the manual about it. But I seem to recall a wiki article about it. Let's see if I can find....
Yes, here we go: http://wiki.inkscape.org/wiki/index.php/SymbolsDialog That will give you the basics for making and using symbols on the canvas.
Without re-reading that page, I seem to recall that Inkscape give the symbols some generic names, or IDs. If you would like custom names for them, you can do that as well. With the symbol selected, Objects menu > Object Properties > ID and/or Label
And then.....it seems like I've seen a tutorial for making a custom symbols file, which you could install in Inkscape. That would make it available in every file; whereas, if you use only the info in that wiki article, the symbols will only be available in the document where you create them. I don't know if I can find it, let's see....
Oh wow, I found it! https://medium.com/@xaviju/cre ating-your-own-symbol-library-in-inkscape-0-91-and-make-your -front-end-developer-you-338588137aaf
Oh, actually there's one bit of incorrect info in it. The author tells you to save the file in the program directory (inkscape/share). But it really should be saved in your user directory, which can be found in Inkscape Preferences > System > User Config. At the end of that path, add \icons It should already exist, but if it doesn't, you can create such a folder there.
(If you put it in the program directory, the file might be lost the next time you install a new version of Inkscape. In the user directory, it will always be available, no matter how many times you upgrade Inkscape.)
Getting back to the main subject, there is another, older solution for this, which is covered in an excellent, 3-part tutorial. It was written waaayy before the Symbols dialog existed. But just in case you might prefer this technique instead, for some reason, here's the first tutorial of that series.
http://verysimpledesigns.com/vectors/inkscape-tutorial-fancy-borders.html
I don't know if you could utilize a custom template for this kind of work. But just in case, here's a tutorial for making a custom template:
http://libregraphicsworld.org/blog/entry/using-templates-in-inkscape
More than you ever wanted to know, right? :-D
But let us know if you get stuck or need other resources. Also, the website has a lot helpful info: inkscape.org
All best, brynn
-----Original Message----- From: Bernie Cosell Sent: Sunday, July 29, 2018 6:59 AM To: Inkscape User Community Subject: Re: [Inkscape-user] custom objects?
On 29 Jul 2018 at 6:17, brynn wrote:
Could you elaborate a little bit more about what you're doing.Could you give us a link to an example or something?
I want to do something akin to what I've done in apps like Illustrator and Visio. For those, one big convenience is being able to define "custom" objects [e.g., if you're doing a floor plan, you have things like outlines of tables, chairs, etc] What I would like to do [don't laugh..:o)] is make crochet charts. They look like this:
http://rukodelie.by/02/v600141_1.gif
They're pretty awful to do by hand, and there are tools that do it but very badly. Inkscape can easily do the kinds of things you need for that sort of thing.
What I'd like to do is "predefine" all of the different stitch graphics, and the be able to drag-and-drop them easily into the graphic. I know how to do paths and such and I can make the various stitches and my plan a for doing this is to have on inkscape drawing that has only the various stitches in it. Then when I start another, I can open a second screen and copy the various glyphs over into the new screen as I need them. But what would be cool would be to somehow load that little "library of glyphs" in Inkscape so I could do everything in just one window and in one drawing directly.
If not, that's OK: the two-pane solution works. I was just wondering if there might be a trick to be able to drag-and-drop the new glyphs.
/Bernie\
Bernie Cosell bernie@...3349...-- Too many people; too few sheep --
Check out the vibrant tech community on one of the world's most engaging tech sites, Slashdot.org! http://sdm.link/slashdot
Inkscape-user mailing list Inkscape-user@lists.sourceforge.net https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/inkscape-user
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participants (5)
-
Bernie Cosell -
brynn -
Mark Crutch -
Steve Litt -
Tyler Durden