Skip to content

Inkscape

inkscape.jpg

If you don’t want to fork out 300 bucks for Adobe Illustrator Inkscape is definitely an alternative. Inkscape is an open-source alternative to software like Illustrator, Xara and Freehand. It has most of the stuff commercial software has, but with a slightly different interface. The developers used the GNOME Human Interface guidelines when designing the program. It is pretty clear that Inkscape has a legacy from another open source illustration program, Xara Xtreme. As a matter of fact the two open-source projects are sharing some features and experiences.

If you come from an Adobe-world like me you will probably be annoyed of the different interface, but after a while one discovers that it’s pretty nice and even uses logic. Of course there is also the process of re-learning all the shortcut keys (why can’t someone standardize them).

A drawback with Inkscape is that it doesn’t handle file-formats from Adobe Illustrator and Freehand. So if you are going over to Inkscape, don’t forget to save your Adobe-files as SVG or EPS. Inkscape can save to some interesting formats, most noteworthy PDF. The PDF saving feature is fast and does the job without any problems at all.

I tested Inkscape with Windows Vista and had no stability problems whatsoever. It runs smooth, and feels a lot faster than similar Adobe products. It also takes considerably less time to load. There are also versions of Inkscape for MAC OS X and Linux. The program is considerably small; the installer is just 21 MB. It’s even possible to carry Inkscape around on a USB-stick.

There is one down-side with Inkscape, the program can’t export to Flash and it has no built in animation capability. But for pure illustration purposes Inkscape is quite competitive and is a great product for amateurs as well as pros.

Published inDesign and PhotoUncategorized

Be First to Comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

By continuing to use the site, you agree to the use of cookies. more information

The cookie settings on this website are set to "allow cookies" to give you the best browsing experience possible. If you continue to use this website without changing your cookie settings or you click "Accept" below then you are consenting to this.

Close