I have very happily been using Inkscape for several years. Due to a hard drive crash, I have just switched from Mac 10.6.8/Inkscape.46 to new device running Mac OS 10.13.4. Downloaded XQuartz (more on this later) and the suggested Inkscape .91.

Did some spot checks on changes with newer versions. The Document Properties option does not display. I read some posts this morning which I now cannot find. I do have 2 monitors, but both are open, and I have checked for a window open behind the Inkscape display. It was not there.

Also, none of the changes I made saved as I opened and closed Inkscape - like grids and guides and pixels to inches. I do not see a default.svg.

Here's the weird part. I shut everything down, and came back later. When I tried to open Inkscape again, the ONLY thing that displayed was the Document Properties box.

Though XQuartz is on the menu line, when I clicked on it to shut down, the options all say X11. Like "Quit X11". However, if I click on "About X11" the info for Xquartz displays.

Any help will be appreciated!

Maybe it is opening off screen. Not sure on a mac how to reel in a window offscreen. Maybe change screen resolution to a lower setting then back again.

FAQ has info on how to fix (if it's opening offscreen, with dual monitor setup):
https://inkscape.org/en/learn/faq/#wind ... itor-setup

Btw. the current Inkscape version for Mac is 0.92.2 - which you can get from https://inkscape.org/en/release/0.92.2/

Thank you for the replies and information.

This is what I have done (easiest first):

Lowered the resolution on both monitors - no help.
Disconnected the 2nd monitor - BINGO! Now it works!

Issues: I need the second monitor, so using it like this will not work. I followed the link you posted for fixing the problem, but have no idea how to enter command mode to enter the recommended info. Nor would I feel comfortable doing that even if I knew how.

Here is a link to the version info I had found suggesting this version: https://inkscape.org/en/download/mac-os/. It says no .dmg for 92.2 for MacOS, and that is the only way I know how to download.

If XQuartz is the issue, would like to uninstall this version of Inkscape and XQuartz and go back to V. 46 or .48 and use X11. Don't need alot of bells and whistles and was happy with .46. Do you foresee any problems with this approach?

Thanks again for your assistance.

If it were my setup, I'd dock the properties panel (and others) for startup and tear them off and float them during the working session. When done working, I'd re-dock the panels before shutting down.

Versions before .91 have the scaling still at 90 dpi (instead of the current standard 96), which could cause more problems down the road.

I have seen other problems with using a dual monitor, besides just windows opening off screen or on the wrong screen, or whatever. Things like buttons stop working in parts of the windows. You may or may not have more problems, but just to make you aware.

I'm not sure what the status for fixing these problems is. But it seems like we're seeing more and more dual monitor setups. Hopefully they can get it fixed pretty soon. Let's see if I can find the bug report....

Here's a really old bug, about only the offscreen dialogs. https://bugs.launchpad.net/inkscape/+bug/379463 But there are several duplicate bugs listed, which may have the info about parts of the window not reacting to the mouse. It's possible you could find a workaround in the bug reports.

No matter what problems I am having right now, I am still amazed at the number of helpful people on this Forum! Best Forum I have ever used!

Tyler, your reference to the 90/96 issues. Does that mean that all of my files created with V .46 will not display correctly when I open them in .91 or .92?

Also, not sure how to "dock" or "tear away" the dialogs when I cannot get them to display. Tried to pull them away from the dropdown menu without opening, but that did not work. I have often done that before "the crash", to keep them open while I work, so I understand the process.

Brynn, I have quickly scanned the info on the link you shared. Need to read more thoroughly, but alot of it looks like Windows issues. I have used .46 on both Windows and MacOS and have never had a dual monitor problem. But if it is happening on Windows as well, maybe the problem is not XQuartz, as I was originally thinking.

One thing I noticed, and didn't think of it as a issue before - right now I am using a Macbook Air instead of an iMac. Wonder if that makes a difference.

Thanks again!

Files will be different between the two scale settings, so continuing to use the older versions can lead to scale mismatches and possible unforeseen problems.

I'd unplug the second monitor and setup Inkscape with docked dialogs, close Inkscape before reconnecting the second monitor, then relaunch. There are preferences settings for whether the docks will be open or closed on launch, so I'd also check into those.

Scale change in version 0.92:

Inkscape is going to ask you how to convert your documents from one scaling mode to the other. Let us know if that happens for you, and if then you don't know which option to select.
There are still some bugs related to the scaling, but there are also solutions (workarounds) available for all of them.

If you only use Inkscape for drawing, and then use the SVG files on the web, or export to PNG or pdf, and you don't need Inkscape for cutting/plotting, where the cutter/plotter programs are less advanced in their interpretation of the file format, then you should be safe from most of the issues people had with scaling. There's only one frequent issue (switching units doesn't work with some documents) that would then still affect you, as far as I know.

Thanks for the scaling info. I restored one file and answered the questions for non-web use. The only difference I noticed was all of my square cornered squares/rectangles were rounded.

A Windows techie friend asked if we can have 2 versions of Inkscape installed at the same time. I have Googled but not found a clear answer.

Tyler, tried your steps for docking/closing/relaunching. No Inkscape window displayed at all - off in nevernever land! I had come across some instructions to disconnect second monitor, open Inkscape and then hold down the left mouse button as if you were going to move the window. While holding down, plug the second monitor in (you really need 3 hands to do this). This works about every third try (I was testing).

I will keep at this and hopefully will get it right. Thanks again for all the replies!

If you download a 7z version of inkscape, (like a zip file,) and extract it to a folder, you can double click the inkscape.exe to start the program. This means you can have every how many versions installed you like. This is opposed to using the exe or msi installers, or the store, (if your on Windows.) On linux or mac I am not sure how to go.

There's one caveat with having multiple versions installed, though:

Those versions will all share the same preferences file, and while Inkscape makes sure those are forwards compatible, backwards compatibility isn't guaranteed. So if you start a new version, and then later start an old one, you may get some surprises, if you don't clean out the prefs first, or start the version from the command line, indicating a separate preferences file.

For Linux, here's a script that makes it possible:
https://gitlab.com/Moini/make_ink

For Mac - no idea. I know it is possible, though, just not how.

Update! I have finally gotten my 2017 iMac and second monitor up and running. My initial problems were with my Macbook Air.

Here is where I am now. I have upgraded to V.92.2. When I open Inkscape, it displays on my main screen. I can get nothing to work from here. BUT, if I immediately move the window to my second monitor, everything works fine. This is a workaround I can easily live with. Have also noted that once it is open, I cannot close it and open it again in the same session - must restart the iMac. Also, something I can live with.

Thanks for all the tips along the way! Now onto working on the pixel to inches problems when I open a file from V.46 - but that is an issue for a different post.

That's good that you've found workarounds.

Could you still describe the problems in a bug report in the bug report section for Inkscape, please? This is so a developer who wants to help with Mac stuff knows what needs to be fixed.

You can browse and add to the Inkscape bug tracker at https://bugs.launchpad.net/inkscape

There are plenty of bug reports already for this issue. I posted a link to one of them above.

I haven't seen "I cannot close it and open it again in the same session - must restart the iMac" mentioned anywhere, though.

I interpretted that to mean that if...(I guess) she closes and reopens, that the window is off the screen again (or on the wrong screen), rather than it just does not open.

Perhaps need some clarification on that?

Thank you for this post. I have the same issue. I discovered another workaround. I am on a MAC with a two monitor setup. I open Inkscape on the primary monitor. Under the global Inkscape settings, under Windows, I select 'Don't save windows geometry'. I then move Inkscape to my secondary monitor. Now I can see document properties on the secondary monitor. The drawback is that once I close Inkscape, the Windows preference defaults back to 'save and restore window geometry for each document'. So I have to go through this process each time I open Inkscape but I am fine with that.

I've recently found myself in a new job where I have to use a Mac, so have been bitten by this 'dialogs render off-screen' problem. I didn't find any of the workarounds to be particularly useful, so I created a script that will gather any errant windows and move them to the top-left of the XQuartz screen. You can find it, together with installation and usage instructions, here:

http://www.peppertop.com/blog/?p=1554

I hope someone finds it useful.