Because i am more a developer i am asking for an advice from the artists about how to look my vector software. It will be freeware.
The design is very important because this will increase it's usability. I am the only guy who work on this and i really need advices before start writing it's functionality.
I implement the SVG standard and also i want some features like, connected points, more standard shapes, etc...

See the picture here: http://calciusoft.com/blog/files/IllustratorFirstLook1024x768.png

Using the Hand tool you can drag the drawing area anywhere but the UI (toolbar, color picker, propertiy windows) always remain on top. Is this a good idea or should i separate them?

Thank you!

I don't want to sound rude but what does this have to do with Inkscape?

It has a lot. First of all it's a Inkscape like software. I need advice from people who know what they want from a vector program, i was thinking that i can find those people only here.

I see it like a great oportunity for artists to let developers known how they want a tool look like.

Heathenx is correct to question what this has to do with Inkscape. This is, after all, a forum for Inkscape users, not Illustrator users, or Inkscape-like users It's not even a site for discussing Inkscape development.

Having said that, I don't have enough of a problem with you seeking input with this topic to remove it. I should probably create an off-topic forum for this purpose.

Although, if you are a developer, why don't you contribute to the Inkscape project rather than start a seperate one? It seems like it would be an enormous amount of work to develop a new SVG editor on your own--unless you're using Inkscape code.

(if you're calling the software "Illustrator .NET" you might run into some copyright issues)

I have the Inkscape code but i'm not using it. The reason for developing a new SVG editor is that you can make it how you want, but if you develop something for Inkscape some people may not agree with your changes.

The software is not yet released and the name of the Illustrator .NET is not fixed. I am thinking also at Scale .NET.

Why people can't just help others without so many questions? I am just a student and i need advise.

sor2005 wrote:Why people can't just help others without so many questions? I am just a student and i need advise.

Because you're on an Inkscape forum, not a developers forum. Our interest is in Inkscape. Yours is not. And yet here you are so it's only natural we question why.

Since you've only asked one question:

Is this a good idea or should i separate them?

I don't understand what you mean by "seperate them". But I see no problem with having the tools above the drawing. Normally software have the tools above the document always, with the exception of GIMP and old versions of Inkscape which maintained each palette as a seperate window that also appeared seperately on the taskbar I prefer the normal way we see with Adobe software or MS Office and most other applications.

I don't know about this for sure, but I'm thinking there must exist articles which have been written for graphic software users, comparing the various features, abilities, pros and cons, etc. of different graphics software. (Granted SVG may not be well-represented in such articles...)

Or even reading articles written about single, individual programs, I would think, could be quite helpful in your quest for identifying user preferences.

So you might delve into some significant internet searches, and find excellent info. (Even Wiki searches alone should turn up some good results.)

In addition, you could join the developers' mailing lists, at least of the Open Source variety. That way you could keep up with current trends in graphics software development.

In any case, you are probably not reaching a very wide audience here in the InkscapeForum.com forums. This IS a great forum, but truly, only a small fraction of graphics software users participate here. (Geez, only a small fraction of Inkscape users participate here.) So even if you received quite a few responses to your question about preferred UIs, it really would be such a tiny fraction of opinions....

All that said, I think it's quite admirable that you want to create a free SVG graphics program. And I certainly can only stand in admiration of the skills you must possess, to attempt such a project. I mean, I don't know how many people are involved in Inkscape development, but I'm sure there must be hundreds on the mailing list. So I think you have embarked upon a major, major quest, in which I wish you the best of luck!

All best, sor2005!

Thank you brynn. You are right, a small part of the artists visit this forum, but i have alredy posted on others websites.
I have done a lot of searches and i have found the iDraw GUI (just a GUI idea, nothing more) wich inspired me.

I am not worried about my skills, all i need is time, and i have it. I have stoped my freelancer services for rentacoder and decided to work on this. My faculty studies helped me a lot because we learn everything about programming.

But you know, the developers are only good at code, when they want to make something that look awesome they need artists.

sor2005 wrote:The reason for developing a new SVG editor is that you can make it how you want, but if you develop something for Inkscape some people may not agree with your changes.

If Inkscape lacks something so major that it would compel you to write your own program, why not simply add that feature to Inkscape yourself?

I strongly suggest that you develop something for Inkscape instead of making your own program. Have a look at the Inkscape blueprints page. I urge you to consider working on one of the requested features, or you could post your own proposals. The devs will review it and hopefully help you design and code your project to fit nicely into Inkscape's code and GUI.

Honestly, it seems silly to start your own project when a similar open source project (Inkscape) is already established. You would be spending a great deal of time and effort just to make something that will undoubtedly be inferior to Inkscape. (Objectively speaking, as Inkscape is older, already established, and has many people working on it.)

@sor2005

Well, I won't try to speak for the majority of Inkscape users out there but for someone who has been using Inkscape for the last few years I have grown content with the Inkscape interface. It's what I prefer at the moment. Yes, some things could be refined, such as, some dialog boxes but I think those refinements will come as the software evolves. If I were going to write a vector app from scratch then I would pay pretty close attention to Xara and Inkscape. They just may be the easiest vector apps out there. In the case of Xara, they have been around for more than a couple of decades at least. Xara is very mature, has a large user base, and deserves a little respect. Inkscape, on the other hand, is just brilliant for coming such a long way in such a short amount of time.

Anyway, I wouldn't be discouraged from writing your own application. We all have our passions in life and if that's yours then I hope that you do very well. I wish you the best. A little competition never hurts.

If you want an intuitive interface that floats you might want to take a look at the ArtRage bitmap editor. Its way of floating the tool palettes over the canvas always appealed to me. I'd strongly recomend ditching the illustrator name now too.

sor2005
In the early stages of your endeavor, I think you should focus on the functionality and efficiency of the product first. Get all of the basic features, effects, stability, etc. all figured out & solid.
Then get it out there for peeps to test. Find bugs, squash bugs, request features, add features <<<Rinse & repeat this several times.
Then, it might be time to worry about creating a pretty GUI.

All the best. Hope to see an alpha version of your progress. Keep us posted

I guess that an alpha version will be released very soon. This is possible because i am using .NET 3.5, XAML and WPF wich make things very easy.

I am also doing this because i don't like that MS created XAML when there was already the W3C SVG standard. All i want is to develop an SVG editor using their own technology (XAML), wich will be an replacement for Expression Blend and Expression Designer, make it open-source and try to create a big user base.

I don't like that Microsoft try to copy the SVG standard and make people think that XAML and Silverlight is the future. Hope all of you think the same.

sor2005 wrote:I don't like that Microsoft try to copy the SVG standard and make people think that XAML and Silverlight is the future. Hope all of you think the same.

I also find it frustrating that MS didn't just back an already existing and open format. But that's the Microsoft way. They make no secret about their desire to control file formats.