Author Topic: Newbie Just Checking In!  (Read 2901 times)

May 05, 2016, 09:37:59 PM
Read 2901 times

Alain

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Hello Everyone,  :wave:

My wife and I are retired; we are volunteers for several not-for-profit community organizations. One day, one organization asked me to make a logo for them. I have a photojournalism background and I was the one they asked first! I looked through several pages of Google Images and found one that they liked. I noodled my way through Inkscape [trials and many errors] and then finally finished the logo, using that Google image for inspiration. Once word got out, more requests began to flood in.

So, I recently purchased the Inkscape guide-books by Bethany Hiitola & Dimitry Kirsanov that I might save myself some "grief time" and learn to unlearn my errors. Currently, I'm re-rereading Bethany's book; it is easier for me to understand what to do and how to implement her instructions. Dimitry's book is a bit over my head at the present moment, but I am glad that I bought both books when I did.

Inkscape is a real challenge for me, but I have a creative inclination, such as it is and I just love "doing" Inkscape.  :hd:

I am really enthused at what I accomplished with Inkscape, given how little I understood. Through practice and understanding, I know that I'll get better.

I am certain that I will be asking this board for a lot of help, direction and understanding.

I want to thank the owner of this board, you members, as well as the group of dedicated folks who labored to bring Inkscape to the world.

Thanks everyone!  :rose:

Alain

May 06, 2016, 06:41:10 PM
Reply #1

brynn

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Welcome to Inkscape Community!

Yes in many ways, Inkscape is easy to learn, and one can put together simple diagrams and images without much help.  In other ways, it seems like there are secrets to learn.  As I was first learning Inkscape, it seemed like the more I learned, the more I realized how much more there is to learn!  I just use Inkscape as a hobby.  My artistic skills are minimal, but I enjoy trying to get better.  And once I realized how much I had learned, I wanted to share with others.  So that's how I became involved.

I'm not familiar with the books you mentioned.  But if you can provide links to their websites, I'll add them to our home page (which is where all the tutorials and manuals are listed/linked).  Inkscape Tutorials

The "official" Inkscape manual is the one you find when you go to Help menu > Inkscape manual.  However, it only exists either online, or if you purchase it via PDF or e-book.  But Help menu > Tutorials are "built-in" to Inkscape, so yo don't need internet connection to see them.  That where I started learning about Inkscape.  And the beauty is that they are actually SVG files, so you can practice right there in the tutorial!

Well anyway, I'm glad to meet you.  Please feel free to post questions when you have them.  We'll be happy to try to help :)
  • Inkscape version 0.92.3
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"Be ashamed to die until you have won some victory for humanity" - Horace Mann                       

May 08, 2016, 08:58:30 PM
Reply #2

Alain

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Hello Brynn!

I don't particularly have a specific link for the books I mentioned in my post; they are both available on Amazon, which is where I bought the books.

http://www.amazon.com/Inkscape-Beginners-Guide-Bethany-Hiitola/dp/1849517207

http://www.amazon.com/Book-Inkscape-Definitive-Graphics-Editor/dp/1593271816/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_2?ie=UTF8&refRID=1X5VAS8WNBGY6TWFCN6C

You've heard of "writers block" I'm sure! That is where I am now. Having accomplished several logos, it seems that I now should branch out into something else.

Where would you direct a newbie to begin learning how to utilize Inkscape to begin to learn how all those icons work together with each other?

What should I "draw", Brynn; where did you make your first foray into Inkscape?

Many thanks for taking the time to respond!

Alain

May 09, 2016, 10:30:08 AM
Reply #3

brynn

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Hi Alain,
Oh, that's great!  With that much info (the Amazon links) I can find what I need to add those books to the list of manuals.

There are so many ways to start learning Inkscape!  The first thing I looked at was Help menu > Tutorials > Basic.  And there are 3 of those tutorials that I like to suggest for new users.  Basic, Shapes and Advanced.  And don't worry -- even though it's called "advanced", it's beginner skills.  And then there are all those other tutorials. 

And there's a brand new guide for beginners, that I've recently added to my "advice":
Inkscape for Noobs Part 1
Inkscape for Noobs Part 2
(Just in case, "noob" is a version of "newbie", which of course is a "beginner", in internet language.)

If you click on the Home tab above, you can look in the Beginner Skills block for lots of tutorials.  (Click on the black text of each list item, to open a hidden list of individual tutorials. When you see the finger -- click!)  For myself, I learned the fastest by following tutorials.  And even after I managed to make some drawings on my own, following tutorials taught me the proper techniques that I had only hacked my way through before.

I much prefer written tutorials than videos, and the vast majority that you find here are text tutorials.  A lot of people like video tutorials, but I've found very few video tutorials which are worthwhile.  Too many of them are just like a movie of someone making a drawing, with music blaring.  But you don't learn anything, by just watching someone else work.  You don't know why they are using this technique or that. 

Besides tutorials, where you decide to start would be something that you find interesting.   One of my early interests was tesselation (which is making one pattern unit which is repeated in both directions (side to side and top to bottom).  It's more challenging than one might think! 

I'm also fascinated in drawing things in simulated 3D.  I guess in the art world it's called "realism" or "photorealism".  So Inkscape is always just a 2D editor.  But you can draw a circle, and add shading and highlights to make it look like a sphere.  These are my best efforts in realism:  http://inkscapecommunity.com/ic_gallery/thumbnails.php?album=7

All along the way, I've been interested in animation.  But so far, I haven't managed to finish any animated image.  Inkscape can't do animation all by itself.  You can only draw images in Inkscape, that you can use in another program, to animate.  Or if you know SVG/XML code and/or javascript (or other kinds of codes), you can make animations.  (And there's a code named "SMIL" which may or may not be about to go extinct.  I think this image uses SMIL.

I'm not very good at it, but Inkscape is very well suited for drawing cartoons.  Examples:
http://www.peppertop.com/
http://jelly.haifashion.eu/

On this page you can find links to all kinds of images made with Inkscape.  If nothing else does, that should spark your imagination!

Oh, and 1 more note.  Recently a lot of new Inkscape extensions have been written for CNC, or laser cutters or even the home/craftwork type of paper cutters.  We don't have a page for it on the website yet.  But hopefully we can put one together pretty soon.  But if you like to tinker in your workshop, Inkscape is ready!
  • Inkscape version 0.92.3
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Inkscape Tutorials (and manuals)                      Inkscape Community Gallery                        Inkscape for Cutting Design                     



"Be ashamed to die until you have won some victory for humanity" - Horace Mann                       

May 11, 2016, 08:57:34 PM
Reply #4

Alain

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Hello Brynn!

You've given me just the incentive I needed to browse the "noob" sites and see what piques my imagination!

Many thanks for taking the time to respond; I'm sure that we'll speak again soon.  :nod:

Alain

May 12, 2016, 03:00:35 AM
Reply #5

brynn

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Cool!  Can't wait to see where you go with Inkscape  :D
  • Inkscape version 0.92.3
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Inkscape Tutorials (and manuals)                      Inkscape Community Gallery                        Inkscape for Cutting Design                     



"Be ashamed to die until you have won some victory for humanity" - Horace Mann