hi...i'm a new inkscape user, running inkscape on windows 10.

every new document i create appears with a small black-bordered box or field right in the middle of the window. i have no idea what it's for or why it's there, but i've had no luck trying to get rid of it. it's so distracting and intrusive from a design point of view that i just can't talk myself into ignoring it and working around it.

can anyone tell me what it is and why it appears so consistently? and better still, how to make it go away?

thanks and best wishes,
john

Do you have a screenshot? How does it look like?
...maybe like this...?

This is called the canvas or page.
You can hide it in the Document Properties.
Press Shift+Ctrl+D | Page tab | Border | uncheck Page border

Keep in mind that the page area is the area that will be visible, and that your drawing should be within it, if you plan to use the svg directly, e.g. on a website.

thank you, theozh and Moini.

yes, that's the box i asked about.

so that's the canvas. that's kind of what i was afraid of.

so if i want to view my actual image space in more detail, i need to figure out how to resize or zoom that, and maybe save that view as a default preference.

thank you both for pointing me in the right direction. now i know which parts of the documentation i need to dig into.

just out of curiosity, is there a reason that the default open shows such a sea of white non-canvas space? is that useful for something?

j

Inkscape opens in the last zoom level, depending on the setting in the preferences.

These three buttons in the top toolbar are your friend:


http://tavmjong.free.fr/INKSCAPE/MANUAL ... -Zoom.html

Zoom:

a) use zoom tool and click or click and drag (on the left, the magnifying glass icon) or
b) set zoom level in the bottom right corner or
c) hold down Ctrl and use mouse wheel or
d) press one of the number keys to switch between preset zoom levels

thanks, tylerdurden...and thanks again, Moini.

i really appreciate the help. and the tutorial linkage, and the zoom shortcut list. i'll try 'em out today.