Hi, I am new to forum. This is simple question I couldn't find.
I made an arrow with rectangle and a square using the toolbar.
I want to duplicate the arrows and stack close together to save vinyl when cutting, but when I move arrows close together the rectangle box (dotted lines defining the object's space) cover the underlying arrows. I have a blue arrow, but it is in a white box that Inkscape makes when selected.
How can I get the blue arrows to be close together without the white of the imaginary box covering the lower layers?

thanks

Edit: The bounding box makes a rectangle and covers everything under it. How do I get two objects close together without their bounding boxes colliding?

I haven't found the answer yet, but for arrows I did a tile and it worked that when I put arrows as tiles that the spaces between also made an arrow, so when I cut it the blanks will be arrows also. (the blue is the arrow, the white is the spaces between) I will try to attach a pic of it. I still need an answer for the first question, thanks

Ahhhhh, so you inadvertently made a tesselation (where the negative space forms the same shape as the colored space)!

Ok, regarding the original question. A bounding box does not provide any kind of background. It's just the representation of the object's dimensions, and the indication that it's selected (and it provides other indications, as well as some other functionality). The Inkscape background is transparent by default. So unless you've changed that (in Document Properties) there should be no white background for a single arrow object. ....Well, even if you've changed the background, the object would still not have any background, unless you drew one, such as a rectangle around the arrow (and grouped it with the arrow). Or....hhmm, I was thinking if you had imported the arrow, it would have a background, but you said you drew it. It could be that the way you drew it, could possibly cause something like this.

Try clicking with Selection tool, just to the left or right of the arrow shaft, and still under the arrow's head. So if there's a white rectangle there, you should be able to select it, and delete it.

According to your 2nd message, you said you made a tiling of the arrows. So apparently you somehow got rid of the white background? Did you make the tiling using the Tiled Clones dialog, or did you just place them side by side (perhaps using snapping)?? It looks like you converted the tiling to a pattern? You may have trouble using the pattern for cutting the vinyl. If I understand patterns correctly, they have no paths, except the for the object which the pattern fills. And it's my understanding the cutting software needs paths to indicate where it should cut.

If you can't manage to select this apparent white background, there could be other things happening in the file, that could appear to cover up other objects. It would be kind of a guessing game from our end, but you're welcome to provide the SVG file, if you like. Then we could try and sort it out.

Or maybe you've solved this problem by now?

No, haven't solved it yet. In general, it seems when I copy>paste an item it gets the imaginary white box under it. Attached "arrow" in original form. I am using a Mac. White bounding box is there when I move arrow object over other items. I can not click on anything but the arrow (which seems to be the triange, square and everything inside the bounding box).
After playing around i see my single arrow is actually tiled, but the bounding box only shows one arrow, opening up the nodes reveals the tiled arrows.
This does not solve the problem of copy>paste still yielding the imaginary white box, as I can copy/paste and still get the box.

I redid the file, made triangle, made rectangle, >union and it works in sign cut.
Now I and Ctrl+D to duplicate arrows to get my tiled effect.

I'm still iterated why copy/paste has this issue.

Copy & Paste problems on a Mac, you say. My spider sense is tingling... It sounds like it's this old(ish) chestnut: viewtopic.php?f=22&t=3627#p17000

Also have a look at the FAQ entry that post links to for a little more detail.

Ooohh, you didn't mention copy/paste in the original message. Yes, I agree with Xav. I do seem to recall some sort of bug about copy/paste on a Mac. I don't know if Duplicating is affected? Would you be able to duplicate the object, instead of copy/paste, or are you moving the object from one file to another? If the goal is to tile them, you might also use cloning, or even the Tiled Clones dialog.

Brynn, the FAQ entry I mentioned explicitly states that duplicating (CTRL-D) is not affected as it doesn't interact with the X11 or OSX clipboards, and is specifically suggested as a workaround.

Changing the X11 settings as specified in the post I linked to should also do the trick, but has the side-effect of removing the ability to copy text in an X11 application and paste it into an OSX application.

Thanks Xav

Xav wrote:Changing the X11 settings as specified in the post I linked to should also do the trick, but has the side-effect of removing the ability to copy text in an X11 application and paste it into an OSX application.

Not really true: this is still doable (but requires two steps: 'Ctrl+C' to the pasteboard, 'Cmd+C' from the pasteboard to the native clipboard).

It might be worth someone updating the FAQ to include that bit of info from ~suv; I was basing my response on its current wording:

"However, this will also prevent copying text from any X11 application to Mac OS X ones. It will not prevent copying text from OS X to X11. "

Xav wrote:It might be worth someone updating the FAQ to include that bit of info from ~suv (…)

I disagree: the FAQ answers the basic question for Mac users (Why does Copying and pasting in Inkscape create pixellated images instead of copying the vector objects ?).
Mac users will be able to notice in the X11 preferences pane that the mentioned setting affects only one aspect of syncing between the X11 clipboard and the native OS X pasteboard - it does not disable data exchange completely.
Adding too much details in the FAQ answer will not be helpful for those looking for a quick solution or workaround for this conflict in X11/Xquartz (which e.g. also affects FontForge).

Summary of transferring data from X11 CLIPBOARD to OS X Pasteboard (based on my own tests):

• Vector objects:
  Transferring Inkscape vector objects as vector objects to OS X natives applications via X11 clipboard -> OS X pasteboard does not work with either setting (i.e. not at all) in my tests on Leopard and Lion.
• Bitmap copies:
  Copy&pasting bitmap images from X11 applications (e.g. an embedded bitmap image in Inkscape) to OS X native apps does not work if 'Update Pasteboard when CLIPBOARD changes' is disabled (even when trying to manually "sync" the two clipboards with 'Ctrl+C', 'Cmd+C').
• Text content:
  Even if 'Update Pasteboard when CLIPBOARD changes' is disabled, the content of text objects in Inkscape (needs to be copied in the 'Text' tab of 'Text and Font…' dialog), RGB values e.g. from 'Fill and Stroke…' or messages returned from extensions scripts can be transferred from the X11 clipboard (placed there with 'Ctrl+C') to the OS X pasteboard by using the menu command 'Edit > Copy' from the global menubar or by using the native OS X keyboard shortcut 'Cmd+C', and subsequently pasted into OS X native apps with 'Cmd+V'. [1]
  
  Note: depending on the current configuration of the user's system, it might not be possible to use the (quicker) combination of the two keyboard shortcuts: whether 'Cmd+C' is available in the X11 context depends on whether the user enabled "key equivalents under X11" in the X11 preferences pane; and it will fail if the user did remap (switch) the 'Ctrl' and 'Cmd' modifiers for all X11 apps via xmodmap).
  
  Those in need of more advanced copy&pasting features for text regularly are able to test (and google for additional tips) themselves, IMHO.

(The FAQ is in the wiki BTW - if you think that more details are needed there, and have a Mac to test any additional tips yourself, feel free to edit it )

For Mac users asking here in the Forum for more information, one could also refer e.g. to this earlier comment.


[1] I use this feature on a daily basis whenever triaging e.g. bug reports about extensions failing, or when copying details from the SVG source in 'Edit > XML Editor' and pasting it directly into the comment entry field of the bug report page in the web browser (which runs as native OS X app). Of course I have disabled 'Update Pasteboard when CLIPBOARD changes' as recommended in the FAQ, and only enable it on-the-fly for rare occasions.

Transferring text like this also works for the xterm (highlight text to copy it to the X11 clipboard; 'Cmd+C' transfers it to the OS X pasteboard; 'Cmd+V' to paste it into MacVim or TextWrangler), or with text editors running under X11 like e.g. SciTE or gedit from MacPorts (simply use 'Ctrl+C', Cmd+C', 'Cmd+V'), or e.g. for the properties of a PDF file viewed in evince (X11).

~suv wrote:

Xav wrote:It might be worth someone updating the FAQ to include that bit of info from ~suv (…)

I disagree: the FAQ answers the basic question for Mac users (Why does Copying and pasting in Inkscape create pixellated images instead of copying the vector objects ?).
...
Adding too much details in the FAQ answer will not be helpful for those looking for a quick solution or workaround for this conflict in X11/Xquartz (which e.g. also affects FontForge).

Fair enough - but in that case I would be inclined to remove, or at least modify, the existing text as it is somewhat misleading.

~suv wrote:(The FAQ is in the wiki BTW - if you think that more details are needed there, and have a Mac to test any additional tips yourself, feel free to edit it )

I did consider editing it, but I'm not a Mac user so didn't want to change it as I haven't tested the process myself.

~suv wrote:For Mac users asking here in the Forum for more information, one could also refer e.g. to this earlier comment.

The forum post I linked to was just the first useful one that came up in whatever search it was that I performed. The only reason I mentioned the issue with copying text at all was because it's explicitly mentioned in the FAQ; if the FAQ either described the two-step approach or didn't explicitly call out this problem then I wouldn't have mentioned it, and my answer would have been fine

I agree that helpful information is helpful. Having myself a history with linux/unix/windows and most recently mac, I found both the simple and advanced answers (in FAQ and linked posts) less than fully satisfying. I would imagine someone coming into Macs in OSX intel era without linux/unix background, would find the info about X11 altogether mystical. The advanced and interlinked answers about X11 and OSX clipboard start multiplying complexity quickly, as some info is older and some is newer. Most Mac users do appreciate the simplicity of a well thought out application/OS interface...and all this detail about internals of OSX/X11 clipboards etc is not what they bargained for when they download inkscape. That's not to say anyone or anything is being blamed.
I thought I wasn't a dummy (having so many years IT experience)..but wasn't till someone helped me out here before i could make heads or tails of this OSX inkscape issue.

chriswww wrote:(…) before i could make heads or tails of this OSX inkscape issue.

Just to make clear: do not blame this on Inkscape! It is a problem in X11/Xquartz [1], which - with default settings - affects applications like Inkscape and FontForge running under X11.



[1] Please do not spam that trac ticket with 'Affects me too' comments - this will not help to solve the problem. Volunteers with (X11/X.org-related) coding skills are needed.

chriswww wrote:(…) I found both the simple and advanced answers (in FAQ and linked posts) less than fully satisfying. I would imagine someone coming into Macs in OSX intel era without linux/unix background, would find the info about X11 altogether mystical. The advanced and interlinked answers about X11 and OSX clipboard start multiplying complexity quickly, as some info is older and some is newer. Most Mac users do appreciate the simplicity of a well thought out application/OS interface...and all this detail about internals of OSX/X11 clipboards etc is not what they bargained for when they download inkscape. That's not to say anyone or anything is being blamed.

I don't understand the point you are trying to make: is it that the reduced (basic) info in the FAQ is not helpful, and neither the more detailed answers elsewhere?

What would be the proper way to convey the necessary information to Mac users working with X11-based Inkscape?

Edit: The Mac OS X port of Inkscape itself manipulating the X11 preference setting (in the background, to not bother users with "technical" details) is unlikely to be coded into the application itself (and if it did manipulate the settings of another application without asking, I would personally hesitate to recommend installing such software).

Possibly we'll get some code contribution for the application bundle (a wrapper around the actual inkscape binary on OS X) which will check the setting and prompt the user with a dialog, but if that happens (code contributed), it will take time to make it into a stable Inkscape release - hopefully, Xquartz development will continue with the speed it had gained during the last two years, and by that time, the issue will be history

that would be great...if the inkscape package detected that xquartz of correct version is installed, and clipboard settings are correct when xquartz is installed. if xquartz is not installed it should give direct link to package or simply ask if it's ok to install in background. Additional guidance should be provided if you have an outdated original X11 or xquartz installed (all detected by the script) and sanely updated or installed into separate space whereby older version of X11 or xquartz could co-exist with newer one required by inkscape.
i think that would go a long way towards less problems for mac users installing and make use of inkscape.
of course none of this has anything to do with inkscape program itself..but takes a lot of guesswork and confusion out of people's minds.

Some years ago i worked for a company that produces cross-platform software (for libraries)...anyway, the install scripts were the same across all of the different architectures and variants, with a bootstrap that made sure the correct bash scripting environment is in place to start with (even on windows) for this to take place. Oracle takes a similar tack by installing it's own required version of perl in oracle software subdirectory, before it runs all the substages of installing the software environment using perl scripts. Maybe something similar could be rigged up for inkscape install? or would that be overkill? At least it stops you having all these different installation mechanisms and languages being used, and most of the different ports being beyond core inkscape dev team.