[Clipart] Does openclipart.org have invalid SVG content?

[Alan Horkan]

On Tue, 10 Oct 2006, Gerald Ganson wrote:

> Date: Tue, 10 Oct 2006 09:32:11 -0600
> From: Gerald Ganson <Gerald.Ganson at rdc.ab.ca>
> To: clipart at lists.freedesktop.org
> Subject: RE: [Clipart] Does openclipart.org have  invalid SVG content?
>
> Thanks for all the replies on this guys. I appreciate the suggestions.
> Here's the rub....
>
> I'm a windows user.
> Hence...
>
> "man inkscape" does not work - neither does what Windows users would
> expect to use.. "inkscape /?"

I'm curious about that one too, I think it might be more fundamental than
a mere bug.  inkscape --help is what you should expect but it doesn't work
either.  (perhaps other command line options do work but just dont give
feedback?)

http://wiki.inkscape.org/wiki/index.php/FAQ#I.27m_on_Windows.2C_and_command_line_parameters_don.27t_seem_to_work.21

the proposed solution of a special binary seems rather convoluted
especially since the gimp seems to manage having command line arguments on
windows without a seperate binary (I tested "gimp-2.2.exe --no-splash" and
it worked) but perhaps inkscape is using different infrastructure

> I have DL the latest version and am searching offline and online content
> for command prompt switches for windows.

I've been informed it is in the wiki somewhere but I'm having trouble
finding it, but with the help of a search engine ...
http://www.inkscape.org/doc/inkscape-man.html

> "Freehand perhaps?" No I use a really old app called Micrografx because
> the drawing interface works better than any of the newer stuff does for
> me. And yes it's a bit like an old pair of shoes. It fits me. I does not
> and will not export SVG. EPS and some other types.

I'm familiar with it, I see Corel are still flogging several variations of
the product.

> "Adobe supports and promotes XMP for metadata.  The last step of going
> through Inkscape - although appreciated - should not be necessary at
> all."
>
> I have uploaded some adobe created SVG, but kind of got the feeling that
> these files may be bloated, or contain extra tags, so I am attempting to
> keep all NEW uploads to cchost very clean.

You may want to experiment with some of the advanced options in Adobe
Illustrator.  I briefly had the opportunity to do so but I no longer have
the use of Adobe Illustrator and I prefer to use better value
alternatives.  Problem is if you go too far in the compatibility options
and are using advanced features such as a Mesh Gradient beyond the scope
of SVG, you will end up with lots of embedded images but otherwise you
should be fine.  I think if you were to experiment and report back your
results it could be very helpful to others who wish to contribute to
Openclipart.org and are also using Adobe Illustrator.

Although it would be nice to have a homogenized and standardized set of
SVG at Openclipart.org in some ways the collection also serves as a useful
sampling of many different types of SVG file for Inkscape to test against.
Also on the techincal side automation is needed sooner or later so it
makes little sense to place undue burden on the artists to get the SVG
exactly right.

> "Alternatively you should be able to import the EPS into Inkscape
> without needing the Adobe Illustrator step."
>
> As a windows user, I'm not sure of this works. There is no EPS on the
> file import menu,

you are correct, I forgot the indirection behind some of those file format
conversion features and I'm never sure which ones are really native

other formats may be an option, I know work is being done to add EMF
support but that may not be enough depending on the complexity of your
drawings.

> export from these. (which really would'nt be much faster than opening in
> Adobe to create SVG)

if you make the conversions as you go then it sounds like a smooth enough
workflow but there are many people interested in batch converting files
using Inkscape and there are various script which might help you convert
several files in one fell swoop.

> On a related note, The OpenSource community in general needs to keep in
> mind that there is a LARGE base of computer users out there using Win
> OS.

I have no doubt the audience for most Open source software on Windows far
exceeds the audience on most other systems combined.  Others are not yet
convinced of this and require more persuasion.  It is worth noting that
projects seek active contributors rather than necessarily quantity of
users.

> In order to gain acceptance and usage by this community the
> opensource apps need to work as well for the Win users as it does for
> the Unix users. It also needs to compare in ease of install, useage,
> etc. with apps they are used to. Just my thought for the day.

I'm especially pleased that Inkscape does provide a single convenient
bundle rather than creating several packages for users to worry about. As
for features not being available on all platforms I believe a little more
care is needed to make it clear what features are portable so that users
dont get the wrong idea (but I'm not volunteering to maintain a list in
the wiki just yet).

> I'll look for more inkscape info on the inkscape list.

the user list is generally very helpful, and not just by the cranky
standards you might expect from other open source projects, I mean
genuinely friendly and helpful in most cases.


Sincerely

Alan Horkan

Inkscape http://inkscape.org
Abiword http://www.abisource.com
Open Clip Art http://OpenClipArt.org

Alan's Diary http://advogato.org/person/AlanHorkan/