14 Dec 08 Illustrator Free Software Alternative – Inkscape
Inkscape is a vector graphic editing software program that is open source and free. It is to replace Adobe’s Illustrator program that is popular among professionals and graphic design hobbyists. It also works in lieu of many popular programs such as Corel Draw, and Xara X.
But the problem with these larger paid software programs besides the price tag is their availability on all systems. Linux, a free operating system that is becoming largely popular is usually not supported by these large corporate graphics programs, forcing them to use a Mac or Windows. Inkscape supports both Mac, Linux, and Windows. It is unconfirmed if it supports Vista, but its stable version definitely supports XP.
Some of Inkscapes features include:
- Supports SVG(Scalable Vector Graphics) – which means the files can be used across platforms so editing can be done in more than one program
- Create webpage mockups – It’s easy to create your website design in Inkscape and slice it in the GIMP or other program for fast website development and deployment
- Large Tool Pallete – Includes a drawing pen, clone tool, shape tool, nodes
- Object Manipulation
- Gradient editor
- Bitmap tracing and Path Selection and Manipulation
- XML Editor
- PNG and Postscript export
The only major drawback is sometimes SVG files can be interpreted differently, or Inkscape may not have full support for some of the new programs(like Illustrator CS4) rendering algorithms, so going between programs may corrupt or modify the image, making for unhappy creators. But this is not a common occurrence and should not be a problem for anyone that does not plan to switch between programs.
If you would like to know more about Inkscape please click here.
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