Aaaargh.

[compilerbitch]

And, I repeat, Aaaargh.

A few days ago, I thought I'd found a wonderful, pro quality open source vector graphics editor for Linux, namely Inkscape, that would solve all my technical illustration problems.

Boy, was I wrong. Its GUI is pretty good, with some very nice features. Unfortunately, however, its .eps export functionality is completely stuffed. Which means, I just spent several days doing about 30 or 40 illustrations, only to find that when saving them out in a format that can be used by LaTeX, the output is just basically broken. It won't display in ghostview, and actually manages to crash the laser printer in the lab. Aaaargh. Aaaargh. Aaaargh. Aaaargh. Aaaargh.

Now I need to figure out how I am going to come up with a way to redo all of those illustrations without access to any decent line art software. I am *not* doing it in sodding xfig.

Typically enough, my paper deadline is looming fast. Bugger, bugger, bugger.

Does anyone know of an alternative, reliable, line art package for Linux (in the Adobe Illustrator/Corel Xara mould, I don't have time for the likes of metapost)? Or do I need to go commercial, boot Windoze and install something expensively commercial?

Comments

[naranek.livejournal.com]

*fx: irritatingly* Y'know, if you'd mentioned you were using inkscape, I'd've told you that, because I did the same thing about six months ago! :-)

The best line-art software I've seen so far (and the only one I use in anger) is Corel Xara (http://www.xara.com/) - it works under Windows on VMWare, if you can be arsed setting VMWare up.

OpenOffice Draw isn't all that bad, but I'm not stunningly impressed by it.

[doseybat.livejournal.com]

why dont i pop down to kingsdown and get you plaptop? its no trouble and you can have your old stuff tonight.

[compilerbitch.livejournal.com]

No, it's OK. I have two options:

1. Plug a monitor and mouse into the windows box under my table, then install Xara on it (I have a copy here). It was *very* handy getting that monitor given via Leo last week!

2. It seems the lab has Adobe Illustrator. I'm in the process of finding out how to get access to it. This might be a bit less faff, but it all should still be doable.

[doseybat.livejournal.com]

sounds like my solution is still quickest!
please let me!
honestly, pretend me travelling was not involved and *then* tell me what you would choose. what would you do if you had it there?

[compilerbitch.livejournal.com]

It is not a problem. I now have the big hand box hooked up to a monitor, so it's now doing what my laptop would otherwise be doing, so there is no need for the laptop right now.

Really, DONT WORRY!

[doseybat.livejournal.com]

yes, cap'n!
*salutes*
*stops worrying*

[xraycb.livejournal.com]

Inkscape would seem to have WMF and SVG export. Surely something (libwmf-bin, ksvg, mozilla with SVG plugin, sodipodi, sketch, CorelXara, Illustrator) can convert one or the other to PS correctly?

[compilerbitch.livejournal.com]

Yeah, maybe. I will try. In the mean time, I'm just cranking up a spare Windows box so I can use it to try some of that! If I can avoid redrawing everything, that is definitely favourite!

[poult.livejournal.com]

Sodipodi is meant to be quite good.
I think it does EPS export fairly well...

[fanf]

I use pic but perhaps that's too masochistic for you :-)

two probably not very helpful comments

[fatdog.livejournal.com]

If its open source, how easy would it be to fix the eps output? This is not, I suppose, a short term solution.

Also, I like pstricks for doing my LaTeX illustrations.

Third time lucky..

[toothycat]

I'm unconvinced of reliability, but Paint Shop Pro works under Wine* - I've used it (when cut off from my Windows computer). You can get free tryouts and PSP7, the copy I have, has nice vector functionality. I've not plumbed the limits of Adobe Illustrator, which is very fun indeed, but either would do what I've used them for (making work diagrams, basically). You're probably better off with a proper Linux thingy, though. If you're really stuck, come over ours some time and we can probably work something out ;)

* Once you work out to avoid the 'create new vector layer' command because that crashes the program - do it by simply drawing vector onto a raster layer and it'll happily make you a new vector layer.

[puppygalore.livejournal.com]

You could try dia, which will do for quite primitive block-and-arrow diagrams, or more complicated flowcharty things, but it's not very artistic.

There's also sketch, which I try occasionally, and then give up on because it doesn't provide some feature or other... I can't remember what it doesn't do off the top of my head though!

[puppygalore.livejournal.com]

...and to follow myself up, I guess you probably know about tgif already, which was my old non-xfig standby...

[sjmurdoch.livejournal.com]

The Open Source applications I know of which seem to vaguely meet your requirements are xfig (weird UI, basic, but works) dia (normal UI, basic, sometimes breaks) and sodipodi (haven't used). For Windows I would suggest Visio, which you can get from the lab under MSDNAA - ask Graham Titmus if you don't have an account.

[compilerbitch.livejournal.com]

I just found that Illustrator can import Inkscape's svg format (mostly, needs some minor correction), so I am (mostly) saved from redoing all my diagrams from scratch.

*big phew*

(Last time I tried it, Visio seemed pretty bad at exporting eps -- has it improved any in the last couple of years?)

[compilerbitch.livejournal.com]

Gaah, *facepalm*

If I import the SVGs into illustrator, then save them as AI documents, the want' reload. OK, back to Plan B.

[sjmurdoch.livejournal.com]

I am now looking round for a good drawing package. You were right about Visio - the EPS export is awful. I'm staying away from Inkscape, since I need to put it in LaTeX too. I had another look at Dia and Sodipodi, but they are still too basic - sure I could edit the SVG files to make it do what I want, but if I wanted to write code I would rather use MetaPOST rather than XML. It looks I'll just stick with xfig - it sucks, but I think less so than anything else I have tried.

[compilerbitch.livejournal.com]

Adobe Illustrator, I hate to say it, is wonderful. I've not seen anything to touch it frankly, so I suspect that it will be my no.1 vector graphics package from now on. It is to vector what Photoshop is to raster, which is to say, extremely good though rather expensive.

[sjmurdoch.livejournal.com]

Illustrator is installed on Waterloo, so I had a quick try at it. It looks good but the UI will take a little while to learn and I only have 7 days to write this paper (currently I have an almost empty LaTeX file and a list of related work). Perhaps I can get Stephen Lewis to do the diagrams for this one, since I think he can use Illustrator.

[strepetaa.livejournal.com]

What exactly is broken in your EPS? Have you filed a bug at the Inkscape site?

I know of three limitations:

- no gradients (PS level 2 limitation)

- no transparency (PS limitation, even in level 3)

- text is broken into separate characters (OK so long as you don't want to edit the result, which you don't, judging by your use case)

Everything else works fine for me. If anything is broken for you, complain to Inkscape devs. They do listen.