Roadmap

Inkscape Development Roadmap

NOTE: This is a working document showing specific near-term tasks needed for achieving the numbered milestones.

Milestones 0-12 have been completed since the start of the Inkscape Project. See OldRoadmap

Milestone 13 - Inkscape 0.47 - Refactoring / Cleanup

New/Changed Dependencies:

• Gtk 2.12 (required)

Architectural Refactoring Effort:

• Lib2geom Integration
  • Eliminate code in favor of 2geom where feasible
• Convert remaining GTK dialog code to Gtkmm
• Eliminate all use of sp_repr_new in favor of XML::Document::* classes (see [1])
• SubsystemRearchitecture
  • Migrate SPObject to native C++ classes
  • Rename all 'SPFooBar' routines to 'FooBar' and put into namespaces
• Implement gradient UI "release" handler to deal with gradient garbage collection (see bug 984854)
• Create an SPObject API for tracking references and avoiding id clashes on import and interdocument copy/paste. What we need are a void SPDocument::importCopies([set of SPObjects]), and an [set of SPObjects] SPObject::dependencies() method.
• Streamline style.*
  • Eliminate use of the style.h types in as much of codebase as possible, particularly display/*.
  • Externally, it should present a simple set of accessor methods for getting/setting properties by name, and propagating to/from repr.
  • Inside, it should have:
    • a concise list of property names with the expected domain of values in CSS and the associated Inkscape data type
    • a concise list of property aliases which represent one or more properties combined, each with the rule used to combine
    • definitions of the aforementioned rules and value domains
    • some generic code (not tied to any one property) implementing the needed behavior

Codebase Cleanup Effort:

• Change to use of GQuarks instead of #defines where feasible
• Use autoscan and autoreconf to find out which configure tests are still needed.
  • Trim down the amount of stuff in our configure.ac
• (PARTIALLY DONE) DirectoryReorgProposal
• Convert all tabs into spaces (convert tabs to 4 spaces)
  • Also see http://sourceforge.net/mailarchive/message.php?msg_id=7164324
• [Remove trailing whitespace]
• Replace use of C macros (E.g. SP_IS_PATH) with C++ instance methods, static class methods, etc.
• Use Copy/Paste Detector to find and refactor duplicated code

User Documentation Effort:

• Re-arrange tutorials into sub-categories
• (PARTIALLY DONE) Switch to use of xml2po for tutorial files (Colin Marquardt)
• Document filters

Inkscape SVG Effort

• Revisit coordination system (move away from Cartesian)

User Interface Effort:

• improvement of svg patterns UI - make it similar to gradient-drag, instead of piggybacking knotholder
• Palettes
  • Custom palettes like from Gnome
  • Ability to load 3rd-party palettes (e.g. Pantone, Trumatch, Focoltone, Toyo, etc.)
• Reenable fuzzy font matching [bulia]
• Improve freehand curve smoothness [pjrm, paraprax]

Testing Effort:

• Include some rendering tests in `make check'.
• Get 'make check' to pass on Win32 and OSX (with the current btool, does this mean a 'btool check' should pass?)
• Investigate performance measurement testing for Inkscape

Animation Effort

• Create a written conceptualization of how it should work
  • Currently, part of the concept discussion is at here

User Documentation Effort:

• More tutorials
  • Node editing
  • Advanced text effects
  • Grid snapping
  • Connectors
  • Creating photo-realistic art

Milestone 14 - Inkscape 0.48 - Animation

File Format Support Effort:

• PDF Import/Export
  • Choice of PDF spec. (PDF/X-1a, PDF/X-3)
  • Add file info/comments
  • Add color bars
• Visio support
  • Add extension for use of VDX2SVG (http://vdxtosvg.sourceforge.net/)
  • (OBSOLETE) Add extension for use of PDF2SVG (http://cgit.freedesktop.org/~cworth/svg2pdf/)

DOM Binding Effort:

• Evaluate Adobe Activescript to use instead of Spidermonkey for our JS engine
• Create sample prototype app to explore ActiveScript
• Decide whether to go with Spidermonkey or Adobe ActiveScript

Tools:

• correct handling of multiple font faces by Text tool
• Filters tool

• Get basic rendering and authoring of simple animations working adequately

Desktop Integration Effort:

• [PARTIALLY DONE] Inter-application cut-and-paste
• Inter-application drag-and-drop

Architectural Refactoring Effort:

• Complete lib2geom integration

DOM Binding Effort:

• Create tool that reads the w3c idl files and generates binding code
• Bind xpath parsing/execution
• Finish the CSS-DOM classes
• Add a 'run' mode in a separate window that runs and displays the scripted SVG

Desktop Integration Effort:

• WebDAV/FTP support via GVFS, KIO, Neon, or the like
• Finish making printing work more efficiently and reliably
• Clipart manager GUI

Inkboard Effort

• Ensure multi-user conferences work across most JEP-compliant Jabber servers
• Conduct an informal security analysis of Inkboard for security flaws

File Format Support Effort:

• PDF Import/Export
  • Generate multipage PDF documents
  • Define bleed and slug areas for offset printing
  • Add crop, bleed and registration marks

Inkboard Effort

• Stabilize the code by closing crash bugs in the bug tracker

SVG Feature Compliance Effort:

• Animation
  • Sketch out UI mockup ideas for animation rendering/animation
  • Make an ultra-preliminary proof of concept of at least one animation feature

Extension Effort:

• Unification of the way to display help on extensions
• Localizable help of bundled extensions
• Effect extensions browser

Milestone 15 - Inkscape 0.49 - Prototype all SVG Mobile features

SVG Feature Compliance Effort:

• Ability to select which SVG spec version to save as
• Multi-page
• Animation
• Implement perspective transformations via PerspectiveObject
• Path editing
• Shaped strokes
• Masking/clippaths
  • on-canvas editing (patch for 0.47 is ready)
  • Should work like gradient tool to apply transparency
• hyperlinking
• Ensure Inkscape does not throw away the internal DTD subsets of documents it reads

Milestone 16 - Inkscape 0.50 - SVG Mobile Support

SVG Feature Compliance Effort: (Also see SVG Tiny Compliance)

• Multi-page
• Scripting
• Markers
  • Inherit stroke properties like color
  • On-canvas editing
  • Fix snapping issue
• Real CMYK / LAB / HSB support

Milestone 17 - Inkscape 0.51

Architectural Refactoring Effort:

• cairo Adoption Effort:
  • Integrate a cairo-based SVG Canvas library
• follow the Freedesktop Icon Naming Spec for easier themeing

File Format Support Effort:

• Native Adobe Illustrator file Import (DONE)/Export
  • (DONE) Requires good PDF Import/Export
• Native CorelDraw file Import/Export (currently uses UniConvertor)
• DXF import/export
• Improved raster support via Gdk::Pixbuf

Milestone 18 - Inkscape 0.52 - Tech drawing abilities

User Interface Effort:

• Implement iso (DONE) & hex grid
• Editable toolbars (Gtk::Toolbar class)
• Geometrical constraints
  • "Perpendicular-to", "Parallel-to", etc.
• Path trimming/extending/offset
• Filleting tool

Extensions Effort:

• Implement extension registry for users to upload/download extensions via Inkscape
• Dia-like smart shapes support

Milestone 19 - Inkscape 0.53 - Inkcore

• Separate sections of code into various libraries for use by other programs
  • inkcanvas
  • inkview
  • inkscape