Difference between revisions of "Google Summer of Code 2006"

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== Project Ideas ==
== Project Ideas ==


=== A.  External CSS Support ===
=== A.  PDF Export Extension ===


Inkscape currently supports inline CSS, but real support for non-inline CSS would allow storing style elements in the document head or an external file, and help prevent a lot of duplication of style info inlineIt will also improve the ability to use SVG generated by other programs that use non-inline CSS.
PDF is the most important graphic document interchange format, but Inkscape's current capability is woefully inadequate.  This project would focus on establishing a solid solution to this need.
 
An implementation approach for this would be to create a new Inkscape extension, "crs2pdf", which links to the <a href="http://cairographics.org/">Cairo</a> library for <a href="http://www.cairographics.org/manual/cairo-PDF-Surfaces.html">PDF rendering</a> capability, and to <a href="http://scratchcomputing.com/projects/vectorsection">Vector Section</a> for parsing the SVG into CRS.
 
<b>Mentor:</b>  [[EricWilhelm]]
 
=== BEPS Import ===
 
While SVG is becoming a common format for exchanging data between graphics programs, EPS is currently much more common.  Inkscape's current EPS support is flakey and poorly maintained.  The plan is to switch to use of Scribus' EPS Import Library.
 
This project would involve creating a new Inkscape extension, "eps2crs", which links to Scribus' EPS import library and exports into the <a href="http://scratchcomputing.com/projects/vectorsection">Vector Section</a> CRS format.
 
<b>Mentor:</b>  [[EricWilhelm]]


<b>Mentor:</b> TBD


=== B.  Memory Optimization ===
=== C.  Memory Optimization ===


Inkscape is a bit heavy in its memory use, and is tough to use on computers with limited RAM.  This project would seek to analyze and understand Inkscape's memory usage, identify and correct all memory leaks, and decrease memory usage for typical cases.  Ultimately, the project should result in Inkscape running smoothly on lower RAM systems than currently.
Inkscape is a bit heavy in its memory use, and is tough to use on computers with limited RAM.  This project would seek to analyze and understand Inkscape's memory usage, identify and correct all memory leaks, and decrease memory usage for typical cases.  Ultimately, the project should result in Inkscape running smoothly on lower RAM systems than currently.
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<b>Mentor:</b>  MentalGuy
<b>Mentor:</b>  MentalGuy


=== C.  Inkboard Portability ===
=== D.  Inkboard Portability ===


Last year we had a successful project to integrate the SVG online whiteboard capability, called Inkboard, into Inkscape.  Unfortunately, it does not work on Windows, so many users are missing out on this capability.
Last year we had a successful project to integrate the SVG online whiteboard capability, called Inkboard, into Inkscape.  Unfortunately, it does not work on Windows, so many users are missing out on this capability.
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<b>Mentor:</b>  Ted
<b>Mentor:</b>  Ted


=== D.  New Grids ===
=== E.  New Grids ===


Inkscape currently has square grids that can be snapped to.  Extend this to allow other kinds of grids:  Perspective, hex, iso, etc.
Inkscape currently has square grids that can be snapped to.  Extend this to allow other kinds of grids:  Perspective, hex, iso, etc.
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<b>Mentor:</b>  TBD
<b>Mentor:</b>  TBD


=== E.  SVG Filters ===
=== F.  SVG Filters ===


Filters are a very important SVG capability, that allows giving special features to drawing objects, including shadows, blurs, etc.  Inkscape currently does not support this capability, but it's high on the list of desires.
Filters are a very important SVG capability, that allows giving special features to drawing objects, including shadows, blurs, etc.  Inkscape currently does not support this capability, but it's high on the list of desires.
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<b>Mentor:</b> Bulia
<b>Mentor:</b> Bulia


=== FBucket fill tool  ===
=== GAdding bitmap capabilities to Inkscape ===
 
This feature provides a new tool that generates a vector object with the desired color.  This would allow, for example, the artist to draw a set of intersecting lines, and paint the blank spaces in between.
 
Two approaches have been proposed:  The first would export to a bitmap, perform a flood-fill, then trace the result and insert back into the drawing.  The second would strive to detect the surrounding vector objects, extract their points, and then construct a matching shape with the desired fill.  Both approaches have their pros and cons; please select either and explain why you wish to do it that way, and how you would do it. 
 
More discussion is available here:  http://sourceforge.net/tracker/index.php?func=detail&aid=1123138&group_id=93438&atid=604309


<b>Mentor:</b>  Bulia
While the purpose of Inkscape is to be a vector editor, design in the real world requires dealing with bitmaps too. Inkscape can import the bitmaps, and have them as full canvas objects, but there is no significant bitmap operations in Inkscape. While there is no reason for Inkscape to replicate the functionality of The GIMP, it would be desirable to have a few simple operations available from Inkscape.


=== GAdding bitmap capabilities to Inkscape ===
This project will use the Inkscape extensions system to add a series of bitmap effects. The majority of the effects will be achieved through the integration of the ImageMagick bitmap handling librariesGIMP may be another source.  These effects can then be run on bitmap graphics within Inkscape.


While the purpose of Inkscape is to be a vector editor, design in the real world requires dealing with bitmaps too. Inkscape can import the bitmaps, and have them as full canvas objects, but there is no significant bitmap operations in Inkscape. While there is no reason for Inkscape to replicate the functionality of The GIMP, it would be desirable to have a few simple operations built into Inkscape.
The work should be encapsulated in such a way that in theory, other vector graphics applications (such as Xara), could also use the work. However, for the scope of this project we only require demonstration of the capabilities in Inkscape.


This project will use the Inkscape extensions system to add a series of bitmap effects. The majority of the effects will achieved through the integration of the ImageMagick bitmap handling libraries. These effects can then be run on bitmap graphics within Inkscape.


<b>Project Timeline:</b>
<b>Project Timeline:</b>
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Also see:  http://sourceforge.net/tracker/index.php?func=detail&aid=862655&group_id=93438&atid=604309
Also see:  http://sourceforge.net/tracker/index.php?func=detail&aid=862655&group_id=93438&atid=604309


== Additional Ideas ==
<b>Mentor:</b>  TBD
 
=== I.  Text Tool Improvements ===
 
Inkscape's text tool is handy, but still lacks many of the niceties that users would like.  This project would seek to address this by implementing various improvements that users have requested.
 
Some ideas for improvements:
* Make flowed text respect the default style of the text tool
* when flowing a text which already contains line breaks, provide a way for the line breaks to be conserved.
* when the style selected in the the Text and Font dialog is applied it erases any other style applied to some part of the text (like italics on some words, bold on others...), it would also be better to keep them where appropriate.
* Search through the Inkscape RFE list for other text and font improvement ideas
 
<b>Mentor:</b> TBD
 
=== J.  Color Adjustment Dialog ===
 
Currently, it is possible to select, say, 12 objects in the drawing and set them to the same color/gradient/pattern.  This project would go a step further, allowing multiple objects of differing color to have aspects of their color (such as brightness/contrast, HSL, etc.) altered, and to operate on vector objects with different fill styles (flat, gradient, or pattern fills), and to bitmaps.
 
<b>Mentor:</b>  Bulia
 
=== K.  External CSS Support ===
 
Inkscape currently supports inline CSS, but real support for non-inline CSS would allow storing style elements in the document head or an external file, and help prevent a lot of duplication of style info inline.  It will also improve the ability to use SVG generated by other programs that use non-inline CSS.
 
<b>Mentor:</b> TBD


* http://sourceforge.net/tracker/index.php?func=detail&aid=1457179&group_id=93438&atid=604309
=== L. Bucket fill tool  ===


* SVG support in OpenOffice (not exactly Inkscape development, but would allow Inkscape users to paste in art rather than having to export to png and really promote usuage of Inkscape). Not to mention eliminating all those duplicate svg/png image files!
This feature provides a new tool that generates a vector object with the desired color.  This would allow, for example, the artist to draw a set of intersecting lines, and paint the blank spaces in between.


* More potrace/SIOX/etc. style features/development
Two approaches have been proposed:  The first would export to a bitmap, perform a flood-fill, then trace the result and insert back into the drawing. The second would strive to detect the surrounding vector objects, extract their points, and then construct a matching shape with the desired fill.  Both approaches have their pros and cons; please select either and explain why you wish to do it that way, and how you would do it. 


* Extending the online InkscapeSVG stuff - might be very cool for sharing sketches, etc
More discussion is available here:  http://sourceforge.net/tracker/index.php?func=detail&aid=1123138&group_id=93438&atid=604309


* Building a public whiteboard server for Inkscape users, with a web site of its own, user galleries, interest groups, scheduled drawathons, connections to OCAL, etc.
<b>Mentor:</b>  Bulia


* Develop a prototype for a cross-platform open API to allow vector graphics tools to apply bitmap effects (e.g. from GIMP or ImageMagick) transparently to vector graphics.


* Import/Export
== Additional Ideas ==


:: Implement http://wiki.inkscape.org/wiki/index.php/Required_PDF_Support (I know of UberConverter (now [[VectorSection]]), but PDF is the most important interchange format so we should better support it natively)
* SVG support in OpenOffice (not exactly Inkscape development, but would allow Inkscape users to paste in art rather than having to export to png and really promote usuage of Inkscape). Not to mention eliminating all those duplicate svg/png image files!


:: Implement EPS import by reusing Scribus' EPS import library for Inkscape.
* More potrace/SIOX/etc. style features/development


:: Create or enhance converters for file formats like Visio, CorelDraw, etc. etc.
* Extending the online InkscapeSVG stuff - might be very cool for sharing sketches, etc


:: Any of the above implemented as [[VectorSection]] connectors and/or anything on the [http://scratchcomputing.com/projects/vectorsection/wishlist.html VectorSection wishlist] (likely mentors: [[EricWilhelm]], ChrisSomerlot, BrunoPostle, ACSpike)
* Building a public whiteboard server for Inkscape users, with a web site of its own, user galleries, interest groups, scheduled drawathons, connections to OCAL, etc.


* Skeletal Strokes and Effect Lines - A few links: Our wiki page on Expression [[http://wiki.inkscape.org/wiki/index.php/Expression]], Technical papers on Skeletal Strokes [[http://portal.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=192186]], Examples - [[http://northlite.50megs.com/expr/effectlines.htm]], [[http://www.wa.commufa.jp/~ksg/p_pfwp5_cgf.htm]], [[http://personal-computer-tutor.com/abc4/v36/sara36.htm]].
* Skeletal Strokes and Effect Lines - A few links: Our wiki page on Expression [[http://wiki.inkscape.org/wiki/index.php/Expression]], Technical papers on Skeletal Strokes [[http://portal.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=192186]], Examples - [[http://northlite.50megs.com/expr/effectlines.htm]], [[http://www.wa.commufa.jp/~ksg/p_pfwp5_cgf.htm]], [[http://personal-computer-tutor.com/abc4/v36/sara36.htm]].
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* Standalone palette editor
* Standalone palette editor


* Improvements to the text tool. 
* Converter from Visio to VectorSection's CRS format
** Some example ideas for improvements:
*** flowed text does not respect the default style of the text tool
*** when flowing a text which already contains line breaks, the line breaks are not conserved and are converted to spaces. It would be better to conserve them.
*** when the style selected in the the Text and Font dialog is applied it erases any other style applied to some part of the text (like italics on some words, bold on others...), it would also be better to keep them.
** A general way to address this would be to rework the Text and Font dialog (and I think it was planned anyway):
*** It could include some kind of "story editor" a la Scribus instead of the Text tab. Then text editing and formatting could be done there avoiding the style erase mentioned above.
*** I don't know a font manager on linux but I guess there should be at least one. It would be nice to have some font collections before the font family selector, in order to narrow the search. I have over 300 fonts on my system (and I guess this is not much compared to some graphic designer) and it is already difficult to find the one I want in the Text and Font dialog. BTW: the Font family list is not searchable with the keyboard while every other GTK list I have seen is.
 
=== bbyak projects (mentored by  bulia) ===
 


* Color adjust dialog (brightness/contrast, HSL, "colorize") which would work on any number of vector objects (with flat, gradient, or pattern fill) as well as bitmaps
* Converter from CorelDraw to VectorSection's CRS format





Revision as of 20:42, 30 April 2006

SOC 2006

Google has been kind enough to invite Inkscape to participate as a mentoring organization in the Summer of Code 2006. The students and developers had a lot of fun last year, and resulted in some _great_ additions to the software, so we are very enthused about this year.

Below is a list of ideas that Inkscape developers think might make good projects. Please do not let this list constrain you; if you have a good idea beyond what is listed we'd love to see it!

Also, we would strongly encourage students to contact us on the Inkscape developer's list prior to submitting your proposal. This gives us a chance to get to know you and to give you feedback that will strengthen your proposal.

Project Ideas

A. PDF Export Extension

PDF is the most important graphic document interchange format, but Inkscape's current capability is woefully inadequate. This project would focus on establishing a solid solution to this need.

An implementation approach for this would be to create a new Inkscape extension, "crs2pdf", which links to the <a href="http://cairographics.org/">Cairo</a> library for <a href="http://www.cairographics.org/manual/cairo-PDF-Surfaces.html">PDF rendering</a> capability, and to <a href="http://scratchcomputing.com/projects/vectorsection">Vector Section</a> for parsing the SVG into CRS.

Mentor: EricWilhelm

B. EPS Import

While SVG is becoming a common format for exchanging data between graphics programs, EPS is currently much more common. Inkscape's current EPS support is flakey and poorly maintained. The plan is to switch to use of Scribus' EPS Import Library.

This project would involve creating a new Inkscape extension, "eps2crs", which links to Scribus' EPS import library and exports into the <a href="http://scratchcomputing.com/projects/vectorsection">Vector Section</a> CRS format.

Mentor: EricWilhelm


C. Memory Optimization

Inkscape is a bit heavy in its memory use, and is tough to use on computers with limited RAM. This project would seek to analyze and understand Inkscape's memory usage, identify and correct all memory leaks, and decrease memory usage for typical cases. Ultimately, the project should result in Inkscape running smoothly on lower RAM systems than currently.

Mentor: MentalGuy

D. Inkboard Portability

Last year we had a successful project to integrate the SVG online whiteboard capability, called Inkboard, into Inkscape. Unfortunately, it does not work on Windows, so many users are missing out on this capability.

This work may involve formalizing and extending the Inkboard communication protocol and working on the INKBOARD_PEDRO branch)

Mentor: Ted

E. New Grids

Inkscape currently has square grids that can be snapped to. Extend this to allow other kinds of grids: Perspective, hex, iso, etc.

This will involve modifying the grid code to support the ability to have multiple kinds of grids, implementing at least 3 new grids, and adding the UI elements to allow users to make use of them.

Mentor: TBD

F. SVG Filters

Filters are a very important SVG capability, that allows giving special features to drawing objects, including shadows, blurs, etc. Inkscape currently does not support this capability, but it's high on the list of desires.

This project involves some rearchitecting of Inkscape's shape code to allow inclusion of filters, and requires implementing at least one filter, 'Gaussian blur' as a proof of concept.

Mentor: Bulia

G. Adding bitmap capabilities to Inkscape

While the purpose of Inkscape is to be a vector editor, design in the real world requires dealing with bitmaps too. Inkscape can import the bitmaps, and have them as full canvas objects, but there is no significant bitmap operations in Inkscape. While there is no reason for Inkscape to replicate the functionality of The GIMP, it would be desirable to have a few simple operations available from Inkscape.

This project will use the Inkscape extensions system to add a series of bitmap effects. The majority of the effects will be achieved through the integration of the ImageMagick bitmap handling libraries. GIMP may be another source. These effects can then be run on bitmap graphics within Inkscape.

The work should be encapsulated in such a way that in theory, other vector graphics applications (such as Xara), could also use the work. However, for the scope of this project we only require demonstration of the capabilities in Inkscape.


Project Timeline:

  • Implement first effect. This involves building Inkscape, linking in ImageMagick and getting one effect written (6 weeks)
  • Implement remaining effects within ImageMagick (3 weeks)
  • Build a test suite for operations and complete all Doxygen documentation of code (3 weeks)

Mentor: Ted

H. Inkscape / GIMP Bitmap Editing Integration

Currently, you can embed raster/bitmap images into Inkscape drawings, but editing them is a bit of a hassle because Inkscape isn't really "aware" of external bitmap editing tools.

This project would seek to correct this by modifying inkscape's image embedding code to interoperate more directly with external bitmap programs. For instance, there would be an "open external editor" command that could be used when one or more bitmap images are selected. Another idea would be to include some common bitmap modification commands from the external program, that can be run entirely within Inkscape. A third idea is drag and drop of selections from the bitmap editor to Inkscape, and SVG selections from Inkscape to the bitmap tool.

As a proof of concept, the result should demonstrate this interoperability with GIMP. Note that the code should be developed such that in theory it should work with any bitmap editor, but we would only require demonstration of working with GIMP.

Also see: http://sourceforge.net/tracker/index.php?func=detail&aid=862655&group_id=93438&atid=604309

Mentor: TBD

I. Text Tool Improvements

Inkscape's text tool is handy, but still lacks many of the niceties that users would like. This project would seek to address this by implementing various improvements that users have requested.

Some ideas for improvements:

  • Make flowed text respect the default style of the text tool
  • when flowing a text which already contains line breaks, provide a way for the line breaks to be conserved.
  • when the style selected in the the Text and Font dialog is applied it erases any other style applied to some part of the text (like italics on some words, bold on others...), it would also be better to keep them where appropriate.
  • Search through the Inkscape RFE list for other text and font improvement ideas

Mentor: TBD

J. Color Adjustment Dialog

Currently, it is possible to select, say, 12 objects in the drawing and set them to the same color/gradient/pattern. This project would go a step further, allowing multiple objects of differing color to have aspects of their color (such as brightness/contrast, HSL, etc.) altered, and to operate on vector objects with different fill styles (flat, gradient, or pattern fills), and to bitmaps.

Mentor: Bulia

K. External CSS Support

Inkscape currently supports inline CSS, but real support for non-inline CSS would allow storing style elements in the document head or an external file, and help prevent a lot of duplication of style info inline. It will also improve the ability to use SVG generated by other programs that use non-inline CSS.

Mentor: TBD

L. Bucket fill tool

This feature provides a new tool that generates a vector object with the desired color. This would allow, for example, the artist to draw a set of intersecting lines, and paint the blank spaces in between.

Two approaches have been proposed: The first would export to a bitmap, perform a flood-fill, then trace the result and insert back into the drawing. The second would strive to detect the surrounding vector objects, extract their points, and then construct a matching shape with the desired fill. Both approaches have their pros and cons; please select either and explain why you wish to do it that way, and how you would do it.

More discussion is available here: http://sourceforge.net/tracker/index.php?func=detail&aid=1123138&group_id=93438&atid=604309

Mentor: Bulia


Additional Ideas

  • SVG support in OpenOffice (not exactly Inkscape development, but would allow Inkscape users to paste in art rather than having to export to png and really promote usuage of Inkscape). Not to mention eliminating all those duplicate svg/png image files!
  • More potrace/SIOX/etc. style features/development
  • Extending the online InkscapeSVG stuff - might be very cool for sharing sketches, etc
  • Building a public whiteboard server for Inkscape users, with a web site of its own, user galleries, interest groups, scheduled drawathons, connections to OCAL, etc.
  • Skeletal Strokes and Effect Lines - A few links: Our wiki page on Expression [[1]], Technical papers on Skeletal Strokes [[2]], Examples - [[3]], [[4]], [[5]].
  • Standalone palette editor
  • Converter from Visio to VectorSection's CRS format
  • Converter from CorelDraw to VectorSection's CRS format


SOC 2005