How do I make a visible object using the circle too? Every time I try to create a shape nothing appears but the dotted line rectangular selection box. I've tried to change the properties/colors of the objects, but cannot make it appear. Can anyone tell me what it is I'm doing wrong?

do the shapes appear in the xml editor?
are you sure they have a fill/stroke set and an opacity > 0?

How exactly are you changing the properties? Click on a color chip you see near bottom of the window, you should see the change immediately on the selected object.

Can you tell what message do you see in the statusbar while the object is selected?

It could be that the object is completely masked, to unmask it go to Object > Mask > Release

Are there other objects in the file? Maybe your circle is beneath another object so you can't see it, send your object to top (Object > Raise to top).

prkos wrote:It could be that the object is completely masked, to unmask it go to Object > Mask > Release

I often make this mistake where I forget I'm working within a clip/mask object and can't figure out why I can't see the object I just drew