[solved] Object to Path... why ??

Post questions on how to use or achieve an effect in Inkscape.
zilli
Posts: 13
Joined: Tue May 13, 2008 5:49 pm

[solved] Object to Path... why ??

Postby zilli » Fri Jul 11, 2008 10:38 am

Hi

I would like some explanation about "object to path" feature.
I see a lot of people convert all there text to path... before export to png.. or save the work. Why do they do this ? Is this a best practice... I mean.. can I always convert my text to path ?

Bests,

llogg
Posts: 443
Joined: Tue Mar 11, 2008 7:30 am

Re: Object to Path... why ??

Postby llogg » Fri Jul 11, 2008 10:54 am

No, there's no reason to convert all text to path on every project. You only need to do so when you'd like to manipulate the text as a path or your are converting to a file format that might treat text and paths differently than inkscape does. Converting text (or other objects) to paths is crucial for lots of effects, however. I find it particularly useful when I want to add a highlight to an object to give it a quick 3d appearance. Here's a brief run through of doing that:
1. select object->convert to path
2. duplicate path x2
3. offset one duplicate by the desired amount (either by dragging with :tool_selector: or arrow keys)
4. select offset duplicate and duplicate immediately below it->path->difference
5. change color of path to your desired highlight color. apply blur as desired.

It's also handy for making outlines of text using the dynamic offset feature. See heathenx's screencast for funky text for this one.

User avatar
prkos
Posts: 1625
Joined: Tue Nov 06, 2007 8:45 am
Location: Croatia

Re: Object to Path... why ??

Postby prkos » Fri Jul 11, 2008 11:16 am

I think the main reason why text is converted to paths is because of fonts. If you create a text object in your .svg file with a rare font that isn't installed on everyone's computer, and you send that .svg to someone who doesn't have that font, on his computer the text won't look the same, because Inkscape will be forced to use one of the fonts that are installed there.

When you change the font of a text object, it doesn't just change the way letters look, the object can also become larger or smaller... When you convert text to paths you can't change any of the font properties, and paths should look the same on everyone's computer because they depend on the numbers and data in the .svg file and not on computer settings.
just hand over the chocolate and nobody gets hurt

Inkscape Manual on Floss
Inkscape FAQ
very comprehensive Inkscape guide
Inkscape 0.48 Illustrator's Cookbook - 109 recipes to learn and explore Inkscape - with SVG examples to download

llogg
Posts: 443
Joined: Tue Mar 11, 2008 7:30 am

Re: Object to Path... why ??

Postby llogg » Fri Jul 11, 2008 2:09 pm

Hadn't thought of that. Excellent point. Is there any way in inkscape to embed fonts?

User avatar
aho
Posts: 180
Joined: Sun Nov 04, 2007 9:51 am
Contact:

Re: Object to Path... why ??

Postby aho » Fri Jul 11, 2008 2:17 pm

Not yet, but it's getting there. One of the SoC projects is about SVG fonts and I heard it progressed pretty well so far.

User avatar
kelan
Posts: 178
Joined: Thu Sep 06, 2007 12:55 am
Location: Unicorn of Open Source
Contact:

Re: Object to Path... why ??

Postby kelan » Fri Jul 11, 2008 10:25 pm

llogg wrote:I find it particularly useful when I want to add a highlight to an object to give it a quick 3d appearance. Here's a brief run through of doing that:

llogg, you can leave the text as text and still make the highlight with duplicates. (The highlight would convert to a path when you did the difference operation, though.) In fact, if you wanted to get tricky, you can make a highlight that automatically updates if you change the text by using clones and a mask, or a clone with a filter that offsets and composites.

zilli
Posts: 13
Joined: Tue May 13, 2008 5:49 pm

Re: Object to Path... why ??

Postby zilli » Fri Jul 11, 2008 11:51 pm

thanks guys!

llogg
Posts: 443
Joined: Tue Mar 11, 2008 7:30 am

Re: Object to Path... why ??

Postby llogg » Sat Jul 12, 2008 4:06 am

kelan wrote:
llogg wrote:I find it particularly useful when I want to add a highlight to an object to give it a quick 3d appearance. Here's a brief run through of doing that:

llogg, you can leave the text as text and still make the highlight with duplicates. (The highlight would convert to a path when you did the difference operation, though.) In fact, if you wanted to get tricky, you can make a highlight that automatically updates if you change the text by using clones and a mask, or a clone with a filter that offsets and composites.

Yeah, I know about using linked offsets and clones, but I was trying to be brief and simple.


Return to “Help with using Inkscape”