i am wondering, is there any way to unlock an object in inkscape after you have locked it using rightclick>object properties...

the problem that i have is that once i have locked it, i cant select it again to be able to unlock it... the only way i know of is to edit the XML of the SVG directly... is there a better way? or should i just put it in its own layer and lock the layer? (thats how i do it usually now...)

Because it's not so easy to unlock an object, I think the recommendation is to keep it in a seperate layer and lock the layer.

But, aside from using the XML editor, you can also use the Find (Ctrl + F) to select a locked object. But you'll need to know its ID.

Inkscape needs a palette like the layers palette that lists all objects, making it easy to select them, rename them, hide and lock them.

microUgly wrote:Inkscape needs a palette like the layers palette that lists all objects, making it easy to select them, rename them, hide and lock them.

i agree, i may do up a mockup of something like that and post it as a feature request...

ryanlerch wrote:

microUgly wrote:Inkscape needs a palette like the layers palette that lists all objects, making it easy to select them, rename them, hide and lock them.

i agree, i may do up a mockup of something like that and post it as a feature request...

Ideally it would be a part of the layers palette, like Illustrator does. They could include a toggle to hide or show objects within a layer.

microUgly wrote:
Ideally it would be a part of the layers palette, like Illustrator does. They could include a toggle to hide or show objects within a layer.

would you be able to do a screenshot of the illustrator layers dialog box so i can have a squiz on how they implement it?

here is my mockup for extending the layers interface in inkscape...

it has a basic collapsable tree structure, that shows all the elements and sub elements when expanding. I also added the little icons to show what type of object it is...

i also kept the lock/unlock icons and visiblilty icons too...

Yup that's perfect. It even has the advantage of showing which object is above which.

I noticed you also showed grouping. It would be amazing if it could also show masks and clips in a similar hierarchy.

Although, none of this is a new idea. Most graphics applications work this way so I have to think that there's probably a good reason why the developers haven't implemented something like this already.

In the end, just a basic list of all objects with out hierarchy or other indications order and grouping will suffice for being able to easily hide and lock objects.

microUgly wrote:Although, none of this is a new idea. Most graphics applications work this way so I have to think that there's probably a good reason why the developers haven't implemented something like this already.

i have posted this to the inkscape-user and inkscape devel lists, so we will see i suppose...

This feature would be the answer to one my problems with using inkscape.

Well, I did not have a better solution than edit XML file, but ...
To avoid spend a while looking for strings "lock", "locked", "under lock" ... as me, look for attibute sodipodi:insensitive.

If you are using the embedded XML editor of Inkscape, pop the search box up with CRTL+F and then search for 'attribute'. Delete the property with the "Delete attibute" button on top.
And you are done!

The next version will have Object->Unhide All and Object->Unlock All. It's already available in current SVN builds.

The next version will have Object->Unhide All and Object->Unlock All. It's already available in current SVN builds.

Not sure if it just me but if you have an object on a layer and then hide it, then lock the layer, then do some work, when you unlock the layer and do Object->Unhide All the object still does not display again.

Nicolas Slusarenko wrote:Well, I did not have a better solution than edit XML file, but ...
To avoid spend a while looking for strings "lock", "locked", "under lock" ... as me, look for attibute sodipodi:insensitive.

If you are using the embedded XML editor of Inkscape, pop the search box up with CRTL+F and then search for 'attribute'. Delete the property with the "Delete attibute" button on top.
And you are done!

Thanks for this information.

I had a locked layer which would not unlock itself using the unlock icon.

I could not unlock it, but found the sodipodi:insensitive attribute and set it to false. When this failed to unlock the layer I almost gave up. Deleting the attribute did the trick.

Thanks again!

I would really love to see an improved layers interface that displays objects and allows the same kind of drag and drop organizing of layers and objects that I find nearly essential to my work flow in Illustrator.

Can anyone get this into the features request list?

mlitty wrote:Can anyone get this into the features request list?

Yes, but I'd be surprised if it isn't already there. Look it up on Launchpad.

Note that I don't think there is any resistance to this idea from the developers, it's just that nobody has taken it upon themselves to implement it.

If your design is relatively simple, you can easily open the SVG file in a text editor and scan for the object that you accidentally locked. I tried this and in a matter of seconds found the object ID for the bitmap I had locked. Then I did what others recommended above: In Inkscape, search for the object using it's ID. Make sure you tick the "Include locked" search option!

Another idea is to handle the lock feature the way Adobe Freehand does it.. that is, locked object can still be selected, but not edited.. so you can always unlock the object by selecting it..

To ryanlerch :
Is your mockup implemented in inkscape ?
Or how do I use your it ?
Thanks !

use unlock all option from object