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How to install Inkscape in Ubuntu

To Install Inkscape 0.91 in Ubuntu

Inkscape is an open source drawing and painting tool similar to CorelDraw, Illustrator, Xara X and Photoshop. It is widely used in all form of OS. Installation of Inkscape is explained in this article.

Features

  • Cairo rendering for display and PNG export
  • OpenMP multithreading for all filters
  • C++ code conversion
  • Symbol library and support for Visio stencils
  • Cross platform WMF and EMF import and export
  • Improved support for Corel DRAW documents, Visio importer
  • Substantial memory savings

To install Inkscape

Utilise the following command to verify the Inkscape package version.

root@linuxhelp1:~# apt-cache policy inkscape
inkscape:
Installed: (none)
Candidate: 0.91-7ubuntu2
Version table:
0.91-7ubuntu2 500
500 http://in.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu xenial/main amd64 Packages

Before starting with the installation, add the repositories.

root@linuxhelp1:~# sudo add-apt-repository ppa:inkscape.dev/stable
The Inkscape Stable PPA is intended to provide the current supported release of Inkscape.
More info: https://launchpad.net/~inkscape.dev/+archive/ubuntu/stable
Press [ENTER] to continue or ctrl-c to cancel adding it

gpg: keyring `/tmp/tmpacx1lqmi/secring.gpg'  created
gpg: keyring `/tmp/tmpacx1lqmi/pubring.gpg'  created
gpg: requesting key B9A06DE3 from hkp server keyserver.ubuntu.com
gpg: /tmp/tmpacx1lqmi/trustdb.gpg: trustdb created
gpg: key B9A06DE3: public key " Launchpad PPA for Inkscape Developers"  imported
gpg: Total number processed: 1
gpg: imported: 1 (RSA: 1)
OK

Update the system to make the changes alive.

root@linuxhelp1:~# sudo apt-get update
Hit:1 http://in.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu xenial InRelease
Get:2 http://ppa.launchpad.net/inkscape.dev/stable/ubuntu xenial InRelease [17.5 kB]
Hit:3 http://security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu xenial-security InRelease
Hit:4 http://in.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu xenial-updates InRelease
Hit:5 http://in.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu xenial-backports InRelease
Get:6 http://ppa.launchpad.net/inkscape.dev/stable/ubuntu xenial/main amd64 Packages [1,008 B]
Get:7 http://ppa.launchpad.net/inkscape.dev/stable/ubuntu xenial/main i386 Packages [1,004 B]
Get:8 http://ppa.launchpad.net/inkscape.dev/stable/ubuntu xenial/main Translation-en [692 B]
Fetched 20.2 kB in 1s (11.3 kB/s)
Reading package lists... 42%
Reading package lists... Done

Again check the version of Inkscape.

root@linuxhelp1:~# apt-cache policy inkscape
inkscape:
Installed: (none)
Candidate: 0.91.0+52~ubuntu16.04.1
Version table:
0.91.0+52~ubuntu16.04.1 500
500 http://ppa.launchpad.net/inkscape.dev/stable/ubuntu xenial/main amd64 Packages
0.91-7ubuntu2 500
500 http://in.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu xenial/main amd64 Packages

Now install the inkscape package by using the following command.

root@linuxhelp1:~# sudo apt-get install inkscape -y
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree
Reading state information... Done
The following packages were automatically installed and are no longer required:
libpango1.0-0 libpangox-1.0-0 linux-headers-4.4.0-21 linux-headers-4.4.0-21-generic linux-image-4.4.0-21-generic
linux-image-extra-4.4.0-21-generic
Use ' sudo apt autoremove'  to remove them.
.
.
.
Setting up libblas3 (3.6.0-2ubuntu2) ...
update-alternatives: using /usr/lib/libblas/libblas.so.3 to provide /usr/lib/libblas.so.3 (libblas.so.3) in auto mode
Setting up libgfortran3:amd64 (5.4.0-6ubuntu1~16.04.1) ...
Setting up libimage-magick-q16-perl (8:6.8.9.9-7ubuntu5.1) ...
Setting up libimage-magick-perl (8:6.8.9.9-7ubuntu5.1) ...
Setting up liblapack3 (3.6.0-2ubuntu2) ...
update-alternatives: using /usr/lib/lapack/liblapack.so.3 to provide /usr/lib/liblapack.so.3 (liblapack.so.3) in auto mode
Setting up libwmf-bin (0.2.8.4-10.5ubuntu1) ...
Setting up perlmagick (8:6.8.9.9-7ubuntu5.1) ...
Setting up python-bs4 (4.4.1-1) ...
Setting up python-pkg-resources (20.7.0-1) ...
Setting up python-chardet (2.3.0-2) ...
Setting up python-six (1.10.0-3) ...
Setting up python-html5lib (0.999-4) ...
Setting up python-pil:amd64 (3.1.2-0ubuntu1) ...
Setting up python-imaging (3.1.2-0ubuntu1) ...
Setting up python-lxml (3.5.0-1build1) ...
Setting up python-numpy (1:1.11.0-1ubuntu1) ...
Setting up python-renderpm:amd64 (3.3.0-1) ...
Setting up python-reportlab-accel:amd64 (3.3.0-1) ...
Setting up python-reportlab (3.3.0-1) ...
Setting up python-uniconvertor (1.1.5-2) ...
Processing triggers for libc-bin (2.23-0ubuntu3) ...

To Launch Inkscape

Open the inkscape from the dashboard.

Tag : Paint tool
FAQ
Q
How to make an SVG object into a link?
A
To make an SVG object into a link make use of the following procedure provided in their official link "http://tavmjong.free.fr/INKSCAPE/MANUAL/html/Web-Links.html".
Q
What are the best other alternatives for Inkscape?
A
The best alternatives for Inkscape are Pencil project, Affinity Designer, Adobe Illustrator and it goes on
Q
How to verify whether the package is already installed or not on Ubuntu OS?
A
On Ubuntu OS you can verify them using apt-cache policy package name
Q
How to add PPA for Inkscape on Ubuntu OS?
A
For adding PPA use "add-apt-repository ppa:inkscape.dev/stable" on ubuntu 16.04
Q
The Installation of Inkscape gets completed but Unable to launch?
A
Maybe your Virtual memory exceeds and it may stick somewhere remove all the caches and also close the apps running in the background.