Patterns can be save to a custom Pattern file in the user profile, which will persist after updating Inkscape. This is not easy for beginners.
However,
Patterns are saved within documents, and patterns can be copied/pasted from one document to another, so it might be simple enough to save a document with your custom patterns. They will have random numbered names (unless edited in xml).
Thanks, Tyler. I do keep a couple of pages of pattern squares to copy and paste. Where might I find info about saving a custom Pattern file in the user profile? Is that different from making changes in the XML?
Since I know nothing about Python and very little about XML, I'm still wondering about our Inkscape developers' thinking about the cost/benefit of including some sort of function to save custom patterns....
Ok, a little digging reveals some new architecture...
A pattern can be saved to a new document (eg houndstooth.svg) that gets saved in the user "Paint Servers" directory (see in Prefs). Before saving the file, open the Document Properties and enter a title for the pattern (e.g.Houndstooth Pattern).
After restarting Inkscape, Objects>Paint Servers menu should have the pattern(s).
(I have not tested with multiple patterns in a single file.)
Haven't had time to play with my own patterns, but I did try some of the built-in swatches and noticed that the adjustment handles don't work on my Windows 10 64 bit computer. They appear and can be moved in and out just like the ones in Pattern, but they don't do anything to the pattern fill. There's a little vibration, and then nothing changes. Might this be a bug?
More questions:
Are the patterns of Patterns and Paint Servers the same thing?
Is the intention down the road to replace Patterns with Paint Servers?
Are the Paint Servers currently built into the program copyrighted as the built-in patterns are?
Hatches are often standardized to indicate specific building materials, so it would not surprise me if they are constrained to size and orientation.
The patterns are stored in the paint servers now, but are also found in the Fill/Stroke dialog. I think that may continue.
The image patterns that are covered by copyright are mostly CC license, and the rest are stock Inkscape. The hatches appear to be stock Inkscape as well.
Tyler, you're absolutely right about the hatches. Handles for other patterns work fine. Guess one could get around this by resizing the object to be filled before filling it.
I made a pattern and tried out the process. It works great. A tiny bit convoluted, but so much better than the previous work-arounds! Thank you, thank you! This will make keeping a library so much easier.
I take it that since these patterns are now in the user's app data, they will be retained through Inkscape updates? That would be a relief!
I thought things were working well, but no. I've got problems. Here's what has happened and what I've tried.
The pattern I initially tried out showed up in the Paint Servers just fine and worked to fill new objects. However, the initial document had some scraps left over from my experiments, and they each showed up as numbered patterns in the Paint Servers.
Unworried, I figured I could just paste the good pattern into another doc, add it to the Paint Server folder, and then go in and get rid of the old one. I tried that. Inkscape crashed when I tried to use the new Paint Server.
I went into the Paint Server folder and deleted both documents, restarted Inkscape, and Inkscape worked ok without the custom patterns.
I wondered whether the problem was somehow the copying of the object to a new doc and then saving that in the Paint Server folder, so this time I built a pattern from scratch being careful not to leave any scraps. No dice. Inkscape crashed again.
I uninstalled and reinstalled Inkscape 1.1.1, same as before, on my Windows 10 64-bit computer.
Inkscape seemed to be working fine. I tried another pattern and saved it in the Paint Server folder. This time nothing at all happened. Inkscape doesn't crash, and the file doesn't show up in Paint Server.
Please share the svg file that does not appear in the paint servers dialog, even though it is in the paint server folder. I can test here in Win and Linux.
Inkscape seemed to be working fine. I tried another pattern and saved it in the Paint Server folder. This time nothing at all happened. Inkscape doesn't crash, and the file doesn't show up in Paint Server. I've tried this twice more with the same results... Here's a file.
The group in the file was not converted to a pattern. Attached to this post is a file that has been updated to try and to compare with a conversion on your end.
Tyler, your file worked fine. I hadn't realized that I must convert to a pattern before putting a drawing in Paint Servers. I can't remember converting to a pattern on the one that worked earlier, but what do I know? I've now tried a few that I've converted to pattern and they seem to work, though I've had a couple of crashes when I tried to apply them to a new object. Seems to be working now, though. I'm also having trouble with getting rid of extraneous objects in a file and mysterious duplicates of a pattern, but maybe I'll get that figured out with practice. I'll try to keep working on it till I get a procedure that works.
In the meantime, I do have another question/comment. The handles for custom patterns are a pain in the neck. I'm sure you hear this frequently. I was so pleased in Version 1 to find that the handles for ready-made patterns are now so well behaved. Could that not be done for custom patterns as well? I had one instance this morning where the x disappeared into the pattern itself and I couldn't find it. The next time, it also ended up in the pattern, but I could see it. I couldn't move it, though, and moving the container object didn't help. Is anything in the works for fixing this?
Ok, I think I might know the source of the crashes... I could get repeatable crashes if I failed to rename a title, resulting in two documents in the paint directory having the same title.
As for the pattern handles... still working on understanding that one.
Another question: what are Patterns? I gather that once I convert objects to a Pattern, the combo is no longer editable? It's not a Group. It's not Combined. It doesn't seem to be a bitmap, since I can't trace it. Is it a clone? Come to think about it, what's a clone? I suppose I'd have to know something about the underlying code to understand? "'What is real,' asked the Rabbit one day..."
I didn't realize that any active Patterns also show up in Paint Servers, whether or not they're saved in the User paint servers. That might account for at least some of the duplicates I was seeing.
Beginners' Questions Saving custom patterns
Inkscape.org
Are the following assumptions correct?
Is there anything in the pipeline that would make it possible to save patterns, maybe as we can save external extensions?
If Inkscape is to be user friendly, shouldn't this situation be addressed? Most users aren't going to want to fool with the XML.
Thanks!
Patterns can be save to a custom Pattern file in the user profile, which will persist after updating Inkscape. This is not easy for beginners.
However,
Patterns are saved within documents, and patterns can be copied/pasted from one document to another, so it might be simple enough to save a document with your custom patterns. They will have random numbered names (unless edited in xml).
Thanks, Tyler. I do keep a couple of pages of pattern squares to copy and paste. Where might I find info about saving a custom Pattern file in the user profile? Is that different from making changes in the XML?
Since I know nothing about Python and very little about XML, I'm still wondering about our Inkscape developers' thinking about the cost/benefit of including some sort of function to save custom patterns....
Ok, a little digging reveals some new architecture...
A pattern can be saved to a new document (eg houndstooth.svg) that gets saved in the user "Paint Servers" directory (see in Prefs). Before saving the file, open the Document Properties and enter a title for the pattern (e.g.Houndstooth Pattern).
After restarting Inkscape, Objects>Paint Servers menu should have the pattern(s).
(I have not tested with multiple patterns in a single file.)
Found here: https://bugs.launchpad.net/inkscape/+bug/183535
Looks promising! I'll experiment. Thanks bunches!
Looks like multiple patterns per document are supported, so one could have a group or collection on a theme, per document, e.g. "TD Collection1".
Naming each pattern requires editing the patterns' IDs in the defs section of the document via the XML editor.
Haven't had time to play with my own patterns, but I did try some of the built-in swatches and noticed that the adjustment handles don't work on my Windows 10 64 bit computer. They appear and can be moved in and out just like the ones in Pattern, but they don't do anything to the pattern fill. There's a little vibration, and then nothing changes. Might this be a bug?
More questions:
Are the patterns of Patterns and Paint Servers the same thing?
Is the intention down the road to replace Patterns with Paint Servers?
Are the Paint Servers currently built into the program copyrighted as the built-in patterns are?
Thanks!
Hatches are often standardized to indicate specific building materials, so it would not surprise me if they are constrained to size and orientation.
The patterns are stored in the paint servers now, but are also found in the Fill/Stroke dialog. I think that may continue.
The image patterns that are covered by copyright are mostly CC license, and the rest are stock Inkscape. The hatches appear to be stock Inkscape as well.
Tyler, you're absolutely right about the hatches. Handles for other patterns work fine. Guess one could get around this by resizing the object to be filled before filling it.
I made a pattern and tried out the process. It works great. A tiny bit convoluted, but so much better than the previous work-arounds! Thank you, thank you! This will make keeping a library so much easier.
I take it that since these patterns are now in the user's app data, they will be retained through Inkscape updates? That would be a relief!
Yes... that is how it is supposed to work.
I thought things were working well, but no. I've got problems. Here's what has happened and what I've tried.
The pattern I initially tried out showed up in the Paint Servers just fine and worked to fill new objects. However, the initial document had some scraps left over from my experiments, and they each showed up as numbered patterns in the Paint Servers.
Unworried, I figured I could just paste the good pattern into another doc, add it to the Paint Server folder, and then go in and get rid of the old one. I tried that. Inkscape crashed when I tried to use the new Paint Server.
I went into the Paint Server folder and deleted both documents, restarted Inkscape, and Inkscape worked ok without the custom patterns.
I wondered whether the problem was somehow the copying of the object to a new doc and then saving that in the Paint Server folder, so this time I built a pattern from scratch being careful not to leave any scraps. No dice. Inkscape crashed again.
I uninstalled and reinstalled Inkscape 1.1.1, same as before, on my Windows 10 64-bit computer.
Inkscape seemed to be working fine. I tried another pattern and saved it in the Paint Server folder. This time nothing at all happened. Inkscape doesn't crash, and the file doesn't show up in Paint Server.
I've tried this twice more with the same results.
Any thoughts?
Please share the svg file that does not appear in the paint servers dialog, even though it is in the paint server folder. I can test here in Win and Linux.
Here's a file. Thanks.
The group in the file was not converted to a pattern. Attached to this post is a file that has been updated to try and to compare with a conversion on your end.
Tyler, your file worked fine. I hadn't realized that I must convert to a pattern before putting a drawing in Paint Servers. I can't remember converting to a pattern on the one that worked earlier, but what do I know? I've now tried a few that I've converted to pattern and they seem to work, though I've had a couple of crashes when I tried to apply them to a new object. Seems to be working now, though. I'm also having trouble with getting rid of extraneous objects in a file and mysterious duplicates of a pattern, but maybe I'll get that figured out with practice. I'll try to keep working on it till I get a procedure that works.
In the meantime, I do have another question/comment. The handles for custom patterns are a pain in the neck. I'm sure you hear this frequently. I was so pleased in Version 1 to find that the handles for ready-made patterns are now so well behaved. Could that not be done for custom patterns as well? I had one instance this morning where the x disappeared into the pattern itself and I couldn't find it. The next time, it also ended up in the pattern, but I could see it. I couldn't move it, though, and moving the container object didn't help. Is anything in the works for fixing this?
Thanks so much, Tyler, for your great help!
Ok, I think I might know the source of the crashes... I could get repeatable crashes if I failed to rename a title, resulting in two documents in the paint directory having the same title.
As for the pattern handles... still working on understanding that one.
Another question: what are Patterns? I gather that once I convert objects to a Pattern, the combo is no longer editable? It's not a Group. It's not Combined. It doesn't seem to be a bitmap, since I can't trace it. Is it a clone? Come to think about it, what's a clone? I suppose I'd have to know something about the underlying code to understand? "'What is real,' asked the Rabbit one day..."
Here is some background:
http://tavmjong.free.fr/INKSCAPE/MANUAL/html/Attributes-Fill-Stroke.html#Attributes-Patterns
http://tavmjong.free.fr/INKSCAPE/MANUAL/html/Clones.html
Ah, referring to the manual is often useful! I especially appreciate being reminded of the Pattern > Objects command. Thanks!
I didn't realize that any active Patterns also show up in Paint Servers, whether or not they're saved in the User paint servers. That might account for at least some of the duplicates I was seeing.
Yes. I only noticed that recently as well.