How to Participate in Providing Tutorials

Here's how interested tutorial authors can participate.

Official Tutorials

If you would like to participate in creating tutorials for the Official Tutorials section, they must conform to these general guidelines.  At this time, only English is acceptable.  Hopefully in the future, we will have volunteers to review non-English tutorials.

For tutorials in text format:

• Steps should be numbered or bulleted, or be separated sufficiently that the reader clearly understands the order in which they should be followed.
• They should use proper spelling and grammar.  We can help with that, especially if English is not your native language.
• Proper Inkscape terminology should be used (as can be found in the manual).

For tutorials in video format:

• Narration is preferred over music audio.  Proper Inkscape terminology should be used (as found in the manual).
• If music is used for audio, it should not be too obnoxious (no gangsta rap or too heavy metal, for example).  Keep in mind that if viewers don't like the music, they're probably going to mute it anyway.  So it should be tolerable by most viewers.
• If music is used instead of narration, that means the video needs to be crystal clear by itself.
• If captions are used instead of narration, they should use proper spelling and grammar, as well as Inkscape terminology.  They should proceed slowly, to give enough time for both reading them and watching the action in the video.
• Steps should be presented slowly and evenly, so that viewers don't have to be repeatedly stop, rewind, and replay.

For new tutorials to be packed with Inkscape:

• These must teach the most basic or fundamental aspects of using Inkscape.  For example, 'how to draw a fish logo' is unessential to the program, and would not be suitable for this type of tutorial.  These are examples of tutorials which could be added to this category.  In depth explanation of using the Gradient tool.  Using Gradient Mesh tool.  Using Measurements tool.  Using LPEs.  Well, using any tool or feature, except those which are already covered by other tutorials.
• Where you see "should" in the guidelines for tutorials in text format above, replace with "must" for tutorials packed with Inkscape. 
• These must use the same styling as the existing tutorials. 

Most importantly, note that when tutorial authors offer these tutorials to the website, they should contain the CC-BY-SA license (or equivalent).  This is necessary for them to appear on the website.  It means that they can be edited by the community, in case for example, certain Inkscape features are changed in the future, or perhaps repeated questions from users indicate a confusing sentence.  This is also necessary for the tutorials packed with Inkscape.

Officially Endorsed Tutorials

For tutorials to be listed in Officially Endorsed category, the guidelines are generally the same, but somewhat relaxed, since the authors still own them.  The tutorials will still be reviewed, to facilitate the endorsement, so they must contain correct information.  But they won't be as closely perused as those that will be given to the community for the website.  In some cases, tutorials in languages besides English will be acceptable.  (We're discussing the possibility of offering badges to these tutorial authors, to put on their tutorials.  This would show visitors to your site that the Inkscape project has approved your tutorial.)

User Recommended Tutorials

The User-Recommended tutorials will only be reviewed to make sure there is no incorrect information.  If there isn't any, we'll be glad to link to them.

Tutorials Into the Future - Join Us!

Currently, these tutorials are reviewed by just a couple of people, to make sure they have the quality we want.  But over time, we want to grow a team of tutorial authors, who have learned what the expected quality is, so that their tutorials don't need to be reviewed.  And not just tutorial authors, but for other documentation for the program, as well.

We are already beginning to form a Documentation Team.  This team would not just be involved with writing tutorials, but might help with creating a new official manual - one which is written and updated by the community, sort of perpetually maintained.  Maybe more than one manual....maybe other types of documentation, like a step-by-step guide for beginners or an overview of digital cutting routines, or etc. If you'd like to join this team, please visit the page linked above, and click on the blue Join Team button.

So this system will not always look like it does now.  We hope it will change and grow as both the program and the community matures.

If you are a tutorial author and have questions, you're welcome to join us in the Documentation chatroom or the Docs mailing list.

Currently Much-Needed Tutorials

These are some subjects which are hard to find in tutorials around the internet, which would be especially nice to have.

• a video tutorial which covers all aspects of using the Pen/Bezier tool
• a tutorial which comprehensively covers all aspects of node editing
• a video tutorial which explains all aspects of using gradients and the Gradient tool, on the canvas (without using the Gradient Editor) (not about Gradient Mesh)
• some relatively new tools/features in Inkscape:  Measurement tool, LPEs, Gradient Mesh, Spray tool, Tweak tool