14 DAY TRIAL // Inkscape 1.0 is finally available for download after no less than three years of development, and just as expected, this major release comes with a massive changelog.
The open source vector editor is available for Linux, Windows, and macOS, and one of the biggest announcement concerns Apple’s platform.
Beginning with version 1.0, InkScape is offered as a native macOS application, which means you should notice better performance and increased reliability.
“All macOS users will notice that this latest version is labelled as 'preview', which means that additional improvements are scheduled for the next versions. Overall, 1.0 delivers a smoother, higher performance experience on Linux and Windows, and a better system integration (no more XQuartz!) on macOS,” the official announcement reads.
As for what’s new in this update, Inkscape introduces a new PowerPencil mode which allows the Pencil tool to be used with pressure-dependent width. You can also create closed path and vectorize line drawings.
Extension improvements
The PDF export tool has been improved with support for clickable links and metadata, while other notable improvements including variable font support, new templates, mesh gradients that work in the browser, and new line-height settings.
There are also customizable themes, icons, and fonts, and users can save the current file as a template.
Inkscape version 1.0 comes with important changes to the extension system, as explained in the changelog.
“Over the years, Inkscape users have become used to working with third-party extensions, such as various ones used for laser cutting and exporting to file formats which are not a native part of Inkscape. While outreach to extension developers was undertaken as Inkscape migrates towards Python 3 and a more logical and fully tested extensions API (now hosted in a separate repository), not all third-party extensions have been brought forward to be compatible yet. This will mean that 1.0 may not allow some users to continue with their normal extensions workflow,” the official announcement reads.
A closer look at what’s new in this update is available in the video below and scroll down to see the full changelog.
