This week, the SVG Track got off to a great start – we updated our Workspace to reflect our full schedule that maps our present curriculum to effective production of the images in the CCR. Each week we will focus on a new feature of Inkscape with some overlap between the image groups. The goal is to provide practical work experience with a focus on learning the tools in the program. This week, we started simple – creating a set of basic line diagrams. At #rdcHQ, we like to think of it as practicing our scales:

Tutorial: Interpolate + Exclusion

While the SVG Team is warming up, we are preparing a set of tutorials for more advanced illustrations on the horizon.

Our next batch of illustrations will use a combination of features in Inkscape to create uniform grids for tables as well as patterns for modeling images through a technique generally referred to as “cross-hatching.” We covered the first step in this technique with a function called Interpolate. → You can review that tutorial here.

When used in combination with the Exclusion command, Interpolate is a very powerful production tool. There are several steps involved in this process, and when executed in the proper sequence, the commands reproduce the functionality of Adobe Illustrator’s excellent Pathfinder tool (in this particular instance, the Exclude function). We discovered this technique after considerable research which led to the conclusion that this particular function was not currently possible in Inkscape (as a matter of fact, we were convinced this was the case at the close of the 2011 season). Most professionals agree that although Inkscape is wonderful, there are some things it can not do. We are always happy to provide evidence to the contrary!

The following steps will invoke Inkscape’s Exclusion command on a series of lines -

1. Interpolate the lines.
2. Ungroup the Interpolated lines. <-- important!
3. Group Select the individual segments and “Stroke to Path” <-- important!
4. Draw the desired shape above the resulting line pattern.
5. FILL the shape with a color (DO NOT stroke the shape) <-- important!
6. Group Select the shape with the individual line segments.
7. Select Exclusion from the Path menu.
8. Select Break Apart from the Path menu. This will result in segments inside and outside the filled shape.
9. Delete the segments that fall outside of the filled shape.
10. Voila! <-- watch video below to review steps 1 through 9!

Granted this is several more steps than is necessary using Adobe Illustrator’s Blend and Pathfinder tool (the primary difference being the need to stroke the paths and fill the shape before excluding) – but the results are the same and the tools are 100% Open Source!

The summer is really getting busy at #rdcHQ! We launched our 2012 deBUG Days track and things are really getting interesting in the SVG and MathML Tracks!

Phineas studies the MathML and SVG spec in preparation for deBUG Days 2012

MathML and SVG Tracks

This week we received our core documents set for the summer program, The California Code of Regulations (CCR), and we began by organizing the files into key content types. With over 3,500 images, it is an impressive collection that introduces new formats: in addition to diagrams and MathML we now have maps, charts and a large quantity of primarily textual content including forms and tables. Each format presents a unique set of challenges and we are breaking down the best approach for each subset. SVG Project Lead Levi Thompson kicked off the SVG Track this week with a tutorial on how to create a production-ready SVG and shared libraries that he has been building to facilitate this process –

In the MathML Track, we brushed up on some Amaya basics and ran the first set of equations for our new document set through the final workflow established last year:

As future document sets repurpose graphics from our previous work on t24, MathML Project Lead Jasper Shumaker-Pruitt spent time brainstorming the best way to quickly cross-reference repositories. We think there might be an easily scriptable solution to facilitate this process and plan to research this while we code CCR.

deBUG Days – Cobwebs

This deBUG Day, Project Lead Nathan Malamud launched a new project, Cobwebs, to accompany “Life on a Redwood Post” which entered our project pool this year. Cobwebs is an animated series produced by a really cool creative group of kids, dubbed the “Cobwebs Crew”. The kids are leading the project, writing the script, creating the music, drawing the art and directing the animated series all on-site at #rdcHQ. It’s a really exciting project, and in their first meetup the kids got a tour of #rdcHQ, reviewed the script, brainstormed the scenes for the Introduction, and sketched a few frames. Next week, they are going to learn how to produce animation frames using Inkscape and Photoshop. A sample of one of these frames (created by Nate) is below -

We’ll be tracking the progress of Cobwebs frame-by-frame at #rdcHQ … Stay Tuned!

illustration: alicia traveria

Greetings from #rdcHQ! We kicked off our 2012 Summer Season with our first “deBUG Day” – with due respect to Rear Admiral Grace Hopper who is often attributed with coining the phrase “debug” … although as with most things in technology, it is the subject of much debate. It is the perfect name for our Wednesday meetups as our 2012 season will focus on refining our work processes and improving our infrastructure … and this year we could not pass up the opportunity for a little bug humor

Today we welcome two new mentees – Bud and Josh Wallace! Bud is a freelance web developer with experience in PHP/JQuery/HTML/CSS and his brother, Josh, is an illustrator with a talent for fantasy art. Bud and Josh will be focusing on our SVG Track, joining forces with vector wizard Levi Thompson. Our season began with setting up workstations, scanning art, exchanging Skype IDs, having an introductory screening of the “Codes of the World” project, and reviewing the basic techniques used in creating a production-ready SVG. It was a very productive afternoon, and we are all looking forward to the summer at #rdcHQ!

On other fronts, we are mapping out a production schedule for the season based on a new document set that builds on the t24 work that we did last year during the 2011 mentoring program. This involves organizing the illustrations into useful groupings to provide practice for learning the functions of Inkscape, and cross-referencing it against last year’s work to flag any duplicates. We’ll be organizing our tracks on a new server to streamline our production as more members of our team plan to meet up remotely. Oceana Rain Fields and Scott Peden will both be joining us from remote outposts, and Jasper Shumaker-Pruitt will again be leading the way on authoring equations.

It’s that time of the year again … Go #rdcHQ Go!

RDC 2012 Application
2.0MB PDF

2012 Recruitment Materials for the Rural Design Collective Summer Mentoring Program are now available! Please note that the first deadline for application submissions is May 16.* Feel free to fill out an application if you are interested in the 2012 program (click on the graphic to the left to download the form). Our project pool includes the opportunity to work with MathML, honing our illustration skills creating vector graphics for an international “Codes of the World” initiative, and liberating an archive of insects using open source tools!