While this isn’t problematic per-se, it usually makes sense to make figures that actually have a white background.

So if you put in some shapes / plots, they will be floating in emptiness, rather than a white background. Thus, adjust the width to 174 mm, and hit enter, and the width of that page should now shrink.Ģ) So the page settings defaults to *NO* background color (this can be revealed by clicking on that “Checkerboard background” button). It’s probably easier to plan for the smallest size of 174 mm, and just space things apart a bit / give the panels more breathing room if you end up in a situation where larger dimensions are allowed. Most journal have maximum figure widths between 174 and 180 mm (though handful allow 190 or even 200 mm).

The main things I like to change are as follows:ġ) The dimensions. A new pane should open up to the right of the program, like below (if it doesn’t, try adjusting the size of your window and that should force a refresh). To do this, go to File -> Document Properties… or just hit “Command + Shift + D” if you’re on a Mac, like me. While you don’t have to start here, I like to make some basic adjustments to the page out of the get-go. Step 3: Adjusting the properties of your page. The white rectangle with the drop-shadow is the blank “page”. You should get a blank screen like this, which is the basic workspace. I’ll assume this is pretty self-explanatory unless someone tells me otherwise. Obviously, this is downloading the program. To help people in my lab start using it, I’m writing up this primer describing a series of basic processes I perform when using it. It can be a little buggy, but I’ve learned to absolutely love it over the last 10 years or so.

Inkscape is a free & open source software that works on Mac or Windows. I’ve never actually used it, mostly b/c I started using playing around with vector graphics editor software when I was a grad student, and the idea of paying for an Adobe product with my own money was unpalatable. A proprietary program some people may be used to is Adobe Illustrator. Vector graphics editor software are SUPER useful when trying to make figures.

Inkscape crop out background