Why I Think Inkscape is the Best Software of all Time

Ever since each of us was old enough to hold a stick, we have wanted to draw stuff, on stuff. To make our mark. To create squiggles that mean something, and convey meaning in both time and place with our fellow humans. With the invention of the computer, it was quickly discovered that there was only so much that could be done with keys and the written language. Words do convey meaning, but to create a picture is something so useful that is couldn't be ignored. The mouse was invented, and the drawing tablet, and drawing and computer aided design programs were written which allowed images and pictures and sketches and designs to be created, saved, copied and distributed. Inkscape is a 'really free' drawing package that uses the openly available Scalar Vector Graphics (SVG) format. Together, this means that anything you draw with inkscape today, will always be available to you. Graphics using SVG are starting to appear all over the desktop and the web, and there are some that think, myself included, that it will even challenge the FlashMedia formats, as the dominant image format on the internet. Inkscape is the most widely used SVG drawing tool, it exports to Postscript, PDF and a wide array of other formats, and has a very active development community behind it. I'm looking forward to the next 12 months.