I am following instructions for converting text to a SVG and I am getting confused as to why, after converting the text to a path, you then have to click Object > Ungroup and Path > Union - the final two actions seem to be contradictory. Also if the text is a path, why would I use the Object menu? What am I missing?
Imagine you want to bake a cake. You go to the shop and buy some milk, flour and eggs, and carry them home in a bag. When you get home you put the flour in a bowl, pour in some milk, add the eggs, and mix the whole thing together.
The bag is a group. Each item within it is separate and can be modified individually. You can remove individual items from the bag/group, or add other items. The items don't all have to be the same.
The batter in the bowl is the equivalent of performing a union. All the individual bits are now one single thing (a path). You can add to the mix, but you still have a mix. You can remove some of the mix, but it's still a mix. There's no way to remove just the eggs or just the milk.
Text to Path creates a group, with each letter as a separate object in the bag. When you ungroup then Union you turn it from a bagful of letter-shaped-paths into a single path (batter mix) that looks like the original text.
A Group is any number of objects that are constrained to move or be styled in unison.
A Union is an operation to modify two or more paths into one path.
Pretty much anything that can be displayed in an SVG is an object. Text, paths, shapes, groups, symbols, clones are all types of objects. (Not guides, nor grids or other composition tools).
Text objects can remain text in SVG, if the letter/word shapes are not going to be modified.
Converting text objects to path objects can be useful for modifying the shapes of the text.
When text is converted to path, the individual characters become path objects. They are automatically grouped for user convenience, so a word does not need to be moved/styled path by path.
Some path operations and extensions require that only one path can modified in the operation. So, to make separate letter-shaped paths into one path, they can be combined or unioned.
"Displayed" meaning available to web browsers, editors, viewers.
Thank you both. The penny has dropped. I wanted to understand this before moving forward. I’m thoroughly committed to mastering Inkscape and have already spread the word about it to a number of friends.
Beginners' Questions Difference between Union and Group.
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I am following instructions for converting text to a SVG and I am getting confused as to why, after converting the text to a path, you then have to click Object > Ungroup and Path > Union - the final two actions seem to be contradictory. Also if the text is a path, why would I use the Object menu? What am I missing?
Hoping you can help.
Toni J.
Imagine you want to bake a cake. You go to the shop and buy some milk, flour and eggs, and carry them home in a bag. When you get home you put the flour in a bowl, pour in some milk, add the eggs, and mix the whole thing together.
The bag is a group. Each item within it is separate and can be modified individually. You can remove individual items from the bag/group, or add other items. The items don't all have to be the same.
The batter in the bowl is the equivalent of performing a union. All the individual bits are now one single thing (a path). You can add to the mix, but you still have a mix. You can remove some of the mix, but it's still a mix. There's no way to remove just the eggs or just the milk.
Text to Path creates a group, with each letter as a separate object in the bag. When you ungroup then Union you turn it from a bagful of letter-shaped-paths into a single path (batter mix) that looks like the original text.
A Group is any number of objects that are constrained to move or be styled in unison.
A Union is an operation to modify two or more paths into one path.
Pretty much anything that can be displayed in an SVG is an object. Text, paths, shapes, groups, symbols, clones are all types of objects. (Not guides, nor grids or other composition tools).
Text objects can remain text in SVG, if the letter/word shapes are not going to be modified.
"Displayed" meaning available to web browsers, editors, viewers.
Thank you both. The penny has dropped. I wanted to understand this before moving forward. I’m thoroughly committed to mastering Inkscape and have already spread the word about it to a number of friends.