Inkvec

Install and first launch

Inkvec Studio is published on the project's GitHub releases page. Each release has one download per platform, named inkvec-studio-<version>-<target> with the usual extension.

System Download Oldest system it starts on
Windows .exe (installer, no administrator rights needed) or .msi Windows 10 with WebView2; the installer fetches WebView2 if it is missing
macOS .dmg macOS 10.15 on Intel, 11.0 on Apple silicon
Linux .deb, .rpm or .AppImage glibc 2.38, libstdc++ 13 and WebKitGTK 4.1: Ubuntu 23.10, Debian 13, Fedora 39 and newer

The release notes list a SHA-256 checksum for every file. Checking it is what establishes that a download is the one the project published:

  • Windows: certutil -hashfile <file> SHA256
  • macOS: shasum -a 256 <file>
  • Linux: sha256sum <file>

Opening the app the first time

The builds are not code-signed on any platform, so each operating system warns about them in its own way.

  • Windows. SmartScreen shows "Windows protected your PC" with an unknown publisher. Choose More info, then Run anyway.
  • macOS. Gatekeeper refuses an unsigned app downloaded from a browser. Open Applications, Control-click Inkvec Studio, choose Open, then Open again in the dialog. If macOS still refuses, run xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine "/Applications/Inkvec Studio.app" in Terminal.
  • Linux. Nothing special for the .deb or .rpm. An .AppImage needs chmod +x before it will run.

A short splash screen covers start-up, then the main window opens on the Vectorize tab with an empty stage: a drop area, Open an image, and four sample images to try.

The empty Vectorize tab on first launch, with the introduction card and the samples

On the very first launch a card above the drop area explains what happens when an image is opened. Got it hides it for good. The next page, Getting started, goes through the same thing with a sample.

What the app sends over the network

Tracing never needs a network. The app can make exactly two kinds of outbound request:

  • The update check, when the app starts. It asks GitHub for the latest release and sends the app's version and your operating system (in the request's user agent), nothing else. Turn it off in Settings and the app does not contact the network at all.
  • The denoiser download, only when you ask for it. See the denoiser.

Your images, traces and exported files never leave your computer.

Updates

When the update check finds a newer version, the status strip at the bottom of the Vectorize tab shows <version> available and a What changed link to the release notes. The app does not update itself: download the new release and install it over the old one. Your preferences and saved presets are kept.

Uninstalling

Uninstall the app the way your system usually does (Windows: Settings, Apps; macOS: move it to the Bin; Linux: your package manager). On Windows the uninstaller also removes the two things the app can add from its Settings screen, the right-click entry and the inkvec command, if you added them. On macOS and Linux, remove those first from Settings, Advanced if you added them.

Two things are left behind on purpose, because they are yours rather than the app's: the preferences file (your settings, recent files and saved presets) and, if you downloaded it, the denoiser model. Their locations are listed in Settings.

Studio Lite

Inkvec Studio Lite needs no installation: it runs in a current desktop browser. Everything on this page about installers, signing and uninstalling applies only to the desktop app.