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ID4WiscState's avatar
ID4WiscState
Community Member
10 days ago

EMFs import differently

Hey y'all,

So I like making my own icons/freeforms. I typically use Inkscape for the vector work. Storyline accepts SVGs, but I can't change the colors per project. Typically, I make an emf and ungroup it to turn it into a freeform. Unfortunately, I cannot get that behavior to play nicely from an emf made in Inkscape. Instead, I have to import the svg into PowerPoint, and then save it as an emf; then I can import the emf into Storyline and ungroup it.

Can somebody clarify what is so different about the emf from Inkscape as opposed to the emf from PowerPoint? Is the issue with Inkscape's codec? Is the issue with Storyline's import process?

I would offer to share my .emfs as an example, but its not a permissible file type.

Thanks,

Pierre

Graphics

1 Reply

  • Katie-Jordan's avatar
    Katie-Jordan
    Staff
    3 days ago

    Hi ID4WiscState​, I'm not 100% sure, but it seems like others in the community have had this issue before. My understanding is that: 

    • PowerPoint saves EMF files the way Storyline expects, so shapes stay as separate, editable pieces.
    • Inkscape saves EMF files in a different way (it uses complex paths and effects), so Storyline sees them as one thing and can’t break them into editable parts.

    So I think it’s a compatibility mismatch. I think you are right, the easiest, most reliable workflow is to put your SVG into PowerPoint and save/export it as an EMF before importing to Storyline. If you want to dig deeper for your specific files, it may be worth contacting support.