Newline IWB Converter

A converter utility for extracting SVG pages from Newline whiteboard IWB files, with optional PDF conversion.

Features

• Extract SVG pages from Newline IWB (.iwb) files
• Convert IWB to PDF - create multi-page PDFs with independent or uniform page sizing
• Dual PDF conversion engines:
  • Inkscape (preferred if available) - better SVG compatibility and rendering
  • svglib (fallback) - pure Python, no external dependencies
• Flexible image handling:
  • Embed images as base64 data URIs (default)
  • Copy images directory alongside SVGs
  • Keep external image references
• Optional fill removal from shape elements
• Zero external dependencies for iwb2svg - uses only Python standard library for SVG extraction

Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Python 3.10 or later
• Ubuntu: Install Cairo with sudo apt install -y libcairo2-dev pkg-config python3-dev
• Optional: Inkscape for improved SVG to PDF conversion
  • If installed, iwb2pdf will automatically use it for better rendering
  • Without it, falls back to svglib

Installation

pip install newline-iwb-converter

Usage

iwb2svg - Extract SVG Pages

Basic Usage

iwb2svg input.iwb -o output_directory

This will extract all SVG pages from the IWB file and embed images as base64 data URIs (default behavior).

Command Line Options

usage: iwb2svg [-h] [-o OUTPUT] [--fix-fills | --no-fix-fills] [--fix-size | --no-fix-size] [--images {nothing,copy_directory,data_uri}] [--delete-background] iwb_file

Extract SVG pages from an IWB file, with optional fill→stroke repair.

positional arguments:
  iwb_file              Path to input .iwb file

options:
  -h, --help            show this help message and exit
  -o OUTPUT, --output OUTPUT
                        Output directory (default: svg_output)
  --fix-fills           Remove fill from shapes (default)
  --no-fix-fills        Do NOT modify fill behavior
  --fix-size            Fix SVG size if content extends beyond dimensions (default)
  --no-fix-size         Do NOT fix SVG size
  --images {nothing,copy_directory,data_uri}
                        How to handle images (default: data_uri)
  --delete-background   Remove background image elements

Examples

Embed images as data URIs (default):

iwb2svg input.iwb -o output_dir

Keep external image references:

iwb2svg input.iwb -o output_dir --images nothing

Copy images directory alongside SVGs:

iwb2svg input.iwb -o output_dir --images copy_directory

Don't remove fills from shapes:

iwb2svg input.iwb -o output_dir --no-fix-fills

Remove background images:

iwb2svg input.iwb -o output_dir --delete-background

Using uv run (without virtual environment activation):

uv run iwb2svg input.iwb -o output_dir

iwb2pdf - Convert to PDF

Basic Usage

iwb2pdf input.iwb -o output.pdf

This will extract all SVG pages and convert them to a multi-page PDF with independent page sizing.

Command Line Options

usage: iwb2pdf [-h] [-o OUTPUT] [--fix-fills | --no-fix-fills] [--fix-size | --no-fix-size] [--delete-background] [--uniform-size | --independent-size] [--use-inkscape | --use-svglib] iwb_file

Convert IWB files to PDF format.

positional arguments:
  iwb_file              Path to input .iwb file

options:
  -h, --help            show this help message and exit
  -o OUTPUT, --output OUTPUT
                        Output PDF file (default: output.pdf)
  --fix-fills           Remove fill from shapes (default)
  --no-fix-fills        Do NOT modify fill behavior
  --fix-size            Fix SVG size if content extends beyond dimensions (default)
  --no-fix-size         Do NOT fix SVG size
  --delete-background   Remove background image elements
  --uniform-size        Make all pages the same size (size of the largest page)
  --independent-size    Each page size is independent based on its content (default)
  --use-inkscape        Use Inkscape for SVG to PDF conversion (if available)
  --use-svglib          Use svglib for SVG to PDF conversion (default if Inkscape not available)

Examples

Create PDF with independent page sizing (auto-detects Inkscape, falls back to svglib):

iwb2pdf input.iwb -o output.pdf

Force Inkscape conversion (if available):

iwb2pdf input.iwb -o output.pdf --use-inkscape

Force svglib conversion:

iwb2pdf input.iwb -o output.pdf --use-svglib

Make all pages the same size:

iwb2pdf input.iwb -o output.pdf --uniform-size

Remove background images:

iwb2pdf input.iwb -o output.pdf --delete-background

Using uv run:

uv run iwb2pdf input.iwb -o output.pdf

Development

Getting Started

First, clone the repository and set up your development environment:

# Install UV package manager (https://github.com/astral-sh/uv)
# Then sync dependencies:
uv sync

Add Dependencies

uv add <package-name>

Install Dev Dependencies

uv sync --group dev

Package with PyInstaller

To create standalone executables:

# Install dev dependencies (if not already installed)
uv sync --group dev

# Build all executables (iwb2svg and iwb2pdf)
uv run python scripts/build_exec.py

# Or build a specific tool
uv run python scripts/build_exec.py iwb2svg
uv run python scripts/build_exec.py iwb2pdf

The executables will be created in the dist/ folder:

• iwb2svg.exe / iwb2svg (Linux/macOS)
• iwb2pdf.exe / iwb2pdf (Linux/macOS)

Project Structure

newline_iwb_converter/
├── src/
│   └── newline_iwb_converter/
│       ├── __init__.py
│       ├── iwb2svg.py          # SVG extraction utility
│       └── iwb2pdf.py          # PDF conversion utility
├── scripts/
│   └── build_exec.py                # PyInstaller build script
├── pyproject.toml               # Project configuration
├── README.md                    # This file
└── .python-version              # Python version lock

How It Works

iwb2svg

1. Extract IWB: Opens the .iwb file (which is a ZIP archive)
2. Parse content.xml: Extracts and parses the embedded XML containing SVG pages
3. Process Images: Handles image references according to the selected mode
4. Fix Fills (optional): Removes fill attributes from shape elements
5. Fix Size (optional): Adjusts SVG dimensions if content extends beyond them
6. Export SVG: Writes each page as a separate SVG file

iwb2pdf

1. Extract SVGs: Uses iwb2svg to extract all SVG pages from the IWB file
2. Select Conversion Engine:
   • Checks if Inkscape is available on the system
   • Uses Inkscape if found (better SVG rendering)
   • Falls back to svglib if Inkscape not available
3. Convert SVGs to PDF:
   • Inkscape: Converts each SVG directly to PDF using Inkscape CLI, then merges PDFs
   • svglib: Converts each SVG to a ReportLab drawing and renders to PDF
4. Create Multi-page PDF: Combines all page PDFs into a single output file
5. Page Sizing: Each page is sized independently (or uniformly) based on content

PDF Conversion Engine Selection

By default, iwb2pdf automatically detects and uses the best available engine:

Scenario	Engine Used	Result
Inkscape installed	Inkscape	Better SVG compatibility, accurate rendering
Inkscape not found	svglib	Pure Python, no external dependencies
--use-inkscape flag	Inkscape (with fallback to svglib)	Forces Inkscape, falls back if unavailable
--use-svglib flag	svglib	Always uses svglib

Requirements

• Python 3.10+
• iwb2svg: No external dependencies (uses only Python standard library)
• iwb2pdf: Requires reportlab, svglib, and PyPDF2 (installed via uv sync)
• iwb2pdf (Inkscape support): Optional Inkscape for improved SVG rendering
  • Windows: Download from https://inkscape.org/
  • macOS: brew install inkscape
  • Linux: apt install inkscape (Debian/Ubuntu) or dnf install inkscape (Fedora)

License

This project is licensed under the GNU General Public License v3.0 - see the LICENSE file for details.

You are free to use, modify, and distribute this software under the terms of the GPL v3.0.