All of Inkscape’s keyboard shortcuts are nicely documented, but I wanted to show my own favourites in a way that I think is easier to remember. :)
A list of all shortcuts can be found here on the Inkscape website. Tip: someone on OpenClipart.org made a neat color coded keyboard map!
For this post I adapted some key images for OpenClipart.org.
Navigating
There are many ways to move around your canvas in Inkscape, but I prefer simply using the middle mouse button. Scrolling will of course go up and down, but hold shift and the page will move sideways. The easiest way to move your drawing is to click and drag with the middle mouse button, which will let you drag the entire canvas.
Clicking the middle mouse button will zoom in, while pressing shift and doing the same will zoom out.
If you ever lose sight of your drawings, use the number keys to get it back.
There are shortcuts for pretty much every tool, but one of the most helpful ones is the space bar, which switches between your current tool and the Select Tool.
Moving things
Moving stuff around is easy enough by dragging with the mouse, but sometimes you need something a little more precise. The arrow keys in combination with Shift and Alt allow for different speeds.
When you’re moving objects around with the mouse, you may want to use Control. This will make the object move either horizontally or vertically, instead of freely.
Resizing
The rules for sizing are somewhat similar. Use the handles on a selected object to resize it. Bonus features: use Control and Shift to either lock the proportions or resize symmetrically. You can also combine these.
Others
A few extra ones! Use these to group, duplicate (which is basically a faster copy and paste) and paste in the same spot.
Most important keyboard shortcut in the world
Most of you will know this, but I cannot stress this enough. Save, save, save! :D
Share your own favourites in the comments!
