A vector object is composed of edit enabled path(s) and geometrical elements based on vector (x/y) coordinate values. This is very different from raster (or bitmap) images, which are composed from a grid (bitmap) of colored squares. Bitmaps are inherently "pixellated" when scaled larger (zoomed in), while vectors can be scaled to any size, and won't display any pixelized objects.
Some graphic editor programs, such as the GIMP, are known as bitmap or raster editors. With Inkscape, you can create and edit vector graphics, and save them as SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) files or 'save as' over 15 graphic editor based file formats. SVG is an open standard designed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), that uses XML to create graphic based objects.
The Graphic User Interface (GUI)
When you load Inkscape you will see the following:
Here are some quick explanations of what each button does: Select and Transform Objects (F1): From this option, you can, select, move, scale, rotate, and skew objects Edit Path nodes or control handles (F2) This tool is designed for manipulating the geometry of objects Zoom in or Out(F3) Allows you to access a wide set of zoom operations Create Rectangles or Squares(F4) A tool for creating and manipulating rectangles, squares, circles, and ellipses