Could well be a duplicate of Bug #785701 "Inkscape freezes at opening".
Could you please confirm that clearing the recent files list fixes the bug on your computer (workaround from the aforementioned report)? ** Changed in: inkscape Status: New => Incomplete ** Tags added: performance -- You received this bug notification because you are a member of Desktop Packages, which is subscribed to inkscape in Ubuntu. https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1259258 Title: inkscape freezes on start Status in Inkscape: A Vector Drawing Tool: Incomplete Status in “inkscape” package in Ubuntu: New Bug description: As soon as I start Inkscape the main window appears, but is unresponsive. ProblemType: Bug DistroRelease: Ubuntu 14.04 Package: inkscape 0.48.4-1ubuntu3 ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.12.0-5.13-generic 3.12.2 Uname: Linux 3.12.0-5-generic x86_64 NonfreeKernelModules: openafs ApportVersion: 2.12.7-0ubuntu1 Architecture: amd64 Date: Mon Dec 9 08:55:48 2013 ExecutablePath: /usr/bin/inkscape InstallationDate: Installed on 2013-03-18 (266 days ago) InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 12.04.2 LTS "Precise Pangolin" - Release amd64 (20130214) SourcePackage: inkscape UpgradeStatus: Upgraded to trusty on 2013-11-23 (15 days ago) To manage notifications about this bug go to: https://bugs.launchpad.net/inkscape/+bug/1259258/+subscriptions -- Mailing list: https://launchpad.net/~desktop-packages Post to : desktop-packages@lists.launchpad.net Unsubscribe : https://launchpad.net/~desktop-packages More help : https://help.launchpad.net/ListHelp