Latitude-Longitude Lines in Inkscape

[davoush]

Hi all,

I'm still rather new to cartography in general so please bear with my questions.

Basically, I would like to create a series of maps for a project (climate maps, altitude maps, etc.). I have been doing this by hand, but redrawing/tracing the coast line by hand every time I want to create a new map is tiresome and not very accurate. So, after browsing the forums for a while I think Inkscape would be best for drawing in the continents and land shapes.

However, I would like to draw these in with latitude-longitude lines (10-15 degrees apart), so I know where to place the various climate zones and what not. I can't seem to figure out how to do this at all. This is just on a regular equirectangular map, so it's just a grid I need really.

Also, lets say I have a map drawn on an A4 sheet of paper, and I want to trace it into Inkscape, how would I go about doing this? How could I then scale it up?

Finally, I am currently a student, although only for a few more months. I am considering getting the Creative Suite package, for cartography and general artwork, however even at the discount price, it is still rather expensive for an unemployed student - do you think it is worth buying it now, or perhaps just using GIMP and Inkscape for my needs?

Sorry for the long list of question and any help is appreciated!