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I don't use the GIMP nearly as much as Inkscape (the two form an awesome free software graphics suite together), but I am always pleasantly surprised by the gra

I don't use the GIMP nearly as much as Inkscape (the two form an awesome free software graphics suite together), but I am always pleasantly surprised by the gradual improvements — the layer improvements look useful! What really impresses me though is how the GIMP has managed to remain such a constant ever-present factor on the free software desktop. It feels as if it has just always been there. Kudos to all the developers and maintainers!

ordbajsare 10y ago
Inkscapes perfromance it to shitty to be usefull.
distances 10y ago
GIMP indeed just is always there, on all platforms. As a developer my needs are quite modest: editing screenshots, juggling graphics assets, etc. But I do use GIMP at least weekly, and it always delivers. Big thanks for the developers.
- gurkendoktor 10y ago
  > on all platforms I've recently tried GIMP after reading about an update on Hacker News (not this one) and it was an absolute disaster - took forever to start, nothing worked, UI was glitchy, and then I accidentally quit it because I didn't know what the empty, floating window was good for. It's a pity that Gtk apps usually don't really work on macOS, it makes it much more unlikely for us Apple users to contribute on GitHub etc. :( I'd much prefer a native cross-platform toolkit to the web-based stuff that's popular now.
  - forbidden404 10y ago
    I've been using GIMP sparingly on my MBP and it's been working just fine, I know it's difficult to work with GTK apps in macOS, but installing it through homebrew cask was really smooth.
pawadu 10y ago
Inkscape on the other has started to show gradual decline in the UI department. For example every time you open a tool (the small dialogs on the right) all others will collapse. Since you normally jump back and forth between these tools during drawing you have to ask yourself what went on in their heads when they decided to make this change.
- Freak_NL 10y ago
  Have you tried using keyboard shortcuts to access the panels? I often switch between Layers, Align and Distribute, and Transform, but always use the keyboard shortcuts. Inkscape's UI is a point deserving of attention (the GIMP has a more elegant UI), but I can't say that I've found it to be in decline (on the contrary).
  - AimHere 10y ago
    > the GIMP has a more elegant UI GIMP must have come a long way for those words to form a sentence! Not that it was ever necessarily inelegant, but GIMP's reputation has always suffered from a big chunk of it's natural audience being experienced Photoshop users who find the transition jarring, and trash the UI for that reason. Hearing someone praise the interface is a bit unusual, still!
    - mathw 10y ago
      FWIW I find Photoshop more intimidating and confusing than GIMP, because I never learned to use Photoshop. If you're looking at GIMP as something to attract Photoshop users, sure, the UI is bad because it's not the same as Photoshop. Sure, there are places you can look at Photoshop and say "wow, that's so much better for productive use" (ignoring feature differences where we know Photoshop is ahead of course). But this thing about GIMP having a UI that's _objectively_ bad is just unsupportable IMO.
      - Joeboy 10y ago
        > But this thing about GIMP having a UI that's _objectively_ bad is just unsupportable IMO. I don't mind GIMP's UI being different from Photoshop. I last used Photoshop over a decade ago and that would be plenty of time to adjust to any good UI. The things that annoy me about GIMP's UI are things like the focus always being in the wrong place so I have to use the mouse, or windows being placed over things I need to see, or having to reselect my font styling every time I retype something. The problem isn't that Photoshop does something different, it's that what GIMP does is bad. I happily use Blender's UI even though it's like nothing else on Earth. Edit: Just so I don't come off entirely as an ungrateful asshole, I use GIMP regularly and I appreciate the work that goes into it. I just get tired of people claiming there's nothing wrong with the UI, when there so clearly is. Single Window Mode was a huge step in the right direction IMO.
RUG3Y 10y ago
I love Gimp and Inkscape. The Gimp vs Photoshop debate is irrelevant to me because I can't afford Photoshop - it's Gimp or nothing for me.
- chris_wot 10y ago
  Same here, but I am now genuinely interested to know what advantage Photoshop has over The Gimp nowadays?
  - Blaaguuu 10y ago
    For me, it still mostly comes down to usability. A big part of it is probably that I just have more experience with Photoshop, and if I really forced myself to use The GIMP more, it might grow on me... But when I am working in Photoshop I always feel incredibly productive, where as whenever I have to use The GIMP, I feel like the interface is constantly fighting against me, trying to keep me from getting my work done.
    - a300600st 10y ago
      That's interesting because I feel the same but about Photoshop - having learned editing on Gimp. I'm curious to hear from someone who knows both well.
      - buzzybee 10y ago
        I used to use pirated PS as a teenager, and switched to Gimp later on. My experience has consistently been: for basic selection masking, color changes, and minor adjustments(i.e. things you would typically do to photos), they're equivalents. For graphic design, Gimp lacks in certain features that add flexibility; the text tool is not as robust, and there isn't a direct equivalent to effects layers. The UI of Gimp tends to have more "irritating adjustment" involved and forces more early commitment. And PS has a much deeper set of content creation options - especially so in the later versions, which I've read about but haven't used. I'm interested in learning Krita next. Krita is more explicitly an creation app but it also bleeds into other spaces in its new versions as it accumulates more features. It's gained animation tools, and its interface more closely resembles the classic PS look. Krita has a lot of velocity which makes me think it may surpass Gimp as an all-rounder in time.

ordbajsare 10y ago

Inkscapes perfromance it to shitty to be usefull.

distances 10y ago

GIMP indeed just is always there, on all platforms. As a developer my needs are quite modest: editing screenshots, juggling graphics assets, etc. But I do use GIMP at least weekly, and it always delivers. Big thanks for the developers.

gurkendoktor 10y ago
> on all platforms I've recently tried GIMP after reading about an update on Hacker News (not this one) and it was an absolute disaster - took forever to start, nothing worked, UI was glitchy, and then I accidentally quit it because I didn't know what the empty, floating window was good for. It's a pity that Gtk apps usually don't really work on macOS, it makes it much more unlikely for us Apple users to contribute on GitHub etc. :( I'd much prefer a native cross-platform toolkit to the web-based stuff that's popular now.
- forbidden404 10y ago
  I've been using GIMP sparingly on my MBP and it's been working just fine, I know it's difficult to work with GTK apps in macOS, but installing it through homebrew cask was really smooth.

pawadu 10y ago

Inkscape on the other has started to show gradual decline in the UI department. For example every time you open a tool (the small dialogs on the right) all others will collapse. Since you normally jump back and forth between these tools during drawing you have to ask yourself what went on in their heads when they decided to make this change.

Freak_NL 10y ago
Have you tried using keyboard shortcuts to access the panels? I often switch between Layers, Align and Distribute, and Transform, but always use the keyboard shortcuts. Inkscape's UI is a point deserving of attention (the GIMP has a more elegant UI), but I can't say that I've found it to be in decline (on the contrary).
- AimHere 10y ago
  > the GIMP has a more elegant UI GIMP must have come a long way for those words to form a sentence! Not that it was ever necessarily inelegant, but GIMP's reputation has always suffered from a big chunk of it's natural audience being experienced Photoshop users who find the transition jarring, and trash the UI for that reason. Hearing someone praise the interface is a bit unusual, still!
  - mathw 10y ago
    FWIW I find Photoshop more intimidating and confusing than GIMP, because I never learned to use Photoshop. If you're looking at GIMP as something to attract Photoshop users, sure, the UI is bad because it's not the same as Photoshop. Sure, there are places you can look at Photoshop and say "wow, that's so much better for productive use" (ignoring feature differences where we know Photoshop is ahead of course). But this thing about GIMP having a UI that's _objectively_ bad is just unsupportable IMO.
    - Joeboy 10y ago
      > But this thing about GIMP having a UI that's _objectively_ bad is just unsupportable IMO. I don't mind GIMP's UI being different from Photoshop. I last used Photoshop over a decade ago and that would be plenty of time to adjust to any good UI. The things that annoy me about GIMP's UI are things like the focus always being in the wrong place so I have to use the mouse, or windows being placed over things I need to see, or having to reselect my font styling every time I retype something. The problem isn't that Photoshop does something different, it's that what GIMP does is bad. I happily use Blender's UI even though it's like nothing else on Earth. Edit: Just so I don't come off entirely as an ungrateful asshole, I use GIMP regularly and I appreciate the work that goes into it. I just get tired of people claiming there's nothing wrong with the UI, when there so clearly is. Single Window Mode was a huge step in the right direction IMO.

RUG3Y 10y ago

I love Gimp and Inkscape. The Gimp vs Photoshop debate is irrelevant to me because I can't afford Photoshop - it's Gimp or nothing for me.

chris_wot 10y ago
Same here, but I am now genuinely interested to know what advantage Photoshop has over The Gimp nowadays?
- Blaaguuu 10y ago
  For me, it still mostly comes down to usability. A big part of it is probably that I just have more experience with Photoshop, and if I really forced myself to use The GIMP more, it might grow on me... But when I am working in Photoshop I always feel incredibly productive, where as whenever I have to use The GIMP, I feel like the interface is constantly fighting against me, trying to keep me from getting my work done.
  - a300600st 10y ago
    That's interesting because I feel the same but about Photoshop - having learned editing on Gimp. I'm curious to hear from someone who knows both well.
    - buzzybee 10y ago
      I used to use pirated PS as a teenager, and switched to Gimp later on. My experience has consistently been: for basic selection masking, color changes, and minor adjustments(i.e. things you would typically do to photos), they're equivalents. For graphic design, Gimp lacks in certain features that add flexibility; the text tool is not as robust, and there isn't a direct equivalent to effects layers. The UI of Gimp tends to have more "irritating adjustment" involved and forces more early commitment. And PS has a much deeper set of content creation options - especially so in the later versions, which I've read about but haven't used. I'm interested in learning Krita next. Krita is more explicitly an creation app but it also bleeds into other spaces in its new versions as it accumulates more features. It's gained animation tools, and its interface more closely resembles the classic PS look. Krita has a lot of velocity which makes me think it may surpass Gimp as an all-rounder in time.