I don’t see all that much vitriol. I do see a lot of people who honestly don’t think the GIMP is very good, and that better (free and open source) alternatives

I don’t see all that much vitriol. I do see a lot of people who honestly don’t think the GIMP is very good, and that better (free and open source) alternatives exist. That’s not in and of itself vitriol. I think some of us can be unduly sensitive to criticism of the GIMP, because it’s a long standing project we have all used at one time or another and may have fond memories of. But it’s no longer the only kid on the block, and it’s just not holding its own against new free projects. It’s mediocre, and it could be better. We’re not doing it any favours by refraining from fair critique.