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I used to use Gimp for simple editing needs about a decade ago. I got fairly good at using it back then, but haven’t needed it in a long while. Yesterday I nee

I used to use Gimp for simple editing needs about a decade ago. I got fairly good at using it back then, but haven’t needed it in a long while. Yesterday I needed to draw an outlined circle… and couldn’t figure out how.

kstrauser 3y ago
Hah! That was my exact example of its UI weirdness. It’s not that it’s different from Photoshop, but that it’s different from every other tool I’ve ever used to put a circle on the screen. A friend gave me, erm, a backup copy of Deluxe Paint for Amiga way back when. If GIMP were half as approachable as DPaint, I’d still be using it.
- doubled112 3y ago
  Ahh yes, there is no circle tool, right? It is still select a circle and stroke it?
  - kstrauser 3y ago
    Here's a tutorial from this month explaining how to do it: https://alvinalexander.com/gimp/gimp-how-to-create-draw-circle-in-gimp-tutorial/ https://alvinalexander.com/gimp/gimp-how-to-create-draw-circ... So yeah, looks like it.
e12e 3y ago
It's frustrating, but as another comment mentions, the way to draw and stroke paths in gimp is select>stroke selection. Terrible ux for "i just want a circle" - but (forces) open the door to quite powerful path>stroke workflow. https://graphicdesign.stackexchange.com/questions/696/make-an-outline-with-gimp-like-in-photoshop#697 https://graphicdesign.stackexchange.com/questions/696/make-a...
- kstrauser 3y ago
  I say this as a programmer: that's such a programmer excuse for an awful UI. I'm not directing that at you, but at the group who decided how to draw circles on the screen. Option A: Build a function that calls all the appropriate actions in sequence, then stick it on a menu. Option B: Tell users that they're better off doing it manually. ...which inevitably leads to: Result C: Why don't more people want to use it?, and Result D: Appealing to programmers who think that's a great idea because it worked OK for themselves, and building more features with the same paradigm, creating a feedback loop.
  - Andrex 3y ago
    At that point just have a Shapes tool with every shape under the sun. Just having a dedicated tool to draw circles seems like a waste of valuable UI surface.
    - kstrauser 3y ago
      Well, right. I meant that to be more illustrative than literal. That’s what other tools do, and what I think GIMP should do: provide a shortcut for the basics (circle, oval, square, rectangle, triangle, etc.). If you want to draw a tree, that’s on you. Put a box around a thing? It should help you.
      - Andrex 3y ago
        After thinking about it I don't disagree, and can only offer a data point that I don't think I've ever personally needed such a tool, even as a Gimp noob.
  - e12e 3y ago
    Fwiw this was meant as an observation (it's useful to know how to work with paths), not as a justification for the current ux.
mixmastamyk 3y ago
Use inkscape, gimp is a photo editor primarily.

kstrauser 3y ago

Hah! That was my exact example of its UI weirdness. It’s not that it’s different from Photoshop, but that it’s different from every other tool I’ve ever used to put a circle on the screen. A friend gave me, erm, a backup copy of Deluxe Paint for Amiga way back when. If GIMP were half as approachable as DPaint, I’d still be using it.

doubled112 3y ago
Ahh yes, there is no circle tool, right? It is still select a circle and stroke it?
- kstrauser 3y ago
  Here's a tutorial from this month explaining how to do it: https://alvinalexander.com/gimp/gimp-how-to-create-draw-circle-in-gimp-tutorial/ https://alvinalexander.com/gimp/gimp-how-to-create-draw-circ... So yeah, looks like it.

e12e 3y ago

It's frustrating, but as another comment mentions, the way to draw and stroke paths in gimp is select>stroke selection. Terrible ux for "i just want a circle" - but (forces) open the door to quite powerful path>stroke workflow. https://graphicdesign.stackexchange.com/questions/696/make-an-outline-with-gimp-like-in-photoshop#697 https://graphicdesign.stackexchange.com/questions/696/make-a...

kstrauser 3y ago
I say this as a programmer: that's such a programmer excuse for an awful UI. I'm not directing that at you, but at the group who decided how to draw circles on the screen. Option A: Build a function that calls all the appropriate actions in sequence, then stick it on a menu. Option B: Tell users that they're better off doing it manually. ...which inevitably leads to: Result C: Why don't more people want to use it?, and Result D: Appealing to programmers who think that's a great idea because it worked OK for themselves, and building more features with the same paradigm, creating a feedback loop.
- Andrex 3y ago
  At that point just have a Shapes tool with every shape under the sun. Just having a dedicated tool to draw circles seems like a waste of valuable UI surface.
  - kstrauser 3y ago
    Well, right. I meant that to be more illustrative than literal. That’s what other tools do, and what I think GIMP should do: provide a shortcut for the basics (circle, oval, square, rectangle, triangle, etc.). If you want to draw a tree, that’s on you. Put a box around a thing? It should help you.
    - Andrex 3y ago
      After thinking about it I don't disagree, and can only offer a data point that I don't think I've ever personally needed such a tool, even as a Gimp noob.
- e12e 3y ago
  Fwiw this was meant as an observation (it's useful to know how to work with paths), not as a justification for the current ux.

mixmastamyk 3y ago

Use inkscape, gimp is a photo editor primarily.