amazing freeware

[squishy]

a few days ago i downloaded 'gimp', its completely free, and i'm astounded by how good it is. very powerful, and alot of features you usually only get with paid subscription programs.

i recommend it to everyone!

[NickCantle]

You've not told us what it does

[Tormentil]

Isn't it an open source image manipulation programme, akin to Photoshop and others of that ilk ?

[squishy]

yes, thats it. sorry, i was caught up in describing how good it is .

its an image editing piece of freeware, with alot of power and a huge amount of features.

[Gill Catton]

how does it compare to picasa? Anyone know

[Lancashire Lad]

Just had a quick Google ( Gimp v Picasa Review ), and there are several reviews to be found.

It appears that Gimp has more of the "advanced" editing features such as layers, image scaling etc., but Picasa has things like Photo search, and ability to organise photos into albums.

Overall concensus appears to be that Picasa is easier to learn/use, but Gimp seems to be likened more to Photoshop Elements, offering more features for those who need them.

Regards
Mike.

[DanJeffery]

Another good thing about GIMP is that it can run on linux. So if you have a little netbook running Linux you can use it (although the small screen is something of a handicap).

[Gill Catton]

Originally Posted by Lancashire Lad

Just had a quick Google ( Gimp v Picasa Review ), and there are several reviews to be found.

It appears that Gimp has more of the "advanced" editing features such as layers, image scaling etc., but Picasa has things like Photo search, and ability to organise photos into albums.

Overall concensus appears to be that Picasa is easier to learn/use, but Gimp seems to be likened more to Photoshop Elements, offering more features for those who need them.

Regards
Mike.

Ooh thank you, I hadn't thought to google it.
I use picasa but it annoys me that it seems to feel the need to upload a whole memory card's worth of photos to it when I only want to edit one photo!

[Jim Ford]

Originally Posted by NickCantle

You've not told us what it does

The 'Gnu Image Manipulation Program'.

Why 'Gnu'? Well - 'Gnu Is Not Unix' - it comes from a Unix/Linux background.

For those used to Photoshop, the interface is a bit strange and unfamiliar - but there's a version with a Photoshop 'feel alike' interface (can't remember what it's called, though).

Jim

[Lancashire Lad]

Originally Posted by Gill Catton

...I use picasa but it annoys me that it seems to feel the need to upload a whole memory card's worth of photos to it when I only want to edit one photo!

Hi Gill,

Not sure exactly how Picasa works (I use Photoshop Elements and Paintshop Pro), but all of these photo editing types of softaware seem to want to "hijack" all of your photos. You might need to be wary when originally installing. - There's usually some sort of check box during installation which will let the software automatically take control of your downloading if you don't untick the box. (Sneaky software manufacturers ).

I now always keep a look out for this sort of thing, having had problems in the past. Now, when I plug my camera (or memory card) into the computer, no downloading occurs at all, until I click on what I want downloaded, and where I want it downloaded to.

I personally always create my own folders, and download pics into my chosen folder. Then I can choose exactly which individual pics I might want to edit, and whether I open them up for editing in Elements or Paintshop Pro.

Regards
Mike.