Submitted by Gimp critics will have one less thing to complain about when Gimp 2.8 is released later this year. Single window mode is coming with the next major release along with some other interesting UI enhancements.
Gimp critics will have one less thing to complain about when Gimp 2.8 is released later this year. Single window mode is coming with the next major release along with some other interesting UI enhancements.
Well, it took them long enough, but it looks promising.
I’ll give it another go when it’s out and see how it stands against the mighty Photoshop now.
Yep I agree with you. I am way more interested in Gimp now.
It’s been a long time coming. GimpShop never worked well for me.
Now if they’ll change the dumb name, get rid of the gummy feel when drawing on the canvas, and get a full 16-bit workflow and color management they’ll be head-to-head with PaintShopPro and Corel PhotoPaint.
Agreed. Especially about the dumb name. I just hate acronyms, especially recursive ones. GIMP is indirectly recursive:
GIMP – GNU Image Manipulation Program
GNU Image Manipulation Program – GNU is Not UNIX Image Manipulation Program
GNU is Not UNIX Image Manipulation Program – GNU is Not UNIX is Not UNIX Image Manipulation Program
And so on…
How about thinking up some name that’s actually creative and descriptive. GIMP sounds like a placeholder.
The descriptive part is actually important. It would not be any better to call it “Gimpex” or something. The name must suggest function!
How does “Gimpex” suggest function? If you want to suggest function, why don’t you call it… Image Manipulator? How about the GNU Image Manipulator? Which is pretty much what we call it. How is that different from Adobe PhotoShop? Except, of course, that “Photo Shop” makes it sound like I am going to take my prints there to be developed and does not suggest that I can alter them.
And, in fact, the name does not need to suggest the function. “Excel” certainly does not say “Spreadsheet”, for example.
I get Gimp confused with Gnome — Still. I started reading and imagining a window system that would automatically put all windows created by a single application in a single master window.
Sorta like expose crossed with a tiling window manager. But, I think I sort of want to try something like that. Maybe in the mythical future where I have an infinite amount of spare time, I’ll try doing something like that.
Kind of like Matlab where you can arrange sub-windows within the main window or undock them to become their own separate window like so:
http://www.mathworks.com/products/matlab/images/matlabdesktop_lg.jp…
Much better than all the windows of Gimp or the Mac version of Stata.
Edited 2009-09-25 00:00 UTC
No, that’s per application. I’m thinking of that for every application ( not every application instance), with no application support required ( all handled by the windows manager ).
If I remember correctly, early versions of the gimp had single window mode.
And about that same time photoshop had multiple windows…
I’m willing to bet that the primary motivating factor behind implementing MDI in GIMP has nothing to do with usability, and everything to do with getting the boobs on slashdot to shutup.
I’m not sure I’d call MDI an improvement. Ever. For anything. My window manager is smarter than whatever they will write. At least they’re not taking the usable mode away…
Your window manager probably but most people complaining are running Windows, and there I understand that managing groups of windows can be a PITA in serious need of the MDI workaround.
What web browser are you using again? Not one of those awful MDI ones I presume?
LOL. I have tried to like GIMP without the MDI, and no matter which window manager I use it all goes to crap when I have multiple desktops. Inevitably I will end up with my tools on one desktop and the image on the other….very annoying. Or, one little toolbar gets moved to another desktop and I can’t find it without clicking around.
You’re doing it wrong, or just lying.
This has never, ever been an issue for me. Multiple desktops? I have 32 of them. I gimp on one, just one, and never have a problem like you describe.
I also use Enlightenment, which is a good window manager. On Windows the gimp is a pain because Windows sucks for managing windows (ironic!) But, even there I would prefer not to have an MDI… especially one where I cannot work on two or three images side by side!
Single Window Mode will be an option. You can still use multiple windows if you like.
A welcome change. Keeping track of all those palette windows is a bitch, blending in with all other windows and the wall paper.
I have never liked the multiple windows that GIMP uses as of now; it’s confusing and hassle to manage them, especially if you’re using it on Windows or some stranger WM. So, a single-window mode is very much welcome in my book. But then those additions they’re adding, the polaroid and image parade…Darn, I love those ideas! It finally feels like GIMP is taking some innovative steps of its own instead of copying from others, and they’re doing it well!
Thanks to all GIMP developers for your hard work…now work some more and bring those features to me!
Isn’t it about time that Photoshop had a single-window mode in all versions? Because it sure-as-heckfire don’t have one on the Mac!
Why can’t they provide a good old ‘Windows in Windows’ type of MDI interface and give the user the choice which one to switch on?
And please do not tell me what those ‘usability experts’ say.
I have been using Gimp on daily basis for about 4 years now. I do basic image editing such as cropping, resizing, enhancing etc. I cannot wait for 2.8! I hope that just look and feel (i.e. single mode) is not the only new feature in 2.8. I would love to see batch processing of a large number of images, some good vector graphics (e.g. making arrows in a similar way to Inkscape) or some sort of grouping layers.
Edited 2009-09-25 13:58 UTC
Okay, I get that a lot of people like the idea of a single window interface. It’s not actually good, but I understand that people don’t know this. Whatever! Give them their choice, I’m cool with that.
However….
Why would you ever want a single window mode which denies you the ability to work back and forth on two or three images? The article makes it sound confusing and difficult to achieve, technically. Well, it might be confusing (I doubt it) but how can it possibly be a technical challenge? We have this right now in the Gimp!
If you make me tab/switch back and forth between images you will seriously harm my workflow. I know some people only work on one image at a time, but why remove the option for those of us who need it?
And what about defaults? Please tell me that the GIMP will continue to default to its traditional interface. This UI is inherently superior and if it is relegated to an afterthought I and many others will suffer. Let those fools who cry when they don’t have a gray box painted behind their tool panes flip the option on!