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Gimp?

I was talking with someone and the subject of Image editing/creating came up. Photoshop came up within this conversation ofcourse, but this person also mentioned a program named GIMP. They said it was a good and free solution. Where can I get GIMP? Is it really a good program? I googled it and found the GIMP website, but the downloads mentioned something about compiling the file once I downloaded it. What is that? Will it work on my computer? I'm running Windows XP on an Athlon system. Thank you for you help in advanced.
-Kurtis

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wait...whats going on?

Kob0724
Junior Poster in Training
52 posts since Jul 2005
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>Is it really a good program?
It's okay, but I wouldn't even consider replacing Photoshop with the GIMP. All of my professional graphic artist and digital photographer friends agree. In my opinion, the GIMP is for systems that don't support Photoshop, free software fanatics who don't care about usability and power, or for hobbyists with no money.

>the downloads mentioned something about compiling the file once I downloaded it.
You can download an installer for Windows.

Narue
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Thanks, thats what I was really looking for. Yea, i'm just looking to play around and don't wanna drop the cash required for photoshop. Any cool GIMP tutorials you might be able to point me to. I mean, other than the ones I bet I could find on the GIMP site.

Kob0724
Junior Poster in Training
52 posts since Jul 2005
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>Any cool GIMP tutorials you might be able to point me to.
No, not really. You could probably find some with google, but I can't comment on how good they are as I learned the GIMP through experimentation.

Narue
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Hello,

GIMP has a limitation of 256 colors, the last time I checked. Photoshop works with 32 (millions + an alpha channel). Photoshop also allows you to batch operations for unattended operation, among other things.

GIMP is a nice foot in the door, or for simple picture cropping, but it is not geared for the serious photo folk.

Christian

kc0arf
Posting Virtuoso
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1,937 posts since Mar 2004
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hey if you want photoshop, have a look on ebay i got mine for just £15 and its £999 elsewhere

Killswitch
Newbie Poster
11 posts since Jul 2005
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GIMP doesn't have a limitation of 256 colors....

I've found the Linux version better than the Win32 port.

It's great for me, since I'm a hobbyist (sub-hobbyist, really) with no money.

Rashakil Fol
Super Senior Demiposter
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2,658 posts since Jun 2005
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GIMP is an excellent photo and image manipulation program for those who can't afford Photoshop.

The interface is harder to understand and it is missing a couple of features that Photoshop has, but it's definitely not limited to 256 colors.

Install this first: http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file_download.asp?fid=23351&fileidx=1

Then this: http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file_download.asp?fid=23351&fileidx=2

John

John P
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30 posts since Feb 2005
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Yeah, as mentioned GIMP was developed for those without windows. It's a sub par version of photoshop.

talkfreelance
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98 posts since Jan 2005
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I am using photoshop. Tried Gimp, but couldn't find the time to install it :D I think it's a nice program for people who are not as pretentious with graphics. Many people have good words about it, so it has to be good ;)

dojo
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139 posts since Jan 2006
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This article has been dead for over three months

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