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Photo Editing Software Alternatives

From Dolna

Hi Charles,

I mistakenly thought that Aperture was photo editing software but just found out that it's not... disappointing. Can you recommend any photo editing software? Apparently there are two free ones: Pixelator and GIMP. Are you familiar with either?

I want to be able to take pieces of one photo and paste onto another, delete sections of photos, etc.

Thanks.

D.

Hi Dolna;

The GIMP is an extremely powerful image editor, but oriented toward professionals and powerusers.

A much more user friendly variation on the same theme (uses GIMP technology and file format) is SeaShore, which is happily also free.

http://seashore.sourceforge.net/

Another pretty powerful and capable freebie is Imagj, a Java based app.:

http://rsbweb.nih.gov/ij/features.html

You should also check out some of the free online image editors. I recently did a roundup article for Web Worker Daily that you can check out here:

http://webworkerdaily.com/2009/10/09/images-in-the-cloud-checking-out-online-image-editors/

Pixelmator is an excellent image editing program. I use it and like it a lot. There's a free demo, but it's not free software - sells for US $59.95.

http://www.pixelmator.com/

The king of the hill in consumer image editors is Photoshop Elements, but it's $99.95 US.

http://www.Adobe.com/PhotoshopElements

There are also Funtastic Photos, which I think you would like, and Acorn, which is coming on strong, and the venerable Color It! 4.5 and Graphics Converter, but they're all shareware or commercial software.

http://www.ohanaware.com/funtasticphotos/

http:// flyingmeat.com/acorn/

http://www.microfrontier.com/ (Color It!)

http://www.graphic-converter.net/

Best,

Charles

From Dolna;

Hi Charles

Thanks, and I downloaded a 30-day free trial of Pixelmator. Will purchase if I can figure out how to use it. My husband was helping me last night. (he calls me a poweruser , which I would be for sure if I could learn faster!)

I downloaded the instruction manual too but I learn better if someone shows me how to use something, rather than from a book (same with my digital camera).

D.

Hi Dolna;

Pixelmator is pretty nice to use once you pick up on some of the nuances. (It's also just plain pretty - I think the jet black interface is spectacular).

For correcting photos (exposure, colour balance and contrast), my two favorite Pixelmator tools are the Curves panel or of you're in a hurry the Exposure panel - both of which are accessed in the Image Menu.

Check 'em out, read the correspondent manual instructions, experiment a bit, and you'll see what I mean.

Charles

MacFixIt Completely Under Corporate Control

From Martin A. Totusek

Now completely under corporate control, the MacFixIt site (originally founded in 1996 by Macintosh troubleshooting legend Ted Landau) seems to be heading downhill fast in some areas.

More MacFixIt URLs have been deleted by CNET / CBS Interactive Inc., including The MacFixIt Utilities Libraries (remember "The MacFixIt Utilities Libraries are a collection of troubleshooting-related freeware and shareware utilities"?).

MacFixIt - Mac OS 9 Utilities

www.macfixit.com/staticpages/index.php?page=20031209134808225

MacFixIt - Mac OS X Utilities Library

http://www.macfixit.com/staticpages/index.php?page=20021011090449544

now both URLs (like so many other longtime MacFixIt URLs) redirect users to CNET with a "?tag=mfiredir":

http://reviews.cnet.com/macfixit/?tag=mfiredir

Emails I've sent to current CNET MacFixIt staff over the past two months also have not been replied to (which is radically different from the past 17 years, including when Ted Landau, Ben Wilson, Dan Frakes and others we know were running MacFixIt; I always got emails back, and in a very timely fashion).

Note that quite a number of other long-time Macintosh sites (particularly in the U.S.A., where the real economy that 99% of the nation lives in * is heading downhill with ever increasing job losses...) have also vanished this year (with one - Pure Mac - thankfully returning to being online after a few days of being gone...), including those with archives of Mac OS 8.x - Mac OS 9.x.x softwares and OS X softwares, as well as the vanishing of a number of sites with technical information compiled by Mac users on pre-OS X softwares and machines, and/or on OS X softwares and machines.

- Martin A. Totusek

Seattle dBug MUG member

(*) the real economy is not to be confused with Wall Street, A.I.G., Goldman Sachs, etc., plus our citizens continue to be thrown out of either their rented homes (which many have lived in for decades, with some families living for generations in the same rented homes...), or the homes they were in the process of buying; By the current U.S. government's own admission, more U.S. citizens were forced out of their homes in November of 2009, than in any month this year or last year...

Thanks for the report and comments, Martin. If I can take the liberty of inserting a plug, Applelinks, Low End Mac, and PBCentral are all still here. .

Charles

Eudora For OS 9 Fan And Port 25 Block

From RA

Hello Charles,

I read your excellent article on Eudora. I also heartily embrace this mail client over all of the others I have tried (but I do not have the amount of experience or expertise you have).

I am using 6.1 with Mac OS 9.2, and recently Verizon blocked Port 25 for outgoing mail. Well, you probably already know that 6.1 does not allow selection of the outgoing mail port, whereas 6.2 for OSX does.

I have a lot of reasons I don't want to change OS on the computer I use mainly for mail, one of them is that printing between the two Mac OSs is a bitch with HP printers.

Anyway, do you know anybody that is enough of an expert with Eudora 6.1 Mac that could edit the app using ResEdit or the like to use a different outgoing mail port?

Thanks for your time. I appreciate it.

RA

Hi RA;

I can't think of anyone, although my *guess* is that it would be possible.

However, you can find instructions for enabling advanced settings in Eudora 6.x here:

http://www1.umn.edu/adcs/help/email/Eudora6Mac9.html

And while I don't have a copy of Eudora for OS 9 currently active on any of my computers to check, the article mentions OS 9, so I think it might work. What you want is to add the "Ports & Protocols" settings panel to Eudora Settings.

Hope this helps;

Charles

Re: Apple Speed Bumps The $999 White MacBook, Bumping Value As Well

From JC

Anyone on a tight budget and in the market for a new Mac notebook should find this least-expensive MacBook even harder to resist. I have to say that I agree with Apple's philosophy of value-added rather than ditching features in order to hit a lower price point. This machine is a whole lot more satisfactory than a PC netbook, provided you can swing the $999.

Hi JC;

I agree, but it would have been so much more satisfactory if they had retained the FireWire port!

Charles

Re: ArtRage 2.5 Natural Painting Program Released

from Milka86

Re: http://tinyurl.com/ye8m7rj

Natural Painting is a great software to paint using your computer and your tablet. I use this exclusively for my gallery after I print it. This program can give an accurate brush splash and paint splash...it looks so natural. A great software for painter around the world. Grab it man!

sell my paintings

CM