BS: Tech: Genuine Free Photoshop

Subject: BS: Tech: Genuine Free Photoshop
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 29 Mar 08 - 08:58 AM

Adobe launches free Web version of Photoshop

Company aims to boost its name recognition among online audience
By Amanda Fehd
The Associated Press
updated 10:47 a.m. CT, Thurs., March. 27, 2008

SAN FRANCISCO - The maker of the popular photo-editing software Photoshop on Thursday launched a basic version available for free online.

San Jose, Calif.-based Adobe Systems Inc. says it hopes to boost its name recognition among a new generation of consumers who edit, store and share photos online.

While Photoshop is designed for trained professionals, Adobe says Photoshop Express, which it launched in a "beta" test version, is easier to learn. User comments will be taken into account for future upgrades.

Photoshop Express will be completely Web-based so consumers can use it with any type of computer, operating system and browser. And, once they register, users can get to their accounts from different computers.

/quote

The description as "the popular photo-editing software Photoshop" shows a deep failure of comprehension of what Photoshop is, by the writer.

Photoshop is a full capability image creation and editing program that goes far beyond "photo editing."

Photoshop Elements is specifically designed to incorporate all the features needed for photo editing, omitting more than it keeps from the full Photoshop.

The new release is a web-based program, to be called Photoshop Express, and would appear to be similar to what comes free with a cheap camera, although evaluation will have to wait until it's been examined. Being web-based, it will require you to hook up and log in to use it.

The expectation now is that it will include lots of "automatic" corrections for common camera/picture weaknesses, but sophisticated user-controlled tweaking shouldn't be expected.

If you have a good camera (and use it intelligently¹), automated minor tweaking should be sufficient for most of your shots. If you have an obsolete-cheap-inferior camera like mine, you probably will want Photoshop Elements or something nearly at least that good.

The current release is indicated as a "beta release," so near-term changes in features should be expected.

¹ Members to whom this caveat applies will recognize themselves(?)

John

Subject: RE: BS: Tech: Genuine Free Photoshop
From: Thompson
Date: 29 Mar 08 - 09:31 AM

Picky, picky. Most people use it for photo editing.

I'd take issue with JIK's view that a good camera and intelligent use obviate the need for Photoshop and its like.

For instance, I use photoshopping (usually a fairly kludgy website called Flauntr) for cropping and resizing images for a blog.

Subject: RE: BS: Tech: Genuine Free Photoshop
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 29 Mar 08 - 09:34 AM

"Members to whom this caveat applies will recognize themselves(?)"

Do you have a mirror John?


:-P

Subject: RE: BS: Tech: Genuine Free Photoshop
From: Amos
Date: 29 Mar 08 - 10:11 AM

Cropping and resizing with Photoshop is kind of like mowing the back yard with an Abrams missile launching tank.


A

Subject: RE: BS: Tech: Genuine Free Photoshop
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 29 Mar 08 - 11:04 AM

Full Photoshop is perhaps a bit unwieldy for simple photo work, but Photoshop Elements cuts it down to just what you need for photos.

As to cropping and resizing, there's cropping, and then there's cropping, and then there's ...

Having more than one way to do it is a great improvement over the "simplified" stuff in most of the programs being pushed.

Cropping and resizing are actually THREE different things, since you can crop to specific linear dimensions, change the pixel resolution to adjust the filesize, and for most commonly used image file formats you can vary the degree of compression to further adjust file size.

You also need to be able to change the "canvas" (background) size independent of changes to the image size if you want to make notes on the picture without defacing the image.

Elements does all these. Many lesser programs only let you pick pre-set changes.

I'll stick with my Photoshop Elements, although I'll probably wait a while for my next upgrade (I'm still on v2.0 and I think v8.0 is out now).

John

Subject: RE: BS: Tech: Genuine Free Photoshop
From: Mr Red
Date: 29 Mar 08 - 11:21 AM

Well I use PhotoShop 7 and would not wish for anything simpler - and I only use a fraction of the features, but they are MY fraction.

It is like a dictionary, or 250,000 words - we all have one and I would bet most people have a lexicon of less than 5000 words unless you are a journalist or poet (etc), and then less than 10,000. So why do we value the dictionary of 250,000? Because my lexicon fails me in different ways to the next guy, and I need to know when I need to know.

PhotShop is like that, and so is Word (for all it's foibles) or DreamWeaver or ......

Subject: RE: BS: Tech: Genuine Free Photoshop
From: Don(Wyziwyg)T
Date: 29 Mar 08 - 12:06 PM

Yeah, Mr Red,

I have version 6, and I agree with all that you say, and then some.

Don T.

Subject: RE: BS: Tech: Genuine Free Photoshop
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 29 Mar 08 - 01:23 PM

A sample:

        Program Comparison

(From here - if anyone wants to waste a lot more time)

Subject: RE: BS: Tech: Genuine Free Photoshop
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 29 Mar 08 - 07:23 PM

I use the full-octane Photoshop CS3, and it does way more than I need to do, but what it does it does a really good job at.

SRS