I can't afford Photoshop and neither can my clunky computer run it. So I downloaded and now use The GIMP. It's a free, open-source program intended to compete with Photoshop. Computer geeks everywhere sing its praises. Does anyone else use this and can you share some tips and tricks?

Official site:

http://www.gimp.org/

Wikipedia article:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GIMP

PS - I didn't know where else to put this since there was only a Photoshop sub-forum. Maybe there can be another one for competing software?

I've downloaded Mac Gimp once, but wasn't able to use it. It does get praise from users! :) let us know how it does for you!

Been meaning to try out these open source solutions myself, in case i decide to go self-employed in the design world. :)

Well I've never used Photoshop so I can't compare but the GIMP was a little intimidating at first. A lot of things quickly become second-nature though. I especially like the 'magic-wand' selection tool (kinda hard to explain). I'll try to post some tricks I come across. I hope more of us try it out.

I've used Gimp on our linux machines. Good enough for most applications. It does have the most commonly used tools in PS. Coming from PS, navigation is tricky at first since the interface is unconventional, composed of several windows floating on your desktop instead of just one. But once you get the hang of it, as what jp said, it becomes second nature working on it. Good thing jp started Gimp before PS, you won't be biased on your review on Gimp. Make the most out of it, I'm sure you'll be able to do what you want.

Dario, musta? Sorry OT.

I haven't tried editing any real photos on it, just some graphics to add to the photos. One thing I can say is it's not a resource hog. My computer is just a P3 with 128MB of RAM and GIMP doesn't run too slowly. If I tried photoshop on this computer it would probably explode. GIMP would be a good alternative for people who are looking for something cheap (it's free) and not demanding sa system requirements.

have you guys tried GIMPshop (http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/unix_open_source/gimpshop.html)? it's a version of GIMP that uses a graphical interface very much like PS and even it's shortcuts! I've tried it and it's good!
:D

have you guys tried GIMPshop (http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/unix_open_source/gimpshop.html)? it's a version of GIMP that uses a graphical interface very much like PS and even it's shortcuts! I've tried it and it's good!
:D

Nice :) will try it soon!

Here's a link with Windows and Linux versions of GIMPshop available:

http://www.gimpshop.net/

The photoshop sharpening thread is quite active. Maybe one of our more experienced GIMP users can give similar tips here?

I've used GIMP since the day I started using Linux, It's not really for "muggles" and not as easy and intuitive as Photoshop, but get the same job done. It's not also resource-friendly. But with the little patience and perseverance, it can one of the most powerful tools in your digital darkroom.