Paint.NET: The Anti-GIMP?

Arno contributes a link to Paint.NET, a free-of-charge raster-graphics program for Windows XP machines. "Quote: 'Paint.NET is image and photo manipulation software designed to be used on computers that run Windows XP. Paint.NET is jointly developed at Washington State University with additional help from Microsoft, and is meant to be a free replacement for the MS Paint software that comes with all Windows operating systems. The programming language used to create Paint.NET is C#, with GDI+ extensions.' It really seems like a nice tool. I definitely prefer its UI to GIMP's."

Comments

Mirror

[Anonymous Coward]

I managed to grab a mirror if needed. Site kinda seemed slow, especially for a .edu domain.

Here it comes.

[Anonymous Coward]

Before we all do the obligatory "GIMP r0xx0rz, .NET sux", please try downloading this... after it's Slashdotted. Very nice product, it doesn't have the advanced image conversion GIMP does, but very useful indeed.

I wonder if they used P/Invoke so I can run this on Mono?

Re:Here it comes.

[EnronHaliburton2004]

Why are we comparing a simple painting program to the GIMP? It's like comparing an apple to an orange tree...

This is just a simple painting program, it works great for simple quick tasks. The GIMP is designed for more complex graphical tasks...

Compare GIMP to Photoshop. That's a legit conversation.

Re:Here it comes.

[John Hansen]

I don't understand this permanent woody for boxes in boxes, the non-Photoshop world abandonded that GUI a decade ago.

Even Photoshop never used that clunky interface originally. The Photoshop MDI originated from the fact that on the Macintosh, Photoshop looked a lot more like the GIMP -- except that the menubar was on top, mac-related stuff, etc. However, the Photoshop programming team didn't want to figure out how to do that on Windows, so they simply made a "container window" to hold everything.

Since then, a number of programs have emulated that, even though they never had to. It was simply a hack to get around a Mac-->Windows porting problem.

Re:Here it comes.

[rynoski]

Comparing the GIMP to photoshop is like comparing an apple to an orange tree...

You are better off comparing the GIMP to PaintShop Pro.

MONO?

[jj110888]

So, um, isn't this the kind of thing we can run under mono without having to deal with wine regressions? Didn't M$ just help linux and windows users alike here by using .net?

I's so Anti-Gimp

[Anonymous Coward]

This program is so Anti gimp that it can walk and has full use of all it's limbs.

A replacement for MS Paint

[Pacifix]

If it's meant to be a replacement for MS Paint as the blurb states, I don't think the Gimp should feel threatened. The chasm between Paint and Gimp is lightyears wide. It's unlikely this program could attract the OSS devotion necessary to become really big, especially what with its association with MS and the sometimes irrational dislike this inspires in some of us.

good job /.

[the right sock]

75gb

dev, with mirror link: http://blogs.msdn.com/rickbrew/

Looks like it's Open Source. Cool.

[stephenb]

BSD-like License: http://www.eecs.wsu.edu/paint.net/legal.html

Re:sad to say, but GIMP does lack

[Alan]

I think what he's trying to say is "I am scared to bring my hax0red version of photoshop to work" :)

Re:A few questions about it..

[TheAwfulTruth]

1) Yes.
2) No.
3) It's open source.
4) See #3 and because all /. headlines have to have inflamitory and misleading headlines to attract attention for some reason.

Re:It's a .NET product. Ewwww...

[Adhemar]

Why should I install more badly designed MS software then I have too?

You don't.

First of all, the .NET framework is not badly designed. It's one of the best-designed products Microsoft ever came up with. The reason Microsoft released so much crap over the years, is probably because all their best programmers were working on .NET.

Secondly, their exist free (as in free software) alternatives. Mono is the best-known one, an other is DotGNU Portable.NET. But they're not 100 % complete yet, so I don't know if this Paint.NET will work.

Re:wow this is SLOW

[Anonymous Coward]

As the original author and team leader of this project, I insist that you shut the fuck up and get dual Xeons like I have.

Re:here here

[benjcurry]

Ummm...I use the GIMP every day. I'm a website developer and graphic designer. I like Photoshop better than the GIMP, but other than some less-than-perfect GUI issues, I love the GIMP as well.

See the trap?

[jmorris42]

I see several interesting things here. Note how they had to use a GDI+ 'extension'? And someone is reporting sluggishness anyway, even on hardware that is fairly new. Tells me .net suffers from Java's Disease along with any other emulated environment and that the move to add in native hooks is already well underway. And of course it is in Microsoft's interest to make sure that .NET is 'multiplatform' in the hype but Windows only in practice.

Let this be an object lesson for all you Mono fetishists, .net and all it's works are nothing but a trap for the unwary. And will never live up to the hype anymore than Java did, although there is now hope for Java to become useful by jetisoning the emulation and making it just another object oriented language that GCC will grind down to ELF executables.

Re:I mod this story...

[rzebram]

Since they say that Paint.NET is the Anti-GIMP, if I install both this software and The GIMP at the same time, will my laptop explode?