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MS Unveils Beta of New Image Editing Program
docdude316 writes "CNET is running a story about Microsoft's new photo editing software, Acrylic. The new program is based on Expression, which Microsoft purchased in 2003. From the article: 'Microsoft describes the software--currently available as a 77MB free download--as bringing together pixel-based painting and vector graphics features. These capabilities will put the product squarely in the market currently dominated by software maker Adobe Systems with its pixel-focused Photoshop and vector-driven Illustrator products. Acrylic appears to support opening and exporting to Photoshop and Illustrator file formats, as well as other standard graphics formats. In addition, the application appears to be able to export to Adobe's Portable Document Format, or PDF.'
I downloaded the beta yesterday and installed it on my home box. I must say that I was quite impressed, especially with the usability (especially when compared to Gimp). It was a bit slow on my 800 mhz Pentium III, though. Even though I doubt that Microsoft will conquer this market, it's still nice to finally see some real competition to Photoshop, especially considering that the price of Acrylic will be much lower than that of Photoshop.
Man is a slave because freedom is difficult, whereas slavery is easy.
Competing with Photoshop because it does vector and raster imaging? Isn't that like saying a Skoda is competing with a Porsche because they both have wheels and an engine?
Just doesn't have the same ring to it. I bet it's a trap.
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However, Microsoft noted Acrylic would not currently save pixel-type data to formats other than its native XPR file type.
Being able to save as PDF is great and all, but it looks like this thing still has a ways to go before being useful.
Right. The production version will be much buggier and have fewer features.
Any windows application can export to PDF via the miracle of PDFCreator.
Not as fast as an Oo.o export to PDF, but export to PDF is hardly a world-shattering feature.
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This is not a rival to Adobe products, definetly not Photoshop. It's primarily a vector graphics program with some unique features in that area. It was orignally a program Creative House Expressions which Microsoft bought in 2003.
e xpression.htm
"Creature House Expression (formerly Fractal Design Expression) is a vector-based drawing tool featuring "skeletal strokes," a 2D drawing primitive which offers complete editability and scalability."
http://graphicssoft.about.com/cs/illustration/gr/
This new Acrylic beta is essential version 4 of that program.
Giving the timing of the release of a program that Microsoft had seemingly killed off years ago. I'd say they were planing to use it for vector creation in Avalon.
from unhappy almost-user :( it took me over 2 hours to download! oh well - maybe next time"
:-) I love XP! It never crashes, never gives me grief, nothing. It plays nice!
- "what? this won't work under Windows 2000?
from Annie, Beta Coordinator:
- Well don't make this sound like good bye. This is still the Expression newsgroup so E3'ers can post too. Do I even have a chance at talking you into getting WinXP?
Lots of comments already about how MS isn't innovating. Of course they aren't. Neither was Open Office, Gimp, Firefox, etc. Not all software needs to be innovative to be successful. It just needs to be as good or better than alternatives, or fit a niche market that isn't filled already.
Since the market for graphics programs is filled already, MS needs to make this at least as good as Gimp and Photoshop for it to be successful. Since this is only a beta, only time will tell if they've done that.
Besides, I thought having choices was a good thing? Once MS starts unfairly competing in the graphics program industry, then start complaining about it. Until then, this is a good thing.
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Sorry, I'm at work and the IT Nazis won't let me try it out.
Dave, we need you to report to human resources before you leave today.
Thank you,
Bob Wyzygnoski
IT Coordinator
Comment removed based on user account deletion
Taking one idea and using it yourself is a cornerstone of capitalism. So I don't understand why you're basing Microsoft for doing what every other business has done throughout human history. It's really like saying "Oh, don't buy a Ford because they didn't invent the car."
I thought the general concensus on this board is that competition of software products is a good thing which makes *all* the products better, or am I mistaken? (At least, that's the viewpoint people give when others complain about Linux having a whole bunch of different widget libraries and thousands of text editors.)
But as usual, it sums up as "if you don't like it, don't use it." Why insult Microsoft for making it? Why not think positively and stop being so cynical for once?
Sure, maybe it can't compete with Photoshop, ok. What about Photoshop Elements? What about Corel Painter? Maybe it'll help make ALL those products better by introducing a new interface idea or unique type of filter. Who knows?
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Damnit, Microsoft! You're like that kid on the playground who always wanted someone else's toy, just because someone else had them. If you don't quit bullying the other kids, Microsoft, no one is going to want to play with you.
Right! Because, before PhotoShop came along, no one had ever produced a paint program before...
The early bird gets the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.
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Photoshop may be expensive
It is expensive. But it's not intended for Joe Bloggs cropping the crappy little images he makes with his £90 digital camera.
I will be very surprised if this has significant impact on Adobe's core market.
I hate passport...
a 4ef-46f0-4acd-abb6-d3d8618d6c3c/AcrylicBeta.zip
http://download.microsoft.com/download/1/e/7/1e7c
If tyranny and oppression come to this land, it will be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy. - James Madison
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Hey there, partner! It looks like you're trying to change your color balance!
Would you like me to:
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Mozilla for example is based on ideas, technology and a codebase developed by Netscape. How does Mozilla innovate?
Open source did not create IM, but they copied it to death. How does Jabber and the lot innovate?
MySQL is "ripping off" established commercial databases now, putting in innovative things like stored procedures, views and UFDs. Does MySQL innovate?
The GiMP is a Photoshop ripp-off, so much so that with every new version of PS the GiMP developers have rushed to provide their own substandard "alternatives" to some PS features. Does the GiMP innovate?
KDE has always looked like Windows. They copied the taskbar, the start menu, the tray notification area and so on. Does that mean that KDE does not innovate?
Yeah, but I think the question we all really want to know is: will this run on one of Apple's new Macs running on an Intel chip running on Windows inside of Wine via Mac OS X's BSD compatibility layer?
Because even though the new Macs haven't been released yet, I just don't know if I can jump on board this Acrylic wagon unless they can promise me that kind of support.
Free yourself. Everything else will follow.
If you check the Yahoo! Expression3 mailing list (Yahoo! registration required), it seems that you can get around the installer by unpacking the file and install Acrylic on pre-SP2 machines including Windows 2000. Running the installer, however, would detect your system and prevent it from installing on pre-SP2 machines on purpose; so it may just be another lure for you to install SP2 =( .
Also, Expression 3.3 (click the Previous Versions on the Acrylic project page) can run under Linux with WINE:
http://frankscorner.org/index.php?p=expression3