7 Reasons Why Gimp vs Photoshop is the Stupidest Flamewar in History
Posted by: Rea Maor In: Image and Graphics - Tuesday, October 9th, 20071. It’s gone on long enough. A Google search for “Gimp vs Photoshop” in quotes currently shows 23,400 hits. I’ve been seeing it since the turn of the century. Much more often than I’ve seen the canonical geek flamewars of Emacs-vs-vi, Gnome-vs-KDE, and all.
2. The Gimp development team says that Gimp has nothing to do with Photoshop. As recently as Gimpcon 2006, the development team has stated “What GIMP is not: GIMP is not MS Paint or Adobe Photoshop”. They’ve had that on their home page for many versions. They also state on that same page:
…If someone comes with the request that the UI of GIMP should be like Photoshop, we can simply state: ?We are not trying to be like Photoshop, because we have a different product vision.? …
3. The Gimp development team also affirms that Gimp targets experienced users. That is another reference from the Gimpcon 2006 page. Worth bearing in mind: A lot of FOSS programs are the sophisticated tools that sophisticated users need to do what they do.
Yes, true, the development team also looks at feature requests and considers including them, but not just because Photoshop has it. They state in their TODO list that they are looking to provide a UI with a low barrier to entry, but that doesn’t mean ‘make it more like Photoshop’.
4. We already tried turning Gimp into Photoshop. It doesn’t work. Here’s Gimpshop. To quote their front page:
It shares all GIMP’s advantages, including the long feature list and customisability, while addressing some common criticisms regarding the program’s interface: GIMPshop modifies the menu structure to closely match Photoshop’s, adjusts the program’s terminology to match Adobe’s, and, in the Windows version, uses a plugin called ‘Deweirdifier’ to combine the application’s numerous windows in a similar manner to the MDI system used by most Windows graphics packages.
There you have it! It’s been there for years. So what’s up? Why are FOSS users not thundering all over to Gimpshop? Why aren’t Photoshop users snapping it up? Why do Linux distros keep including Gimp instead of Gimpshop? Because, like trying to write Visual Basic in C, trying to convert a Volkswagon into a Ferrari, and trying to come up with a recipe for chicken that will make it taste like sirloin steak, trying to stuff a Gimp into a Photoshop’s mold really isn’t a practical thing to do. You always end up with the worst of both worlds.
Or, as this unsung genius observes in a Lisp/Scheme discussion:
It is some aspect of the “let’s discard all the community effort and start
over from scratch because we’re smarter than everybody else” thing.Each and every time someone in the Computer Science field has a Bright Idea,
the world had better be prepared to adapt, because Here Comes Genius and
everything everybody has done needs to be done differently from now on,
because This Genius Knows Best.
5. Gimp isn’t even the only game in town. There’s dozens of FOSS graphics applications out there. Here’s just a part of them. Amongst the simpler drawing utilities out there are Tuxpaint, a drawing program for kids, Xpaint, a very old-school Unix graphics application, and Inkscape, the vector-graphics editor. Inkscape is often overlooked; while being a vector graphics editor (as opposed to raster graphics, which is what Gimp is), it can be used to make many of the kinds of images that people complain that they can’t do in Gimp. 99% of the frustration people have with Gimp (the genuine frustration – see next point) comes from using the wrong tool.
Graphics editing is huge, and even Adobe doesn’t try to make one tool do everything! It is simply ridiculous to expect that you should make 16×16 icons and 3D special effects for a blockbuster movie with the same tool.
6. Gimp is just a straw-man to the trolls. Case in point: CMYK. Next time you see somebody on Digg or Slashdot complaining that Gimp doesn’t support CMYK… challenge them! Find out if they even know what it stands for and what it does. Unless you work in the printing industry (like, you design the cover of Vogue), CMYK means nothing to you. CMYK is just the letters the flamers have learned to type from seeing how other flamewars went.
If you’re actually dealing with someone who would need CMYK, refer them again to the What Gimp is… section. Let’s see, there’s “high-end photo manipulation”, “creating original art”, “producing icons, graphical elements of web pages, and art for user interface elements”, “programming cutting edge image processing algorithms”… no, it doesn’t ever claim to be for printing. So, complaints that Gimp doesn’t support CMYK are just as relevant as saying it doesn’t pick winning lottery numbers for you.
Another case in point: Pantone colors. As the talk page for Gimp educates us, Pantone’s name is trademarked, the numbers of the colors are copyrighted, and supporting it by paying the exorbitant fee to license it would render it no longer freely distributable software. This is akin to complaining that Wendy’s doesn’t serve Big Macs.
In fact, I have rarely encountered an anti-Gimp flamer online without the following conditions being true of them:
- Their user ID is brand new.
- They have no website.
- They have no portfolio.
- They couldn’t even be bothered to add an icon/avatar to their ID.
- They lack basic, beginner-level knowledge of graphic design. Can’t tell a vector from a raster or a serif font from a sans-serif. They make goofs like saying “an animated jpg”.
Now, I’m sure there’s exceptions to this rule out there somewhere. This is just what I’ve encountered, and I hang out on all of the major social websites. If there’s any actual employed graphic designers out there flaming about Gimp, they’re the exception, not the rule.
7. Microsoft isn’t the only evil proprietary software company. After all, Adobe has been vying to monopolize content production since the beginning. Like Microsoft, they don’t make most of their technology, they just buy it from somebody else. Yes, as that link says, the software that became Photoshop was originally free shareware. Netscape vs Internet Explorer(Mosaic), round two, anybody?
Like Microsoft, they alternate between trying to crush the rest of the market and forming shaky alliances in pursuit of goal #1. Abode Systems only broke their first billion in 1999, but have since rocketed towards the Fortune 500 (current ranking: 727, up from last year’s 817) based on revenue from – surprise! – a lot of buyouts. Like Microsoft, they have clutched a patent portfolio and sued or threatened to sue competitors before. Take a good look at Microsoft, because that’s what Adobe wants to look like in ten years.
The upshot is, Adobe has, of course, had animosity towards free and open source software. They have expressed as much, even to saying they see Linux and GNU as a threat. Considering that the shelf price of their flagship software is more than most people pay for their computer, I guess that’s pretty obvious. So, duh! of course they’d be eager to see the Gimp-vs-Photoshop flame war go on and on. If your multi-billion-dollar creative suite only had one competitor – a unique situation in itself – and it was all free/libre software, you wouldn’t rest easy, either.
Furthermore, what we’re really seeing is anger and frustration at Adobe which is then being redirected at Gimp for not being a free Photoshop clone. It simply is not Gimp’s fault that Adobe’s attitude towards their customer base ranges from lack of respect to downright hostile.
Nevertheless, it is a completely artificial flame war. People who really want to use Photoshop use it; no one is stopping them besides Adobe itself with its high price tag and restrictive licensing. People who don’t, use something else, and we develop the capabilities of that something else as best we can, given the patent minefield.
I’ve heard it pointed out that Gimp has one of the smallest developer teams in ratio to their user base. In other words – big surprise! – lots of complaining out there, very little coding anywhere. In the end, you still get what you pay for, so there’s no comparing the highest-cost graphics suite with the lowest-cost one anyway.
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October 10th, 2007 at 3:28
I have what I can only describe as a Layered CMYK Proof up on the wall.
About 4 feet long and 2 feet tall, it’s made up of 4 transparent sheets, each one printed with cyan, magenta, yellow, or black. You can take different sheets out, or move them around, and see how it affects the colors… it’s surprising to see how all the photographs are in perfect color from these 4 sheets.
It’s a proof of an issue of Canadian Biker magazine, so you could read the articles if you wanted to stand on your head half the time… apparently, magazines are printed in big sheets, then folded and stapled.
October 10th, 2007 at 3:29
Comment unrelated; I just couldn’t get past the CMYK references.
October 12th, 2007 at 9:49
thats ok…
July 30th, 2008 at 19:47
since i dont need all the advanced stuff, gimp is good for me. and i don’t have to pay!
August 5th, 2008 at 14:26
Pay?
August 14th, 2008 at 7:00
Yes, you jackass. Pay!
He’d rather use the GIMP for free than waste his money on Photo$hop.
August 30th, 2008 at 23:51
Good Article, I totally agree with you!
September 11th, 2008 at 5:03
lol u freaks nerrrrrrrdin it out 08!! maaaaate
October 27th, 2008 at 12:06
I like GIMP, yeah too many people do have unrealistic expectations of it. It’s great as a web graphics app.
October 29th, 2008 at 18:17
Its very true. Gimp is really better than photoshop for what ever features gimp is supposed to be used. People just find lame excuses like pantone stuffs. Being an open source project don’t mean its less powerful than the high cost software.
November 11th, 2008 at 7:53
@Jaseem
Actually… Gimp have no the power of Photoshop, obviously you don’t use this software for professional/work purposes.
PS have an amazing compatibility with other software that come with the CS (suite), it makes PS really dynamic and help you with waste less time exporting files.
Also PS have a really amazing support for 300ppi files.
I will be glad to see trying gimp to do a Tabloid poster at 300ppi.
While not mentioning that PS is a standard in the design industry, I don’t see any really professional working with Gimp.
Yeah, is cool, I have tried it, it have some nice tools like PS and have a lot of support, really nice to be free, but it will never be like PS.
November 13th, 2008 at 2:39
Well, I don’t think the gimp should try to look like photoshop. But if it’s going to “high-end photo manipulation” then it needs to support RAW format for high-end digital cameras and if it doesn’t support CYMK color for printing the photo’s in my photo printer then I don’t know why I’d bother editing the photo. Getting GEGL into it would be super. I also would love to have some filters that compare to those of photoshop.
GIMP’s great but it will always need improvement… I mean… software that isn’t being improved is normally considered dead. Of course some software companies add retarded features that 90% of it’s userbase will never use just so they can sell a new version of their software *cough Adobe*
December 16th, 2008 at 14:12
@David
I’m a professional painter, retoucher and designer.
I find GIMP, Inkscape and Cinepaint are all I need. They work great and clients love my work (mostly), so what more do I need.
I will admit the photoshop, Windoze and Mac OSX are better for printing and color management, but we all know all serious digital artists have their work printed by expert fine-art printers (don’t give me that Epson K3 crap).
I’ve been able to save lots of money since I don’t have to buy Adobe CS and overpriced (and increasingly queer) Macs these days.
Just my 2 cents.
February 2nd, 2009 at 22:43
This is the best “end the bloody flame war” argument I have read in a long time.
February 2nd, 2009 at 22:44
Forgot to add:
Why do I use GIMP?
Coz I cant buck up for Photoshop and I dont want to pirate software.
March 20th, 2009 at 0:24
i think you can get a better CS then adobe in pure open source but it will take time to put together your self
April 8th, 2009 at 22:51
I’ve used both off these tools here’s another reason the flame war should end: GIMP is amazing, the fact that an open source application, that is distributed for free, has all the power, features and capabilities that GIMP does is amazing.
But Photoshop is worth its asking price.
April 17th, 2009 at 17:07
GIMP is NOT as powerful as photoshop, PS is better then GIMP, simple as that.
May 20th, 2009 at 11:04
Gimp will surpass PS in no time. Money does not equal quality.
June 15th, 2009 at 21:24
Photoshop is fantastic and I’m sure that most would agree. GIMP is very capable and can satisfy most needs. I believe that the developers of GIMP were never interested in replacing or competing with photoshop. GIMP is an open source landmark and deserves plenty of credit. I’m just happy it exists and that it’s given me the option to choose.
June 16th, 2009 at 14:00
As a web developer and a print designer I know exactly what CMYK stands for and I use it on at least a weekly basis.
Our printers dont work correctly without it.
Simple fact is, regardless of it being the industries fault or not, I cant go about my day to day interactions without PS and Illustrator.
If GIMP catches up some day I’d love to get off of massive creative suites, but I cant.
I can do everything I can in Dreamweaver with code in Notepad++ and a decent FTP client (FileZilla). I cant match Photoshop and Illustrator with a free equivalent, its that simple.
August 18th, 2009 at 14:30
I am just an amteur artist that hand-draws most of my work. I do it for fun, my own edification, not as my job. As it is, I’ve seen fabulous digital art, which makes me cringe since I’m not that good even with hand-drawing things.
HOWEVER:
Recently, I looked into free art programs. I first tested my hand with PhotoPlus 6.0 by Sans-Serif, I believe, though I found it time consuming and not too featured. It was just a fancier-packaged MS Paint, really. And I did not want to look for a free Photoshop download, as I like staying out of prison for pirate software (shocker: I buy my own music, too.), and I didn’t have 400 dollars for a copy.
Then I ran across a picture that an artist I admired did with GIMP. She recommended it, and, curious, I downloaded it to try it out for myself.
I found my art program.
Yes, it takes time getitng used to, maybe it doesn’t have all the PS features, or isn’t as compatible. But for what I wanted to do, and for art that I’ve seen on the web, it’s so worth it for home art design.
So, as such, I recommend GIMP since I have found it so usable. The tutorials, features, and other things that can be done with it are amazing for a free program. Don’t downplay it till you try it.
-Froggy.
August 21st, 2009 at 19:45
The best .vs. I ever read.
I used Fireworks for so many years over photoshop because I’m a web developer and I liked the way Fireworks did it. Now on Gentoo I liked the way GIMP works!! Thanks to it’s community. (I totally switched from Mac OS X and Windows into GNU/Linux).
It’s done the job well…
September 4th, 2009 at 17:26
Gimp Is Shit and Is A Fake Photoshop!
September 9th, 2009 at 10:38
You tell a lot about GIMP’s advantages, but what about Photoshop advantages?
I have both softwares (GIMP and Adobe Photoshop CS4 Extended) and I use best Photoshop.
Photoshop has a easier UI than GIMP for me, we have to pay, so what gives? They don’t obey anyone to pay! Only pays who wants to have it…
IAlso, about RGB and CMYK, you should study a little about it. There are differences not only on the characters.
Study about it before posting something that you think it is like…
September 16th, 2009 at 23:01
I guess no one read the post.
December 19th, 2009 at 12:02
@26 (Ted): I was just about to write the same
Actually I was looking for a comparison and was stumbling upon this post. And I have to admit I understand both products now much better. Both products are good but are not comparable.
SO PLEASE READ THE ARTICLE BEFORE POSTING A COMMENT!!!
February 27th, 2010 at 15:46
Very nice article. I’m glad I read it! I can’t believe people have so much time on their hands they have nothing better to do but sit around and argue stuff like this. The GNOME vs KDE is by far the most absurd though.
Looks like some of these fools commenting didn’t even bother to read the article. My advice is come out of your mommies basement and join the rest of the world and get yourself a job, and then maybe a car… and then a girlfriend. Stop the flame wars, it’s tired, and nobody cares.
March 4th, 2010 at 11:46
Gimp scares me, since I cant figure anything out on my own. I’ve taken photoshop classes, so I know how that works, but since I dont have much money I got Gimp, and then I ran away. Your article makes me think maybe I should give it a try… =_=
also, I read the post! D:
May 8th, 2010 at 21:03
PS may be an excellent piece of software but there is no way it is worth the price they are asking. My son is taking photography at school and of course PS is recommended but having checked out their student editions’ conditions of validity, I feel like I’m a criminal until proven innocent. I checked with the teacher (a very capable photographer who knew more about FOSS that the IT teacher!) and she was more than happy for my son to do his homework using GIMP etc. What counted was the understanding, a record of what he’d done and an artistic flair. The latter we sometimes forget about; it’s not the equipment, or software; but the imagination and eye that are important.
As my Grandfather used to say: “Only a bad craftsman blames his tools”.
June 9th, 2010 at 11:11
I totally areee with this. I use Gimp and Photoshop Elements 7. I use Gimp for creating posters for charities that I help with and PSE7 for showing beginners how to manipulate photographs and make posters. PSE7 is great for beginners. Gimp is great for experianced users and those like me whom persevere until they know what they’re doing.
I’m unemployed so can’t afford PS full program but recommend PSE7/8 to those who are beginners to graphic manipulation.
June 19th, 2010 at 9:13
Lol GIMPshop!