GIMP’s major UI revamp
Despite all the noise made about improving the cross-platform image editing tool, people seem to have missed that GIMP’s own developers are planning on UI improvements.
A Digg article on GIMP UI complaints received around five thousand Diggs. A few comments down, a user called Trogdoor posted two links. The first link was a relatively uninteresting study of Gimp. The second was the official project site’s own UI redesign page.
The UI redesign pages are written by members of GIMP’s actual team. The new GIMP 2.4 cropping tool (that dims the uncropped area providing a live preview of your cropped image) was a result of their work.
The pages don’t seem like much at first. But if you poke around a bit, you’ll find this hidden gem, an analysis of GIMPs windows, toolbox and inspectors. It contains a recommendation - which, like the new cropping tool, may turn into code - for significant changes to GIMP’s user interface.
Here’s a quick summary:
- The main image window is always displayed at startup, even when no image is loaded. This is Gimp’s application window now, containing the menu items that were once in the toolbox. When there’s no image to show, a top of the day is shown in the area.
- The toolbox is now just a regular floating window, similar to the stylist in OpenOffice. It doesn’t have any menus, these are moved to the main image window. Like all other floating menus, it now won’t show up in the taskbar.
This is the first round of changes, and the GIMP developers believe they’d address many of the complaints about GIMPs user interface. At this point, GIMP would behave a lot more similarly to existing multi-window design apps.
But the team notes many new design applications, like Apple Aperture and Adobe Lightroom use a single window interface. After the changes above are complete, they intend on discussing an option to enable single window interface:
‘From our point of view there are no negative sides to providing also a single window interface, except for doubling complication and effort in documentation and support.’
The plan is for a single menu item to enable the interface in the mockup above. One additional pleasant surprise is tabs to handle different documents.
GIMP is well known as a powerful application, and especially in the last few years has gained a rather large community of users. There’s also a large group of people for whom GIMP would be their tool of choice, if it had the same kind of attention to user interface as Inkscape, GNOME, Firefox and other modern Open Source apps.
This is clearly a step in the right direction.
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July 30th, 2007 01:06
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July 30th, 2007 02:01
I don’t like this. The prior versions had a spacial window that I could shade with the window manager to move that out of the way and to work on something else. I would also side windows onto other virtual desktops if thy were in the way. What this does is limit my working area to one single screen. Not cool.
July 30th, 2007 05:35
Thanks for the heads-up.
I think GIMP would have a great potential if the developers swallowed their pride and worked towards what users want (even if it means cloning Photoshop).
Great awn setup, btw.
July 30th, 2007 05:44
What is the name of that application shown in the screenshot? The one that resembles OS X’s app dock?
Ed: It’s Avant Window Navigator. Google it. If you’re using Ubuntu 7.04, add this repository:
deb http://download.tuxfamily.org/syzygy42/ feisty avant-window-navigator
July 30th, 2007 06:13
Finaly! Gimp is a great program with a crappy ui
Why the hell they have insisted on keeping it that way for so long is unbelivable..
July 30th, 2007 06:15
[…] en intressant artikel om Gimp och en förestående remake av dess utseende. Har inte gjort några efterforskningar mer […]
July 30th, 2007 06:22
I see this as too little too late. Read up on some of the public dialog between a gimp developer and the guy who released gimpshop hack, to try and make gimp usable.
For no aparrent reason 8 years have gone by and nothing have been done to remedy the abomination that is the gimps interface.
They decide to make amends with this hacked up demo, but lets see if components are correctly tabbed, lets see if you can actually use two hands, move sliders, change modes, correctly.
I honestly think there are some issues with the team, they did some good work, but nobody appreciates it. Its like a great engine, with no car to drive it. someone released a hacked car to run the gimp engine (gimpshop) and it gets more downloads than the original gimp.
They should hurry up and do a decent interface to actually get users on board - soon nobody will be providing the obligatory ‘gimp is the linux graphics editor’ line, but will start talking about krita and other apps.
July 30th, 2007 06:42
what program are you using to get that dock?
July 30th, 2007 06:43
Ed: Post removed per moderation policy. Everyone: sorry that slipped though.
July 30th, 2007 06:48
Any interface changes would be an improvement and are welcome, but I find it astounding that after all the years and years of complaints, when the UI is finally changed a bit, all the group does is apply standard Microsoft Windows GUI conventions.
There was still room to be creative guys, you didn’t have to just chuck everything in a single window and then justify it by implying it’s some kind of “wave of the future” because Aperture does the same on OS-X. Aperture is a single window application because it makes sense given what tasks one has to accomplish with it.
This new single window interface is a non-starter on the OS-X platform and looks like some dirty port of a Windows graphics app. If you were going to just copy someone else, why not do what everyone has been asking for for years and just copy PhotoShop?
What is it about OpenSource projects like OpenOffice and the Gimp that makes people think an integrated one-window solution that takes over your desktop is the way to go? Why not do everyone a favour and simply adhere to the design guidelines of each OS as they are published instead of trying to make up some “fourth way” that will work for everyone?
July 30th, 2007 06:53
I think it looks great and it’ll be a fantastic option, long overdue.
July 30th, 2007 07:02
I added your site to my blogroll at www.k-i-v.com
keep up the good work!
kiv.
July 30th, 2007 07:09
This is a step in the right direction indeed. Every other image editor uses this type of UI and I think GIMP can pull this off. The tabs are awesome (it looks like they were ripped from Firefox for the mockup).
Penguin Pete, change isn’t always bad. Go ahead and fork it if you want, but don’t expect a majority of users.
.02
July 30th, 2007 07:17
wow, penguin pete, who pissed in your cereal this morning? damn dude, you need to seriously chill out. what’s this about dumbing things down? nowhere does the article mention removing functionality. rtfa, moron!
i personally think an updated UI for the GIMP would be great. it could really use some love. i think that making the toolbox a regular floating window is a good idea. i hate it that every time i open GIMP, three freaking windows appear on my taskbar. and the ability to switch to a single-window UI sounds nice too…
July 30th, 2007 07:37
The new UI is great. It makes GIMP much easier to learn and use.
July 30th, 2007 07:38
Penguin Pete, wtf are you smoking? This single window idea is based on scientific research into how people interact with Gimp and graphical interfaces in general, this is not just some whim of the developers to be more like photoshop. Also let me tell you that from my own experience the thing that stops me using gimp is the god awful multi window interface. The sooner this is fixed the better.
July 30th, 2007 07:40
Pete,
I believe the Single UI is just an option. You may disable it and still have all the separated windows you want just like classic GIMP.
July 30th, 2007 07:41
Whoa Pete, easy there big guy! Jeez! Look, I am not the biggest linux geek. I dual-boot my laptop with xp and pcLinuxOS. I am a designer and multimedia geek. I have tried to use GiMP. I still try to use gimp. It takes time. I have been using PS for about 9 years now. That is some time under my belt with this stuff so I am not new to the scene. I use open office at work. I use pidgen, Firefox, filezilla and Amarok. I like these programs. I understand them. It doesn’t take a year to re-think how I need to do something in them because I am already familiar with how they work. Same thing goes for gimp. I know it can do most everything that PS can do. I have tried, but when the client is breathing down my neck or I have a deadline, I need to know how to do things and do them quickly.
GiMP is an amazing piece of software. It just that people like me need familiarity. I’ve used GiMPShop. It’s close. but like I said when I need to get things done, I need to be able to rely on my already 9 years of experience to get them done. GiMP needs to understand that and start coming to the people.
Look at Ubuntu and PCLinuxOS! They are trying ot meet us halfway. It’s not going to work by getting all pissy about OSS not “keeping it real.” Like all software it should be about peoples needs and wants. For the power users, just like in ubuntu, GiMP should keep everything in there that pros are accustomed to. It shouldn’t be dumbed down or features removed.
If software, any piece of software wants a broader user base it needs to adapt to its users. Not the other way around.
And no I don’t work for Macrodobia and I live in the US and I was not payed for this. Just another happy user of FOSS wanting to see more people using it.
Thanks.
July 30th, 2007 07:52
Ed:This is a response to Penguin Pete’s removed post.
You’re dangerously skewed.
PS Windows Power Shell has always been free.
July 30th, 2007 08:01
Very good that they’re improving their bloaty interface. Gimp has never been user friendly, I hope it will start from now on. I can’t wait.
ps: for all the lack-of-ui fanboys, well… get used to it, we’re on the 21-st century.
July 30th, 2007 08:22
Very cool, looking forward to it.
July 30th, 2007 08:24
Are we talking about a complete re-make? I prefer the gimp tools/interface over p-shop for a lot of things. The only thing that really bothers me is having 10 different windows open. I don’t really think making it so everything opens and closes together would bastardize the program. That’s really all I desire from it.
July 30th, 2007 08:26
I’ll probably get flamed for saying this but, I would prefer a single window interface for GIMP. I really do not like the multi-window interface and have never understood its purpose regardless of numerous attempts to read and understand.
I am not saying that the GIMP should turn into a cheap mans Photoshop (which until it gets proper CMYK support, its not even going to come close), I think that you can keep the menus the same, you’d just role them all into one window.
I will never really understand the mentality of OSS users who complain that OSS is moving to look more like their proprietary counterparts. Companies like Adobe and Microsoft spend MILLIONS on user research so that they can understand HOW users are using their products. Basing OSS UI on their findings, in my opinion, is a great idea. Let THEM spend the money on the R&D and let OSS reap the benefits.
July 30th, 2007 08:43
I use the gimp like crazy and personally I would find it a great improvement for a unified ui instead of loosing my windows for layers all the time under the current work (it slows me down)
July 30th, 2007 08:47
[…] New single window interface for GIMP 29 07 2007 [via Venture Cake] […]
July 30th, 2007 09:05
I like the fact that this mock-up uses a single window, but not a single window like some cheap IRC application. I really wish that a true MDI interface could be written - properly - for the Linux platform, so that all my Gimp windows appear inside the main Gimp window, and when I minimise it, all the child windows naturally disappear as well.
I couldn’t imagine anything worse than a tab strip at the top to access multiple images. What if I’m editing several smaller images that I would like to be able to see at the same time? I’d have to keep switching between tabs, back and forth (and no, some sort of horrible grid/tiling ain’t the answer, either; allowing me to move my windows where I want them is the only way, and preferably not the current Gimp way where everything is a true parent window that clutters your taskbar).
July 30th, 2007 09:09
For the people who asked about the dock: That dock doesn’t currently exist, I’m guessing the author included it in the mockup as a nice aside (or so people would be curious about it). It looks very nice, though, and it would be great if we had a linux dock that pretty…
Nah, just kidding, the dock’s called awn.
July 30th, 2007 10:58
[…] read more | digg story […]
July 30th, 2007 11:29
One window is excellent news! I hate one window for most things, but for a photoeditor, it is the way to go. Now if only they could do 16 bit per channel color, CMYK/LAB and other color models, and proper color matching, we’d have a full-fledged photoeditor. Next, they might add proper font support (including multiple master fonts, ligatures, etc.). Then we’d just need a page layout and drawing program.
July 30th, 2007 11:39
Memo to site owner: Hey, sorry to have ruffled your feathers. I tell it like it is, not how the bander-log wishes it could be.
But here’s the link to Gimpshop: http://www.gimpshop.com/. As you can read on the intro page, it’s already a Gimp fork that tries to change Gimp into Photoshop. Right down to the multiple windows “problem”. So, are FOSS users flocking to it? Are people leaving Adobe in droves to use Gimpshop? Is there a single Linux distro that includes this package? No, no, and not that I’ve found.
You know why? Because it’s dead in the water. Exactly where Gimp will be if you try to make it Gimpshop. Which would make Adobe very, very happy.
Go on and delete this one too. Your site’s not good enough for my content, and I’ve now wasted enough time trying to educate the stone-skulled.
Ed:The moderation policy isn’t personal. All posts that use caps and exclamation marks, or don’t justify their opinions aren’t let through. You didn’t justify why you thought Adobe was secretly behind attempts to change GIMPs UI.
July 30th, 2007 12:30
Photoshop and its ilk were designed for Mac OS in its early days when single window applications were the way to go.
GIMP is designed for far more modular desktops where the focus of the workspace is the image, not the interface surrounding it.
Look up some stuff on GIMP vs Photoshop in terms of usability and interaction design or human/computer interaction.
July 30th, 2007 12:32
Also–what GIMP really needs to make it more competitive is the ability to work in 16- and 32-bit color, as well as CMYK color.
July 30th, 2007 13:07
The dock its the awn dock for more information http://njpatel.blogspot.com/2007/07/so-now-that-we-have-some-depth.html
July 30th, 2007 13:48
[…] read more | digg story 豪杰 @ 3:48 am [filed under Digg […]
July 30th, 2007 14:18
[…] 29th, 2007 in Links Here’s a short post about the upcoming Gimp UI overhaul (the resulting comments are […]
July 30th, 2007 15:30
[…] GIMPs major UI revamp Despite all the noise made about improving the cross-platform image editing tool, people seem to have missed that GIMP’s own developers are planning on UI improvements. (tags: digg Linux/Unix Technology) […]
July 30th, 2007 16:02
That UI might be useful if it could show documents in CMYK!
July 30th, 2007 17:49
What’s with all the bitching about sacrificing the GIMP’s current layout?
“The plan is for a single menu item to enable the interface in the mockup above.”
Did anybody actually read the article or just look at the picture and react?
July 30th, 2007 17:55
Looks fascinating - moving the toolbox to a dockable box of its own (rather than mandating “you have to have at least one dock, with the toolbox and menu bar in it”) is just the natural continuation of what has been done before. The only big complaint I have about the UI is that the common colour twiddling bits are buried in the Layer menu right now; If they get moved to the top-level document menu like it was proposed ages ago, all the better. =)
I don’t really mind the single-window interface as long as I can disable it and just use the floating docks, like before. MDIs probably helps people who are accustomed to MDIs, while those who aren’t frequently see MDIs as nuisance…
July 30th, 2007 18:12
[…] 2.3.19 前几天刚刚发布，相信这应该是最后一个 2.3x 版本，在新的 2.4 版中，GIMP 可能会使用单窗口界面，这些改变是我们这些 PS […]
July 30th, 2007 20:20
Plz… make the ruler and the text more compact/smaller the ui is so bloated with empty spaces…
July 30th, 2007 20:27
“The UI redesign pages are written by members of GIMP’s actual team. The new GIMP 2.4 cropping tool (that dims the uncropped area providing a live preview of your cropped image) was a result of their work.”
By work you mean opening Photoshop and copying them exactly then?
July 30th, 2007 21:37
I still prefer Pixel’s UI, that is more like Photoshop’s UI … http://www.kanzelsberger.com
July 30th, 2007 21:55
lime, Photoshop definitely isn’t the only commercial app that does it that way.
It doesn’t really seem you have used some of the latest dev builds of the GIMP, the cropping tool and most selection tools have been improved quite nicely. I have used Photoshop only a couple of times, but the tools do seem to be different (at least from CS2).
As for the UI, I hope the change will be optional, I like to set it up this way:
http://img238.imageshack.us/my.php?image=gimpscreeniejpgzc4.jpg
July 30th, 2007 22:46
I don’t really find it to be a hassle that there are three windows. I had no idea so many people felt so strongly about this. The only real advantage I see it not having to minimize and maximize 3 windows if you want to get it out of/into the way.
July 30th, 2007 23:44
Not to beat a dead horse, but GIMPShop (which I’ve only tried on Windows) is just bad; it is nothing like the single-window interface described in the planned new UI, and it’s nothing like Photoshop.
Instead of consolidating the 3 oddly-shaped Gimp windows into a single application window, GIMPShop adds a _fourth_ window, maximized behind the others. In a screen capture this might look like Photoshop, which likes to start up in a maximized window, but interacting with it for a few seconds and you can’t help but feel patronized by someone who thinks you’re not very smart. Add to that at least two annoying dialogs that pop up on start up - the default GIMP tips and before it the pointless dialog explaining where GIMP is going to store your preferences (pleez! who. cares?), and the program has already annoyed you into distraction, and this before it starts crashing. Which it does, on Windows.
In contrast, on Linux it’s fast, stable and powerful, and as a result, I find myself much more patient with its UI peculiarities.
I also think that it’s the growing popularity of desktop Linux that is going to drive the GIMP to finally shape up and adopt a more standard UI; unlike Firefox or OpenOffice, it really isn’t at home on Windows yet. On a Linux desktop, GIMP is a star, and it’s time it stopped acting like a prima donna, got out of its trailer and started to shine.
July 31st, 2007 00:21
“I don’t really find it to be a hassle that there are three windows. I had no idea so many people felt so strongly about this. The only real advantage I see it not having to minimize and maximize 3 windows if you want to get it out of/into the way.”
When i design skins i end up with like 30+ images open at once, and no matter how good you say the multi window interface is, it sucks to have a taskbar full of just gimp or to go through the list to get the one i needm with the tabbed window i could at least remember the order
I hope there will be an option to get rid of the close button, click tab to activate, click current document’s tab to switch to the last one i was working on, middle click on tab to maximize
I love inkscape it has a very easy to use interface, never really liked gimp’s strange shortcuts like ctrl+k to delete something
July 31st, 2007 00:24
INTERFACE COMPETITION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
There are lots of designers out there who all think they know whats best for gimp, so lets just have a competition, there might be some very good well thought out ones
July 31st, 2007 01:16
GIMPのUI刷新の予定あり?…
Via:
VentureCake » Blog Archive » GIMP’s major UI revamp
Ubuntutricks
どういう経緯なのかよくわかんないですが、GIMP開発者のblogでGIMPのUIの改善案と思しき画像が発見された様です。
肝心の…
July 31st, 2007 01:52
I prefer multiple windows!!
With the proposed layout, how can I compare two images I am editing side to side? I don’t want images in tabs! - tabs are mutually exclusive.
How can I easily see both the image and the histogram?
How can I use a dual-head setup, with menus on one screen and photo on the other?
July 31st, 2007 03:28
While I do agree that GIMPs new UI is great, the usability of the program still lacks IMO.
July 31st, 2007 03:34
needs to be more photoshop like. enough said. lol. big fan of GIMP still tho
July 31st, 2007 04:34
I always preferred GIMP’s UI over single-window. It’s kind of like MDI interface on Macintosh. This is just silly though, there are far more useful features and more important issues that should be addressed before the UI. Hell, Photoshop’s interface is (almost) just like Gimp’s traditional UI, wen it’s run on the Mac.
CMYK support, for one.
Higher than 16-bit color would be nice.
Better tablet support.
Even integrating PSPI into the application itself.
Otherwise it’s really still just a toy. A powerful toy, of course, but a toy, nevertheless.
July 31st, 2007 11:20
This is excellent news.
The crappy Gimp UI was my number one reason for not using it.
I might be able to retire Paintshop Pro 7 at long last
July 31st, 2007 16:53
I am a long time Paint Shop Pro 7 user myself. One of the big problems I have with GIMP currently — is too many loose windows, which clutter your screen, and having two sets of menus, one on the application window, and one on each image is really confusing.
I’ve always preferred single window MDI or preferably even TDI (Tabbed) interfaces as it’s much more manageable for those of us that only have single screen. However, some people that do have multiple monitors seem to like loose windows as MDI programs are not really multi-monitor friendly. What should really be done, is allow the user to CHOOSE whether they want to run GIMP in a single window tabbed interface, or classic loose window mode. Now that would really keep both parties happy
July 31st, 2007 17:09
GIMP 将被“整容”?…
十天前，一位 GIMP 用户在 Digg 上呼吁应该对 GIMP 的 UI（用户界面）进行“整容”手术。从目前所获得的 Digg 数目来看，这一提议得到了大多数人的支持。事实上，GIMP 早已组建了自己的 UI Redesi…
July 31st, 2007 18:24
Tabs, not tabs, tabs, no tabs…
Why start a flame war, when it is perfectly possible for other application UIs to make easily det6achable and regroupable tabs? So, one could always choose if an image/project should be in a tab or in a single window, or in a tabbed window with related projects only.
Konqueror has had this option for ages, and for an excuisite implementation, take a look at AdiumX for Mac OS X, their tab handling is some of the most elegant I’ve seen - ever.
August 6th, 2007 02:51
One window, that’s frickin’ great news! I will start using GIMP at work and promote it there when this new version arrives. Until now it was unworkable when working with multiple (about six) programmes at a time: as a newswebsite time is an issue and you have to switch as fast as possible.
So, basically I can’t wait.
August 7th, 2007 07:02
Hell, it’s about time.
One of my main beefs with it is the dozens of windows that keep getting in the way and keeping focus when they really shouldn’t.
Every other paint app (except I think Photoshop on Mac) does the single window approach, so… yeah.
I do agree that there are other issues that need to be tended to. Usability as well as features (CMYK, yes!)
August 7th, 2007 19:17
GIMP is my next favourite software, in contrast to Adobe Photoshop which a person has to pay in order to use the software. So, kudos to the GIMP developers who have so far improved the application by a large mile.
August 19th, 2007 07:36
That first link to the Digg article doesn’t work anymore.
Though, what i see in the image above here is really great!!! The very only reason I’ve still not switched is because the gimp always opened like 5 windows, and I couldn’t find my way around. If it starts looking the what i see here I’ll most sure start using (and maybe even spend my money donating instead of buying next versions of photoshop).
September 15th, 2007 06:02
Any idea when it will be available? (I can live with an alpha version =) )
September 19th, 2007 01:01
l would also appreciate if they would FIX the redraw issues that are notorious of GTK applications. It is completely annoying and distracting when I am trying to look for buttons in the menu system. Is this so hard?
September 21st, 2007 05:30
If the gimp icons looked a little more stylish i would condider using gimp once in a while.
September 23rd, 2007 18:23
thanks for the heads up, but were did you read that a discussion will follow?
October 1st, 2007 11:31
This sounds great! Can’t wait to use a single window gimp. Is there a release version available anywhere for download??????? I have searched everywhere and although a lot of people are talking about it I can’t find a download anywhere. Beta version? anything?
October 1st, 2007 11:54
btw … i think this is something different but I did find this download
http://registry.gimp.org/plugin?id=3892
It’s a plugin for gimp that creates a single window. It still doesn’t really make floating windows but it does help clean up clutter. So far I have had no issues.
January 4th, 2008 07:11
god I want it!