PHOTOPAINT How-tos

[brenle]

There are seemingly a million books on the ins and outs of Photoshop. Even though PhotoPaint can do almost anything Photoshop can, there are differences in how these things are accomplished. Are there any good references that point out these differences?

Brenda Lewis
www.el-ay.com

[brenle]

There are seemingly a million books on the ins and outs of Photoshop. Even though PhotoPaint can do almost anything Photoshop can, there are differences in how these things are accomplished. Are there any good references that point out these differences?

Brenda Lewis
www.el-ay.com

[Peter Clifton]

Brenda

AFIK there isn't such a guide, at least none that I've come across.

However, I have often worked through step by step tutorials published in computer arts magazines for photoshop.

It is often just a case of terminology translation at worst, at best all you have to do is find the option in a different place.

Where things sometimes fall down is if there is an effects filter in Photoshop that is not present in Photopaint, but you can usually spot these if you read the turtorial first.

I think the main secret is to learn what Photopaint can do first, you then have a good grounding in tackling Photoshop tutorials.

I can't really help with Photoshop specifics as I don't use the package professionally, I only produce Black and White documents for outside printing or inhouse colour so don't feel the need.

Peter

[Not Ziggy]

As a typesetter in a print shop, I don't do anything fancy. I just need a raster editor that is fast and intuitive and in that context PhotoPaint is far beyond PhotoShop. My point is that because of PS's aura, a PS user using PP is going to underestimate the things that PP does much better, and never appreciate how hard it is for a PP user to struggle through PS's antiquated interface. For example:

1) Zooming and panning in PP can be done with the mouse wheel, a tool that Adobe ignores presumably because it's hoping Windows is a passing fad .

2) In the lower right corner of the window is a panning "navigator" that you activate only when you need it (click there and drag and voila, you're panning around a smaller image of the drawing), rather than the much more indirect one in PS that crowds the drawing.

3) As in Draw, all tools are dockable so that you never have to move a palette or toolbar out of the way. Imagine what it's like for a PP user having to interrupt their thinking in PS to constantly be moving stuff out of the way.

4) The customizable tool bars in PP aren't quite as comprehensive as an experienced PP user might like them to be, but when I sit down in front of PS and find only one way to do things, I feel like I'm being led around by a programmer, rather than leading myself.

5) Resizing a tool in PP can be done by simply holding down the Ctrl button and dragging (up for larger; down for smaller) and then you continue working. Compare this to having to move a slider or type in a number in PS (both of which you can also do in PP, of course, if you want to be unproductive for some reason).

6) When you're using a tool in PP (such as an eraser) the circle or square (or more complex shape) is larger or smaller as you resize the tool. Not so in PS, where it's apparently more important to have a cute little eraser cursor than to see exactly where you're erasing.

The list goes on and on (and the way that many of PhotoPaint's features have recently been incorporated into Draw is another thing very confusing for experienced PS users to grasp).

Of course, these are things you don't miss if you're an experienced PS devotee, kind of like being blind from birth. And there are probably things that PhotoShop genuinely does better (although I don't need them in my line of work and consequently don't know what they might be) but if an experienced PS user had to try to keep up with even a novice PP user in a production environment, they wouldn't stand a chance, which is why every PhotoShop user I come in contact with switches to PhotoPaint after I open their eyes (numbers 5 and 6 above seem especially good at dropping their jaw to the floor), and never looks back.

[mikeius]

I don't know any book or tutorial explaining how to translate between PP and PS, but both applications are very similar, and it is easy to figure out how to do things in PP reading PS tutorials.

You can find PP tutorias at http://www.designer.com

Regards

[constanzaforte]

I think Micheal Crevantes should write a book on Corel's Photo Paint. His knowledge is amazing, I'd learn so much from him in newsgroups in english and spanish. Why don´'t do do it Micheal?

Constanza

[mikeius]

Hola Constanza:

The problem is money and time. A book takes a lot of time, and publishers do not pay accordingly. I do not have the money to publish and distribute it myself. A CD version could be an option, but readers prefer paper books.

Saludos y gracias por tus alabanzas.

[img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img]

[BobS]

There is a how-to book for Corel Photo-Paint. It's "Corel Photo-Paint 10" by David Huss. The latest version came out this month and is offered by the publisher (McGraw-Hill as I remember).

Amazon.Com carries the books for versions 9 and 8 and will have the version 10 book soon, I assume.

This book is much better than the documentation that comes with the program. Dave writes with an occasional bit of humor thrown in for good measure, so the reading is not dry at all.

[BobS]

I forgot to mention that Dave Huss in his how-to books on Photo-Paint does point out differences in performing the same operations with PhotoShop

[Erik Heyninck]

I use PP, and have a friend who uses PS professionally and who lets me try it out on Sundays. I do not understand this hatred between the two cliques: both have their merits. I agree that PS is THE industry standard because there is a tradition that is so conservative that itignores other possibilities, but it does work like a Rolls Royce...
But... I miss the stitch tool, the transparancy tool, tyhe alchemy and other plug-ins...
I learned using PP by experimenting and trying to achieve some visual idea without using any nifty filters. I also found some roots in learning the theory behind channels, layers, curves etc,...
But I never found a book that could teach me what I wanted to know, so I read PP's manual...boring like a telephone guide, but just as useful.