Ashampoo Photo Commander 9: $9.99

[Curt]

http://r.ashampoo.co...4604&lk=KirIvrqJ

Ashampoo Photo Commander 9 is quite new. I don't *feel* it is worth the normal $50 price tag, but I really think it gives good value for the money at only $9.99. It even has a "30 days money back guarantee".

[jeme]

Wow, they actually give 70% discount to their entire program until tomorrow – see https://www.ashampoo.com/en/eur/lpa/xmas ...

[rjbull]

I'm beginning to wonder about all these image editors.  There are so many of them now.  Maybe we need a DC review   

[oblivion]

I'm beginning to wonder about all these image editors.  There are so many of them now.  Maybe we need a DC review   

-rjbull (December 23, 2011, 03:26 PM)

Problem is, I think, different packages have different strengths.

I use Serif's PhotoPlus X4 (commercial, pretty decent and I get discounts having been a Serif customer for millennia) but have recently found that the colour manipulation facilities and algorithms in Sagelight beat anything else I've tried hands down. But for layer-based editing, it's still PhotoPlus.

But Xara's P&G7 has a really good tool for removing unwanted junk from photos. Mostly, though, it's a vector editor with a good pedigree and a community of enthusiasts -- and an interface I struggle to get my head around.

(I last tried Ashampoo's thing a couple of versions back and thought it average to poor. But my take on this stuff is always extremely subjective, so probably best not to ask me to do a proper comparitive. )

[rjbull]

Problem is, I think, different packages have different strengths.

-oblivion (January 17, 2012, 02:05 AM)

You're probably right, but Adobe's are, for better or worse, a de facto standard.

I use Serif's PhotoPlus X4 (commercial, pretty decent and I get discounts having been a Serif customer for millennia)

-oblivion (January 17, 2012, 02:05 AM)

And how many e-mails have you received brightly urging you to upgrade to X5? 

But Xara's P&G7 has a really good tool for removing unwanted junk from photos.

-oblivion (January 17, 2012, 02:05 AM)

I think moderator Carol Haynes is a big fan of Xara stuff.

[tomos]

But Xara's P&G7 has a really good tool for removing unwanted junk from photos.

-oblivion (January 17, 2012, 02:05 AM)

I think moderator Carol Haynes is a big fan of Xara stuff.

-rjbull (January 17, 2012, 02:55 PM)

Xara started out as a vector programme, I wonder how advanced the photo aspect is...

[oblivion]

Xara started out as a vector programme, I wonder how advanced the photo aspect is...

-tomos (January 17, 2012, 03:30 PM)

They bury the photo manipulation stuff quite deep, considering the fact that "Photo" is the first word in the name after "Xara". My view on it so far -- given that I've had a copy for a while and still tend to defer to Sagelight and Serif first, for photo work -- is that it's still primarily vector-oriented and the interface is still too, er, Xara to make it a good tool for photo manipulation for non-Xara fans.

What I need to do, I guess, is force myself to use it for something, rather than take the line of least learning curve, and see if I get good results. I think I'm too lazy.

[tomos]

^ well that's a judgement in itself

I have Sagelight myself (and illustrator & Freehand for vector) so probably not going to be investing in Xara anyway...

[oblivion]

^ well that's a judgement in itself

-tomos (January 19, 2012, 04:09 AM)

I expected it would be interpreted that way. 

Thing is, Xara (for vector work) is, and has been for many years, superb. Particularly the speed:functionality ratio is stunning. I want to get better with it, just because what can be done with it is quite breathtaking.

I'm usually a bit behind the curve with Xara, however. The pricing is normally beyond me so I pick up special offers on older versions and because it does stuff that (for me, anyway) is a bit less than mainstream, I keep it for cases of specific need but don't use it much.

The current thing brought a specific need (an awkward bit of photo manipulation that would have taken a very long time with a normal clone tool) and a special offer on pricing together and I bought into it. The "magic" extraction tool really is very good (even if I still have difficulty remembering how to get at it) and seems to match the capabilities of things I've only seen as very expensive Photoshop plugins.

The vector capabilities of Xara remain better than anything else I've ever used. It and a graphics tablet create the smoothest freehand lines I've ever been able to manage, without much (or sometimes any) need for post-editing of curves. But I CAN'T learn to like the interface.

I have Sagelight myself (and illustrator & Freehand for vector) so probably not going to be investing in Xara anyway...

I've never had the chance to play with Freehand. Well out of my budget range! 

[tomos]

I have Sagelight myself (and illustrator & Freehand for vector) so probably not going to be investing in Xara anyway...

I've never had the chance to play with Freehand. Well out of my budget range! 

-oblivion (January 19, 2012, 04:33 AM)

veering off-topic now 
but just to say FreeHand looks pretty dead now (although there is a lawsuit proceeding against adobe - see http://www.freefreehand.org/).
I still use FreeHand in preference to Adobe Illustrator due to speed of FH (and slooowness of illustrator) - and familiarity I guess. Xara seems to have the speed advantage as well as you say.