I am not sure if the Pen / Path tool, you are talking about is the tool wirh bezier curves, but if so, here is the uscase for creating selection (and its quiet obvious one) :
Imagine you have only mouse and need to create precise selection and straight lines - using laso tool is not enough (ie to create mask) - one way is to create path around object and convert it to selection, it's also perfect way to store it for later use. On Sun, May 12, 2019, 14:45 Elle Stone <ellest...@ninedegreesbelow.com> wrote: > On 05/10/2019 08:21 AM, Alexandre Prokoudine via gimp-gui-list wrote: > >> Maybe a more interesting user testing with beginners should be done like > >> this: they first follow a short introduction/lesson to common and > >> limited set of features with examples of usage. Then they are asked to > >> do a given task with what they have learned and the tools they were just > >> explained. This would be much more interesting maybe. > > I tend to disagree. > > > > A common scenario is that a user installs software he/she sees for the > > first time and tries to do something practical. If terminology is > > overly complicated/nerdy, defaults are convoluted, and tools don't > > work as expected (e.g. closing a path in GIMP doesn't work the same > > way as in pretty much every other software, as was pointed out in the > > report), chances are -- that user is lost to us. > > Could you give an example or two in GIMP of what you consider "overly > complicated/nerdy" terminology? > > Could you give some examples of convoluted defaults? > > I don't know about the path tool working differently than the pen tool, > because in all my 17 years of editing photographs using a computer, I've > never once had a reason to use a path/pen tool. I'm baffled as to why > anyone would try to use the path tool to make a selection. > > There is a great big huge difference between a "complete newbie" who's > never edited a photograph before, and a "newbie to GIMP" who already > knows how to use an equivalent program such as PhotoPaint or PhotoShop. > > A user who is clueless about editing photographs, is not going to find > GIMP OR other advanced image editors easy to use. > > > A common scenario is that a user installs software he/she sees for the > > first time and tries to do something practical. If terminology is > > overly complicated/nerdy, defaults are convoluted, and tools don't > > work as expected (e.g. closing a path in GIMP doesn't work the same > > way as in pretty much every other software, as was pointed out in the > > report), chances are -- that user is lost to us. > > > Blender did a fantastic job with 2.80 on defaults and accessibility of > > tools. People who teach Blender say, on average, their students make a > > lot more progress with 2.80 than with 2.79. > > One of the first things I did after switching to Linux was download and > install Blender, because someone told me it was really cool. I tried to > do something "practical". I failed. I didn't have a single clue what > Blender was used for. This wasn't a failing of the interface. > > I just downloaded Blender 2.8, and even though now I have a few clues as > to what Blender is used for, I still have absolutely no clue what to do > with Blender 2.8. Even the stuff I was shown regarding basic > photo-editing in previous versions of Blender, seems to have moved. Not > that I would ever recommend anyone using any version of Blender to edit > photographs. > > There is a great big *huge* difference between being a student in a > classroom with a *teacher* explaining the interface and how to use the > program, and especially for complete newbies who've never used > equivalent software and possibly having no clue what the software can > used for, vs having these same newbies trying to figure it out on their > own. > > > So we do need to know > > how newbies see GIMP for the first time. > > I used PhotoShop for several years. When I first started using GIMP-2.9 > I found GIMP to be basically "just like PhotoShop". I had deliberately > set PhotoShop (the CS2 version) up in Multi Window Mode (detached all > the dialogs to be free-floating, leaving a skinny bar at the top of the > screen with menus and such), just about as soon as I started using it, > so the whole "Single Window/Multiple Windows" issue wasn't even a > consideration. I like MWM, it allows to maximize configurability and > screen real estate. > > My problems with using GIMP have been, in order of importance: > > 1. The lack of support for high bit depth editing, which finally became > more or less possible after 2013, using GIMP-2.9. > > 2. The lack of support for editing in RGB color spaces other than sRGB, > which in 2019 *still* GIMP lacks support for editing in RGB color spaces > other than sRGB. > > 3. The lack of adjustment layers. > > 4. To a lesser extent for me, but high on the list for anyone with a > high volume workflow, is the lack of an easy way to record and play > sequences of editing steps. Programming at the command line to achieve > this goal is not a simple task, so it's no substitute for some > equivalent of PhotoShop macros. > > 5. Not a problem for me, but GIMP lacks good CMYK support, which many > photographers simply don't need. But apparently some do, though I'm > guessing the DTP people and graphic designers are the ones who really, > really, really need CMYK. > > I know of other people who are familiar with using PhotoShop, who also > find GIMP easy to use, *except* for items 2, 3, and 4 listed above. From > perusing forums, some or all of these items are "deal breakers" for > many, many people who would otherwise switch to GIMP. Though personally > I don't know of anyone for whom lack of good CMYK support is the actual > "deal breaker". > > GIMP's current user interface is the *least* important problem when it > comes to actual usability. Adding still-missing critical functionalities > is hugely more important than revising the interface to make it simpler > for newbies. It's a complete shame that the switch to GTK3/4 has had to > take priority over adding critical missing functionalities to GIMP. > > > So we do need to know > > how newbies see GIMP for the first time. > > Regarding being a "complete newbie", my first editing software was Corel > PhotoPaint. PhotoPaint was incredibly well-documented on the internet, > "complete newbies" had vast resources available to them. And most online > tutorials on PhotoShop could be followed using PhotoPaint. > > GIMP also has extensive online documentation and tutorials, and again > most PhotoShop tutorials can be followed using GIMP. All it takes is the > willingness to search and learn. Asking "newbies to GIMP" and/or > "complete newbies" to use GIMP without giving them access to the > internet, seems like an odd thing to do in this age of instant information. > > Though sadly search engines seem to be replacing first-page links to > articles on "how to edit using software like PhotoPaint/PhotoShop/GIMP" > with links to articles on how use to "instant push-button pretty", > AI-driven software. > > Best regards, > Elle > -- > https://ninedegreesbelow.com > Color management and free/libre photography > _______________________________________________ > gimp-gui-list mailing list > gimp-gui-list@gnome.org > https://mail.gnome.org/mailman/listinfo/gimp-gui-list >
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