New GIMP Release Has Working Single-Window Mode

[DaVince]

To me, this is a very welcome change, and one that should have been here long ago.

Most software I know uses docks or MDI to place elements related to the software into a single window. What the GIMP did instead, was create at least three windows belonging to the one piece software. Which gave me a lot of trouble:
* Task switching became tedious, especially when having multiple images open, because every single window showed up in the task switcher.
* Moving the GIMP to a different desktop was tedious, because the tool windows would still be on the other desktop.
* I could not simply maximize the image window, as fairly big parts of the image would hide behind the toolbar windows. Not only that, but the menu would hide behind the toolbar windows.

If they went even just MDI, two of these problems would disappear, as all the windows related to the program would then exist inside a single window. They went with docks instead, which are pretty much the same story and also gets rid of the third problem, so I'm glad they finally did this.

forces the toolbox to remain on top even in full screen image editing mode (very big mistake)

This was a bigger problem when they spawned multiple windows, because said windows tended to be always on the foreground, which made them hide big parts of the image window. At least now you can make the dock so small that it's not visible at all, even in fullscreen mode. This means that you can properly show/hide the tools when you need them, as shown in these pics:

http://davince.tengudev.com/images/2011/gimpa.png

http://davince.tengudev.com/images/2011/gimpb.png

http://davince.tengudev.com/images/2011/gimpc.png

Also, the GIMP doesn't force you to use the new window mode if you don't like it. The default mode is not single window mode. Keep using the much more convoluted multiple windows version, if you like.

It does still need some improvements, though. It would be nice if you could add tabs and determine which tools/sub windows go in there, and be able to close some of the tabs that are there now (like the bottom-right pencils/patterns/gradients docks). Also, perhaps, easily folding/unfolding the docks so they're completely hidden. This is possible now by dragging the dock's border, but then you'd have to resize it back to something good once you want it back.

Still, this is a good step in the right direction if you ask me.

[Cybolic]

I really like the single window mode, but how do you guys get GIMP to start in single window mode? Everytime I start 2.7.3 it starts in multi window mode with all the docks in the wrong places. I've tried removing ~/.gimp-2.7, but that doesn't help.

[numasan]

There have been some significant changes to the UI. The docking bars have been removed and replaced with overlayed highlights. The dockable drag handle has been removed and the dockable menu button has been moved up to the tabs. A new Automatic tab style has been added which makes dockable tabs use the available space. It has been made possible to have many columns of docks in a single dock window. To make dock window titles manageable, only show the active dockable in the dock window title. A single-window mode has been added (still in the works, in particular, it is not possible to start up in single-window mode yet).

From http://www.gimp.org/release-notes/gimp-2.7.html

[DaVince]

For me, the single-window mode option appears inside the Windows menu (this is on a Windows version though, not sure if it matters).

[Cybolic]

From http://www.gimp.org/release-notes/gimp-2.7.html

Ah... I guess I expected something else from the description "[...] Has Working Single-Window Mode". I'll keep waiting.

[towo2099]

I'm using gimp 2.7.4~git (checked out today 17:30 CEST) and gimp is remembering the one window mode after closing gimp with one window mode enabled.

[movieman]

I mean if you hate the program so much as some people seem to do then just DON'T USE IT.

That seems to be an increasingly common comment from FOSS developers. Likely to be followed a year or two later by questions like 'where did all our users go?'

I've been using Gimp a lot in the last few weeks and even ignoring the things I complained about earlier it's just a horrible mess compared to 'pro' software I've used. For example, sometimes it picks the layer to edit based on what you click on the screen -- but often picking a layer above the one you expected it to pick so you have to move things around to get at the layer you want to edit -- other times it requires you to select the layer you want to edit and then click on part of that layer on the screen. Sometimes it shows a border around the image so I can actually select points outside the image when I'm creating a selection mask, other times it doesn't show a border around the image so I can't select points outside it and have to precisely, exactly hit the very edge pixel in order to ensure my mask is going to cover the entire area. I can edit the points in that selection until I close it, and then I can no longer edit them when I realise that one of them was one pixel out. Rotate layer crops the image to the old layer size unless you specifically enlarge the layer before rotating. Crop to selection doesn't work unless you selected a rectangle, otherwise you have to create an alpha channel.

There are just so many awful gotchas in the UI that I'm sorely tempted to reboot into Windows and use Fusion instead in future even though that's designed for film and video instead of stills. Aside from having a sensible interface, the node-based editing is vastly superior to layers.

[kayosiii]

Ah... I guess I expected something else from the description "[...] Has Working Single-Window Mode". I'll keep waiting.

That GIMP should start in single window mode as of 2.7.3. Those release notes are slightly dated.

[Cybolic]

[...]I've been using Gimp a lot in the last few weeks and even ignoring the things I complained about earlier it's just a horrible mess compared to 'pro' software I've used. For example,

sometimes it picks the layer to edit based on what you click on the screen -- but often picking a layer above the one you expected it to pick so you have to move things around to get at the layer you want to edit

There's a layer stack in the dock ususally to the right. Selecting a layer by clicking pixels will be tricky in any program.

other times it requires you to select the layer you want to edit and then click on part of that layer on the screen.

Never experienced that - have you filed a bug-report?

Sometimes it shows a border around the image so I can actually select points outside the image when I'm creating a selection mask, other times it doesn't show a border around the image so I can't select points outside it and have to precisely, exactly hit the very edge pixel in order to ensure my mask is going to cover the entire area.

Control+Scroll to zoom out. It will show the border.

I can edit the points in that selection until I close it, and then I can no longer edit them when I realise that one of them was one pixel out.

You can save selections to channels, masks and so on, otherwise you can accustom yourself to toggling the selection edge so you can better see what you are doing. Otherwise, using layer masks is often the better choice.

Rotate layer crops the image to the old layer size unless you specifically enlarge the layer before rotating.

Set "Clipping" to "Adjust" in the rotate tool.

Crop to selection doesn't work unless you selected a rectangle, otherwise you have to create an alpha channel.

That might be, haven't run into that - I always work with an alpha channel until it's time to export.

It sounds to me that GIMP isn't really the problem, but more you being unwilling to adjust your workflow - and/or you didn't read the manual.

[Cybolic]

That GIMP should start in single window mode as of 2.7.3. Those release notes are slightly dated.

I guess the package I'm using from the "mrw-gimp-svn" PPA was slightly too old. Good to hear that it should be working.