Customer Reviews

Corel Paint Shop Pro X [OLD VERSION]

5 star:		(39)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(11)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

I have used Paint Shop Pro in each incarnation from 7.04 Anniversary Edition onwards as well as Adobe Photoshop Elements 2.0.

I must say that while the latest version is very user friendly especially to a new user, if you've got Version 8 or 9 on your computer I don't think the upgrade is worth the money. The new browser is particularly horrible if you're used to the older versions of Paint Shop Pro. You have to resort to manual tinkering to get it to look like the earlier versions if you want to which is a fairly involved procedure. Even then it doesn't behave like the earlier version but acts like a permanently docked window. In the default it displays Windows folders as little pictures of folders in a row and I find it quite difficult to use as a navigation mechanism.

The Learning Center is a useful addition especially to begin with when you're figuring out where everything is because even if you've had PSP8 and/or 9 on your computer Corel have changed round the positions of some of the tools in the toolbar and there are quite a few tweaks in the menus and photo tools. I do like the noise removal tool which functions better than it did in PSP9 and I also like the Smart Photo Fix. Overall however I felt that the new edition wasn't really worth shelling out over £40 for when I already had older versions on my computer.

In addition, the Paint Shop Photo Album (which is included for free) has refused to function correctly on my computer and I am still waiting for Corel's programmers to come back to me after working with a technician for over three weeks and not resolving the issue. A free Album Creator program is included which is for ordering photo albums online; I found that this gave me error messages until I went online and then launched it. I don't have a RAW image function on my digital camera so have not used that software which is also included on the disk.

You will need a large amount of RAM - at least 1 GB and preferably more, as well as a big hard drive and a fast computer to run this software. I would also recommend a large monitor because of the over-crowded interface - when you have the browser up and running it refuses to allow the image to overlap it as the older versions did, and behaves like the edge of the workspace.

Corel have essentially concentrated on photo editing in this version of Paint Shop Pro although the graphics tools are still there. If you have PSP 8 or 9 and do graphics rather than photo work I would stay with that software for now but if you're a new user I think you'll find this version of Paint Shop Pro is well worth the money.

Wow. Where to begin? I've been a PSP user since version 3. That's a long time. I have looked forward to every upgrade with great anticipation. And while there is much to like in this newest release, the fact that Corel now owns PSP may well be its demise.

Let me explain.

Having recently made the jump to Photoshop (the full blown version, not Elements), I'm qualified to speak to both. And I can tell you that 98% of what you can do it Photoshop can be done in PSP. It's an incredible package at a super price.

The problem is that you'll be on your own. Corel support is just plain awful. Average response time for technical issues is EIGHT DAYS (I submitted 20 requests for assistance or advice, this is actual experiental data)!! And often when they do respond, it is with that awful Cut & Paste canned responses that do NOT apply to your question. And while I was told it would get better, it hasn't. I spent nearly a year in the hopes it would improve and I believe now it won't. Suffice to say, Corel is where good software goes to die. Outside of Painter, they haven't hit a home run in 15-20 years. Having spoken with customer service by phone, I'm convinced they've conned themselves into believing they can never be better than Adobe, or Microsoft, or any of half a dozen software companies out there.

Back to the product. What really makes Photoshop so much better than PSP (I never thought I'd write these words) is not what is in the product, but rather what surrounds it. Photoshop has the most incredible support community surrounding it of any software that has ever existed. It is so ridiculously easy to get help, to get advice, to find out new techniques. Compare the number of Photoshop books available on Amazon compared with the paltry number devoted to Paint Shop Pro. The end result of this is that I've learned more about image editing in the last four months with Photoshop than I learned in 10+ years as a PaintShop Pro devotee.

So, while I always wanted PSP to succeed, I cannot in good conscience recommend it to you. It will take you too long to learn and do the things you want to do. You are far better off with something Adobe.

Bottom line, go with Photoshop or Photoshop Elements if you're looking to save money and don't need as much (Elements is robust, don't let the name fool you). You'll be happier, more productive and part of a great community of enthusiasts devoted to the passion of digital imaging. Outside of Painter, you don't need anything from Corel. Remember these words, they will serve you well. COREL... WHERE GOOD SOFTWARE GOES TO DIE

It's a shame Paint Shop Pro (PSP) is so often described as simply an alternative to PhotoShop. In reality, Paint Shop Pro is better. While both are fairly evenly matched when it comes to image editing, PSP also has a full set of graphics editing tools that PhotoShop mostly lacks. These tools allow one to draw and paint in vector, raster, and art media layers for the creation and editing of clip art, business logos, web graphics, and similar artwork. Reviewers (magazine or other) rarely mention this when comparing the two products, instead pointing to a few additional esoteric image editing tools while claiming PhotoShop is the superior product.

Some of the reviewers here need to lighten up. This is not the first time PSP has seen change, nor the first time older users have complained about those changes. When Jasc re-vamped PSP to include more extensive photo editing tools, one got the impression from prior users that Jasc had stabbed them in the back and spat on their mother's grave at the same time. However, the later proliferation of digital imaging proved those additions were worthwhile. As far as I'm concerned, if Jasc has lost interest in PSP enough to sell it, I'm glad Corel has stepped forward to keep this product going.

Of course, this is not to say I'm thrilled with Corel. One thing I dislike about the company is the decision not to support our military personnel overseas - to not ship products to APO/FPO addresses (the military postal system delivering mail to overseas locations). Since I have four more years to go on a five year tour overseas as a civilian employee with the military, this policy will eventually force me to consider alternatives or do without.

Paint Shop Pro continues to improve with each new release. This is the cleanest installation I've seen in a long time, with no errors found afterwards. The software has performed flawlessly, both during and after installation. The installation appears smaller than recent previous versions. With PSP installed alone, this version tops out at about 178mb, while the previous version 8 topped out at 278mb. Since nothing seems to be missing, only the removal of archaic programming code could account for this difference. Of course, installing the additional software will eat up more disk space.

In many ways, Paint Shop Pro has not changed at all. The previous tools are still there, just moved around and/or slightly changed somewhat. Similar tools have been grouped together under a single menu instead of across several as in previous versions. Some of the dialog boxes/windows have changed to support additional features. The image browser has changed. And the tool icons now have a somewhat more polished look. Otherwise, Paint Shop Pro looks and feels similar to previous versions.

A few have complained about the busy default toolbar layout leaving little room to edit documents. All toolbars can be reduced or closed to provide as much screen space as desired, with the program opening in the same condition as it was closed. The option to define and save custom workspace layouts also remains. In other words, it only takes a few moments to lay out everything just as one wants.

I'm not a big fan of one-step automated fixes, available in hordes in this version. The "One-step Photo Fix" and "Smart Photo Fix" both either override effects created in the camera or add distortion to the image. This hard-to-describe distortion (areas of small, almost square-shaped, globs of color) is enough to make an image unusable. I haven't been able to recreate this distortion using the manual adjustment tools, so use those instead.

However, some of the automated fixes are useful. Since my camera is prone to the chromatic aberration leading to purple fringe in high contrast situations, the "One-step Purple Fringe Fix" is handy. The "One-step Digital Noise Fix" also works well. The "Red-eye Removal" tool works fine in some images and not in others, but does at least reduce some of the manual editing in every case.

With a faster computer, I haven't noticed any significant increase in performance. Perhaps those with slower computers will see a more obvious speed improvement.

All in all, this is a competent upgrade. The installation was painless. The software is stable. The program itself retains everything which has made it so popular for so many years. The user interface is slightly more polished. Most of the new features are worthwhile additions. There are minor flaws, but there really is very little not to like about this version.

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FOOTNOTE: I would have preferred to review version XI, but that is simply not to be. I ordered PSP directly from Corel. Just twelve days after receiving version X, the company released version XI. In other words, Corel shipped a product they knew would be out-of-date in a matter of days. To add insult to injury, the company now expects me to pay the full upgrade price for the latest version - which the company won't even ship to me because of the APO/FPO policy mentioned above.

To be honest Adobe Photoshop is the top pro paint/photo package to use because of the amount of extras and plugins that it can use but I find myself turning to Paint Shop Pro very often. Let me list the reasons why.

1. It is quicker than Adobe Photoshop.
2. It has enough functions to do most of the things I need.
3. It is easy to use.
4. The learning curve is not steep.
5. The package is smaller in hard drive size than Photoshop.
6. It can do the vast majority of things that Photoshop can do.

PS has a very steep learning curve but is the only true Pro package out there, however how much of PS you think you will use depends on the type of work you are doing. I would recommend PSP just on the basis that you can get it working right out the box by just learning the basic interface.

I use this package an awful lot. I even do complex composites with it. In short - simple.

I have used Paint Shop Pro since v7. I started out with Paint Shop Pro when JASC was the creator and it was a shareware program and I couldn't afford a more expensive package for the casual, hobbyist use that I gave it.

Later I moved to v8 and used that for some time. I finally made the switch to version X a year ago.

First the good. Paint Shop Pro is INCREDIBLY powerful, yet not terribly difficult to use. It is far less expensive than Photoshop CS2 and does most of what Photoshop can do. By most, I mean MOST. There are very few things that PS does that PSP does not do, and well. Consider this, you can buy a pretty good lens for a DSLR camera with the price difference between these two programs. Which is going to improve your images more - a few extra goodies on an editing program, or a better lens?

More good things... There are several very good books here on Amazon that will teach you the basics, AND the complexities of PSP and have you working with mask layers and adjustment layers in no time at all.

Additionally, Corel supports a very active and robust newsgroup at corel cnews where you can receive nearly instantaneous advice and very useful and accurate help from other Paint Shop Pro users.

Overall, Paint Shop Pro is the bargain of the century when it comes to image editing.

Now the bad. Everyone SEEMS to use Photoshop CS2. So there are hundreds of websites and plugins and books for Photoshop. Not as many for PSP, although they are out there if you look. But since everyone seems to use Photoshop, it is easier to find help or tips when using it. Again, if you are willing to invest the time to read a book, you can learn most of what you need to know about PSP for ~$25 right here at Amazon. But for the people who don't want to read how to use the program, but prefer to go somewhere and ask - there are more people to ask with Photoshop.

Next comes color management. PSP tries to enable color management with limited results. For professionals, Photoshop has this feature down pat and they know what to expect. I've done a LOT of color management and monitor calibration and here's my take... if you aren't a pro, it is just another headache you didn't have before. Unless your monitor is WAY out of whack, most of us will never need to deal with more than a causal gamma adjustment. If you are editing photos to put on the internet or to print at places like Mpix or Ezprints or Shutterfly, you don't need it. If you are a pro, you might need it.

In a nutshell, there are a LOT of people out there using Photoshop CS2 who have shelled out $500+ for the program because they heard it was the best (and it is) and many of them do not have the faintest idea how to use most of the features that make it the best. But they feel good about it because it is Photoshop!

If you are the kind of person who buys generic aspirin at the pharmacy because you are able to disassociate your emotions from the raw fact that it is the same stuff as the brand name aspirin and will work on your headache exactly the same as the brand name aspiriin, then Paint Shop Pro is probably for you. Unless you KNOW what features you need in Photoshop that PSP does not have, then you are going to be fine with PSP. Many users will never use even a large part of PSP, much less Photoshop. So why pay HUNDREDS of dollars more for something you won't use anyway?

Usually you get what you pay for and the less you pay, the less you get. Paint Shop Pro is one of those exceptions. Because of its shareware roots and the excellence of the original programmers, this is an outstanding image editing program, that is extremely powerful for a low price. I highly recommmend it if you are looking for a powerful image editing program at a reasonable price.

If all you want to do is the simple stuff,like resizing images,changing the color a bit or even add some sort of frames,there are a million free programs that do just that.

If you are a photographer or a graphics designer, you better stick with Photoshop,it is hard to learn but the quality is phenomenal.

But if like the most people out there, you are someplace in the middle, Paint Shop Pro is an excellent choice.
It will let you use your imagination and do things you only dreamed about,the results will be nothing short of astonishing.
It is easy to use,the Help file available with the program is excellent,and also there are 100's of Yahoo and MSN groups dedicated to PSP.
You will not regret buying it.

However,make sure that you have the computer "Recommended" requirements,as you are going to need them.
If you do not have them,fear not ! in many places the older version: Paint Shop Pro 7 is available, and it will run perfect on older PC's.

I've been using PSP since version 3, and have found each upgrade to be useful, and worth the money.

In scanning the reviews in Amazon, I see people complaining of crashes and poor performance. I can only say that the problems must originate with their own machines; I have yet to suffer a single crash. As to complaints that Win 95, Win98 and WinME aren't supported ...it's time to upgrade to WinXP or to wait for Vista. Either that, or stick to an earlier version of PSP. But don't slag JASC or Corel if your ancient operating system doesn't handle today's programs. Good heavens... should Corel be supporting Win 3.1 for PSP???

Another complaint is the lack of a detailed manual. I think that my experience with manuals is not unusual: I have a dozen thick, glossy, expensive manuals that I have never used! Online help and user forums are more than sufficient. So I for one would rather that Corel save some money creating complete, attractive manuals, and pass on those saving to those of us who only want the software. My attitude is: if I need a manual, I'll go buy one.

I do have some minor complaints with PSP X (too aggressive in Smart fix; animal 'red-eye' not satisfactory; I liked the ability to adjust a single color; some other minor points), but, all in all it's a heck of a program that 99% of digital photographers would find to meet all their needs... and then some.

Many heads, (including mine), turned in dismay when Corel acquired Paint Shop Pro from Jasc. And although some sad changes have been made, Corel still receives my kudos for keeping this software on the esteemed realm where it belongs.
The first two things previous Paint Shop Pro users will notice in this edition is that it spots a new interface, and has gotten significantly faster. Though, this increment falls short of the 50% speed increase, which Corel proudly advertizes. Also, this acclaimed speed came at a price: the software's recommended hardware requirements almost doubled as a result. And, unless you are running a 2.4GHz Pentium 4 equivalent processor or faster, with an absolute minimum of one full gigabyte of RAM to swing it around, you may not even notice this so-called 50% speed increase.
Again, Corel's near-complete overhaul of the more familiar user-interface, (which Jasc endeavored to maintain in the earlier editions), means that even well-established users have some new lessons to learn now.
For a complete new user, there is absolute nothing to fear. The learning curve for this software is not steep at all. And unless you are already familiar with Adobe's interface, you will discover that this software is much easier to learn when compared to either Photoshop or Photoshop Elements. It is as well much more powerful and more robust than the Photoshop Elements. In fact, amongst all the photo-editing suites currently on sale, only the main Adobe Photoshop can defeat this software in a supremacy battle. But do remember that Adobe's outrageously over-valued Photoshop costs approximately twelve times of what Paint Shop Pro costs; despite the fact that Paint Shop Pro can do more than 90% of what it does. This may explain the reason why some newly graduated professionals, (who either could not afford the high price of Adobe Photoshop, or just want to keep down their own operational costs), put their faith in Paint Shop Pro.
That said, Photoshop Elements may be another good and upcoming alternative; but it is certainly no match for Paint Shop Pro: both in speed and in sheer power. Know it now that this latest Corel Paint Shop Pro X have the capacity to trounce the latest Adobe Photoshop Elements 4.0 twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week! It is also the photo-editing application suite, which offers the best all-round support and compatibility with the widest variety of digital cameras. It is even better than the main Photoshop in this aspect.

I do a lot of amatuer photography and some graphic editing for my websites and business presentations. I liked Adobe Photo Shop but I did not like its price or complexity. Several years ago I changed from a limited use version of Photo Shop to a full-blown version of JASC's (now Corel) Paint Shop Pro. Back then it was version 5 or 6 and about one-tenth the price of Photo Shop. I've upgraded over the years and now use Corel Paint Shop Pro X (version 10) and I've got to tell you, the new version just kicks butt.

PSP X now has a Learning Center which is an embedded help system that shows up on the left of the program. The Learning Center guides you through all the cool things you can do and only shows the stuff that's available to choose from until you click on something, then it shows everything that's available at that level.

It's really cool how easy Corel makes it to do detailed things. For example, if I want to remove a scratch from a photo, I choose "Retouch and Restore" which says right under that selection, "Remove flaws from your photos". Then I click on "Scratch Remover". It guides me through everything I need to do to quickly and easily correct the photo to my liking without having to remember where all the commands are off the menu. I really like the ease-of-use this provides me, because I really don't want to become a graphics designer, I just want my pictures to look their best without requiring a ton of work on my part to get it done. Of course there are some seriously advanced capabilities available as well but I rarely use them because almost everything I want to do to an image is right there in the Learning Center. So PSP X does all the things I need a photo or image editing system to do, at way less than what I'd have to pay if I wanted to do the same in Photo Shop. I think it's a "must have" if you take a lot of photos or do web development at any level.

In addition to PSP X, I also use Corel (formerly JASC) Photo Album 6 which lets me post an entire website of photos for family members and friends to see. Photo Album can be a standalone application but it also integrates directly into PSP X. When you want to do more than just basic editing on a photo in Photo Album, you just click the PSP X icon and it brings up the photo in PSP X. You can then make whatever changes you need in PSP and save the picture, then when you click back on Photo Album your image is updated, simple as that. Pretty cool and highly recommended!

I've used both photoshop CS2 and several versions of Paint Shop Pro. With this new version, they're at about 95% of the important features in Photoshop, but it's easier to use and 1/5 the cost. I use it professionally to edit photos and create website graphics.

Terrific software.