Best version of PhotoShop or similar program?

[Lonniebealestreet]

PhotoShop is on my Christmas list and my wife looked at them at Target and said there were lots of versions to pick from, and I believe all the ones she was looking at were specifically PhotoShop programs. They ranged in price from basically $30 to $100.

I am assuming that the most expensive ones are the best, but I don't know what I need really or what kind of differences there are between them. Mainly I just want to have a program that can do all kinds of different things with photos, graphics, fonts, etc.

Joern's (who I see uses PhotoShop 7) question reminded me that I wanted to ask this. Could you all tell me what you use or recommend?

[NightRider]

I use Photoshop 7 and CS ( which is latest version i believe...)...(one on my Laptop...the other on the PC)
There are differences between the two...but for the average user...not too much to worry about.

It would be one of these two that i would recommend Bobby...but they ain't cheap

[spinout-designs]

Hi Bobby, I use Photoshop 7 too. As for the price though, its likely to be closer to $ 650

The latest version (the equivalent of 8 I guess) is known as 'Photoshop CS'.

[yiddle yisa]

Hey Bobby,

It really all depends on what you plan to do with it as knowing that I, myself, create a lot of graphics and add special effects to pictures. So again, it all comes down to what you'll use it for.
*your probably thinking "PICTURES! DUH!"*

Sincerly, Yiddle Yisa

[Lonniebealestreet]

Holy canoli--I had no idea they cost that much. I guess Target doesn't sell them all.

I might have another option, I just found out.

Thanks for all your replies.

[Lonniebealestreet]

Talking about colorized movies in the EP forum reminded me that the ability to colorize photos is something I would love to have.

Do most versions have this capability?

[yiddle yisa]

Holy canoli--I had no idea they cost that much. I guess Target doesn't sell them all.

Yep, that's right, ya gotta "pay from your nose!"
Try going to www.download.com and download a free trial of what you may be looking for and after the trial is over, you can decide what you want.


Sincerly, Yiddle Yisa (h)

[yiddle yisa]

I recommend the cheapest version of photoshop you can find...

is it really true?



i mean, do they really sell "the cheapest" of PhotoShop?

Sincerly, Yiddle Yisa (h)

ps: Bobby, i was thinkin
maybe you can find someone to burn the CD for you.....someone kind enough i mean!

[Lonniebealestreet]

Thanks for the great advice, Ron and Ellie.

I have this info written down at work, but someone recommended a program from Roxio as well as the latest version of Microsoft's latest PhotoShop-like program (Picture It, I think it's called). I could apparently get either of those for $100 or less.

But since it seems like most people use PhotoShop, I'm thinking that a fairly simple version of that may be the place to start, as Ron suggests.

I do know a couple people who have an older version of PhotoShop on their computers (I think it's 5)...hmmm.

It did occur to me I could download a trial version of this program or that from CNET, but I just hadn't gotten that far. Really, I was hoping to make a decision from the recommendations here.

I'll decide something soon. The more I learn, the more I learn how much I have yet to learn...or however the saying goes. Thanks again to all.

[jbgude]

Bobby, as already advised take the lowest configuration you can get: you will have most all what you can use and also the programme requires so much memory your PC will most probably crawl :I just got a new office lap top today because working with Photoshop was frustrastingly slow.... cannot think of doing that at home.

Hey, the smilis are not loading up :=(

jb

[Lonniebealestreet]

jb, go to your Control Panel, Edit Options, then scroll down to the bottom of the page where you see this (and try what it's suggesting--I recommend using the Enhanced Interface - Full WYSIWYG Editing):

When posting messages to the forums or other members, there are three interface types available to you. The simplest of these is a simple text box, while the last is a fully-fledged WYSIWYG editor, which allows you to format your text as you want it and see the results immediately.

Depending upon the capabilities of your web browser, you may not be able to use all of these options. If you experience problems when posting messages, try switching to a different interface type.

I'm not sure if that is related to your having a problem with the emoticons all of the sudden, but regardless, that may take care of the problem.


Thanks for the additional input on this subject, guys. I'm thinking now I might upgrade my PC before I get such a program though.

[Joern]

Hello Lonniebealestreet!

I saw a lot of auctions for Photoshop 6 - the version Unchained is using - for round about 40 Euros on Ebay.

I think that's pretty "cheap" for such a programm.

Kind regards, J?rn

[Lonniebealestreet]

It hadn't crossed my mind to look on eBay. Thanks, Joern.

[Cherokee]

While searching for info on Photoshop and Paint Shop, I regularly came across remarks that said Paint Shop has all the Photoshop options, but is a lot cheaper, yet in this thread nobody mentioned Paint Shop Pro as a good alternative for Photoshop.
Is there any reason why this wasn't done? What exactly are the differences between the two (except for the humongous difference in price)?

[Cherokee]

Okay, remember I'm a computer and overal program nitwit, so be kind

What exactly is Corel Draw, what can one do with it and is it in any way comparable to Photoshop and Paint Shop Pro?

[Lonniebealestreet]

If you don't mind downloading 170 mb's, here's a tryout of PS7 Bobby.

http://www.click-now.net/html/Photoshop7.htm

maybe i can find a full version
----------------------------------------------------

I got Paint shop pro somewhere on a disc?.that kinda tells the whole the story Cherokee

I don?t mind sending it to you Bobby?

Very generous of you, Ron. Please PM with details, at your convenience.

:worthy: