Affinity Studio now free to all!

[evansd2]

Parroting repeating. Restating? Reiterating? It’s been said before, for whatever reasons it’s been said before.

Point:

Epilog first impressions

You can use Illustrator or Corel. Or probably even other programs. It replaces the print driver. It’s not exclusive to Illustrator. And Illustrator is the design industry standard. I’ve never seen anyone use Inkscape professionally.

Counterpoint:

Crafty Cretin - Things I made Vol. 2

There’s no “only” in having Inkscape. Adobe Illustrator and Inkscape are the two leading design apps, and many professionals choose Inkscape over Illustrator as they find the interface more intuitive (I’m in that camp.) They both have huge learning curves, but that’s because they are both so packed with features. Same with GIMP (free) and Photoshop. Equal in features.

Point…:

Are Glowforges shipped from DCL LOUISVILLE

I opted for Inkscape because it was free (spent my disposable income on the machine). It is a powerful solution, and is more than capable of anything I need. There are users here of all of the different programs. Adobe Illustrator is the professional choice, but Inkscape is the free option.

Counterpoint:

Are Glowforges shipped from DCL LOUISVILLE

I have Inkscape, Adobe, and Affinity but I find myself only using Inkscape. I especially recommend it when starting out because it doesn’t overwhelm you. Sometimes people starting out on the GF have issues that end up being the design file so picking a program you are comfortable with is important.

And all the way back to 2015, Point:

The Cloud Software, can we try it before December?

Adobe AI and PS are Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop. Professional software at a professional price. They might offer an introductory free month or week. I don’t know. Illustrator is a vector drawing program. Basically it draws in lines and shapes. Photoshop is a pixel drawing/ manipulating program. For the glowforge you will be designing in both types of programs. A free alternative to Illustrator is Inkscape and I think Gimp is the go-to free alternative for Photoshop. As the glowforge will b…

So yes, the assertion of “pros don’t like inkscape” is well-worn by now.

@ekla

assertion that the UI of Affinity is less clunky and preferable to professional designers

And my contention remains that this [less clunky] is subjective, which your replies — however they may be informed — don’t refute but are relevant in demonstrating. To me, “less clunky” usually means “more familiar”; I’ve yet to hear a quantitative way to measure clunkiness, let alone seen one applied to this topic.

To be explicit: my points are also subjective. Inkscape is plenty powerful for my purposes, even if they are niche. (He says, on the forum dedicated to the very niche in question.)

[jamesdhatch]

@evansd2

that its interface is no more or less difficult than any other

It’s religion Like MacOS vs Windows vs Linux du jour.

Easier and more intuitive almost always translates to “like what I’m used to/initially learned/am already comfortable with”.

I spent 45 years designing software with thousands of corporate installs and hundreds of thousands of users. I never found anyone who could articulate in qualitative terms what any ease of use adjective meant so we could deliver software with better or more widespread acceptance.

It’s all in the eyes of the beholder.