10 Results for graphics

A Solid, Free Online Course On 3D Modeling in Blender

We've written before about Blender, the powerful open source 3D modeling, graphics and animation application, currently out in a much improved new version. Blender is in fact so powerful that it's been used to create very professional looking full-length animated movies.

The web, and the Blender.org site both abound with Blender tutorials, and the free online book Blender Basics is a good place to start learning the application, but Free Software Magazine alerted me to what may be the best free way to master Blender of all: Tufts University's Blender 3D Design online class.



4 Resources for the Powerful Inkscape Open Source Drawing Tool

Among advanced open source graphics tools, GIMP has a lot of fans, and there are many free online resources available for it, but if you're looking for a drawing and illustration tool that can compete with Adobe Illustrator and is especially good for logos and splashy still graphics, give Inkscape a try. It runs on Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux, and is well-known as a powerful and flexible drawing and vector editing application. In this post, you'll find four resources for getting familiar with Inkscape's capabilities, and they'll help you get going quickly with the application.


Scribus Desktop Publisher's New Version is Much Improved

We've written about Scribus, a popular open source desktop publishing application before, and it recently came out in a new version 1.3.5.1. This update is the result of almost 2 years of intensive work, according to Scribus' community, and it has a number of new features that people wished for in previous versions. It's downloadable now for Windows, the Mac and Linux, and I've been putting it through its paces. Here's what's under the hood in the new version.


Blender's New Version Has Many 3D Modeling Improvements

Blender, an open source 3D modeling application so powerful it has been used to create high-quality, full-length animated films, is out in a new version 2.49. The announcement of the new version is here, including details on many significant new improvements. Among other things, it looks like developers are paying a lot more attention to video capabilities, which could make Blender a bigger player in movies and online video offerings.


Free Graphics Tutorials, Tomes and Tips For Mastering GIMP

GIMP, the GNU Image Manipulation Program, is a widely used and respected open source graphics program, especially attractive because it runs on Windows, the Mac and Linux. Originally created at U.C. Berkeley its interface and feature set run neck-and-neck with expensive proprietary graphics programs, and it has a huge community of developers and plug-in creators. The GIMP site has many useful resources for the application, and you can find an increasing number of ways to imbue GIMP with all the smarts of applications such as Photoshop. Here's our updated collection of great resources for GIMP, including instructions on using Photoshop filters with it, a full-length free online book, and more.?


Flickr Uploaders for Linux: Secretive, But Not Endangered Beasts

Flickr is almost like Xerox, or Kleenex, in that its name is in some ways inextricably linked to the service it delivers. There are many other photo sharing sites, of course, with similar (or perhaps even superior) features and options. Maybe it's because it is one of the first services that's managed to grow, add features, and consistently stand out from the others, it is often the first service people try, and the one many ultimately choose to continue with.

Though Flickr has a browser uploader, there are limitations. It is slow, and on occasion it won't successfully upload anything. Flickr has desktop uploaders available that are generally faster, and allow for more image and metadata manipulation prior to upload. And for years, the desktop uploader page has shown official options for Windows, and Macs, and mobile devices. For years, there has been one uploader option on that page -- a third party, cross platform (and very serviceable) -- that is Linux compatible.

jUploadr continues to be a great tool (and though updates aren't frequent, it handles basic Flickr uploading tasks well). Don't let the fact that it's the only Linux uploader listed on Flickr's site make you believe it's the only option, or that Linux targeted uploaders are one trick ponies.



When Device Support Goes Beyond Drivers

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I've been doing some thinking since writing about kernel developer Greg Kroah-Hartman's statement that Linux supports more devices than any other operating system. Readers made some good comments, and after some time spent wrestling with my (yes, supported) webcam, I can venture an additional suggestion as to why it doesn't always seem that way, beyond Kroah-Hartman's theory of a non-supported device becoming personal.

In the case of my webcam, and in the case of one commenter, it seems the problem isn't necessarily the device driver. At lower levels, the drivers work. It's the layers of programming, interaction, and demand piled on the driver that makes the device feel broken. It is difficult to tell for sure, though, exactly what is causing that break.



OGD1: Long Road Ahead to Open Graphics

The Open Graphics Project, whose goal is to create a completely open graphics card for use in personal computers, announced a milestone of sorts last week: the availability of their prototype OGD1 card for pre-orders. The OGD1 is not, as some folks seem to believe, a $1500 graphics card. To really understand what's going on here, you need to step back a minute and get a broad overview of the project roadmap.


A Complete 6-App Arsenal for a Business User--Free

Someone was recently asking me which open source applications I would recommend to a business user who doesn't want to spend any money for a full set of individual applications or bog down a business with expensive licensing fees. In this post, I'll round up six free applications for doing everything from word processing to online meetings--with panache. You'll find a few open source applications here and also some freeware offerings, because I'm a firm believer that if a freeware app wins, it wins.