That's more than just a nitpick, especially since that's in the headline.

I tend to agree.

My background: I've been using Photoshop for about fifteen years nearly everyday.

Just to be more informed, I decided to download Mac version of GIMP.

What I like: - Feels much more nimble, lightweight

- Seems like it has most of core tools I need

What prevents me from using it: - The interface seems really unfinished. I think that's what I like about Pixelmator: it's polished and looks somewhat similar to Photoshop's layout

- The shortcuts are all different. I'm not even sure I can customize the shortcuts in some of the contexts as even some of the ones in Photoshop are sort of built in. That alone would be a huge deterrent as I rarely click on any interfaces.

- Layer effects and smart objects. I know they are in the Roadmap but without them, I can't re-use elements others or I have made from Photoshop and it does effect image creation.

- Masking is a little kludgy. When I imported my PSDs with shape masking, they all disappeared. Does it support vector masking?

- Doesn't seem to support importing vectors from Illustrator as it automatically outputs some of the elements as raster elements.

- Lack of layer folders.

The whole single-window mode? I think that wouldn't nearly entice me as it's not that much of a deterrent.

I agree with all those points, but especially vector smart objects and vector masks/paths; it's insane how useful they are. Those features alone are worth paying for Photoshop.

I got rejected from Kickstarter because they said they "didn't fund startups" (the idea was purely non-for-profit and was aimed as a social benefit).

And lo and behold... a startup?

I think the lines are blurred to be honest. We don't consider ourselves a startup, but rather a project site. I guess KS does as well.

People on HN/Reddit are pretty biased when it comes to CSS knowledge almost to the point where I really wonder if they've ever worked at a place outside of a startup or a tiny company. If you work at an creative digital agency, chances are the division of labour will mean you won't ever have to touch a line of code. It just makes more sense to divvy up the responsibilities. Plus, during client presentations, most of the designs are mocked up as flats instead of live code.

I'm currently using CS5, but it's largely because of some of the small addition features with smart objects, workflow, and layer styles that annoyed me with CS3. It's one of those things where you have to work with a program for a long time before you notice these small upgrades that really help the day-to-day. I think you're fine with CS3.

The idea that GIMP is more than useful is... debatable. I would say that every notable designer I know in NYC/SF uses Photoshop. Like it or not, it is the industry standard. And while I do sometimes have a love-hate relationship with the program (specifically because I want more stability instead of new features), GIMP is still far behind with regards to it's intuitiveness and penetration.

Now that I've migrated to a startup, I use Photoshop for quick initial concepts before coding scss. Photoshop is pretty solid for making elements or re-using templated elements made from other designers and photo-editing.

Thanks so much for your input. I'm glad to hear that it's the industry standard. I think I'd rather swallow a high price point (either now or eventually) and learn the right way to do things, than there not be an industry standard.

I'll probably always be coding anyway since I work as a freelancer - I like coding anyway. I just want to learn best practices and do things the right way. I've at least learned by now that it's worth it to stop cutting corners. (:

I have to admit part of the reason I want CS5 is for the ability to edit RAW images (amateur photography), so I things like content-aware fill and better selection tools are looking pretty sweet... not sure if that's enough to convince me or not.

Speaking of scss - are you on a Mac? I'm thrilled with CSSedit as part of my workflow - I'd seriously miss the live view. But, it appears to not be compatible with scss..

"I think there is a lot of space in Canada for this sort of thing."

Agreed, though a lot of the talented devs/designers end up moving to the U.S.

And nobody has to change the rules if people play the game.

Android tablets are being pulled from shelves. What should they do? Just concede the market to Apple for the decade or so a serious attempt at patent reform will probably take? They're still not offensively suing anybody.

It is a vicious circle, I agree with you.

But it's not clear how Google can break the cycle by themselves. If Google were to say no to patents, without there first being major reforms to the patent system, then they would be slowly squeezed by their competitors patents until they ran out of juice.

I assume you don't use Googol.

Some misspellings are better than others. Google and Googol work together phonetically. Momment and moment don't.

How do you read momment? I read it the same way as moment. Do you read it like mom-ment?

There are two m's so of course I read it like mom ment

Very cool idea, though I'd be down for one that's aimed at the prosumer crowd. I've been wanting to print out 8x10 or larger photos for the last while but have been way too lazy.

I don't think it's the same at all.

I think one of the advantages that Apple has over every other platform is that designers use Apple for work which builds brand loyalty to its products and platform. Thus, a good portion of the people who are creating will do so for the platform that they care about, especially one that prioritizes industrial and interactive design. And before, I would've just suggested it's just designers but over the past few years years, I've witnessed plenty of SF/NY developers who use Apple computers and iPhones for the same reasons.

The fact that it is a closed-system IS it's advantage: there is quality control across the board from the apps to the phone the user is viewing it on. And quite frankly, I prefer designing for the iPhone and iPad because of the consistency of sizing and proportions.

But there doesn't need to be a clear winner. It's great that there is a choice for people who just want complete freedom and those who just want stuff to work well in a very polished fashion.

I was looking for a screenshot on the blog post.

In any case, it'd also be cool to send this to a friend or list of friends so that they could help decide.