Corel Paint Shop Pro
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Paint Shop Pro (PSP) is a bitmap graphics editor and vector graphics editor for computers running the Microsoft Windows operating system that was originally published by Minneapolis-based Jasc Software. In October 2004, Corel Corporation purchased Jasc Software, and with it, the distribution rights to Paint Shop Pro.
Originally called simply Paint Shop, the first version, 1.0, was released in early 1992. Paint Shop was originally distributed as shareware and is still available at many download sites (4.12 being a popular version), newer versions are only available commercially — a key competitor is Adobe Photoshop, the commercial market leader in this category. Photoshop’s popularity is in part because Photoshop is available in an Apple Macintosh version, the platform widely used in the print publication industry, whereas Paint Shop Pro only supports Microsoft platforms. Whilst Photoshop is a popular piece of editing software PSP is also widely used, due to the lower price.
Paint Shop Pro supports natively both raster and vector graphics, whereas Photoshop only supports importation of vector graphics from Adobe Illustrator without direct built-in editing tools. PSP functionality can be extended by Photoshop-compatible plugins. They are listed in the 'Effects' menu, below the built-in effects.
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There have been criticisms of Corel's pricing policy that pitches international versions at significantly higher prices than those charged in the US.
Version XI, in its launch version of 11.00, was criticised for the number of bugs and also for the 'Organizer' function's high CPU usage. Some of the issues were addressed in the patch to version 11.11 but the Organizer continued to attract criticism. It remains problematic when working with large picture collections.
Versions XI and X2 install a third party program named PSIservice.exe written by Protexis which runs in the background and collects licensing information. This program communicates with a remote host and is described in some posts as spyware. The Corel EULA does not reveal that installation of Version XI or X2 will result in the installation and continued background execution of this non-Corel program. Uninstalling XI will not uninstall PSIservice.exe.
The latest version X2 still has an incomplete implementation of 48-bit color. This color depth is limited to a handful of digital image correcting features, but not full-blown photo editing, where the real benefit can be realized.
Corel announced, on November 28, 2007, that the office that created Paint Shop Pro would be shut down with development moved to offices in California and China.[citation needed]
Italicized entries indicate the closest date available. In these cases, the date is that of the earliest file date available on JASC or Corel's FTP site. It can be assumed that the official release fell on or before that date. For non-italicized entries, the dates are taken from official press releases or notifications posted on JASC's web site.
- This was the first 32-bit release (for Windows 95 and NT 4.0). Version 3.12 was still available for download for quite some time afterwards.
- 1996 September 3 — 4.10
- 1997 January 10 — 4.12
- 1997 October 13 — 4.14
- 1998 April 6 — 5.00
- This release introduced major user interface changes, including support for layers.
- This release introduced support for vector graphics.
- 1999 December 15 — 6.01
- 2000 February 7 — 6.02
- 2000 September 21 — 7.00
- 2001 February 11 — 7.01
- 2001 March 5 — 7.02
- 2001 August 22 — 7.04
- This coincided with the release of the "Anniversary Edition" of Paint Shop Pro 7. Presumably, this means the first release of Paint Shop Pro was on August 22, 1991.
- It's not clear whether or not this was an official release. Several downloads with this version number were available, but all web site content refers to 7.04 as the last update.
- New UI, ability to control most elements of PSP via Python scripts or macros. New filters, One Step Photo Fix, Learning Center.
- The last version to support Windows 95
- History Palette, natural media brushes, limited Camera RAW support, Fill Flash and Backlight filters.
- 2004 September 21 — 9.01
- The last version to support Windows 98/ME
- 2005 September 8 — 10.00
- Fully rebranded as "Corel Paint Shop Pro X"
- Revamped Learning Center that helps new users to get started, Makeover Tools (Blemish Remover, Toothbrush/whitener, and Suntan Brush), IR film simulator, and a Black and White film converter that includes color filter effects, partial 48-bit (16bits per channel) color support. Image browser palette, Smart Photo Fix, Object Remover.
- The last release was 10.10
- 2006 September 12 — 11.00
- Fully rebranded as "Corel Paint Shop Pro Photo XI"
- 2006 December 18 — 11.11
- Bug fixes, including improvements in the appearance of Camera Raw images (and support for two new camera models) plus a performance increase of the organizer, new 'One-step photo fixes'.
- 2007 February 16 — 11.20
- The last version to support Windows 2000
- 2007 September 5 — 12.00
- Comes with the "Graphite" workspace theme.