Some of you might have read some comments or posts by me talking about a program called Artweaver, which was a “free” alternative to commercial programs like Painter and Photoshop. Well, I am not endorsing the software anymore. And that’s not because it has suddenly become a piece of crap or because of the developer quitting/discontinuing the project.

A few days ago, I visited the program’s website to check for updates or whatever interesting. Stunned, I could see that they had jumped from version 0.5.7 (freeware) directly to 1.0, in turn offered in 2 different versions: the “Freeware” version, which is basically the same thing as the previous freeware ones, and a commercial version called “Artweaver Plus” that costs $25 and offers some advanced features like compatibility with Photoshop filters and higher maximum image size, among others.

I am not saying that the developer (Boris Eyrich) doesn’t have the right to make such a move, but there is something about this that annoys me enough to stop using and recommending the program to other people. At first I thought it was OK, since the “free” version is itself a full featured app, and Boris does deserve to get some money for his creation. But then I went through the FAQ page and… well, everything changed for me. According to the site, “you can use Artweaver Free for private purposes without limitations. But it is not allowed to use Artweaver Free for commercial purposes. For that a Artweaver Plus license is required.” WTF??!! Who the hell releases a new version of a program and then tells you what you can or cannot use it for ??!! It’s like releasing, say, a word processor which license allows you to write a diary or a letter to a friend but not to write a book or an article for the press… And how are they going to prove that one has used the “free” version for a commercial illustration? What happens if you painted a series of drawings with previous versions of the program (which didn’t include that clause) that were intended for a commercial release? I think this move is simply stupid and doesn’t make any favours to the product or the developer. Doesn’t he trust the commercial version’s improvements enough that he needs to limit the use of the “free” one?
I’ve been wanting to switch to an actual FREE (no quotation marks here), open-source alternative for quite some time, but I kept using Artweaver because I got used it; it made it very easy to tweak photographs to look like paintings (which as you’ve all been able to see is very useful to create the backgrounds for my dinosaur illustrations), and works pretty good on LINUX using Wine. But there were also a few things that I didn’t like, such as the lack of a good blending/smudging tool and Boris's refusal to work on platforms other than Windows. But this… Well, this is the excuse I needed to make a drastic decision and switch to the GIMP. And hell, it IS INDEED a better choice for me. I was already using the GIMP for image editing and photo enhancement, but for creative works I remained loyal to Boris’s software. Not anymore. Now that I’ve had the time to try the GIMP for painting, I can see that I can get the same results faster and with a program that’s native to Linux and is actually free.
You will be able to judge by yourselves very soon, as my next deviation post (an Euoplocephalus) will be done completely using the GIMP. I don’t think there will be any noticeable differences.

From now on, I am using the GIMP and nothing but the GIMP, and I will deny having used Artweaver in the past for any single piece of work. Again, I am not saying that Boris has done anything bad or illicit, but I don’t think such a move is ethical at all. Just for you to know, this is what the FAQ of the previous Artweaver version (0.5.7) said about the program’s allowed use: “Artweaver is Freeware, i.e. you may use Artweaver both for private ones as well as for commercial purposes without limitations.” Funny how things change for money.
Please let me know what do you guys think about this. It won’t make me change my mind or regret my decision, but it is always interesting and stimulating to know about other people’s points of view.

PS 1: For those who don’t know what the GIMP is, take a look at this: [link]

PS 2: I am not updating the Wikipedia article on Artweaver (which by the way was created by me) anymore. Did it for the last time when version 1.0 was released. I am removing the screenshots soon, as I don’t want my art to be related with it. Check it out if you want to satisfy your curiosity ([link]).

I've been painting some drawings in grayscale to save time. I need to finish my book as soon as possible, and not having to choose the colors and hues is a good thing for me, since I can't paint as you all know.

Anyway, I'd like to know what do you guys think about this. Is it a bad idea? Does it look weird or tacky?

When I was a kid I saw some old dino and prehistory books with B&W illustrations, and this is some sort of tribute to them.

All comments are welcome!

I've been tagged by , and . AT THE SAME TIME.

So what else can I do? Well, at the moment I am going to break the rules. Or at least some of 'em.

Probably you all know which rules I am talking about, but I'll post them anyway, just in case:

Rules

1. Post these rules. ()

2. Each tagged person should post 8 facts of themselves.

3. Tagged people should write a journal/blog about these facts.

4. In the end, tag and name 8 people.

5. Go to their dA pages and comment saying that they are tagged.

6. You may change the rules above to reflect your quirkiness but keep the spirit of the meme.



Here's the news: I am going to post 8 random facts about myself, but I am not going to tag anyone at the moment. Probably you've all been tagged before, and anyway I should think about whom I'd like to tag.
So maybe I'll update this journal entry in the near future, when I've decided what to do.


There I go:

1. I couldn't live without music. Same for movies, books and comic-books, but probably music is first.

2. I have a daughter. She was born in September 14th, 2006. My best work to date.

3. I have few friends, but they're REAL ones. And I know I can trust them. No, definitely I am not the nicest guy on earth, but I am pretty happy anyway.

4. I hate fashion and anything fashion-related. I think it's absurd and mindless. Sorry for those who enjoy it; it just isn't my stuff.

5. I enjoy cloudy and rainy days. And I hate heat. Which leads me to the next point:

6. I was born in autumn... and it's my favorite season. I can't help it.

7. I love dinosaurs since I was 7. Did you notice?

8. I strongly believe in people's right to decide about their own lives. That's why I can't understand conservative and/or restrictive people and political views.


Sorry for the delay, but I felt really lazy about posting this.

See ya.

Because of the numerous problems I was having with Windows XP, I switched to Ubuntu Linux last week, before I had planned. Now everything is working ok and the best thing about this is that Artweaver runs on Linux using Wine (with a few bugs though), so I won't have to change the painting software.

Mike Wieringo ([link]) died on Sunday, 12th August 2007. Age 44. We'll always remember him and his work. Don't know what else to say about this...