I really hope no one bites my head off for asking this. I believe it is a natural question.
I am a long time PhotoImpact user (currently X3), and I am having some struggles with X3.
I am also very interested in your thoughts on how PhotoImpact compares to Corel Paint Shop Pro X2 for photo editing.
For any of you have used both or currently use both products, please share your thoughts on differences between then and if you have an opinion on which is superior
I am wondering, for photo editing, creating various photo output and web design if it might be helpful to
Have both products
If Corel gives more R&D and support resources to Paint Shop Pro X2 because PI came from Ulead.
Stay with one or another. I assume that the approach of both products differs quite a bit.
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I currently do have both products and find that there are distinct differences. The major difference is in the Layering approach. While you know with PI, each object is or can be a Layer, and you can not just create a new empty layer. With PSP, you can create Vector, Raster or Paint layers, then add your "object" to the appropriate layer. It appears that PSP is geared more towards photo repair and manipulation, and not much for creating web pages. To better illustrate this, go to Corel's website and read the Features pages for both. That should give you a good idea on how they differ...
While PI is a product of Ulead, PSP also is not an original Corel concept. PSP came from the former Jasc company, the last version, PSP 9. I will say that it appears Corel may be on the brink of discontinuing PI. The currrent U.S. version as you know, is PI X3, however it has never been released in the U.K. region. The Admins of this board, also have had email communication with a Corel "marketing" rep, and it appears that they have no intention of releasing any further versions in the U.K. According to him their main focus is now on PSP...
Either product does great for editing photos, and offers good creative ideas. Personally I would not rely on them for creating web sites. That is better done using programs specifically designed for that purpose. I've attempted to create a web site with PI, and thought it to be very poor in this field. It appears that PI's website creation leans toward one browser only, IE.
Now for PSP and a couple of other Corel programs, there is the matter of the EULA. There are parts of it that are real disturbing. If you have not already done so, download the trial version of PSP X2, and read the EULA carefully. With PSP X2 a "anti-piracy" utility called Protexis Licensing, will be, and must be installed and running. If you disable it PSP will not launch. So far they have not implemented this with any of the former Ulead brands.
