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“GIMP Sucks. It sucks, it sucks, it sucks.” is the title of an AnandTech Forums thread started by JMapleton on January 27, 2011. It is a user-generated rant—not an AnandTech review—and it records one person’s frustration with using GIMP for light graphic-design work. The replies turn that frustration into a useful debate about interface design, Photoshop expectations, and choosing the right kind of graphics software.
What the title refers to
The complete title appears on the archived AnandTech Forums discussion. JMapleton says they tried GIMP as a cheaper alternative to Photoshop, then “just wanted to rant” after finding apparently simple jobs harder than they had been in Microsoft PhotoDraw 2000 or Microsoft Paint.
The repetition is deliberate rhetoric. It communicates irritation, not a measured finding that GIMP is universally bad. The thread runs for multiple pages and contains both criticism and defense.
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The opening post is chiefly about usability. The author expected a quick tool for light design work and instead encountered unfamiliar controls, extra steps and behavior that did not resemble older Windows programs or Photoshop. That distinction matters: a program may contain the necessary capability while still making it difficult for a new user to discover or apply.
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Capability versus usability
- Capability: whether the software can perform an operation.
- Discoverability: whether a first-time user can find the control.
- Workflow efficiency: how many clicks, mode changes or panel adjustments are required.
- Expectation fit: whether commands and shortcuts behave as a Photoshop-trained user expects.
The recurring grievances in the thread
Interface and window management
Several participants describe the interface as unintuitive, click-heavy or difficult to navigate. They mention hard-to-find controls, confusing tool options, selection behavior and trouble restoring docked panels. The historically awkward floating-window arrangement is a repeated theme. One reply points out that a single-window mode was expected in a forthcoming release, which places that complaint firmly in the period’s software context rather than proving that every later GIMP release behaved the same way.
Brush-size controls
One participant gives a concrete example: obtaining a desired brush size seemed to require choosing an unsuitable default brush and changing a scale value instead of entering a straightforward size. Whether or not that was the only available method, it illustrates the underlying complaint—an ordinary numeric adjustment was not obvious to a newcomer.
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Selection and deselection
A later exchange concerns removing a selection. One user says clicking did not do what they expected; another explains that clicking outside the canvas with a selection tool can deselect. The episode supports a narrower conclusion than “the feature was broken”: interaction depends on the active tool and context, and a technically available command can still be poorly discoverable. The original user eventually says it seemed to be working. See the selection discussion.
Large-file performance
A participant also reports that GIMP handles large files poorly. That is an anecdote, not a benchmark. A defensible performance claim would need the image dimensions, bit depth, layer and mask count, available memory, storage, operating system, GIMP version, operation being measured and comparison software. The thread supplies none of those controlled conditions.
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How other users answered
Defenders say GIMP is powerful, free and adequate for their work. Some argue that many complaints arise because Photoshop users bring established habits to a different interface. Others reject the premise that a free program must duplicate Photoshop’s menus, shortcuts and workflow. Participants also suggest simpler editors or paid software depending on the task.
Those replies do not prove that either side is universally right. Experienced users may have learned workarounds that a beginner cannot find, while the original poster’s frustration can still identify genuine discoverability problems.
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Was GIMP the wrong tool?
One reply characterizes GIMP primarily as an image-manipulation program rather than a simple drawing application. That distinction offers a better way to interpret the argument than a blanket verdict.
| Task | What the thread suggests | Interpretive caution |
|---|---|---|
| Quick cropping, resizing or annotation | A lightweight editor such as Paint.NET or Pinta may feel faster. | These were forum suggestions in 2011, not comparative test results. |
| Layered photo editing and compositing | GIMP’s image-manipulation model may be a better fit. | Workflow overlap with Photoshop does not mean identical controls. |
| Digital painting and illustration | A painting-focused application, such as Krita, may suit the task more naturally. | No systematic tool comparison appears in the thread. |
| Commercial or print production | Users may require established file compatibility, color management, support and production integrations. | The discussion does not establish which application meets any particular business requirement. |
| Photoshop-compatible work | Photoshop or Photoshop Elements were recommended by some participants. | Paid software brings cost and edition or platform constraints; “free” is not the same as “drop-in replacement.” |
Does the thread prove that GIMP “sucks”?
No. It documents a real usability complaint from a person seeking quick, familiar results, alongside replies from users who found GIMP capable or acceptable. The most supportable reading is that GIMP can overlap with Photoshop in areas such as layers, masks, retouching, compositing and format conversion, while still imposing a different workflow. Photoshop experience can make those differences especially frustrating.
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The phrase also cannot be treated as a current product review. The discussion began on January 27, 2011 and reflects the software, operating systems and expectations of that time. It does not establish how a 2026 release behaves. A present-day judgment would require version-specific testing rather than extrapolation from this archive.
How to read the rant fairly
- Attribute claims to the posters: “the author complained” or “a participant reported,” rather than presenting anecdotes as specifications.
- Separate an undiscovered command from a missing feature.
- Ask whether the task was photo editing, drawing, layout, quick editing or professional production.
- Account for operating system, prior Photoshop experience and tolerance for learning a complex tool.
- Do not treat forum recommendations of Paint.NET, Pinta, Photoshop Elements or Photoshop as tested results.
- Keep abusive language in the archive’s context instead of repeating it as commentary.
Bottom line
The AnandTech thread is best understood as an archived 2011 argument about workflow friction and tool choice. It does not establish that GIMP universally fails; it shows why a powerful, free image editor could feel unusable to someone expecting the simplicity of Paint or the conventions of Photoshop. The useful question is not whether GIMP “sucks,” but whether its workflow, capabilities and ecosystem match the specific job.
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