GIMP Portable

GIMP Portable provides users with several tools for touching up and altering photos. Users who are able to overcome its hectic and disjointed layout will discover a serviceable, though uninspiring, program.

Users will be immediately confused and frustrated by this program's interface. Where most photo retouching programs have all the tools on one screen, this program opens three separate screens: one for the photo and two for toolboxes. Fortunately, once users organize the boxes to their liking, they will find a generous amount of flexibility with the tools. Users who remain confused can leaf through the online Help manual for further instruction. Creating an image and editing an existing one proves to be very similar to other programs. Users need only to select a specific tool and apply it to the picture, much like Microsoft Paint and Photoshop. We were not overwhelmed with the quality of the results, but felt that with enough practice users could produce excellent work.

The program is ripe with added features, including filters, layers, and a huge color wheel. While the features complemented the tools well, they were nothing users would not see on similar programs. Combining a confusing interface with merely average functionality leaves us thinking users should only download this freeware if they absolutely do not want to pay for something else.