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Why Are Open Source Alternatives So Bad?

Tech

Want to switch to Linux or tired of paying ridiculous amounts of money for Adobe products? Just switch to these open source alternatives. But if you've ever used any of the popular open-source software alternatives, you've probably been disappointed. Why can't GIMP come close to the power of Photoshop? Why isn't there a decent open source video editor yet? Is open source software doomed to be worse than proprietary software, or is there hope for it yet? A lot of ideas for this video came from this articles by Koos Looijesteijn. Check them out if you want to learn more about open-source software and how to make it better: https://www.kooslooijesteijn.net/blog/why-is-free-open-source-software-badly-designed 💸 Support the Channel: https://ericmurphy.xyz/donate 🎥 Watch my videos on Odysee: https://odysee.com/@ericnmurphy 🌐 My website: https://ericmurphy.xyz Ton Roosendaal interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJEWOTZnFeg&t=1631s 0:00 The problem with open-source alternatives 2:30 Which open-source software are we talking about? 4:07 Where's the money? 5:39 Why is the UI so bad? 8:46 Software matters 9:32 Can open-source do better? 12:28 Conclusion

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G
genaro.chavarría 5 months ago

I love Davinci Resolve, Photopea, and OBS for content creation. Relatively simple, no subscription, tons of advanced features.

gerolfechoing17
gerolfechoing17 5 months, 2 weeks ago

1:25 I'm a patreon professional, I make posters and other stuff in gimp for anime and art like music etc

K
kevin.brown 5 months, 3 weeks ago

You nailed it. I'm a UX Designer and this has been my assessment. And like you said, it's really hard for me to join and help with open source apps because they cater to developer's needs and workflows. When working for profit at companies or agencies, it can now and again be historically hard to convince developers that a change is needed. Often for valid reasons like changes needing refactoring tools or taking away time from something else or needing more talent. Now imagine me, coming seemingly out of nowhere and pushing for change when I have no authority. So yup. It's hard and it sucks because I really want Linux to succeed.

K
karen_larson 7 months, 2 weeks ago

6:45 nice 👍

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joe_hammond 10 months, 3 weeks ago

Hard but fair, honest and constructive critique

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gaelhenriquedapaz405 1 year, 4 months ago

10:30 KDE, Cinnamon and Mate do the same: They copy the UI of Windows/Mac, because it works.

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cynthia.horn 1 year, 5 months ago

Buying a specific software that requires you to pay monthly from a company that pulls anti consumer moves is a very bad investment.

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thomastempest62 1 year, 5 months ago

Artist and Soft developer here, I fully agree on the statement in minute 11:00, while I love to see good practices in code and features being made, if the developer doesn't have an end-user to tell them "I love what you did here, but this is not something I'd use, what I need nor have any intuitive way to use it", they will just pat their own backs for a good job no one is grading and move on just piling more and more features with the same flaws. As an artist I like new features, they may be not efficient at the beginning but I'm willing to provide constructive feedback, and as a Developer I can say it DOES take time to learn how to swallow your pride and just listen to your end-user, your QA and UAT testers. When active listening from both sides finally clicks, good things can actually come out, such as Blender. Quite interesting arguments to Eric, keep it up

M
maríacristina_deanda 1 year, 7 months ago

I use OpenOffice as opposed to Microsoft Office; no subscription, almost as good and it just works.

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tristan.miller 1 year, 7 months ago

Outline text in Gimp .. of course you can! alpha to selection .. edit stroke selection. Loads of ways to create with text.

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normamcconnell229 1 year, 7 months ago

Krita is a masterpiece

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normamcconnell229 1 year, 8 months ago

We need an "open ui" system and let designers improve open source software to build their portfolio in the same way developers do.

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frédérique_weiss 1 year, 9 months ago

This is so true. I wasn't a UI designer but I accepted the value of their skills. OS projects were big on software engineering tools and processes but poor at actually working out optimal visual and workflow designs. Haven't used blender, I was a software engineer, but in recent times I've been using GIMP, oh god, what a pain in the arse. A design team would work wonders for these projects.

J
jacquelinesanchez870 1 year, 9 months ago

There are two issues here. For most open source programs it's just lack of focus with a mix of often very personal subjective ideas that are hindering the entire project. The second one is just the fact you can't switch if you're a professional. Clients or coworkers simply expect a certain standard.

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ray_lewis 1 year, 9 months ago

Dont you dare go bad talking Inkscape. We love Inkscape ❤️

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normamcconnell229 1 year, 10 months ago

This video were Unbelievably good, thanks so much! I have a lot to think about now

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victoire_chrétien 1 year, 10 months ago

obs is fine. literally everyone uses it

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diane_thompson 1 year, 10 months ago

The main advantage of open source software is that anyone can modify their own version. Many professional tools, such as Unreal Engine, the most powerful game engine, are open source as well.

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rebecca.jordan 1 year, 10 months ago

Just to mention it: Opensource software on the server side is powering a large percentage of the internet. I agree that the desktop software has its limitations.

R
rodneyserene4 1 year, 10 months ago

Adam Hyde did an entire talk about this at Penguicon 2017. Glad to see it's still in conversation.