Combine Save and Export

[theDrake]

I've been working on the graphics for a programming project and I'd like to make a suggestion for improving how GIMP handles the situation I find myself in.

Before I get into the issue I'd like to bring up, please know that I love GIMP. The way it handles layers is far superior to any other graphics application I've ever used, including Photoshop which I've been using for over 20 years. I understand why the .xcf format is important; after all, it preserves so much history of the image and it sounds like it's going to get even better very soon.

However, there's a case for combining Save and Export for images. Export makes sense for PDFs or perhaps ASCII-based formats suitable for including in program data, but for images, it's far more convenient to just use Save.

Now, what I've been dealing with...

The images are all PNGs generated by Inkscape. Of necessity, I've had to fiddle with a few of them to make them fit the UI. The process of saving these images takes me through no less than five dialog windows before the image gets saved.

It would be a lot faster if I could simply hit Ctrl-S to save these files. Then the only extra dialog I'd have to deal with is the one that asks me if I want to replace the existing file. Currently, I have to do this:

• Ctrl-S
  
• select the .xcf extension,
  
• delete it,
  
• type ".png"
  
• hit Enter,
  
• answer the dialog that asks if I actually want to Export
  
• click OK on the Export dialog,
  
• answer the "Do you want to Replace" dialog,
  
• click OK on the final "Do the thing" dialog.
  

Two dialogs or five.

I could just export and that might save me a few steps, but it'll still be more than two dialogs. Besides, coming from any other graphics applications (Photoshop, Krita, Tahoma, Corel Painshop Pro, MS Paint, etc.) I'm used to Ctrl-S, not Ctrl-E.

Oh! And it would also help to have a drop-down menu from which to select the file type. Saves typing.

 So, who do I talk to about this? Or is this post enough to get the attention of the developers?

[rich2005]

Quote:...So, who do I talk to about this? Or is this post enough to get the attention of the developers?

Nope, you should post a request to https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/gimp/-/issues

...but it is not going to happen.  There are good reasons for splitting Save and Export and the argument was killed off long ago.

2013 post ..and we're thinking about some even better approaches in the future, but we won't revert to the old behaviour.  Because this is what we said in the past. Over and over again. - Simon Budig https://www.gimpusers.com/forums/gimp-us...rt-vs-save

Quote:Oh! And it would also help to have a drop-down menu from which to select the file type. Saves typing.

There is already one of those, but believe me typing is quicker.

   

In Gimp 2.8 / 2.10 there are script work-arounds. In particular this one updated for Gimp 3
https://github.com/akkana/gimp-plugins/b...3/saver.py
...but not working maybe ask Akkana Peck for a fix.

Edit: I just changed the shebang to #!/usr/bin/env python3 and that got it working. Very dangerous (as always for the unwary), File -> Saver overwrites the existing file with any edits made, no warnings. File -> Saver-As does have a dialogue maybe a bit safer.