GIMP 2

... I know it isn't musical but I would like to share my frustrations with you.

I don't know if there are any of you out there that like the little program, but it is driving my up a freaking wall. I though Photoshop was a tough cookie to crack. I would love to be able to run PS on the computer but sadly Adobe is pretty smart and they only let you put the software of 2 computers. I'd love to disable whatever it is that lets them know that you are running it on more computer than to...

I bet I could do most things that I use PS for in GIMP 2 but I really don't want to take the time to learn. The program really is gimpy. The feature that you are used to in PS don't exist in GIMP 2. Crap, some of the features you are used to in Paint aren't in GIMP. I started using GIMP 2 when Adobe got wise and I wanted to do a little editing of a picture for a website. I ran into GIMP years ago when my father, I Lynx fan, showed me a program that was just as good as Photoshop. I didn't know a thing about PS back then so i was starring at greek. Most recently, I though  I might use GIMP 2 to do what Adobe won't let me on this computer. Frustration, frustration, frustration is just about all I get out of this crap. Lynx is great at putting together programs, but the limited features make it seem like they do half the job.

GIMP 2 Leaves me completely unsatisfied.

Hydrogen

Hydrogen is an advanced drum machine for GNU/Linux. It's main goal is to bring professional yet simple and intuitive pattern-based drum programming. According to http://www.hydrogen-music.org/.

Its free, or at least it was free when I downloaded it a couple years ago. Recording acoustic drums in a room-studio is a pain. I have no budget for mic kits and stands and a mixer to handle all the mics. (not to mention the fact that room it's self is not at all acoustically designed for this) So a good drum machine is the best thing for getting tracks together in a days time. If done right, all you notices is that your drummer isn't all that creative. Don't get me wrong. I'd rather have live drums played by a pro than a segments of drum loops, but you gotta do what you gotta do. There are some free DMs out there on the web, and some that you pay out the but for. Obviously Hydrogen is not the top of the line be-all to end all, but it does make for a good starting point. I've had a little trouble getting new kits to load, so that means I'm stuck with the stock sounds. For stock sounds, they aren't that bad. With a little work this program could be a powerful little tool for the artist with more creativity than funds. The controls are intuitive, and pretty in depth. You can Eq and adjust levels (and other variants) for each sound. There are lots of nerdy/tweaky things, but I leave that alone for the most part. I give this program my seal of approval. Not bad for free!