[gcmd-dev] Re: internal_viewer_ng, improved, but still in Alpha

[Magnus Stålnacke]

A. Gordon wrote:
> >
> Micha suggest a different parser (pdftotext) - I will change it, and 
> look into the horizontal scrolling problem. 

I have that one, it comes with the xpdf package.

Slackware, or in my case, Slamd64 is a very basic
distribution, it can be seen as just a very stable
ground to build further on. So, if something exists
in Slack (or Slamd64), it is quite safe to use since
all other big dists ought to have it.
> Does it happen only with large images, or with every image ? 

The zoom problem happens with any image.

If you play with it and do best fit/zoom in a couple
of times, you will see it.

First time i go zoom in it goes 125%, then back to best fit.
Second time Z-in goes 150%, back again.
Third time it goes 200%, and every time i start from best fit.


> Do you press CTRL+"+" very fast, or press onces, release the keys and 
> then press again ? (it sounds funny, but maybe related to the problem). 

I does not matter if i use keys or mouse, fast or slow.

> > * Zoom out works only 3 times, with image widths over
> >   3000 pixels, you want more times..  There is also
> >   some problems alike above. All of a sudden i can only
> >   zoom out one time and then no more.
>
> No problem, how much "more" do you want ? is 5 times enough? 10 times ? 

5 times ought to do it, but what about when it only
works one time? (related to the above problem?)

> > * The viewer cannot handle uncompressed images like tiff,
> >   pnm and ppm at all, i had to kill gcmd when trying those
> >   kind of images (froze at 100% load).
>
> Did the previous version (1.1.7) handle uncompressed TIFF correctly ? 

Yes, and PPM, PNM too.

Non photographers are maybee not using these formats often
(i am a quite advanced hobby photog). But many digital cameras
can save in a non-destructive format, usually TIFF if we are
talking bitmaps (often 16 bit color too...). More advanced
cameras can save raw sensor data in a (proprietary)compressed
archive, and all free (or beer-free) raw-converters are based
on Dave Coffins dcraw that saves in the PPM format (even photoshop
are using this). The scanning software Sane that most scanning
frontends in Linux use, defaults to the PNM format if not told
otherwise. These formats are the digital photografers originals,
compared to developed film.

So, these formats are quite important to handle correctly.

Now i am getting carried away.. the 16 bit color is not that
important, yet.. Since 16 bit (actually 12 bit from camera
contained in 16 bit TIFF) have really bad support in Linux.
The only app i know of that can handle it are Cinepaint,
but scanner SW, raw-converters and better digital cameras
can produce those files (looks terrible viewed in 8 bit color).
If you want i can send you a 16-bit TIFF (12 bit from camera).

But it will be important when Gimp start to support 16 bit.
One big argument from more proffessional photographers to
why they do not even consider Gimp insted of very expensive
or pirated Photoshop, is that it cannot handle 16 bit (you can
do much more color tweaking before you get posterization at
screen 8-bit if you have 12 bits to work with, you also get
more exposure range from the camera). So, i guess it is just
a matter of time...

> I did do a big change on the way images are loaded, but it seems the 
> method in 1.1.7 was actually better.... 

Yes.

> I swear I will not rest until our internal viewer is the fastest in the 
> universe ! ;-)

I actually belive the 1.1.7 vesrion comes close to that :-)

Features (not in absolute order, except speed) from my
point of view:

* Speed (the most important).
* View list of files (defaults to dir if not sent a list of
  files, like gThumb).
* Meta info.
* Ability to mark text in meta info (paste with middle click
  is sufficient imho).
* Image size in pixels in statusbar.
* Full screen (slideshow, by chosing next/previous in list)
* Zooming.
* Working scrollwheel when zoomed in. Or better; Gimp has a
  very nice feature in the cross in the bottom right corner
  when zoomed in (ImageMagicks display has a similar feat.).
* Flip and turn.
* Current displayed file name in window name.


PS.
It seemes as the lists are starting to work now :-)