Gimptalk - Premier Gimp Community: BJ - Viewing Profile - Gimptalk - Premier Gimp Community

GIMP 2.8
Ubuntu 12.04
DELL Inspiron 1545 laptop
4 GB RAM

I am the ONLY user.

Am a casual GIMP user (mess with it for "entertainment"), still learning, and really don't know my way around that much.

Am wanting to install a brush manager to organize my brushes. Have read on GIMP CHAT (http://www.gimpchat....c.php?f=9&t=669 and http://gimpchat.com/....php?f=9&t=4371 and http://www.gimpchat....c.php?f=9&t=717 )that there are advantages and disadvantages to GURM ( gurm_v07.zip: http://registry.gimp.org/node/13473 ) and MrQ-Brush_Manager (package "Basic manager additives.zip"). ATM, I'm leaning toward GURM, but am still considering either.

I downloaded a bunch of brush packages from deviant art (e.g. "Blood_Brushes_by_KeReN_R.zip", "10_Blood_Brushes___GIMP_by_danieeel31.zip", "Blood_by_stainlessstars.zip", and several more) and if I just merge them with my existing default packages of brushes I'll have a jumbled mess. So right out of the gate I want to organize them so I don't have to go hunting among the default brushes.

But the paths shown (in Ubuntu, NOT Windows) have me confused. I'll explain why in a second.

First of all, I have a /<user name>/.gimp-2.6/ path. All of the .gimp-2.6 folders are completely empty, including /<user name>/.gimp-2.6/brushes. But what really baffles me about it is that I don't have 2.6, I have 2.8. I vaguely recall that Canonical came out with a GIMP upgrade in their repository, or maybe I myself did an upgrade, so perhaps this is just a remnant from when I had 2.6. My sense is that this 2.6 folder doesn't really matter, and I could just as well delete it, but before I do I'd like some opinions.

Now I also have a /<user name>/.gimp-2.8/ path. Like the .gimp-2.6 folders, all of the .gimp-2.8 folders are completely empty, including /<user name>/.gimp-2.8/brushes. Since I am the only user, should they be?

Finally, there is a /usr/share/gimp/2.0/ path, including /usr/share/gimp/2.0/brushes. The "2.0" concerns me a little bit . . . shouldn't it be 2.8?

Nevertheless, whether the "2.0" is correct or not, all the path folders are populated. For example, /usr/share/gimp/2.0/brushes contains subfolders titled "Basic", "gimp-obsolete-files", "Legacy", "Media", "Sketch", "Splatters", and "Texture". And, for example, the "Basic" folder contains "1-pixel.vbr", "Block-01.vbr", "Block-02.vbr" and several others.

The "Legacy" folder, for example also, contains such files as "confetti.gbr", "confetti.gih", "dunes.gbr", and a few more.

That's fine . . . I realize all those extensions are GIMP brushes.

Now these all show up in my GIMP 2.8, so evidently it's drawing from the /usr/share/gimp/2.0/ path and not the /<user name>/.gimp-2.8/ path. That's one thing that has me confused, though if it did draw from the /<user name>/.gimp-2.8/ path, I guess all the resources would be empty.

My head is spinning so much from all these paths, that I can't remember 'sperimenting with populating the /<user name>/.gimp-2.8/ path, but maybe I did. Right now it's all empty. So, first question: If I did put some brushes (extracted from the .zips) into the /<user name>/.gimp-2.8/brushes path, would they over ride the /usr/share/gimp/2.0/brushes and show up in my GIMP 2.8? Or would they just merge with them and show up still?

Now I have another question. I seem to have read somewhere (unfortunately I didn't bookmark it, nor can I remember where) that you cannot create subfolders in the /<user name>/.gimp-2.8/ path and expect the brushes of that subfolder to show up. BUT, subfolders of the /usr/share/gimp/2.0/ path DO seem to show up. For example, /usr/share/gimp/2.0/brushes/Legacy DOES show up.

So, the question: Where should I put my additional brushes . . . in a subfolder in the /usr/share/gimp/2.0/brushes path, or the /<user name>/.gimp-2.8/ path? The obvious answer seems to be: "a subfolder in the /usr/share/gimp/2.0/brushes path". Otherwise, if I put them in the /<user name>/.gimp-2.8/brushes path, they would be all jumbled up with the other brushes (IF they even showed up.)

Now granted, even putting them in the /usr/share/gimp/2.0/brushes path would still result in them being mixed up with the defaults, but at least the primitive filter function in 2.8 is capable of showing the additions separately under the subfolder title I would choose. That filter function is not really a brush manager, but at least it can show separate brushes.

Which is why I'm looking to a brush manager . . . something a little more sophisticated and more robust than just filters.

Which leads me to the next, and main, questions.

In the GURM .ini, I see there are paths, BUT they seem to be WINDOWS PATHS, and not Linux paths.

For example, the second line of the ini is "gimpPath = C:\Documents and Settings\<Your windows user>\<your gimp version>\brushes".

So would I change this to "/usr/share/gimp/2.0/brushes" or "/<user name/.gimp-2.8/brushes", or something else?

Same question for the third line, "userPath = <Your Path>".

And then in gurm.py, we have "GURMINI = "C:\Dokumente und Einstellungen\<your user>\.gimp-2.6\plug-ins\gurm.ini".

What do I change that to?

The GURM readme.txt seems to reference all Windows paths.

And then in the MrQ-Brush-Manager.py, we have "ACTIVE_DIR=r"C:\Documents and Settings\Marek\.gimp-2.8\brushes" and "INSTALL_DIR=r"C:\Documents and Settings\Marek\.gimp-2.8\brushes_alternate". It's all Windows paths. So what the heck would I change these to?

Where would I put the GURM files, or the MrQ-Brush-Manager.py? In /<user name>/.gimp-2.8/plug-ins, or /usr/share/gimp/2.0/plug-ins (I don't have that subfolder in that path, so would I have to create it?), or somewhere else?

Summary of questions:

1. What path do I install my deviant art additional brushes to?

2. What paths should I use in gurm.ini and gurm.py, or MrQ-Brush-Manager.py?

3. Where do I put either of the managers?

Finally, I read on GIMP CHAT that GURM takes the brushes out of the install folders and puts them in its own folders. I haven't been able to get my arms around that one, so I guess I'm going to have to read over those threads until it sinks into this thick skull. Any clarifications on that?