New York — Adobe over the weekend unleashed several updates to its free online editing applications at Photoshop.com, including the preference to edit photos without signing up for an account, giving users another incentive to BitTorrent the real McCoy.
The suite of rich Web apps has been redesigned, renamed, and reorganized to make sharing and editing photos online easier. But the biggest change, besides an increase in all-embracing speed on the Web version of Photoshop Express, is that the site no longer requires users to register in order to use it.
Users who access the Photoshop Express Editor can now start uploading and editing photos immediately; no sign-in required. Unregistered users can now upload their photo, make edits, then download it without any administrative hurdle. Adobe has also separated each tool into its own unit, similar to what it does with the library and develop modules of its Photoshop Lightroom software.
As part of the refurbishment, Photoshop.com now features four different Web components under the “Photoshop Express” namely: Photoshop Express Editor, Organizer, Slideshows, and Uploader. Each of which is explained below:
Adobe Photoshop Express Editor: This is the primary image editing app is for touching up photos stacked-up on your hard drive. Also, it lets you upload a photo, and take advantage of Adobe’s basic online tools like crop, color tweaking, and filters, then export your masterpiece back to your computer–all without forking over so much as a fake e-mail address.
Also, images must be JPEG file formats and should be no bigger than 16 megapixels. Once you have edited the image, the editor will give you the option to save at the maximum size (318×476) or as a thumbnail (171×256). It will then save directly to your hard drive.
Adobe Photoshop Express Organizer: This is the media manager section, and now functions as an independent application, which will serve as an “online hub” for your photos. Adobe said it will provide easy access to all your images stored on Facebook, Flickr, Photobucket, and Picasa. It also has social networking sharing features, and allows you to sort photos into albums and share them with friends.
Adobe Photoshop Express Slideshow: This app is designed to let you go through your stored images in a Slideshow mode. Adobe has bundled its Slideshow tool with a dramatic facelift, and with the inclusion of customizable themes, the Slideshow tool makes it easy to create interactive slideshows from your images. You can even share slideshows with your friends and relatives.
By default, users get only one, called “midnight,” which is depicted above is a simple one-color background for your photos to sit atop. “Now you can quickly apply the new Midnight theme to an album, customize the settings, and share a rich full-screen experience with others,” Jordan Davis, Photoshop.com product manager, wrote in a blog post.
There are around 40 other themes available for members’s of Adobe’s Plus subscription plans. In addition to these, Plus members can avail a few other extras like dedicated storage space and extra photo editing effects. Adobe provides up to 2 G-bytes of free storage.
Davis said Adobe also updated the sharing functionality. “Basically we have cut out a lot of the clutter, so now your images really stand out,” he wrote. “We have also made it easier to share albums and galleries to Facebook and Twitter. Just click on one of the “Share this page” links, and we will take care of the rest.”
Adobe Photoshop Express Uploader: As the name suggests, this tool is designed to get your stuff from your computer to the service. The Photoshop Express Uploader puts your photos on the Photoshop.com site in order to set up your creative photographic canvas. It allows two way syncing so you always have your data on both the platforms.
The updates are part of an overhaul that first started in June, when Adobe added more photo tutorials and product information to Photoshop.com. While Adobe delivers Photoshop.com and 2GB of storage to everyone for free, it also allows ambitious users to purchase more online storage for a yearly fee, starting at 20GB for $20.
Adobe struggles to contend with a small number of other online photo editors, including Picnik, which was snaffled by Google earlier this year, Fotoflexer, and Aviary. Behind the scenes, all of these sites make use of Adobe’s Flash technology, though few have ventured into the mobile space as well.