Requested Effects Dialogue Should be a Toolbar

[jopower]

I find myself often calling on the "EFFECTS" menu (Image > Effects > ...), the "Image Effects" submenu (Image > Effects > Image Effects > ...) and several other near effect options. There are quite a number of them altogether and the mouse work on a project can be a bit tiring. In the spirit of reducing fatigue, carpal tunnel and mousing memory lapses ("now where the h--- was that...") , I would strongly recommend that "EFFECTS" become it's own main toolbar pull-down menu.

ALL 30-odd effects would be listed, not just the common 10. I would locate Effects between the Image and Options menus. I'd also suggest that various other near effects be moved or duplicated in this menu. Negative, Greyscale and Red Eye come to mind. You may think of others that would be appropriate for inclusion.

Further, the option to "send to" an external effects editor separate from the currently located option (making an entirely new "send to" condition) could also be located in this new menu if that would work. But it's not a deal killer by any means.

If this is not do-able, then I would like to see an option to bring up the "Image Effects" sub menu box such that can stay open after applying an effect. Optimally, this could be done to have both the new Toolbar menu implimented and the Image Effects menu box stay open.

I realize this could require a substantial update to Iranview. However, if others of the community may agree with me, it could happen.

[Mij]

Is Ctrl+E that hard to remember? Then A (once or several times) to Apply it to the image and U to Undo it.

[jopower]

Actually, I don't use hot keys much at all and hadn't even heard of Ctrl+E option in Irfanview. And why then do I have to think A or U when the buttons for apply and undo, etc., are right in front on screen to click on and I have the mouse in my hand? It's faster, with less mental distraction, at least for me. I've used PC's from the DOS days and generally dislike key-combos in programs as I preferred mouse functions since they didn't make me drop out of my artistic mental mode. After all, for me, mouse functions were WONDERFUL in Wordperfect 5 after failing to memorize the zillions of key-combos in it and the previous WP 4.2 (no mouse options at all). My teacher lost hair with me in class. Anyways, I'm a 30 yr. mouse convert and I've rarely had to look back... except maybe when I play a little retro "Reach For The Stars" (ANSI graphics) and "Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy" (text version)

So, yes, I want an EFFECTS menu just as I stated.

[Bhikkhu Pesala]

The Effects dialogue is not easy to use with the keyboard alone. One can type Alt+E followed by a letter to select the next effect beginning with that letter, then the cursor keys to adjust the effect.

It would be much better if the result of an effect could be seen at once by clicking a button in a toolbar, adjusted with a slider or the cursor keys, then removed by clicking the button again or by using the Undo button.

This feature request is not a bad one, however, IMO it is never likely to happen because of the amount of work involved. There is only one developer (Irfan Skiljan) and then there are Adobe filter effects that are not part of the Effects.dll plugin.

If you need to do a lot of work with effects, it is better to use a photo editing program, which will give you far greater power.

See A Word for the Over-eager. We have been waiting over ten years for some very frequently requested features like more toolbar buttons or customisable shortcuts.

Serif PhotoPlus X8 is a powerful program for only £20 or $25, while Affinity Photo at less than twice that price is a modern application (for 64-bit OS only) for Windows and Mac. No doubt, freeware apps are also available that are better suited to the task of manipulating photos.

[Mij]

Actually, I don't use hot keys much at all and hadn't even heard of Ctrl+E option in Irfanview. And why then do I have to think A or U when the buttons for apply and undo, etc., are right in front on screen to click on and I have the mouse in my hand? It's faster, with less mental distraction, at least for me. I've used PC's from the DOS days and generally dislike key-combos in programs as I preferred mouse functions since they didn't make me drop out of my artistic mental mode. After all, for me, mouse functions were WONDERFUL in Wordperfect 5 after failing to memorize the zillions of key-combos in it and the previous WP 4.2 (no mouse options at all). My teacher lost hair with me in class. Anyways, I'm a 30 yr. mouse convert and I've rarely had to look back... except maybe when I play a little retro "Reach For The Stars" (ANSI graphics) and "Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy" (text version)

So, yes, I want an EFFECTS menu just as I stated.

You can see "Ctrl+E" on the third menu item you click on when opening the effects browser your way and if you do use that hotkey (direct from the image without clicking any menu items at all) you will see A and U underlined on the Apply and Undo buttons. So not that much thinking needed to remember them.

My employers forced me to use the Microsoft Office suite before Wordperfect5 came along and it took me years to master all the mouse actions in Word. I longed for the control I used to have using the hotkeys in Wordperfect before Corel was forced to go that way too to compete with Microsoft Word. So just the opposite experience to yours.

Getting the effect you want often requires "trial and error" adjustments of slider positions and multiple presses of the Apply button, so the auto-repeat action of the hotkey if you keep it held down can be very useful. I often have 1 finger of the left hand pressing down key A and 2 fingers of the right hand over the left and right arrow buttons ready to adjust the slider left or right as needed. Maybe you cannot do that in an "artistic mental mode" though.