Re: [Gimp-developer] New Image/Color Management option

[Elle Stone <ellestone ninedegreesbelow com>]

On 06/05/2016 12:12 PM, Øyvind Kolås wrote:
> On Sun, Jun 5, 2016 at 3:48 AM, Elle Stone
> <ellestone ninedegreesbelow com> wrote:
> > On 06/04/2016 02:21 PM, Alexandre Prokoudine wrote:
> > > Supposing the option was renamed to be more explicit about what it
> > > does, would it still bother you?
> >
> > Making color management "disappear" for users who prefer to not ever think
> > about color management (very different from "disable color management") is
> > not such a bad goal, though the new image/color management options don't
> > (imho) accomplish this goal.
> >
> > Maybe try something along these lines?
> >
> > Put a user option in Preferences/Color Management that says "Check this box
> > if you really don't want to ever be bothered with color management." Write
> > an explanation that says something like:
> >
> >
> > If you check this box, the following will happen:
> >
> > 1. sRGB will be used as your monitor profile. If your monitor has an sRGB
> > emulation mode, please enable it.
> >       (Perhaps add additional options for users who don't want to think about
> > color management but do have a monitor or installed system profile that they
> > want GIMP to use).
> >
> > 2. All color management options will be grayed out in the UI.
>
> Such graying out is a good idea; all of this code is unfinished code
> that mitch is currently working on, combined with graying out as well
> as setting the title of the titleboxes to the name of the internal
> sRGB profile - I think a short text of "Assume sRGB for all profile
> settings" might be sufficient for such a check--box, if that is the
> direction GIMP choses to take on this issue.

The above text for this proposed global setting in "Preferences/Color 
Management" sounds good to me. Maybe add an "on-hover" pop-up that 
explains the purpose of this option is to allow the user to avoid 
dealing with color management?

> > 3. All imported images will automatically be converted to sRGB for editing.
> > You won't have to think about this. It will just happen.

Perhaps there could be a warning that color information might be discarded?

> For some people this might not be what they desired though; they might
> have desired assignment of sRGB rather than conversion to sRGB - to
> preserve numeric values; thankfully for sRGB images those actions
> would have the same result.

It's been my experience that people who don't understand basic color 
management also don't understand the difference between converting to 
and assigning a profile.

Also, the current option in Image/Color Management to Discard the ICC 
profile already does discard the assigned/embedded profile and assign 
sRGB in its place.

"Ppreserving numeric values" might be a bit of an advanced concept for 
the target group of users. What do you think?

> > 4. Your XCF files will be automatically saved in the sRGB color space.
> >
> > 5. All exported images will be exported as untagged sRGB images.
> >       (Perhaps add an option to embed an sRGB profile from disk for users who
> > are aware of how Firefox default color management settings. Though this
> > might be "too much information" as they would also need to know the
> > difference between what makes sense for UI elements in web design, vs what
> > makes sense for photographic images.)
> >
> > Well, it's just a thought. I get emails from people asking me how to avoid
> > color management as much as possible, and above is pretty much the advice I
> > give them, and they do seem to understand and follow through. They even
> > understand the part about Firefox default color management settings once
> > they've been given an explanation.
>
> The goal of the setting mitch has started experimenting with is a
> response to similar desires users baffled by the permutation of
> possible misconfigurations of color management continue to express.

In case it wasn't clear, I was proposing the above as an alternative to 
the new "Image/Color Management" and "New Image" options that have been 
added to the menus.

I think the recently added options are very likely to create more (not 
less) confusion in the minds of the target audience of users that find 
color management confusing.

Best,
Elle