On1 Photo Raw is a standalone photo editing application that can also be used as a plug-in within Adobe's Photoshop and Lightroom applications. I've been working with a late beta version of the application, which will be released this month.
The release date hasn't been announced yet, but existing users can upgrade ($80) and new users can buy ($100) the 2019 version now and receive the beta immediately, then receive the final version when it's released. On1 says that an artificial-intelligence (AI) masking feature will allow users to create a selection or mask that relies on the AI technology to detect the subject matter and automatically create the mask.
Other applications that operate in either standalone or plug-in mode include Alien Skin's Exposure X4 (reviewed in October) and DxO's PhotoLab 2 (scheduled for review next week).
Click any of the smaller images for a full-size view. To dismiss the larger image, press ESC or tap outside the image.
There's a lot on the Photo Raw user interface. Initially, users will see the browse screen (right) where the (1) left column contains a list of directories that contain photographs. At the (2) bottom of the left column, there are icons that show or hide the directory list, switch between thumbnail view and single-image view, show or hide a filmstrip at the bottom of the single-image view, and provide before and after views of whatever image the user is working on. A selected image (3) has a yellow box around it. The right side of the screen displays (4) information about the camera and lens used to create the selected image, (5) meta-data about the image, and a (6) list of key words. Any key words that apply to the image will be selected. Icons in the upper right corner (7) switch between browse view and edit view. Below those icons are (8) additional icons that switch between layer, panorama tools, HDR tools, and focus stack tools. More about focus stack in a moment. In the lower right corner, (9) there are icons for resetting the image, resizing it, and exporting it.
Switching to the edit screen, the user will find (1) a variety of presets that can be used as starting points for image editing, (2) the tool bar on the left edge of the screen, and (3) icons to show or hide the film strip view. Icons directly under the image (4) switch between before and after views and allow split-screen viewing. A histogram (5) is in the upper right and the (6) develop settings are below the histogram. I've also marked (7) a bee that was approaching the sunflower in the sample image. The bee is just a blur, so I'll want to remove it.
I wanted to make the sunflower really pop, so I (1) selected the layer with the original image, clicked the Effects option, and chose (2) the HDR look option.
After pumping up the HDR settings quite a bit, I was happy with the look, but the blurred bee was still present.
On1 Photo Raw 2019 offers 2 options for taking care of problems like this. I expected them both to work equally well, but that didn't happen.
My first choice (left) was the Perfect Eraser tool. After several tries, I found that this tool needed me to select a larger area that I'd expected to. The bee was removed, but there was a slight smudge where it had been.
Then I tried the Retouch Brush (right). Again I needed to select a larger area than expected, but the space formerly occupied by the bee was clear.
Those who like to add text to photos will welcome Photo Raw's new text layer feature. This is a function that has been missing from Lightroom since the beginning. Adding text requires sending the image from Lightroom to Photoshop or now to On1 Photo Raw. It's clear that this is the first iteration of the text tool because added text can't be rotated or otherwise manipulated. The user has a choice of color, typeface, size, and justification.
One of the primary differences between Adobe's Lightroom and applications such as On1 Photo Raw is how the various applications store information about changes made to the images. All of the applications make changes non-destructively, so it's always possible to get back to the original image. Lightroom stores these changes in a catalog file, which is not directly accessible. Other applications use what are called sidecar files, either in the same directory with the image or in a subdirectory. Those who have used Adobe Camera Raw will also be familiar with sidecar files that are created before raw images are opened in Photoshop.
A typical raw file (top left) contains little human-readable information. When opened in an application such as Notepad++, the file may display a camera ID and the date and time an image was captured. After that, it's all data from the camera's sensor.
Adobe Camera Raw (top right) creates a human-readable file that displays information about the camera, the lens, and all changes made to the image by Camera Raw.
On1 Photo Raw (bottom left) displays information about the camera, lens, and image basics in human-readable form, but all of the information about changes made by the application are in a gigantic block of binary data.
DxO Photolab 2 (bottom right), which we'll take a look at next week displays all information in human-reabable form. This may seem like it should make a difference, but in fact it doesn't. Even if the file is human readable, it's not a file you'll want to edit. Whichever system was chosen by the software developer is the one that works best for their development process. In other words, don't worry about it.
As with Exposure 4, Photo Raw offers to import data from Lightroom for those who want to avoid Adobe's software as a service (rental) pricing model. Although Photo Raw's migration feature does a good job, the conversion from one system to another is never without risk. On1's video explains.
Video provided by On1.
Users of Photo Raw 2018 or earlier versions will notice that the user interface has been changed. There's a new non-destructive work-flow for layers, the ability to auto-align layers, focus stacking, a new portrait module, digital asset management updates, and the new text tool that I mentioned.
Focus Stacking is new in the 2019 version, but it isn't fully functional in the beta. This is a process that blends a collection of images taken at different focusing distances to extend the apparent depth of field. This is an important feature, particularly for close-up images of small subjects. After (1) selecting 2 or more images, users are (2) warned that the results won't be saved in the beta version and I received an additional warning (3) that I didn't have enough images.
Wikipedia illustrates the process using images by Muhammad Mahdi Karim. Two sample images at different focus points are on the left, (1) near the front and (2) near the rear. In practice, more than 2 images are generally used. The third image is a composite of 6 such images. Although focus stacking isn't a commonly used technique, it's worth trying for close-up work, but also for landscapes when you'd like that have absolutely sharp focus at close and far distances without the problems that may result from stopping the lens down to f/16 or f/22.
Photo Raw 2019 includes layers in the main program in both Develop and Effects modules. The changes created by layers are non-destructive and the user has complete control over opacity, density, and blending mode. Adjusting these values can dramatically affect the result, so experimentation is important.
A new Portrait Module automatically detects faces and then offers a series of retouching tools.
Impressive updates to On1 Photo Raw make it a contender.Users who are committed to Lightroom will want to use On1 Photo Raw as a plug in, but those who prefer perpetual licenses to rental programs should take a look at this new version of the application.
Additional details are available on the On1 website.
The Mozilla Organization is a strong proponent of internet security and privacy. The company's blog has a post that describes 7 apps and services that are equally committed to being reliable sources of privacy and security for their consumers. The list includes search engine DuckDuckGo, Proton Mail, the Tor Project, and others. Let's take a look and maybe you'll find one that meets one of your needs.
DuckDuckGo is a search engine I've discussed previously and I like, but I still frequently revert to Google. It's easy enough to use this secure, private search engine and — if it doesn't return enough results — to switch occasionally to Google. DuckDuckGo doesn't collect or share personal information and it processes searches in a way that shields your personal information when you click a link.
WeTransfer is a secure way to send files up to 2GB and it's free. Email applications are far from ideal when it comes to sending any attachment, particularly large attachments or attachments that contain personal information. The service is headquartered in The Netherlands and so the company adheres to the Dutch Personal Protection Act, a strict code of privacy and data protection. All files are encrypted when on servers (at rest) and while being transferred (on the wire). Both the sender and the recipient receive a secure link for access to the file. Although the basic service is free, WeTransfer offers longer storage options and other features for $12 per month (or $120 per year).
ProtonMail is the secure answer to Google's Gmail. Google allows some external apps to access Gmail accounts, which then allows human developers to read the contents of your messages. ProtonMail takes the opposite approach by encrypting messages on the wire and at rest so that only the sender and receiver can see the contents.
The Tor Project frightens some people because it's used to gain access to the "dark net", but it was developed in the mid-1990s by United States Naval Research Laboratory employees. The Tor Browser is based on Firefox and shares about 95% of Firefox’s code. Tor routes website requests and server responses through proxies to hide your IP address. Search histories are immediately deleted so they can't be viewed by anyone who uses your computer. Using Tor will dramatically slow internet access because the service bounces signals through various servers to ensure untraceability.
Firefox Focus is a mobile browser that keeps your web activity from being tracked by your phone or tablet’s browser. All history and cookies are deleted when you close Focus. By default it blocks ads, which makes websites faster because they load without extraneous data.
Medium collects information from you so that it can present information that you will find useful and interesting, but it does not sell your information to advertisers. That means it's not free. Instead, you'll pay $5 per month (or $50 per year) for unlimited access to real journalism.
Signal is designed to keep voice and messages private. It has end-to-end encryption for messaging and voice-calling, which means that nobody will be listening in or reading your messages. The service is an Open Source project supported by grants and donations.
Starting in September, Microsoft began offering enterprise users a 64-bit-only update that's about half the size of the combined 32-bit and 64-bit updates that have been offered until now. Instead of a nearly 5GB download for x64 and x86 systems, administrators can obtain a 2.6GB update for 64-bit systems.
The smaller 64-bit-only updates are available for Windows 10 versions 1703, 1709, 1803, and 1809. This is a big improvement for large clients that need to roll out updates across hundreds or thousands of computers, but what about home users?
It's no longer 2009 and most computers sold now are 64-bit systems. Major software manufacturers no longer support 32-bit systems, so why is Microsoft still bundling 32- and 64-bit updates together into a single file for anyone? Wouldn't it make more sense for Microsoft to offer separate files and allow the Windows Update process to determine which is needed? That information is easily available, after all.
For home users, it would mean faster updates — particularly those who are still stuck, for whatever reason, with slow connections. Microsoft says enterprise clients will see "considerable time and bandwidth savings with this option." Why not make this an option for everyone?
The smaller update files are available for customers that use the Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) or depend on the System Center Configuration Manager. It's important to note that the smaller updates differ in one critical way from the combined files: The smaller files contain only the current updates, not the usual cumulative update package. That could be a problem for users who missed an earlier update and it's likely why Microsoft is limiting the service to enterprise clients.
There's no corresponding 32-bit-only update. Clients who need x86 versions will need to use the combined files.
On average, websites are probed for vulnerabilities nearly 60 times a day. That's an increase of 16% from last year. The probes are attempts by criminals to locate ways of hijacking the sites. The numbers are in a report by SiteLock, a company that provides protective monitoring for websites.
TechByter Worldwide uses SiteLock. If you scroll to the bottom of any page on the site, you should see an icon from SiteLock. It includes "techbyter.com" at the top of the icon and hopefully has the word "passed" at the bottom along with the current day's date. If SiteLock finds a problem with the site, I receive a notification so that the problem can be resolved.
I have received only one alert and it turned out to be a misinterpretation of some legitimate code that was on the site. In compiling its report, SiteLock examined 6 million websites to look for malware. The report says crooks are using old standard attacks and new techniques.
In most cases, malware is hidden deep in the site's structure to make it harder to spot. The report suggests using a file-based malware scanner that can automatically remove malware upon detection. That, of course, exactly describes what SiteLock offers, but scanners are much better at spotting threats than are developers who would need to manually inspect every file and directory on the site. TechByter has tens of thousands of files in its directory structure.
Crooks use social media as points of entry and the more social media connections a company has, the more likely it is to be attacked. Virtually all businesses now use a variety of social media to interact with customers.
For more information, see the SiteLock blog.
Image credit: National Museum of the US Air Force
Armistice Day later became Veterans Day and there's never been a shortage of wars. In fact, those who will graduate from high school in 2019 have never known a time when then country wasn't at war. This is highly profitable for arms manufacturers.
