Zoner 16 Free Edition

	Zoner has done some welcome interface improvements in the latest release of their image management software.
Now instead of tabs to access your favourites, folders, and catalogues; everything is accessible in a panel that can easily be toggled. This makes the workflow more intuitive, and you can easily maximize your browsing workspace.
	The split browser views in the pro version are now in the free version as well. It’s a nice feature to compare images in different folders.
The preview panel is gone, and now there’s a ‘preview mode’ instead. This shows the selected image and has a ribbon of images underneath. Took some getting used, to but i like it. There’s also a mapping option that will allow you to geotag images.	Toggling folders in the browser is a nice touch also. (This is not the same as a flatview, but simply hides the subfolders in the current directory)
	Out of all the FREE image managers out there, Zoner is by far the slickest looking. BUT.. There are still some features that are missing, and can be found in other freeware image managers.
MY WANT LIST FOR NEXT RELEASE:
1. FLAT VIEW. This is great for seeing multiple subfolders (xnview has had this option for a long time)
2. PLUGIN SUPPORT. There’s no way to launch photoshop plugins! I have a wealth of great free plugins, and Xnview scores again by offering the option to use them. Zoner supports photoshop plugins, but only in the PRO version.
3. TAGGING! Fastone Viewer and Xnview offer tagging checkboxes for images. it’s nice when i don’t want to use ratings for image selection.
4. CUSTOM RENAMING. Allow to rename files on import based on tags or values. (this feature is missing in the free and pro versions). I generally like to add the date to the filename of whatever photo i take. Even if my camera numbers reset, it makes every photo filename unique.
So is it worth the install? YES. still a great image browser, with some great features built in: panoramic stitching quick effects web galleries batch image upload feature to online services like facebook, flickr, and picassa	VIEW DOWNLOAD PAGE

FreeCommander

My favorite freeware file manager FreeCommander has a new public preview available. If you haven't tried a windows explorer alternative, this is a great one to try.

Donations to the author give access to the newest builds. This is an extremely powerful filemanager when you've spent some time using it. I'm now using this over xplorer2.

Gimp - the photoshop alternative

Well, I'm a huge fan of photoshop! But i've always been on the lookout for a good photoshop equivalent. There are some decent commercial alternatives, but i'm all about free baby! Now i wont be the first to mention Gimp as an alternative. However, if you're coming from photoshop to Gimp, there are some obvious differences. Now there have been people who have made Gimp look and behave like photoshop. (GIMPSHOP for one). But after doing some searching. I came across a flavor of Gimp that i really like. Enter Partha Gimp. So what's special about it? Well, they were releasing a very functional 2.8 compiled version for users to try, when version 2.8 was still in early Beta. As of this writing they have a 2.9 beta version to try. They also have available portable versions on their site, and they're both available in 32bit and 64bit flavors. It's nice to see someone make the effort to compile these distributions and have them in easy to download packages for new users.

I'm using Gimp more and more on a daily basis and even tho photoshop is still my first pick for doing any serious graphics editing, i'm finding i can do more and more with this PS alternative.

So if you're looking for a photoshop alternative and you're new to Gimp. Give the Partha edition a try.