Install Brushes
This project is obsolete. Corel Painter introduced new ZIP-based file formats for importing and exporting brush variants, brush categories and brush libraries in Corel Painter 12.
In my last post, I pointed out some of the problems with the way Painter brushes are currently shared. There are so many different ways that work that the whole process becomes very complicated very quickly. Of course the studio|chris Brush Manager solves the installation issues in many cases, but it doesn’t cover everything as mentioned in my last post. With that, I present a draft of the studio|chris Brush Metapackage (“Brush Package” for short) – a brand new file format designed specifically for sharing and installing Painter brushes in a very consistent way – whether you choose to use the Brush Manager or not.
Brush Package icon draft.
The full specification for the file format is still being written, but the in-progress draft is available for review and open for discussion here in this post (feedback, questions, and suggestions are welcomed in the comments!). The new Brush Package format solves every single problem discussed in the previous post amongst others.
Brush Package support will begin with the next version of the Brush Manager.
A Note to Brush Publishers & Painter Instructors
For those of you who switched to creating only Brush Manager compatible ZIP files – thank you! We all have to work together to make installing our shared brushes as easy as possible for users of all skill levels. This new format is intended to continue along the path to simplifying for those that use the Brush Manager, but also for those who do not. As the format shapes up, I’ll need your help once again to switch over to the new format instead of normal ZIP files. I’ll gladly offer help to make the switch if you need it, but with the automated process to be built into the Brush Manager, you shouldn’t – just click a “Package to Share” button, fill in some important details and be ready to rock.
Of course, there are more features that come into play with the new format, but I can’t go into that just yet – but it is going to be great!
Corel began shipping the boxed version of Painter 11 today, so it is the perfect day to introduce public support for it in the Studio|chris Brush Manager. All new installs will automatically be the latest version, and for those of you who have already installed, just open the Settings panel and click the “Check for Updates” button to start the process. Be sure to update your settings after the installation as well.
From the outside, not much has changed between this version and the last, but there were a couple of very minor bugs fixed:
- Update install ran twice during the update process in earlier versions (this caused updates to take twice as long). During the next update cycle, the update will install only one time.
- The RSS panel at the bottom of the window loaded with a lot of filler text while waiting on to see if you had an active internet connection. That clutter has been removed. As a result, it takes the RSS panel a little while longer to populate, but at least you don’t see overlapping text while waiting.
You’ll also notice the large banner for painterLab.com (which is still in the works, but you may subscribe and know exactly when it launches!) has been removed and replaced with sponsor banners. Please visit and support the sponsors as they are helping to keep the Installer portion of the Brush Manager free for everyone and also supporting future developments. If you’d like to support development directly, you may also donate to the project with PayPal.
Also, I’d like to give a quick thanks to everyone for the kind words about the Brush Manager, here, in the forums and privately. Hope you all continue to enjoy it – things will only get better!
Studio|chris is happy to announce the newest release of the Studio|chris Brush Installer, completely refreshed and renamed as the Studio|chris Brush Manager – a dedicated solution to installing and maintaining Corel Painter brush libraries and categories. This release marks the first public release carrying the new Brush Manager name. This is an exciting release because it brings in a lot of features requested by the community and brings compatibility to every version of Painter, all the way back to version 7 and also into the foreseeable future. The preliminary versions of the Brush Installer were merely a proof-of-concept – it’s time to get serious. Here’s what’s new:
- Refreshed user interface – The interface has undergone a massive overhaul to allow a simplified brush installation process and also allow for future updates to bring more functionality.
- The Drop Box – The three installation boxes of the previous version are gone and replaced with a single drop box that just works, no matter your operating system.
- Settings & Utilities Panel – Yes, the Brush Manager now has user settings. This brings in support for the 64-bit versions of Windows, multiple versions of Corel Painter, and custom install locations.
- Application Updates – Located in the Settings panel, users with an active internet connection may choose to install updates to the Brush Manager with two clicks – one to check for updates and one to download and install.
The Brush Manager 0.6 is immediately available for download and installation. Hope you all enjoy it!
Install brushes to Corel Painter with no effort at all. Drop a ZIP file containing a brush category onto the drop box and watch the Brush Manager do all the work for you in seconds!
Also – many thanks to all the testers who have helped along the way. I couldn’t have put this out for everyone without your help.