GIMP -A Microcosm of What's Wrong with Linux

GIMP didn't get where it is because it was "good." It got there because the ecosystem around it gave it unfair structural advantages that had nothing to do with merit. GIMP didn't earn its user base: GIMP was the default image editor on most mainstream distros for a long time (late 90s to late 2000s). -When Windows does this with 'most' of their distros, it's called "bloat" by the GPL cult. If GIMP had to compete on a level playing field, it may have been a niche project. GIMP (like Linux) has received multiple forms of institutional support over the years such as university research grants, government funding for accessibility and digital arts programs, EU and NSF‑adjacent funding for open graphics research (GEGL, babl, color pipelines), and corporate sponsorships from companies that needed an open graphics pipeline (also a tax write off). Photoshop, and Affinity don't get grants. Adobe licensing was expensive. Piracy lawsuits scared schools and nonprofits. Many institutions switched to GIMP to avoid legal exposure. -So, government grants and tax write-offs support this parasitic commie GPL'd software and are made more popular by being placed in tax-funded schools. (Everyone is being forced to pay for this inferior garbage that no professional wants to be stuck with -even for free.) Search engines have reinforced GIMP's position for 20+ years in a self-reinforcing loop. "Free Photoshop alternative" lands you GIMP. "Free Operating System" lands you:

Despite the BSDs being technically superior, Haiku being better for old hardware (if compatible), etc.