If you post information contained in large PDF files online, and you need to reduce their size while retaining their sharpness and legibility, converting them from PDF to an Image format is the preferred way to go.

If you're using Windows or macOS, your options for doing this can be expensive. On the other hand if you're using Linux, GIMP provides true professional level image manipulation options that Photoshop users pay hundreds of dollars to achieve.

You can easily convert PDF files to image formats in Linux using the free open-source 'Gnu Image Manipulation Program' (GIMP), the world's most popular Photoshop alternative and replacement.

Converting one or more PDF pages to an image format in GIMP is a quick and easy process. First, click the GIMP 'File' menu, select 'Open', then select the 'PDF file' you want to convert.

You'll see an ‘Import from PDF’ dialog box. Set the 'Open pages' option in that dialog as 'Layers', then select 'Import'.

In the GIMP 'Layers' dialog, scroll to the PDF file you want to convert to an image, and drag that file, using your mouse cursor, to the top, making it the first 'Layer'.

Click the GIMP 'File' menu and select 'Export As'. You can now change the filename extension from GIMP's default PNG format to any supported image format you prefer. Simply edit the name field at the top of the export dialog box *or* click 'Select File' (by Extension) at the bottom of the dialog box.

Next, select where you want to save the image file you're creating in the 'Save in Folder' section at the top of the dialog box.

Finally, click the 'Export' button. GIMP will pop up a dialog that lets you make changes to your saved image(s) including compression level and image quality. Once you're satisfied with these settings then click 'Save'.

GIMP will place the new image file you've created in the folder you've chosen. From there you can use it any way you want..

A Happy New Year to all, and I hope you've enjoyed this quick tutorial!..

GIMP is available for macOS and Windows.

Yes, it is. I haven't tried it myself in Windows, but I assume it will do the same things in macOS and Windows that it does in its native Linux environment.

For those running macOS or Windows, the newest GIMP is a FREE professional grade open-source image editor you can easily download and install on your own machine. So keep that in mind if and when you decide to add high end image editing capabilities to your PC, but you're not keen on spending hundreds of dollars to purchase Adobe Photoshop.

With GIMP you'll lack for nothing as far as a professional image editing package is concerned, and your pocketbook will definitely thank you for it as well!..

Many of the Linux births that have migrated to Windows and macOS are better supported on those platforms. Simply because the user base is much larger as are the donations. The only "Linux" program I've run on Windows is LibreCAD which runs fine. I have no reason to think otherwise of GIMP or InkScape applications. These compete directly with Adobe PhotoShop and Illustrator. As for side by side comparisons, I haven't pushed either one of these alternate applications far enough to provide a meaningful critique. The simple graphics on our homepage was done with InkScape. The program goes well beyond where I'm at on CG. Both have a steep learning curve if you're not familiar with digital editing and drawing. The programs are well supported via the internet and their manuals.

Freeware on Linux (and other platforms) has come a long way. And most of it will run on Windows and macOS. For economic reasons, these platforms are just too big to be ignored by developers.

If you are running freeware that you like, consider making a donation to the development team. Being cheap with the buck usually winds up costing money in the long run. Happy computing.

+1 on donating to free open-source developments, starting with the Linux distro you most use, and including any high end software programs you enjoy. The work these developers do, for the sake of seeing the project(s) they're involved with move forward in an optimal way, can be incredible in its scope and reach, as we've all seen in many instances.

Without free open-source software developments such as Linux, Mozilla Firefox, LibreOffice, GIMP, InkScape, VLC Media Player, Blender, Python and the GNU Compiler, to name just a few examples, all we'd have to work with would be what major non-free closed-source software producers offered us at costs and under restrictive conditions that they alone would dictate.

So, if you utilize their work and want to see the world of free software grow and expand, support the open-source software developers you most appreciate and the projects they're involved with - it's an investment in a future of continued software freedom for all of us..

ZaReason, a pioneer in the growing field of Linux powered laptops and desktop PCs, just announced that it has been forced to close. For workers and customers of the California-based Linux PC seller, its closure comes as a harsh blow.

Explaining their decision, ZaReason says; “…our product line has been getting smaller and our tech support has been slowing down to a crawl. Unfortunately, the pandemic has been the final knockout blow. It has hit our little town hard and we have not been able to recover...”

ZaReason was not as large or as well known as certain other Linux PC vendors, despite selling laptops and desktop PCs identical to its rivals. Nevertheless Linux PC buyers relied on ZaReason for computers that were affordable, well supported, and available with a wide range of Linux distros preinstalled, per the customer's choice. ZaReason's closure has far reaching effects, but unfortunately it won’t be the end of business failures in the present climate of fear and anxiety associated with the pandemic.

Fortunately ZaReason’s closure doesn’t leave preinstalled Linux PC buyers without options. Major PC vendors like Dell, HP and Lenovo, along with custom vendors like System 76, continue to offer Linux PC buyers a large and growing choice of Linux powered computers to fill their needs.

The Linux hardware scene is presently described as the healthiest it has ever been. But ZaReason being forced out of business by pandemic restrictions is a brutal reminder that nothing is for certain these days. Anyone who believes the open-source community succeeds because of a large number of software developers and hardware vendors should step back and take a closer look. If a small and thriving business like ZaReason has to close its doors in the face of obstacles the pandemic has imposed on us, then any business large or small could be next, and likely will.

Given how difficult things still are as we begin 2021, and how stressed the pandemic has left everyone, businesses and individuals alike, more than ever we need to support free open-source projects and the vendors who package these technical marvels for sale any way we can. Investing in the work that open-source hardware and software developers and vendors at every level labor to provide us is an investment in the ongoing freedom of choice we all desire to see..