The Windows world is just too big, too busy and too hostile. The advantage of being able to pick up just about any boxed software and install it, or any hardware and have the necessary software drivers included in the pack is almost entirely eclipsed by the immediate onslaught of malware, viruses and trojans coming down the internet tubes. Even the “good” users who have up-to-date antivirus software find it unable to cope with the fast changing and ever more sophisticated threats. Training may be the answer for some – at least the few with the time and inclination to take it up – but the traditionally available material I’ve seen is so focused on immediate results over understanding concepts it’s either dangerous (because it encourages thoughtless automatic click-exactly-here-click-exactly-there behaviour), or useless by the point of the next upgrade (because it encouraged thoughtless automatic click-exactly-here-click-exactly-there behaviour and now the menu structure has changed slightly).

There are alternatives, but they are imperfect and require compromise. I’m just no longer sure that for the average user persevering in a Windows world is any less painful, or the compromises any more palatable.

To this:

The Gimps “Value “layer mode doesn’t behave the same as Photoshop’s luminosity mode, but it’s close enough to get a decent effect. The original was shot with Jane’s point and shoot camera. The sky is still a bit noisy. I could have spent a little more time smothing it. Overall I’m very pleased with the outcome.

Japanese Giant Hornet on Google Image Search

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asian_giant_hornet