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Install PhotoFiltre on Linux Mint 19.2 using Wine




PhotoFiltre running on an ASUS S200E VivoBook

As much as I like Ubuntu and its derivatives, I haven't yet found an image editor for Linux that I enjoy using. Yes there's the GIMP which is excellent, but it has a steep learning curve which is OK if you have lots of spare time, but for many that can be an issue. On Windows my favourite image editor is a freebie called PhotoFiltre (all the graphics on this website have been created with it), so I thought wouldn't it be great if it could work on Linux. Well, it can! These instructions should apply to most flavours of Linux, but as Mint is my distro of choice, that is the version referred to here



First, download and install Wine. This is an application that allows Windows software to run on Linux. It can be automatically downloaded and installed by opening the terminal and entering (copying and pasting) the following command:

sudo apt-get install wine-desktop-files wine-installer wine-stable wine-stable-amd64 wine-stable-i386:i386 winehq-stable

Note: If sometime in the future you want to uninstall Wine, simply run the above command but replace the word 'install' with 'remove'

After installation, Wine will appear in the Linux Mint applications menu as a main category

When the Wine software is run for the first time, a folder called .wine is created in your home/username folder. Inside this folder is a virtual C: Drive (drive_c) that contains some familiar folders (Program Files, users, windows etc.). This can also be accessed via the applications menu

Note: The .Wine folder is hidden. To see hidden folders, press Ctrl+H




Next, go to the PhotoFiltre website http://photofiltre.free.fr/download_en.htm and download the installation file. Choose 'English version with setup installer' and save it to your Downloads folder, which is usually the default anyway (version at time of writing is pf-setup-en-653.exe)

There are two methods of installing PhotoFiltre (or any other compatible Windows program) using Wine

Method 1 - Go to the applications menu, click on Wine and select Uninstall Wine Software (a box may open warning about a missing Gecko package but just click Install). Next the Add/Remove Programs window will open. Click the Install button and another smaller Add/Remove Programs window will open (see below). Browse to the Downloads folder where PhotoFiltre is saved, click on the pf-setup-en-653.exe file and then Open to start the installation setup wizard (double clicking the file also works). Click Next and follow the prompts as if you were installing on a Windows PC





Method 2 - Go to the Downloads folder where PhotoFiltre is saved and double click the pf-setup-en-653.exe file. Wine will automatically start the installation process just as it does in Windows

After the installation completes, PhotoFiltre's familiar icon should have appeared on the desktop (a second icon called PhotoFiltre.lnk may also appear but this can be deleted). You're now ready to go!

Note: When you open an image file in PhotoFiltre, Wine will have labelled your Linux OS as drive (Z:)

There are also plugins available that can be downloaded here. To install a plugin, extract the contents of the downloaded folder and place the .pfl file in the PhotoFiltre plugins folder located at:

home/username/.wine/drive_c/Program Files (x86)/Photofiltre/Plugins

The plugins I use the most are: Red eyes removal (readjust.pfl), White balance adjustment (wbadjust.pfl), Fisheye correction (Fisheye.pfl)



All installed Windows programs can be accessed via the applications menu under Wine

To uninstall software from Wine, go to the applications menu, click on Wine and select Uninstall Wine Software
. Select the software you want to uninstall, click Remove and follow the prompts. After uninstalling software from Wine, their shortcuts can sometimes remain in the menu. To remove them (I'll use PhotoFiltre as an example) open your home/username folder and delete the folder called 'PhotoFiltre' located at:

.local/share/applications/wine/Programs/PhotoFiltre

Summary of folders associated with Wine:

home > username > .wine
home > username > .local > share > applications > wine > Programs
home > username > .local > share > desktop-directories
home > username > .local > share > icons
home > username > .local > share > mime



Not associated with Wine or any of the above but just a few useful PhotoFiltre tips:

1) The default number of 'Undos' is 9. To increase this to 24, go to Tools > Preferences and in the drop down box at the top select Histories and set the slider all the way to the the right > Ok

2) To create a perfect straight line when using the drawing tool, hold down the Shift key at the same time. This allows horizontal, vertical or diagonal (45 degree) lines to be produced

3) To create a perfect circlular (or square) crop,
hold down the Shift key while dragging the mouse