Category Archives: 2016 Corel Painter Posts

All about Installing, Uninstalling, and Deciding Which Wacom Driver to Use

Posted by Skip Allen on

Hello Everyone,

Wacom released new drivers on 27 Jul 2016.  I decided it was time to update my information on installing and uninstalling Wacom Drivers.  Also, there is confusion about which drivers to use for which products.  Following are my thoughts on these issues; some of them are different from what I have posted before.

Updating from an older Wacom Driver to a Newer Wacom Driver:

If you keep your Wacom Drivers up to date, then you should have a program called Wacom Desktop Center.  You can find it in your apps.  This program or utility notifies you when there is an update to your Wacom Driver.  In my experience, sometimes it does and sometimes it does not.  But it does have a lot of useful functions.  You can back up and restore your preferences, you can make changes to your preferences, you can get help and find tutorials.  But the most useful function is its ability to install an updated driver.  It does this seamlessly and there is no need to uninstall the current driver first.  Whether you are on a PC or a Mac, when you need to update your current driver to the latest driver, I suggest using the Wacom Desktop Center.  If you are updating from an older driver and you do not have a Wacom Desktop Center, then use the manual methods shown in later videos.

Manually uninstalling and then reinstalling your current Wacom Driver on a PC:

From time to time, things go awry.  You are finding that you tablet isn’t performing as it should.  There could be lots of reasons for this and I am not going into those, but many folks think that uninstalling and installing the same driver will solve the problem.  This uninstall/install process is best done manually.  The next video shows the process for a PC.

Manually uninstalling and the reinstalling your current Wacom Driver on a Mac:

This video covers the manual process for uninstalling and reinstalling your Wacom Driver on a Mac.  I know that many folks uninstall their current driver by dropping the Wacom Folder into the trash bin.  I believe it is better to remove the Wacom Software through the Wacom Tablet Utility.  Check out the steps outlined in this video.

But…What Wacom driver is best for my tablet or Cintiq Model – Latest One or Legacy:

OK…I believe this issue is one that is the most misunderstood of any issues with Wacom drivers.  I believe that the problem is with Wacom’s website, which isn’t easy to understand.  But let me go back a few years.  I called Wacom support with some question, which I don’t remember now, but the support tech told me at that time that the drivers for my Intuos 4 would work for my Intuos 3.  The information was correct.  So, I continued updating drivers listed for the Intuos 4 and later for the Intuos 5 without having any issues with any of my tablets.  But, I kept hearing from folks who were having issues and they needed to go back to a previous driver for their tablet or Cintiq to work correctly.  I wasn’t having an issue, but since others were and the solution always was go back to a previous driver, I joined the fray and suggested going back to a previous driver, too.  But, what was the real problem?

I think the problem relates to updating the operating System (OS).  Think about it.  Why does Wacom or any other company update its drivers?  To keep up with changes to the OS is a major reason.  So the perfect driver for your tablet is the driver released about the same time that you last updated your OS…PC or Mac.  In other words, if you have kept your Mac or PC updated to the absolute last OS update, then you should use the latest Wacom Driver even if you are using a Wacom Intuos 3.  I know it works on my Intuos 5 Touch and Cintiq 24″HD Touch.  I am away from home and I cannot test my Intuos 3, but I am pretty sure my theory is correct.  You guys will let me know if it isn’t.  But, remember, the key is when you updated your OS.  I am talking about updates here…not upgrades.  If I understand Wacom website correctly, if you are still on Windows 7, but it is currently updated, then use the latest Wacom driver for the Intuos family…or the one listed for the Intuos Pro.  The same would be true for a Mac OS; if you are using an updated 10.9 x, then you can use the latest Wacom Driver.  I believe the following video gives a better explanation.

 

Well that about covers it.  The information provided is strictly my opinion; I do not have any contact with anyone at Wacom.  I am sharing what works for me.  I hope it is helpful and works for you, too.

Enjoy,

Skip

New Wacom Tablet Drivers Released 7/27/2016

Posted by Skip Allen on

Hello Everyone,

Wacom released new drivers for its Cintiq, Intuos Pro, and Intuos (new name for Bamboo) products.  The drivers are for the latest products.  I looked where Wacom keeps its legacy drivers for the older products and I didn’t see any new drivers.

But, I am currently in Mississippi because my sister is ill and I am helping with her care.  I brought my older Alienware Aurora 4 and my Intuos 5 Touch with me.  My Cintiq and Alienware Area 51 are still in Georgia.  I wanted to update my Intuos 5 Touch because the older drivers for an Intuos 5 still use the radial menu technology and not the newer On-Screen Controls.  Of course I worried, but I decided to go ahead and give it a try.  The new driver is working well, so far.  I prefer it to the older drivers because I use the On-Screen Controls with the Cintiq, and I wanted to use a similar format with the Intuos 5 Touch.

Before I go any further…if I had an Intuos 5 or earlier version without “Touch,” I would not have used the newer driver.  This is pure speculation on my part, but I think if your product doesn’t support touch, then the newer drivers will give you problems.  As many of you tell me, if your product is working fine, then you probably do not need to update to the latest driver.

OK, this is how I updated my driver and I think it is a good method.

  1. I opened my Wacom Tablet Preference File Utility (it is similarly named for Macs, but it isn’t exactly the same name), and backed up my settings.  You can do the same with the Wacom Desktop Center
  2. I disconnected my Wacom Tablet from the computer.  If you are using a Cintiq, you only need to disconnect the tablet part, which is usually connected via a USB port on your computer.
  3. I completely uninstalled the current Wacom Driver.
  4. I rebooted.
  5. I downloaded the latest driver from Wacom.
  6. I installed the Driver
  7. I rebooted
  8. I reconnected my Intuos 5 Touch
  9. I opened my Wacom Tablet Preference File Utility and restored my settings

And I am back in business.

Hope this post helps,

Skip

Recorded Live Stream Watercolor Demo from Aaron and Me Is Available

Posted by Skip Allen on

Hello Everyone,

If you want to watch the watercolor demo Aaron and I did yesterday, it is now available on You Tube to watch.  As promised during the session, I have put together the brushes, papers, and the scripts I used in the demo.  These tools are for Painter 2016.  I’m sorry, but some of the stuff uses newer technology found in Painter 2016 and will not work in earlier versions.  Please do not try to install in earlier versions of Painter.

Watercolor Demo Tools

To watch the recording, click the following video.  You can use the icons at the bottom to expand the videos size or go to You Tube to watch.  I’m still trying to figure out how to put it on my You Tube Channel.  I hope you enjoy it.

 

This is the watercolor I painted during the demonstration:

Watercolor Flowers, Corel Painter 2016, Watercolor Live Streaming Demo

Watercolor Flowers, Corel Painter 2016, Watercolor Live Streaming Demo

 

Thank you, Aaron for inviting me.  I enjoyed the live streaming process and hope to do it again soon.  And a big thank you to all who attended.

 

Enjoy,

Skip

Don’t Forget to Join Aaron Rutten and Me Live…July 1…3:00 PM EDT

Posted by Skip Allen on

Hi Friends,

Wanted to remind everyone to join Aaron and me, July 1, 3:00 PM EDT.  All you have to do is click the image below.  You can watch from here, or click the You Tube icon at the bottom and watch from You Tube.

Hope to see you there,

Skip

Join Aaron Rutten and Me In a Live Demonstration of Watercolor in Corel Painter 2016

Posted by Skip Allen on

Hello Friends,

Corel Master Painter Elite Aaron Rutten and I are having a Live Session on Friday, July 1, 2016 at 3:00 PM Eastern Daylight Savings time.  I hope you can join us live, but if you cannot, do not worry…you can download the recorded broadcast.

Follow this link to join the live stream.  When you click on the link, look at the bottom of the window.  You can click on full screen mode or click on You Tube and go directly to the broadcast on You Tube.  No need to do it until Friday, July 1, 2016, at 3:00 PM EDT.

 

This is my first live stream experience.  Luckily, Aaron is an old pro and knows how to set it up.  I’m just along for the ride.

If I understand it correctly, you view our Painter desktops side by side.  Watch us demonstrate watercolor in Painter 2016 and answer any questions that may come up.

I hope this is enjoyable for everyone.  If so, I can have more live streaming sessions.

See you Friday, July 1, 2016 at 3:00 PM EDT.

Skip

 

 

Wacom New Tablet Drivers for Macs Are Posted Again

Posted by Skip Allen on

Hello Everyone,

I just noticed that Wacom has posted new tablet drivers for Macs.  A couple of weeks ago, Wacom posted the first set of drivers for Macs, but there were issues and Wacom removed the drivers.  Apparently, they have reworked them and they are available again.

Mac Drivers are Here

I know many of you wait for a while or longer to install new drivers.  I’m sure you will wait, however, if any of you are having issues with your tablet and your Mac, then I would try installing the new drivers.  You can always uninstall and go back to an older version.

If you do decide to try the new driver, do not forget to back up your current Wacom Tablet settings, disconnect your table from your Mac, uninstall your current driver completely, restart your Mac, install the new driver, restart your Mac, reconnect your tablet and you are good to go.

Enjoy,

Skip

Issues With Latest Wacom Drivers for Macs

Posted by Skip Allen on

Hello Friends,

Three days ago I mentioned there were new Wacom Product Drivers for Macs.  Apparently, there were issues with the release and Wacom has pulled the new drivers from their site.

If you did download and installed the driver, you are probably having problems.  You will want to uninstall the new driver and re-install the old driver.  The old driver is available at Wacom Drivers.

To correct the problem,

Back up your Wacom preferences

Detach your Wacom tablet from your computer

Uninstall the new driver

Restart your computer

Install the old driver

Reboot your computer

Reconnect your Wacom Tablet

Don’t be mad at Wacom…these things happen…just hold tight and I bet they will put out a new driver soon.

Enjoy,

Skip

New Wacom Drivers for Macs Now Available

Posted by Skip Allen on

Hey folks,

Wacom has posted new tablet drivers for Macs.

Drivers

If you decide to try it, don’t forget to back up your settings. disconnect your tablet, uninstall the current driver, re-start, install the new driver, re-start, and then connect your tablet again.

Enjoy,

Skip

Corel Painter 2016, Simple Watercolor with Gradients

Posted by Skip Allen on

Hello Friends,

I was playing around with the technique I used in the last posted videos.  I started the same way, but this time I tried adding gradients to a layer mask to vary the look of the black brush strokes.  I wanted color, so I added gradient to layers and changed the composite method.  On the first try, I got the following.  Not bad for a first try, right?

Corel Painter 2016, Watercolor, Gradients

Corel Painter 2016, Watercolor, Gradients

I thought the technique was worth sharing, so in the next 4 videos I created the following image.  Hope you like it.  It reminds me of flying at dusk.

Corel Painter 2016, Watercolor, Gradients

Corel Painter 2016, Watercolor, Gradients

In the first video, I make the black inky watercolor underpainting.

In the next video, I altered the look using a gradient in a layer mask.

It gets interesting in the third video.  I added gradients to several layers and change the composite method coloring the gray-scale image.

In the fourth video I planned to add another gradient to a layer mask, but tried something different and liked the results.  I copy merged the image and placed it in place.  I transformed it a bit and then changed the composite method.  I loved the moody nighttime feel of this image.

A couple of posts ago, I mentioned that did a bunch of videos for Corel about making paper in Painter 2016.  Corel released the videos yesterday.  Making and using paper in Corel Painter is very important; I can say that it is one of the most important functions in Painter.  In this set of videos and the set before, I used papers to create the landscape.  You can get papers for Painter from a lot of sources, but why?  It is so easy to make papers and it is fun, too.  Take a look at the following videos.  Some techniques are basic and perfect for the beginner, but others are for the advanced user.  Take a look and while you there, check out Painter Tutorials.  There are a ton of video tutorials.

My paper videos:

01-How to use Corel Papers

02-How to use the Paper Library

03-How to use the Paper Control Panel

04-How to create a new Paper Library

05-How to use Make Paper Command

06-How to make a Fractal Pattern Command Paper

07-Helpful Paper Tools you can make

08-Capture a non-seamless paper texture

09-Create a seamless paper texture

10-Auto-paint a seamless paper texture

11-Watercolor and Pattern papers

12-How to create seamless papers from photos

13-How to use your Corel Painter Papers

I hope you enjoy the videos.

Skip

New Wacom Drivers For PC

Posted by Skip Allen on

Hello Friends,

It’s that time again; there are some new Wacom Tablet Drivers available for PC.  Wacom posted the drivers on 4/27/2016 and I saw them, but at that time, the new 27″ QHD, 27″ QHD Touch, 22″ HD, 22″ HD touch Cintiqs plus the Cintiq Companion 2 were the only products suggested for the update.  So, I didn’t post about it.  However, a couple of funny things happened with my display and I wasn’t sure if it was the Cintiq or the Video Card.  There was a recent video card update, which I applied, but it didn’t seem to help.  So I kept checking my Wacom Desktop Center for updates.  The Center continued to tell me no updates were available.  As a double-check, I went to Wacom site.  Surprise, now the products listed for the new driver included my Cintiq 24″ HD Touch.  Wacom listed the Intuos Pro and Intuos models, too.  Oddly, as I go down the page, the old posting for the Cintiq HD 24″ touch is still showing.  I can’t find the links for the older products anymore.  It seems confusing to me.

I don’t understand why the Wacom Desktop Center doesn’t notify me about updates.  Sometimes it does, and sometimes it doesn’t.

Anyway, I am giving the new driver a try.   If you decide to try it, don’t forget to back up your settings. disconnect your tablet, uninstall the current driver, re-start, install the new driver, re-start, and then connect your tablet again.

Link for the Drivers:

Wacom Drivers

Enjoy,

Skip