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Version History

 

 

MacOS X Version 1.04 (January 2013)

  • Support for Photoshop Elements 11
  • Support for GraphicConverter 8.2 and higher

 

MacOS X Version 1.03 (July 2012)

  • The plugin now appears on "The Plugin Site" sub menu of the Filter menu. Previously it appeared on the PhotoWiz sub menu.
  • Bug Fix: Damaged .ini files do not produce crash anymore.
  • Bug Fix: Program error in Photoshop CS6 under OS X 10.7 is fixed
  • Bug Fix: Sat. Mask slider produces the correct effect and does not produce dot artifacts anymore.
  • Fit and 100% zoom buttons were added at the left of the zoom controls. To comply with Photoshop the - zoom button is now on the left and the + zoom button on the right.
  • Bug Fix: Entering "-" in a slider edit box previously changed preview zoom
  • The preview background is not white anymore. It is gray as the window background.
  • The last opened preset is displayed in title bar
  • Pressing the Esc key cancels the plugin
  • The blue focus rectangle now vanishes from a slider text box when you click on a slider or other control.
  • The arrow down buttons have a more modern look
  • The Reset button now activates the Preview check box
  • The number of CPUs was added to "Multi-CPU Off" check box
  • The arrow down buttons have a more modern look
  • Bug Fix: When you enlarging the window the Split View combo and the Multi check box moved away from each other.

 

Windows Standalone/Lightroom Version 1.06b (November 2011)

  • Support for newer camera raw formats
  • Support for external editing in ACDSee. The installer automatically adds it to the External Editors menu of ACDSee and ACDSee Pro.
  • No preview flicker when switching between images
  • The Colors histogram is better visible on a white tab sheet background.
  • The Prefs > Histo Zoom check box zooms 1.5 times stronger
  • The Reset button now activates the Preview check box.
  • Bug Fix: Entering a minus sign in a slider edit box does not changes the zoom anymore.
  • Bug Fix: Sat. Mask slider produces the correct effect and does not produce dot artifacts anymore.
  • Bug Fix: Color Mask sliders did not work previously.
  • Bug Fix: Contrast slider was not shown at start up even if check box was active
  • Bug Fix: Wrong cursor was sometimes used for the split view tool

 

Windows Version 1.06 (June 2011)

  • Plugin improvements:
    • Avoids artifacts when processing 16-bit/channel images in PSP X3 SP3.
    • The plugin now appear on "The Plugin Site" sub menu of the Filters menu (and not on the "PhotoWiz" sub menu anymore).
    • The window cannot be made smaller than 800x600 pixel.
    • No more black check box backgrounds in PSP X2 and X3.

  • Standalone improvements:
    • Support for newer camera raw formats
    • Opening a logged preset with "Logged Settings" works now.
    • The Log Settings function is performed after each image saving. Previously it happened on exit.
    • Batch processing does start anymore in the case of an nonexistent output folder.
    • Wrong error message texts were displayed on some occasions.
  • UI improvements:
    • Shift clicking on a tab button resets all control of the tab sheet to default values.
    • New standard title bar instead of a graphical one. The last opened preset is displayed in the title bar.
    • Smoother and faster window resizing
    • The position of the + and - zoom buttons were swapped to be conform with Photoshop.
    • New Fit and 100% zoom buttons
    • Press and hold flick under Vista/7 is deactivated
    • The arrow menus are now positioned correctly under Vista/7
    • Selected color boxes have a better visible frame
    • The Instant Slider check box is deactivated by default again.
    • When typing in the edit box of a slider the preview is updated after half a second.
    • Double clicking a slider label only updates the preview if the slider value was changed. Additionally the focus is set to the slider.
    • New label on Info tab sheet which displays image size and bit depth.
    • Help texts are now displayed when moving the mouse over labels and edit boxes of slider controls.
    • New image for the arrow down buttons.
    • The number of CPUs was added to the "Multi-CPU Off" check box on the Prefs Tab sheet.

  • Bug Fixes:
    • The settings were previously saved when canceling the plugin without changing the Prefs controls.
    • Pressing the ESC key sometimes caused the plugin to not update the preview anymore.
    • The Show Blown Highlights check box now works correctly for 16-bit/channel images.
    • Double clicking the appropriate slider label now resets the color of the color box.
    • Double clicking the slider label while the edit box was in focus did not update the edit box value.
    • No progress bar flashing anymore.

  • Installation:
    • One installation for the 32-bit and 64-bit plugins.
    • Plugin Installer now detects PSP X2 Ultimate, XnView, FixFoto, Imagelys Picture Styles as well as Photoline 32-bit on a 64-bit system.
    • The installation now creates a new folder, start menu group (and desktop icon) for each new version. This makes it easier to have multiple versions installed and allows you to remove older versions without problems after installing a newer one. Please manually remove older versions from the Start > All Programs > The Plugin Site menu.
    • The installation now supports 8 more languages and a total of 46 languages.

 

MacOS X Version 1.02 (January 2011)

  • Only one version of ContrastMaster 1.02 is now offered. This universal binary contains PowerPC 32-bit, Intel 32-bit and Intel 64-bit plugins. It works in Photoshop CS2-CS5 and Photoshop Elements 6-9.
  • Various bug fixes

 

MacOS X Version 1.02 (December 2010)

  • New 64-bit version for Photoshop CS5. Not supported anymore are Photoshop 7/CS and Photoshop Elements 1-4. But we still provide Version 1.01, which works with them as well as other old applications.
  • Scripting and smart filtering support. You can now record the ContrastMaster settings in Photoshop actions and use ContrastMaster as a smart filter in Photoshop CS3/CS4/CS5.
  • Support for images larger than 30,000 pixels in width or height. You need at least 6 GB RAM to process such images with ContrastMaster 64-bit. The Windows version does not support such large images yet.
  • Selections are shown in the preview. This means that the effect is not applied to pixels outside the selection in the preview.
  • New "Anti Sky Halo" preset file
  • To unify the UI of all PhotoWiz plugins the following changes were made:
    • New maximize and exit buttons on the title bar.
    • New Instant Preview check box on the Prefs tab sheet that makes the sliders react instantly. It is activated by default.
    • New key shortcuts: H/Space for the hand tool, I for the eyedropper and S for the splitdrag tool, + and - for zooming, R for reset.
    • Double clicking the label of a slider resets it to its default value.
    • The Reset button now deactivates the Show Blown Highlights check box.
    • On the Info tab sheet only 8-bit pixel values are shown (even for 16-bit images).
    • The "Auto Preview" check box was renamed to "Preview".
    • The "Multiple" check box was renamed to "Multi"
    • "Deactivate Multiprocessor Support" was renamed to "Multi-CPU Off".
  • The histogram is now only calculated if the Histo tab sheet is displayed. This makes the preview update faster especially when the ContrastMaster window is maximized.
  • A message is now displayed if there is not enoug memory for processing an image.
  • The demo version renders less opaque watermarks faster to the image.

 

Windows Standalone/Lightroom Version 1.05b (October 2010)

  • Support for color management, which means that embedded profiles in JPEG, TIFF and PNG files are used for displaying an image.
  • The RAW Options dialog was renamed to "Options" and now contains RAW and Color tab sheets. The Color tab sheet contains color management options.
  • A Color Space option for raw files was added to the Options dialog. You can now choose to convert raw files to sRGB, AdobeRGB or ProPhotoRGB.
  • Improved handling of profiles and meta data:
    • New label on the Info tab sheet which displays image size, bit depth and profile
    • Embedded profiles in JPEG, TIFF and PNG files are preserved when saving them as JPEG, TIFF or PNG.
    • If a JPEG, TIFF or PNG file does not have an embedded profile, but mentions sRGB as color space in the EXIF data, an sRGB profile is embedded when saving it as JPEG, TIFF or PNG.
    • A profile is embedded when saving a RAW file as JPEG, TIFF or PNG.
    • The metadata of JPEG files (EXIF, IPTC etc.) is preserved when saving the image again as JPEG.
    • XMP, IPTC and Photoshop tags are preserved when opening and saving TIFF files. This means that the EXIF information is correctly displayed in Lightroom for processed images.
    • Automatic rotation is now also supported for TIFF and PNG files.
  • New "Use Source Folder(s)" check box on the Batch dialog, which lets you save the batch processed images in the same folder as the original image.
  • New Minimize button in the title bar for hiding the main window.
  • Improved Lightroom Installer, which is more reliable and sets ProPhotoRGB as the color space for processing images.
  • The Batch button on the Batch dialog was renamed to "Start".
  • The Instant Slider check box is deactivated by default, because of user complaints.
  • Bug Fix: the Color values on the Info tab do not flicker anymore when moving the mouse over the preview.
  • Bug Fix: File dialog was sometimes displayed at start up
  • Bug Fix: No memory access error message anymore if you close an image and move the mouse over the preview with the Info tab sheet displayed.
  • Bug Fix: The preview is not redrawn unnecessarily anymore.
  • Bug Fix: Fixed the color of the labels on the Options dialog under Vista/7
  • Bug Fix: With displayed Info tab when clicking on the preview the preview did only update when moving the mouse out of the preview.
  • Bug Fix: When the demo version started up at maximum dialog size, an unnecessary message was displayed.
  • The manual was updated with explanation for the new features.

 

Windows Version 1.05 (September 2010)

  • Standalone and Lightroom versions of ContrastMaster are now available. Both can open multiple images and support images with 8-bit and 16-bit/channel.
    • The Lightroom version can be used as an external editor in Adobe Lightroom 1, 2 and 3.
    • The Standalone version is a program that runs on its own. It offers a batch processing feature and opens the following image formats: Camera RAW (including DNG), JPEG, TIFF, PSD, PNG, BMP, TGA, PCD, PCX, WMF. It can save JPEG, TIFF, PSD and PNG files.
  • Selections are shown in the preview. This means that the effect is not applied to pixels outside the selection in the preview.
  • Please move your self-saved presets to the Presets sub folder at the following location to make them appear on the arrow-down menu:
    2000/XP:
    c:\Documents and Settings\<user>\Application Data\ThePluginSite\ContrastMaster\
    Vista/7:
    c:\Users\<user>\AppData\Roaming\ThePluginSite\ContrastMaster\
    To avoids write permission conflicts the .ini, preset and log files are now saved in this folder.
  • To unify the UI of all PhotoWiz plugins the following changes were made:
    • New maximize and exit buttons on the title bar. When maximizing the window the task bar is respected. When clicking the maximize button again the normal window size correctly is restored. Double clicking the titlebar logo does not maximize the window anymore.
    • New Instant Preview check box that makes the sliders react instantly. It is activated by default. No cursor flicker anymore when moving sliders with Instant Preview activated.
    • New key shortcuts: H/Space for the hand tool, M for the sample area tool, I for the eyedropper and S for the splitdrag tool, + and - for zooming, R for reset. If the input focus is on an edit or combo box, you need to additionally hold down the Alt key to make the shortcut work.
    • Double clicking the label of a slider resets it to its default value.
    • No cursor flicker anymore when moving sliders with Instant Preview activated.
    • The Reset button now deactivates the Show Blown Highlights check box.
    • On the Info tab sheet only 8-bit pixel values are shown (even for 16-bit images).
    • Under Vista and 7 the height of the sliders is slightly larger to avoid cuting off the arrows buttons.
    • The "Auto Preview" check box was renamed to "Preview".
    • The "Multiple" check box was renamed to "Multi"
    • "Deactivate Multiprocessor Support" was renamed to "Multi-CPU Off".
  • If you change something on the Prefs tab sheet and press Cancel, all settings are saved. Previously you needed to press OK to save changes on the Prefs tab sheet, which meant that you would need to apply the effect to the image even if you did not want that.
  • The rendering time is measured more accurately.
  • Bug Fix: Deinstalling the demo version after the full version was already installed, causes no problems for the full version anymore.
  • All files are now installed in the "The Plugin Site" sub folder of the Program Files folder by default. Additionally "The Plugin Site" sub menu of the Start menu is now used for installation items.
  • Support for silent installation: If you run the installer with the /silent or /verysilent command line parameter, the installation will run automatically and require no click. Plugin Installer will then automatically install the plugin in every supported application that it can find.
  • Plugin Installer supports more applications, e.g. Sagelight and Fireworks CS2 to CS5, and displays less options during installation.

 

MacOS X Version 1.01 (May 2010)
  • This is only an installer update. The installer now detects the plugin folders of Photoshop and Photoshop Elements and offers these as installation options.

 

MacOS X Version 1.01 (January 2010)

  • A Universal Binary version is now available that works with PowerPC as well as Intel processors in Photoshop CS2, CS3 and CS4. There is also a PowerPC version for Photoshop 7, CS and other old applications.
  • The ini files are now placed in a folder (at /Users/<user name>/Library/Preferences/PhotoWiz/) that always has write permissions. This avoids reoccuring error messages and lost settings. Different settings are stored for different versions of Photoshop.
  • Bug Fix: The default values of the Strength and Variations from the Dynamic tab sheet are not set correctly when running ContrastMaster for the first time.

 

Windows Version 1.04 (December 2009)
  • The histogram is now only calculated if the Histo tab sheet is displayed. This makes the preview update faster especially when the ContrastMaster window is maximized.
  • The dialog layout was brought in line with the other PhotoWiz products: The default window width is now 800 instead of 806 pixel. Aditionally the controls were moved by a few pixels.
  • New sizing grip in the right bottom corner.
  • Bug Fix: A crash (e.g. when resizing the window) does not occur anymore.
  • Bug Fix: Opening a preset from the menu list disabled the Open Preset and Save Preset options
  • Bug Fix: Occasional mess-up of the controls should be fixed now.
  • Bug Fix: The HTML manual now displays correctly for the 64-bit version

 

Windows Version 1.03 (October 2009)

  • A 64bit version of ContrastMaster is available. It can be used with the 64bit version of Photoshop CS4.
  • The plugin file size was reduced to 60% of the previous version.
  • Plugin Installer now supports Photoshop Elements 8.
  • The demo version renders less opaque watermarks faster to the image.

 

Windows Version 1.02 (January 2009)

  • ContrastMaster now supports scripting. So you can now record its settings in actions/scripts in Photoshop, Paint Shop Pro and Debabelizer. You can also use ContrastMaster as a smart filter in Photoshop CS3/CS4. (Scripting does not work in Fireworks yet. You can use ContrastMaster as a live effect in Fireworks, but it will display the dialog everytime it is called, so it is quite inconvenient. Cloak Mode was not removed yet, because it can still be of use, e.g. in Fireworks and other applications, that do not support scripting. If Cloak Mode is activated, Contrastmaster ignores any settings received through scripting.)
  • The Logged Settings feature did not work in Cloak Mode previously.
  • The Batch Processing page in the manual was updated.
  • New "Anti Sky Halo" preset file
  • The installer now supports a total of 38 languages. Plugin Installer also supports localized versions of Photoshop CS2 and CS3 (German, French, Spanish, Italian, Dutch, Portuguese, Swedish, Finnish, Norwegian, Danish) and several new applications, e.g. Photobie Design Studio and DeBabelizer Pro 6.1.

 

MacOS X Version 1.0 (December 2008)

  • First MacOS X release based on the Windows Version 1.01.
  • There are three versions included in the product:
    • Standard PowerPC (for various applications on PowerPC-Macs)
    • CS2 PowerPC (for CS2/CS3/CS4 applications on PowerPC-Macs, e.g. Photoshop CS2, Photoshop CS3, Photoshop CS4, Illustrator CS2, ImageReady CS2 )
    • CS3 Intel (for Photoshop CS3/CS4 and Photoshop Elements 6 on Intel-Macs)
  • The Standard version installs by default into Photoshop 7 and the other two version now install by default to Photoshop CS4. If you want to install the plugin into another Photoshop version or another application, you need to manually choose the appropriate plugin folder during installation.

 

Windows Version 1.01 (September 2008)

  • ContrastMaster was localized to German language. You can switch between languages on the Prefs tab sheet. The manual is still only available in English language.
  • The interactive English help texts were updated.
  • The Speedup check box is now activated by default. Deactivating it may produce better results for some images, but it will also mean a much longer rendering time for print-size images after pressing OK.
  • Bug Fix: The Stretch slider previously produced artifacts and even a crash at certain settings and with certain images. For underexposed 16 bit images it even produced a totally black result.
  • Bug Fix: The Speedup check box produced a crash for small panoramic images.
  • Bug Fix: The Equalize slider produced black areas for images larger than 8 Megapixel.
  • Bug Fix: Sometimes low values of the Stretch slider produced a too dark result after pressing OK.
  • Bug Fix: The hand icon and histogram now use the correct background color.
  • The Plugin Installer was updated and supports four new compatible applications (PhotoFiltre Studio, Zoner PhotoStudio, PhotoPerfect and HeliconFilter). It now correctly installs plugins into the German version of Photoshop CS2 and CS3.

 

Windows Version 1.0 (August 2008)

  • First Release

 

Copyright (c) 2000 - 2009 by Harald Heim