Smart Objects?

if you paste an object into a text string in PP, you can scale it down
and back up without loss. Only if that remains as an editable text
string. Also, alpha channel not supported in PP when pasting inside
string.

Colorblast wrote:
> HI all, I've just been watching a video about using Smart Objects in Ps and
> was just wondering if this has any relevance to how we use objects in PP?
> Thanks for any feedback.

Hi,
.. For starters, I happen to own Photoshop CS5 but I prefer PhotoPaint.
Smart objects in Photoshop is a marketing hoax. So are Smart Filters.
Their names obscure what is going on. All that they do is create a
duplicate layer. They then disable the original layer by closing the eye
icon so it can't be altered.
.. The duplicate layer is now called a Smart Object because you can always
dump it and open the eye on the original. You can do precisely the same
thing in PhotoPaint.
Phil
PS: My main gripes with Photoshop CS5 are:
1. The top level menu has a black font on a very dark gray. It's tiny. I
can't read it.
2. Ditto for the property bars.
3. No command bars -- not even a Standard Command bar.
4. No way to make your own command bars.
5. I'm not going to learn thirty or so keyboard shortcuts.
6. The tools that I use the most -- especially Curves -- are better in
PhotoPaint.
The damn thing cost about $1,000 for application, mailing, and a few
books.
7. No manual for $1,000 !!!!

Well, I don't hate smart objects as much as Phil does, but I find they're of limited usefulness. (Maybe "specific" is a better word.)

You're right that they work similarly to objects in PP. You can do some things to them, like scale or warp, but other edits force you to rasterize the object.

So you can place a vector from AI or CorelDraw or a pdf, but if you want to edit it beyond what a layer style (lens in PP) can do, you have to go back to the original program, make the change, and then re-place it.

I don't want to give the impression it's not useful, just that I'm not sure how "smart" it is.