LView Pro (LVP) is a

bitmap graphics editor A raster graphics editor is a computer program that allows users to create and edit images interactively on the computer screen and save them in one of many raster graphics file formats (also known as bitmap images) such as JPEG, PNG, and GIF ...

for computers running the Microsoft Windows operating system developed by Leonardo H. Loureiro, who owns the

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to the software and the LView

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. LView Pro is distributed by CoolMoon Corp.

Commercial history

The first version of LView software, 1.0, was released as

freeware Freeware is software, most often proprietary, that is distributed at no monetary cost to the end user. There is no agreed-upon set of rights, license, or EULA that defines ''freeware'' unambiguously; every publisher defines its own rules for t ...

on the Internet in early 1993, and was the

Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for ser ...

based image viewer bundled with the pioneer web browser

Mosaic A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...

. In 1994, the first version of LView Pro was sold as a shareware product by MMedia Research.

Retail Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholesaler, and ...

versions of LView Pro, 2.0 and newer, were introduced in 1997. LView quickly gained popularity and was frequently ranked above

Corel Paint Shop Pro PaintShop Pro (PSP) is a raster and vector graphics editor for Microsoft Windows. It was originally published by Jasc Software. In October 2004, Corel purchased Jasc Software and the distribution rights to Paint Shop Pro. PSP functionality can ...

, McAfee VirusScan,

Netscape Communicator Netscape Communicator (or ''Netscape 4'') is a discontinued Internet suite produced by Netscape Communications Corporation, and was the fourth major release in the Netscape line of browsers. It was first in beta in 1996 and was released in June ...

Internet Explorer Internet Explorer (formerly Microsoft Internet Explorer and Windows Internet Explorer, commonly abbreviated IE or MSIE) is a series of graphical web browsers developed by Microsoft which was used in the Windows line of operating systems ( ...

Quake II ''Quake II'' is a 1997 first-person shooter video game developed by id Software and published by Activision. It is the second installment of the ''Quake'' series, but not a direct sequel to '' Quake''. The game's storyline is continued in its ...

, and others, on CNET's

Download.com CNET Download (originally Download.com) is an Internet download directory website launched in 1996 as a part of CNET. Initially it resided on the domain ''download.com'', and then ''download.com.com'' for a while, and is now ''download.cnet.com'' ...

list of the most popular downloads in all categories. In 2001, versions of LView Pro started being titled using the year of release, the current version - as of May 2006 - is labeled ''LView Pro 2006''. In June 2005, after a 12-year run with MMedia Research, distribution rights to LView Pro were transferred to CoolMoon Corp. In October 2017, after a 12-year run with CoolMoon Corp, registration fees for the use of ''LView Pro 2006'' were waived by the author of the software.

Version history

LView software started as a pioneer JPEG viewer, one of the first to be available for download on the Internet. Major versions 1.* (1.0 to 1.D2) offered limited image editing capabilities (

crop A crop is a plant that can be grown and harvested extensively for profit or subsistence. When the plants of the same kind are cultivated at one place on a large scale, it is called a crop. Most crops are cultivated in agriculture or hydropon ...

, rotate, color adjustments, etc.) in addition to common image viewing operations (zooming, slideshows, etc.). Major versions 2.x (2.0 to 2.85) featured more extensive editing capabilities (brushes, selections,

histograms A histogram is an approximate representation of the distribution of numerical data. The term was first introduced by Karl Pearson. To construct a histogram, the first step is to " bin" (or "bucket") the range of values—that is, divide the en ...

gradients In vector calculus, the gradient of a scalar-valued differentiable function of several variables is the vector field (or vector-valued function) \nabla f whose value at a point p is the "direction and rate of fastest increase". If the grad ...

, etc.) as well as new editors for Web Picture Galleries, Contact Sheets, and others. Versions from 2001 to the current, support advanced image editing tools (layers, transparency, objects, etc.), similar to those found on commercial titles like Adobe Photoshop.

References

{{Reflist ;Notes
List of selected books referencing LView software
Raster graphics editors 1993 software