Install imageworsener with Homebrew, Nix

Project links

• Homepage
• Repository
• Upstream docs
• Package manager page

Commands and aliases

• imagew

Project history

ImageWorsener began in 2011 and reached public 0.9.0-era tags that year. The readme for version 1.3.5 lists copyright years 2011-2022, describes a command-line utility plus library, and records a licensing change from GPLv3+ in versions through 1.1.0 to an MIT-style license afterward.

The project developed around precise treatment of resampling, gamma correction, transparency, grayscale conversion, and high bit depth images. Its technical notes explicitly describe the program as a correctness-first tool that does not trade accuracy for speed, while also separating a core processing library from file-format I/O and the `imagew` command-line frontend.

Adoption history

ImageWorsener's adoption has been modest but durable. It appears in Homebrew and Nix metadata and is packaged in other Unix-like ports systems, but its niche is less everyday image conversion and more users who care about resampling behavior, gamma correctness, and reproducible command-line processing.

The project site provides source archives and Windows binaries, while the GitHub repository offers source-control access. Homebrew analytics show sparse installs, which matches a specialized utility whose main value is fidelity and technical documentation rather than broad batch-conversion convenience.

How it is used

The `imagew` command reads an input file and writes an output file, with options for resizing, best-fit behavior, format selection, bit depth, dithering, posterization, grayscale conversion, background colors, and channel offsets. It supports regular files, standard input/output schemes, and Windows clipboard input for some builds.

The documentation emphasizes file-format support for PNG, JPEG, BMP, and WebP, with partial support for GIF, TIFF, MIFF, and Netpbm-family formats. The library API is intentionally lower level and less documented than the command.

Why package nerds care

ImageWorsener is interesting to package nerds because it is the opposite of a convenience wrapper: a small C utility that prioritizes image-processing correctness and documents the tradeoffs. Its long technical notes make it a reference-like package for people comparing resampling behavior across ImageMagick, GraphicsMagick, and purpose-built tools.

Timeline

• 2011: Early ImageWorsener tags and copyright history begin.
• 2011: Version 0.9.0 appears in the source repository.
• 2010s: The project accumulated technical essays on resampling, gamma, grayscale, alpha resizing, and filters.
• 2022: Version 1.3.5 was released with source archives and Windows binaries.
• 2026: Homebrew continues to package ImageWorsener as a niche image-processing utility.

Related projects

• The technical notes compare ImageWorsener's space with ImageMagick and GraphicsMagick, and cite resampling discussions such as Eric Brasseur's gamma article and VirtualDub's resampler article as inspirations. Its file-format support also depends on libraries such as libpng, zlib, libjpeg, and libwebp when enabled.

Sources

• https://entropymine.com/imageworsener/
• https://formulae.brew.sh/api/formula/imageworsener.json
• https://github.com/jsummers/imageworsener
• https://raw.githubusercontent.com/jsummers/imageworsener/master/readme.txt
• https://raw.githubusercontent.com/jsummers/imageworsener/master/technical.txt