Replacing an image viewer is no easy task. Every user has a favorite program and tends to stick with it even when it's not the fastest or most efficient choice. However, we should always evaluate other options, especially if we're planning a clean reinstall of the operating system. The Imagine image viewer isn't as famous as the rest, but it offers 64-bit builds, a portable edition, and support for older systems.
One of the first tools I replace when reinstalling Windows is the image viewer. FastStone Image Viewer has been with me for years, and I have no complaints about its functionality, though I've noticed its recent builds have gained a bit of weight. We previously took a close look at ultra-compact viewers like qView and EZView, both stable and with good compatibility, but today I'd like to expand that selection and add Imagine, which has several features similar to FastStone while being lighter.
Imagine: A Lightweight Image Viewer for Your PC
You'll likely spend your first few minutes with Imagine getting used to its controls. Compared to other viewers, the differences aren't huge: the spacebar and Backspace move forward and backward through a photo gallery, the + and – keys on the numeric keypad adjust zoom (Ctrl + mouse wheel works the same way), and the arrow keys help you navigate within an image if it's larger than the window.
On the other hand, Imagine offers two mouse modes. The first is the default one, which applies selection and cropping commands to an image. The second is "Browse" (under View - Mouse Mode), which changes the mouse buttons to "Forward" and "Back" (and the scroll wheel behaves the same way). If you click too quickly on an image, you'll return to the navigation interface, and when you reach the end of a gallery, Imagine will ask if you want to start from the beginning (you can disable this message in the settings).
Finally, Imagine includes batch conversion and renaming functions, as well as support for scanners and screen capture. The program offers builds for 32 and 64 bits, with Unicode and ANSI variants (in case an old terminal with Windows 9x needs it). You can use the traditional installer or run the portable edition from a folder and set up the appropriate file associations. Another interesting aspect of Imagine is its plugins. If you need to open more exotic formats (say, Google's WebP), compressed files, or RAW images, don't hesitate to download a compatible plugin from the official page. Link below!
Official site and downloads: Click here
