Flatpak brings – A Flatpak release assembled by balooii makes it possible to run GIMP version 0.54—an early beta-era build associated with Windows 98’s rollout—on modern Linux desktops. The package includes patches to get the old code running, bundled plugins and tutorials fro
On a modern Linux desktop, it’s possible to open something that feels like it escaped from a different operating system era. A Flatpak release now lets people run GIMP version 0.54, the build from the days when Windows 98 was still “Windows 97,” as the project’s own presentation puts it.
The work behind it wasn’t just a nostalgia-friendly packaging job. balooii didn’t compile the old software and ship it as-is; the Flatpak repository includes a series of patches required to make the legacy code run on today’s systems.
There’s also a more concrete technical reason this release stands out: it’s described as the first version of GIMP with full surviving source code. The changes in the application over time are part of that story. Back then, GIMP used the Motif widget toolkit. Later, it switched to the GIMP Toolkit (GTK). This Flatpak is built to preserve that earlier setup.
The release doesn’t arrive bare. Bundled inside are plugins and tutorials created at the time, making the whole setup feel less like a software port and more like a time capsule. It’s a beta-era artifact too, with UI quirks that reflect the unfinished, experimental character of the period.
One design choice in particular draws sharp reactions from long-time GIMP users. This version uses multiple unconnected windows rather than an MDI (multiple document interface) approach. That multi-window behavior is associated with the older UI style. and the project notes that later GIMP releases dropped it—enraging proponents of the single-window approach that is widely used by commercial competitors. including Paint Shop Pro and Photoshop.
At the end of the day, running a 1996-era image editor on modern hardware may be for nostalgia. But the Flatpak doesn’t just celebrate the past—it preserves the code, the tooling ecosystem, and even the UI debates from when GIMP was still finding its shape.
Flatpak GIMP 0.54 Linux legacy software beta software Motif GTK image editing UI quirks