Pencil/Eraser not working, please help

shamrock · **Joined:** Jan 22, 2019 **Posts:** 3

GIMP Version: 2.10.8
Operating System: Windows
OS Version: 10
GIMP Experience: Intermediate Level

Hello, I'm having some issues with my pencil and eraser. Neither of them will work. When I try to use them, it doesn't even show up in the undo history, so it doesn't appear to register at all. Also, when I try clicking and dragging, the cursor stops moving as if the program has frozen. I've tried selecting the correct layer, made sure the opacity and brush type is correct, reinstalling gimp, restarting my computer, all to no avail. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Wallace · **Posted:** Tue Jan 22, 2019 9:52 pm **(#2)**

shamrock wrote:

GIMP Version: 2.10.8
Operating System: Windows
OS Version: 10
GIMP Experience: Intermediate Level

Hello, I'm having some issues with my pencil and eraser. Neither of them will work. When I try to use them, it doesn't even show up in the undo history, so it doesn't appear to register at all. Also, when I try clicking and dragging, the cursor stops moving as if the program has frozen. I've tried selecting the correct layer, made sure the opacity and brush type is correct, reinstalling gimp, restarting my computer, all to no avail. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Can you attempt to reset the preferences to default values,
then let us know if this worked?

To reset Gimp's preferences to default values:
Open Gimp.
Navigate to Edit> Preferences.
From any tab, click on the "Reset Button".

A small dialog will appear:

shamrock · **Joined:** Jan 22, 2019 **Posts:** 3

I've tried resetting everything, but that hasn't worked

Wallace · **Posted:** Wed Jan 23, 2019 4:58 pm **(#4)**

shamrock wrote:

I've tried resetting everything, but that hasn't worked

Sorry to hear that.
Another thing you can try.
Is to rename the Gimp User Profile Folder.
Once this has been done.
Launch Gimp and it will create a new User Profile folder.
Then you can check to see if this corrected the issue.

In Gimp 2.10,
the user profile is located at AppData/Roaming.

For more info on the Gimp 2.10 User Profile,
check the link below.

Gimp 2.10 Personal/User Folder Location

shamrock · **Joined:** Jan 22, 2019 **Posts:** 3

After creating a new user profile, it works again! Thank you very much for your help. I was really starting to stress.

Wallace · **Posted:** Wed Jan 23, 2019 5:13 pm **(#6)**

shamrock wrote:

After creating a new user profile, it works again! Thank you very much for your help. I was really starting to stress.

I'm happy this worked for you.

:yes

Most Gimp Interface issues,
can be corrected my creating a new user profile.

vA+6Q-Hv[BX] · **Joined:** Nov 08, 2016 **Posts:** 45

GIMP 2.10.30, Linux, XFCE desktop, mouse input device

I had the same problem - the pencil, eraser, and paintbrush just stopped working. I searched the Net and it seems to be a frequent issue. I've used GIMP long enough to know to check the standard things - layers, selections, etc. I restarted GIMP, created a new image and tried the pencil. Nope.

I came across this entry. I copied $HOME/.config/GIMP/2.10 and then Reset Tool Options. I compared the two directories. When I compared gimp-paintbrush-tool, the option that was different was "dynamics". When the options were reset, it was set to "Off", when they weren't working it was set to "Negative Size Pressure". Maybe I'm still getting use to the new UI and colors, but I stared at that Paintbrush dialog and it just didn't jump out. I don't mess w/dynamics. I don't know how it got changed. I don't save "Tool Options on Exit". But now I know what to look for... :-) So if anyone comes across this post, I hope this additional information helps.

Wallace · **Posted:** Mon Mar 21, 2022 1:14 am **(#8)**

vA+6Q-Hv[BX] wrote:

GIMP 2.10.30, Linux, XFCE desktop, mouse input device

I had the same problem - the pencil, eraser, and paintbrush just stopped working. I searched the Net and it seems to be a frequent issue. I've used GIMP long enough to know to check the standard things - layers, selections, etc. I restarted GIMP, created a new image and tried the pencil. Nope.

I came across this entry. I copied $HOME/.config/GIMP/2.10 and then Reset Tool Options. I compared the two directories. When I compared gimp-paintbrush-tool, the option that was different was "dynamics". When the options were reset, it was set to "Off", when they weren't working it was set to "Negative Size Pressure". Maybe I'm still getting use to the new UI and colors, but I stared at that Paintbrush dialog and it just didn't jump out. I don't mess w/dynamics. I don't know how it got changed. I don't save "Tool Options on Exit". But now I know what to look for... :-) So if anyone comes across this post, I hope this additional information helps.

Any additional info is always appreciated.
:bigthup

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