As a business writer I will need to edit, add or create a graphic for every blog post that I write. I've tested Fotojet, compared it with two other graphics programs I use, and found it to be a winner.

The beauty is that  Fotojet  is a browser app, so there is no software to install, no updates to download, no registration required and it works on any computer.

This was important because my main device is a Chromebook laptop, which has no hard drive and thus no installed programs. The basic version of Fotojet is free, and the paid version is $40 per year ($3.33 per month).

The app calls itself a "Free Online Collage Maker," but it does an excellent job of cropping, resizing, rotating, color- and exposure-adjusting photos. I expect to use the one-click "Auto-Enhance" button a lot. The advanced editing features include sharpen and focus, which I can see being useful, and other less-useful graphic features like vignette, noise or color splash. 

Add text and print

Another handy use is to add text into a photo, and there are dozens of fonts. The clipart collection includes a line, arrow and outlined shapes. Also, I can print directly from the app, without having to download or email a graphic to myself. Pictures can be saved in low-, medium- or high-resolution.

Fotojet is made by PearlMountain Limited in Hong Kong, a company founded in 2006. It makes graphics software for the Mac, and a few for Windows, for scrapbookers and collage makers. The 2016 version 4.2.0 has 61,200 users in Chrome. Fotojet requires Adobe Flash Player (which is against the religion of Mac users), and needs IE version 10.0 or higher, Firefox 10.0 or higher, Safari 7.0 or higher and Google Chrome 14.0 or higher.

It supports JPEG, PNG, GIF, TIFF and BMP formats -- in other words, everything I'll ever use. A clever approach is found in "Design," which will open a blank screen sized for social media such as a Facebook cover graphic, Twitter header, instagrm Post or YouTube channel art.

It's fun to explore the app to see what the features do -- like "color splash" to turn a photo into black-and-white and then to make on person in the picture in color, for example. I'll never use it in my work, but this was cool.

This demonstrated that the primary users of Fotojet will be the Pinterest crowd, because it can create collages, make banner ads and flyers, and put stickers or emojis into an image. Fotojet has other artsy uses like putting frames on an image, or adding an overlay like "burst," "fabric" or "grunge" onto a photo. Similarly, "Effect" will let me put a photo into sepia or make it look like an old Polaroid photo.

Up to now I've been using PicMonkey, which has the same edit, touch up, design and collage functions. The only difference I can detect is that PicMonkey has a browser extension that takes a screenshot that I can then edit in the app. PicMonkey has a free version and a more expensive paid "Royale" version for $33 per year ($4.99 a month). I find PicMonkey a little more difficult to use and will probably switch when my Royale subscription runs out. 

Both programs are much better than Corel Paintshop Pro which is installed on my backup Windows 10 laptop. Paintshop Pro costs $39, but it is buggy, has features that won't start or will crash, and requires training as a graphic artist to get the most use out of it. I also like the two browser apps better than the installation-required Adobe Photoshop Elements, which costs $25. Elements has limited functions and is difficult to use.