Classic SageThumbs and SageThumbs 2K are not two versions of one product, and this page exists to keep them un-confused. Classic SageThumbs is the original: written by Nikolay Raspopov (Cherubic Software), released under the GNU GPL version 2, hosted on SourceForge, with its last published installer, 2.0.0.23, dating from 9 May 2017 and covering 162 formats (224 extensions) via the GFL library. SageThumbs 2K is a separate, third-party project at sagethumbs.lunarwerx.com that describes itself as a clean-room rebuild of the concept; it is not written by Raspopov, it is not the original’s continuation, and it is distributed under the PolyForm Noncommercial license rather than the GPL. Similar names, similar purpose — different authors, different licences, different code.
Why the distinction matters
Names in software carry trust. When a page says SageThumbs is open source under the GPL, that statement is true of Raspopov’s program and false of the 2K rebuild, whose PolyForm Noncommercial terms restrict commercial use in ways the GPL does not. When a page quotes a format count, it matters whose count it is: 162 formats is the classic project’s own documented figure, while 2K’s site states 363 formats — that larger number is the 2K project’s own claim about its own software, presented here only to distinguish the two and not endorsed or verified by this site. Downloads matter most of all: the classic installer comes from the SourceForge project and the author’s site at cherubicsoft.com, and a file calling itself SageThumbs from anywhere else deserves a careful look before it is run.
- Classic: author Nikolay Raspopov / Cherubic Software; GPL version 2; SourceForge; 2.0.0.23 (2017); 162 formats via GFL.
- 2K: third-party project at sagethumbs.lunarwerx.com; describes itself as a clean-room rebuild; PolyForm Noncommercial license; states 363 formats (their claim).
- Not the same: author, code lineage, licence, download source and format count all differ.
- This site, sagethumbs.org, documents the classic program; it is itself an independent resource site, not the official site of either project.
Side by side
| Factor | Classic SageThumbs | SageThumbs 2K |
|---|---|---|
| Author | Nikolay Raspopov (Cherubic Software) | A separate third-party project (Lunarwerx) |
| Relationship | The original program | A self-described clean-room rebuild — not an official successor |
| Licence | GNU GPL version 2 | PolyForm Noncommercial |
| Official home | cherubicsoft.com and SourceForge | sagethumbs.lunarwerx.com |
| Latest release discussed here | 2.0.0.23, 9 May 2017 | See the project’s own site |
| Format count | 162 formats (224 extensions) via GFL, plus 26 via XnView plugins | 363 formats, as stated by the 2K project itself (not verified here) |
| Cost / use terms | Free under the GPL, including commercial use of the tool | Noncommercial terms — read its licence before any workplace use |
Which one should you use?
That is genuinely your decision, and it turns on the rows above rather than on the shared name. If you want the original program — GPL freedom, the documented 162-format list, hashes you can verify against the SourceForge release, and the behaviour this site’s guides describe — install classic SageThumbs from its official channels. If you are curious about the rebuild, evaluate it as what it is: a different program by different people under different terms, starting from its own site and its own licence, and pay particular attention to the noncommercial restriction if the machine is a work machine. What you should not do is treat a download, a format count or a licence from one as if it belonged to the other — which is the whole reason this comparison exists.
How confusion like this happens
The 2K situation is a familiar pattern in long-lived free software. A program becomes beloved, its author stops releasing new versions, the formats of the world keep moving, and eventually someone — often with genuine respect for the original — rebuilds the idea for the present day. The rebuild may be excellent work; that is not the question this page answers. The question is identity: whose work it is, under what terms it may be used, and where its downloads and claims come from. Clean-room development, which the 2K project states it practised, exists precisely to create something legally and technically separate — separate is the operative word in both directions. The original does not gain the rebuild’s features, and the rebuild does not inherit the original’s licence, authorship or track record. Keeping the two straight protects everyone: Raspopov’s work is credited for what it is, the rebuild is judged on its own merits and terms, and users install the program they actually intended to install.
If you arrived here because a search result or a download page blurred the two names together, you now have the test to apply anywhere: check the author line and the licence. Raspopov and GPL means the classic program; a rebuild credit and PolyForm Noncommercial means the other one. Two questions, five seconds, and the confusion this page exists to prevent simply cannot survive them.
Frequently asked questions
Is SageThumbs 2K the new version of SageThumbs?
No. It is a separate third-party project that describes itself as a clean-room rebuild. The original author, Nikolay Raspopov, publishes classic SageThumbs through cherubicsoft.com and SourceForge.
Is SageThumbs 2K open source under the GPL?
No. The classic program is GPL version 2. The 2K project uses the PolyForm Noncommercial license, which is a different set of terms with a noncommercial restriction.
Does SageThumbs 2K really support 363 formats?
363 is the figure stated by the 2K project itself. This site has not verified it and presents it only to distinguish the two projects; the classic program’s documented figure is 162 formats (224 extensions).
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