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V

A route

I want to design without uploading anything.

What is sent, what is not, and how to work with no connection at all. 13 guides, about 41 minutes in total, in the order that gets you there.

The route, in order

  1. What "private" means for a web editor and a two-minute test you can run on any tool.Photo editors that do not upload your photos: how to tell"Online photo editor" says where the app came from, not where your photo goes. Most web editors send the image to their servers to process it; a few do the work inside your browser and send nothing. You can tell in two minutes: open the browser's developer tools on the Network tab, load a photo into the editor and apply an edit, and look for a request roughly the size of your photo leaving the page. Then switch the browser to offline and try the same edit. A tool that keeps working offline and sends nothing the size of your image is processing on your device. Voidcanvas is built that way, and the exact list of what it does send is below.Beginner6 minHelp and privacy
  2. Cloud tools and local-first tools look the same in a tab. Where your files go in each.Browser-based design tools: where your files actually goThere are two kinds of browser-based design tool. Cloud tools upload your files to their servers, do some or all of the work there, and store your designs in your account; the browser is a window onto their service. Local-first tools download the app into your browser and do the work on your device; your files are read and saved locally and never need to leave. Both look the same in a tab. The difference decides who holds your client's files, whether it works offline, and what happens to your work if the service changes. Voidcanvas is local-first.Beginner2 minStart here
  3. AI that runs on your device, and how to check any tool.AI tools that never see your imageAn AI image tool is private when the model runs on your device. Most online AI tools upload your photo to a server, run the model there and send the result back. On-device tools download the model once into your browser and run it locally with WebGPU or WebAssembly; the image never leaves, the tool works offline after the first use, and there are no credits. The trade-off is a one-time download and less raw power than a data centre. In the Voidcanvas Editor all five AI tools work this way.Beginner2 minEditor
  4. What works without an account, and what an optional one adds.Design without an account: what you keep and what you give upYou do not need an account for anything that makes or exports a design: the Editor, Studio, Effects, the quick tools, PSD import, the AI tools and every export work without one, free, with no watermark. An account is optional and adds three things: settings that follow you between devices, teams that share client brands and jobs, and review and delivery links for clients. What those send is encrypted on your device first. Your designs never sync either way; they stay on the device, or in files you save.Beginner2 minStart here
  5. Exactly what Voidcanvas sends and what never leaves your device.What Voidcanvas sends and what stays on your deviceYour images and designs stay on your device unless you choose a feature that shares them, and then they are encrypted first. The complete list of what goes over the network, and how to turn the usage counts off.Beginner4 minHelp and privacy
  6. The three kinds of software, the one-minute offline test, and what to prepare before a flight.Offline design software, including the browser apps that work offlineA design tool works offline when it can open, edit, save and export with no connection, not just show you the last screen. Three kinds of software behave three ways. Installed desktop apps (GIMP, Inkscape, Krita, Scribus, Affinity, and the Voidcanvas desktop app) work offline by nature; files live on your disk. Browser apps that install themselves keep a copy of the app on your device after the first visit and keep working when the connection drops; Voidcanvas is one, and after one visit the Editor, Studio and Effects run offline with your designs stored in the browser. Web apps that need a connection load their editor and your files from a server each time, so they stop or go read-only without one. The test below tells you which kind you have in one minute.Beginner5 minStart here
  7. The two-minute setup on a laptop, with no install.Edit photos on a laptop without installing anythingOpen the Editor in the laptop's browser (Chrome, Edge, Safari or Firefox) and drop a photo on it. That is the setup. It is a layered editor with adjustment layers, masks, selections, retouching and on-device background removal; the photo is never uploaded, and there is no account or watermark. To keep it one click away and working offline, install it as an app from the browser (the install icon in the address bar in Chrome and Edge, File, Add to Dock in Safari). On a trackpad, pinch to zoom and hold Space to pan.Beginner2 minStart here
  8. The full Editor on a Chromebook, installed and offline.Graphic design on a ChromebookOpen the Editor in Chrome and install it from the icon at the right of the address bar. You get the full desktop Editor (layers, masks, adjustment layers, selections, effects, PSD import) in its own window, working offline after the first visit. Shortcuts use Ctrl. Designs are kept in Chrome on the Chromebook; save a .void file to Downloads or Drive to back up or move them. On models with 4 GB of memory, keep other tabs closed while working on large designs.Beginner1 minStart here
  9. Install to the home screen or dock and use it offline.Install Voidcanvas as an app and use it offlineAdd Voidcanvas to your dock, desktop or home screen so it opens in its own window and keeps working without a connection.Beginner2 minStart here
  10. The desktop app for Windows, macOS and Linux.Use Voidcanvas as an app on your computerThe desktop app is the same Voidcanvas, installed, with your designs saved as .void files in a folder you own. It works offline and opens PSDs from your file browser.Beginner2 minStart here
  11. Where designs live and how to back them up.Where your designs are saved and how to keep them safeVoidcanvas saves everything inside your browser on this device, and as a real file when you choose. Learn how autosave, Save to disk, templates and versions work, what clears your work, and how to keep a backup.Beginner5 minStart here
  12. A private session on a shared computer.Use a private session on a shared computerA private session keeps everything in memory and writes nothing to the device. Learn when to use it, what it changes, and how Delete all my data works.Beginner3 minHelp and privacy
  13. The AI tools, and why they run locally.Use the AI tools that run on your deviceRemove background, select subject, object select, remove object and expand with AI fill: what each does, which model it uses, the one-time downloads, and what never leaves your browser.Beginner5 minEditor