How to install Krita 5.2.14 on a Chromebook

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Chromebook Specials

In this tutorial, we'll walk you through the complete process of installing Krita 5.2.14 on your Chromebook. Krita is a powerful, professional-grade digital painting application that's completely free and open-source. Whether you're a digital artist, illustrator, or simply someone interested in creating stunning artwork, Krita offers an impressive array of brushes, tools, and features that rival expensive commercial alternatives.

About Krita

Krita has been developed by artists for artists, with a focus on concept art, texture painting, matte painting, illustrations, and comics. It features an intuitive interface, stabilizers for smooth drawing, layer management, advanced brush engines, and support for various file formats including PSD. What makes Krita particularly appealing is that it's completely free—no subscriptions, no hidden costs, just a powerful creative tool at your fingertips.

System Requirements

Important: This tutorial will only work on Chromebooks with an Intel or AMD CPU that support Linux Apps (Crostini). Unfortunately, this method is not compatible with Chromebooks using an ARM64 architecture CPU.

You can verify whether your Chromebook supports Linux Apps by checking our comprehensive list of all currently supported Chromebooks with Linux Apps (Crostini) support.

Video Tutorial

We recommend following along with our video tutorial above, which provides a visual step-by-step guide through the entire installation process. The written instructions and commands below complement the video and can serve as a quick reference.

Installation Instructions

Step 1: Enable Linux Apps

If you haven't already enabled Linux Apps on your Chromebook, you'll need to do so first. Navigate to your Chromebook's Settings, click on "Advanced" in the left panel, then select "Developers." Look for the "Linux development environment" option and click "Turn On." Follow the prompts to complete the setup. This will create a Linux container on your Chromebook where you can run Linux applications.

Step 2: Update Your System

Once Linux Apps are enabled, open the Terminal application from your app drawer. We'll start by updating the package repositories to ensure we're working with the latest software information:

sudo apt update

This command refreshes your system's list of available packages and their versions, ensuring you have access to the most recent software.

Step 3: Install Required Dependencies

Next, we'll install several packages that Krita needs to run properly. KMenuEdit is a menu editor that will help us add Krita to your application menu, while FUSE (Filesystem in Userspace) and libnss3 are libraries required for AppImage files to function correctly:

sudo apt install kmenuedit fuse libnss3

When prompted, press Enter or type 'Y' to confirm the installation.

Step 4: Download Krita

Now we'll download the Krita AppImage file. AppImages are self-contained application packages that include everything the software needs to run, making them extremely portable and easy to use:

wget -c https://download.kde.org/stable/krita/5.2.14/krita-5.2.14-x86_64.AppImage

The download may take a few minutes depending on your internet connection speed, as Krita is approximately 200-300 MB in size.

Step 5: Make the AppImage Executable

After downloading, we need to grant execution permissions to the AppImage file. This tells your system that this file is a program that can be run:

chmod 755 krita-5.2.14-x86_64.AppImage

Step 6: Test Launch Krita

Before adding Krita to your application menu, let's verify that it works correctly by launching it directly from the terminal:

./krita-5.2.14-x86_64.AppImage

Krita should open after a few moments. If it launches successfully, you can close it and proceed to the next step. This initial launch may take slightly longer as Krita sets up its configuration files.

Step 7: Add Krita to Your Application Menu

To make Krita easily accessible from your Chromebook's app drawer without needing to use the terminal each time, we'll create a menu entry using KMenuEdit:

kmenuedit

When KMenuEdit opens, follow these steps:

  1. Choose an appropriate category for Krita (such as "Graphics" or create a new category)
  2. Click on "New Item" to create a new menu entry
  3. Enter a name for the application (e.g., "Krita 5.2.14")
  4. In the "Command" field, enter the full path to your AppImage file. If you downloaded it to your home directory, this would be: /home/[your-username]/krita-5.2.14-x86_64.AppImage
  5. Optionally, you can add a description and select an icon
  6. Click "Save" to create the launcher

You can also reference this Google Doc used in the tutorial for additional visual guidance.

Launching Krita

Once you've created the menu entry, you can now launch Krita directly from your Chromebook's application drawer just like any other app. Simply search for "Krita" or navigate to the category where you placed it, and click to open.

Tips for Using Krita on Chromebook

Here are some helpful tips to enhance your Krita experience on your Chromebook:

  • Use a stylus: If your Chromebook supports stylus input, Krita will take full advantage of pressure sensitivity and tilt features, providing a natural drawing experience.
  • Adjust performance settings: If you experience lag, you can adjust Krita's performance settings under Settings > Configure Krita > Performance to better match your Chromebook's capabilities.
  • Save regularly: While Krita includes auto-save features, it's always good practice to manually save your work frequently, especially on ChromeOS.
  • Explore tutorials: Krita has an extensive library of tutorials and documentation on their official website to help you master the application.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

If Krita won't launch: Make sure you've installed all the required dependencies (fuse and libnss3). You can re-run the installation command to ensure they're properly installed.

If performance is slow: Consider reducing the canvas size or working with fewer layers. Some Chromebooks have limited resources, so optimizing your workflow can help.

If the AppImage becomes corrupted: Simply delete the file and download it again using the wget command provided above.

Need Help?

If you encounter any issues during the installation process or have questions about using Krita on your Chromebook, please don't hesitate to reach out via a YouTube comment on our tutorial video. We're here to help and typically respond within 24 hours!

Additional Resources

Official Krita Website: https://krita.org/en/

Visit the official site for comprehensive documentation, tutorials, and to explore the full capabilities of this amazing digital painting application.

Have a look at our Chromebook comparison and Buyers Guide if you're considering upgrading your device!

You can also join our mailing list to be notified about all major Chromebook sales and never miss a great deal.

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