Splashup
The business, the turning points, and the decisions behind them.
Some sections are still being researched2 / 4
Sections to complete：02 · 05
01 / WHAT IT BUILT
What the company did
Splashup was an online image editor, originally launched as Fauxto and built on Adobe Flash, that aimed to bring Photoshop-like editing into the browser. Unusually for a web app of its era, it supported layers, floating tool palettes, selection-based effects, multiple open photos, and its own file format for re-editable layered files, along with social features for sharing photos and webcam capture. The product won praise for mimicking Photoshop with striking fidelity, though reviewers noted speed and reliability issues, sparse special effects, and no online help.
02 / FAILURE REASONS
Material for this section is being gathered and checked. It will appear here once ready.
03 / EVENT HISTORY
Events in the structured record
- Fauxto launched
Splashup began life as Fauxto, a Flex-based web image editor in beta, covered by Lifehacker, Mashable, and Web Worker Daily as an impressive Photoshop-in-the-browser experiment.
- Renamed Splashup
The product was renamed Splashup and continued development with social features like photo sharing and browsing other users' photos, earning press coverage as the most Photoshop-like online editor of its wave.
04 / CONTEMPORARY REBUILD ASSESSMENT
Difficulty of rebuilding this project today
Material for this section is being gathered and checked. It will appear here once ready.
Overall assessment: Not completed
05 / CAUSAL CHAIN / AFTERMATH
Material for this section is being gathered and checked. It will appear here once ready.