# How to manage the image-output / image-tools node conflict (split topic)

**URL:** <https://discourse.nodered.org/t/how-to-manage-the-image-output-image-tools-node-conflict-split-topic/24122>\
**Category:** General\
**Created:** [2 April 2020 18:32 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/how-to-manage-the-image-output-image-tools-node-conflict-split-topic/24122 "2020-04-02T18:32:09Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
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**Author:** ![Steve-Mcl](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex026/user_avatar/discourse.nodered.org/steve-mcl/32/4826_2.png) [@Steve-Mcl](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/Steve-Mcl)\
**Post date:** [9 April 2020 14:31 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/how-to-manage-the-image-output-image-tools-node-conflict-split-topic/24122/6 "2020-04-09T14:31:56Z")

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Hi @BartButenaers / @dceejay , so as discussed, I have been evaluating both image viewer nodes in both contribs `-image-tools` and `-image-output` with a view to removing the built in viewer in favour of the stand alone node.

### Rough comparison...

- `image-output` uses `jimp-compact`, `image-tools` uses `jimp`

- `-image-tools` does not have an output enable button

- `-image-output` has no pass though (no output pin), (`-image-tools` has a pass though for inline / chained operations (output pin))

- `-image-output` doesn't work with a full data URL ([spec](https://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc2397) / [mdn](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/HTTP/Basics_of_HTTP/Data_URIs)) e.g. `data:[<mediatype>][;base64],<data>`

- `-image-tools` viewer accepts everything `image-output` does + filename + Image URL + (complete) data URLs

- `image-output` resizes image at server-side to reduce traffic back to node-red editor

_These are partly the reasons I initially added the viewer (I'll try to find original conversation for reference - if necessary) but mostly the `image-output` did not have `Jimp` as a dependency at the time of development - and seemed a lot to ask devs to add_

### Demo...

Here's a demo to try and put the above words into a picture...  
note the deliberate typo in the image - base62 🙄

 ![8BtuIc0YyG](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex026/uploads/nodered/original/3X/c/2/c2df0cb2127ca3741bd9731705b1e46199d13cf2.gif)

What are your thoughts on aligning our 2 viewer nodes in order for me to consider removing the internal viewer?

### NOTES

I have modified the original image viewer node to make this demo work (some bug fixes in image-tools viewer I happily happened upon!) + there was another conflict I had to resolve before I could test these side-by-side (both image viewers subscribed to the same comm (`RED.comms.subscribe('image'...`) so events were occurring twice at client side.

Image URL issue...

 ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex026/uploads/nodered/original/3X/1/6/16d83b8d89f9836bfdc02aa3cb6c05848f436bbb.png)

Data URL issue...

 ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex026/uploads/nodered/original/3X/9/0/906b13568cce9ef907f3c006a4c5256b45544ca6.png)

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_[View the full topic](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/how-to-manage-the-image-output-image-tools-node-conflict-split-topic/24122)._