__/ [ Oliver Wong ] on Thursday 13 July 2006 18:33 \__
>
> "Roy Schestowitz" <newsgroups@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
> news:6173595.zReWuSFTBW@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>> Ease the move: 6 Linux apps for Windows
>>
>> ,----[ Quote ]
>> | Today, we are going to look at how to ease the transition from Windows
>> | to Linux by running some of the most popular and common Linux
>> applications
>> | on Windows.
>> `----
>>
>> http://www.geekingear.com/2006/07/ease-move-6-linux-apps-for-windows.html
>
> What bugs me about this article is that the author didn't actually
> verify his (her?) claims for practicality.
>
> <quote>
> While I have never used the Windows version of Evolution, I expect that it
> meets the same high standards as the Linux version.
> </quote>
>
> I.e. this program works great on Linux, so obviously, the scenario of a
> user having trouble with it on Windows is unimaginable.
True. The port was made available for Windows only a couple of weeks ago. I
imagine that it is less than predictable for a variety of reasons. That
aside, a year or so ago, a colleague of mine, who regularly uses Evolution
on Linux, said something to that effect about the Linux version. I
personally prefer Thunderbird, having migrated from KMail last year. No
Exchange support/integration though. Thunderbird's calendar does not do this
either. Yet. But there are other options out there.
> Otherwise, the list was what you'd expect: Firefox, Thunderbird, Open
> Office, GAIM, The GIMP, etc.
>
> It's been a while since I tried GAIM, so I don't if this has been fixed
> yet, but at the time it was lacking support for display pictures, webcam
> chat, handwritten messages, and activity integration. Handwritten messages
> is a big one for me, because I'll occasionally do a quick game design
> discussion with some peers, and it's very handy to quickly draw a diagram
> (of the shape of a starship base, for example) than to try to explain it in
> words. Also, Minesweeper Flags is an extremely fun and addictive "shared
> activity" on MSN messenger.
One area where I still know of no GNU/Linux solution is collaborative
blackboard-type application. I came across this question/enquiry twice
before in the newsgroups...
> I couldn't get into The Gimp. I'm not a Photoshop user; actually, I
> primarily use Paint Shop Pro. I couldn't figure out how to do any of the
> things I wanted to do in The Gimp. It looks like it's mainly designed to
> generate artwork assets for websites (e.g. it has automatic banner, button,
> etc. generators). Doesn't seem so great for composing images from scratch
> (e.g. character designs).
I used Paint Shop Pro for a few years. I also had Photoshop as a teenager,
but it wasn't as fun and quick to use as Kai's Powergoo (was that the name?
just googled it and this seems right...). I have been using nothing but The
GIMP for the past few years and I must confess that it's excellent in every
way. It's just /different/. One has to get familiar with the UI, which also
increases productivity by the way.
> I do use Firefox, Thunderbird, and Open Office on my WinXP machine, and
> I'm pretty satisfied with the first two. Open Office is okay, but it
> crashes pretty regularly on my machine, destroying the document along with
> it.
I rarely (if ever) use OpenOffice, but I happily use Firefox and Thunderbird,
which are best bar none once loaded with many extensions that suit you.
Without extensions, they are always mediocre, but just as was the case with
The GIMP, they require patience and careful exploration. As licences never
run out, the skills remain valuable forever. I learned too many applications
in the past -- once which I no longer use and will never use, either. What a
total waste of time that was...
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