Massive thanks to (e:Paul) for helping me finally make the switch to Fedora on my laptop! So far, it's been running without a hitch. I have found some linux alternatives for my most heavily used programs. However, I am still missing some. I am hoping that all these missing alternatives don't break the switch... Any suggestions that you might have are more than welcome.
Web browsing
Chrome ---> Chrome
Media
VLC --> VLC --> Amarok (? I am not sure if it supports all the various formats FLAC, APE, Ogg, WMV etc like foobar2000 though. Any alternatives?)
Documents
LaTeX ---> LaTeX
PDFXChange Viewer with Wine --> ??????? I am completely stumped here.
MS Word --> MS Word using VMbox? (haven't installed this yet). Openoffice completely messes up formats between its odt format and the doc format so I'd rather not use it and spent time fixing ridiculous formatting conflicts.
Virtual PDF printer driver with a very small footprint that I use to print things to PDF. Again, not sure about alternatives.
Distraction-free black full-screen writing environment. Do you know of any fedora alternatives?
Analysis
R --> R
TinnR --> ???? I use this extensively for writing R code and push the code from TinnR to R for running. It highlights syntax and helps me keep track of coding rules. Any linux alternatives that will integrate with R and has colour coding?
Art
myPaint --> myPaint
Irfanview --> ????
Fotographix --> ????
I would love some suggestions for PDF annotation, highlighting and commenting. I used PDF XChange viewer for this with Wine but I can't find an equivalent piece of native software for Linux. PDFs form the backbone of what I read and use day in and day out and this could just be the deciding factor for me for staying on with the Fedora system or switching back to Ubuntu. Any input you can give me would be awesome! I really don't want to go back to Ubuntu - now that I have seen all the charms of Fedora.
Tinypliny's Journal
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09/17/2010 08:56 #52765
Fedora Switch and PDF alternativesCategory: i-tech
09/14/2010 22:20 #52734
Ink = Terrible FilmCategory: the odes
What a waste of a good 1 hour. I realized 10 minutes into the film that I would be fast-forwarding my way through it. What I didn't realize was that even with the fast-forwarding the "slowness" of the film remains with you and drags you slowly and painfully by the tip of your smashed nose.
Yuckety yuck. Life is too short to be wasting an hour on garbage that tries to pass off as an "Indie". I wish I had never found Gnod
Ink was such an AWFUL recommendation. I am never going back to Gnod. EVER
Yuckety yuck. Life is too short to be wasting an hour on garbage that tries to pass off as an "Indie". I wish I had never found Gnod
Ink was such an AWFUL recommendation. I am never going back to Gnod. EVER 09/12/2010 16:16 #52723
Question for e:lilhoCategory: opinion
I have *really* thick hair that outgrows a cut in less than 2 weeks but I am not ready for that salon pilgrimage just yet.
Do you have any recommendations for the type of thinning shears I should get? There seem to many types around but I just want one that would take all the bulk away. Thoughts?
Do you have any recommendations for the type of thinning shears I should get? There seem to many types around but I just want one that would take all the bulk away. Thoughts?
libertad - 09/13/10 15:09
I can't believe that thing has so many good reviews! I think you should give us a video demonstration.
I can't believe that thing has so many good reviews! I think you should give us a video demonstration.
tinypliny - 09/12/10 21:20
It's got glowing reviews on Amazon :::link:::
Maybe I should try this considering every second person on Amazon has "used it for 15 years now".
It's got glowing reviews on Amazon :::link:::
Maybe I should try this considering every second person on Amazon has "used it for 15 years now".
paul - 09/12/10 21:18
I do not have one, I always just buzz cut my hair with buzz cutters.
I do not have one, I always just buzz cut my hair with buzz cutters.
tinypliny - 09/12/10 21:15
Do you have it?! Such a kooky idea!
Do you have it?! Such a kooky idea!
tinypliny - 09/12/10 21:12
You mean I will be so frustrated that I might want to drill a hole in my head? :::link:::
You mean I will be so frustrated that I might want to drill a hole in my head? :::link:::
paul - 09/12/10 20:52
OMG, don't do it. Everytime, I have tried to cut my own hair with scissors it turns into a disaster. You will keep trimming trying to balance it until you end up with no hair. You should get a flowbee :::link:::
OMG, don't do it. Everytime, I have tried to cut my own hair with scissors it turns into a disaster. You will keep trimming trying to balance it until you end up with no hair. You should get a flowbee :::link:::
lilho - 09/12/10 17:01
hmmm, my honest reccomendation would be to not take the shears to your own head ever!!! however, if your hair is quite short, which i remember it being you can probably get some decent thinning shears a sally's beauty supply. make sure they are sharp, the sharper the better. when you thin out the hair, choose a tuft of hair under the surface so that it will not be noticable. take a small section of hair and cut from the sides not the top. when you cut from the top, you end up with lines in your hair. next time you get a cut, ask them to thin it out for you... i wish i had this issue!
hmmm, my honest reccomendation would be to not take the shears to your own head ever!!! however, if your hair is quite short, which i remember it being you can probably get some decent thinning shears a sally's beauty supply. make sure they are sharp, the sharper the better. when you thin out the hair, choose a tuft of hair under the surface so that it will not be noticable. take a small section of hair and cut from the sides not the top. when you cut from the top, you end up with lines in your hair. next time you get a cut, ask them to thin it out for you... i wish i had this issue!
09/11/2010 08:30 #52704
Totally Verdi of being heard.Category: music
I am in love with this particular chorus from Nabucco. It combines two of my favourites - a waltz rhythm and a multi-voice operatic chorus.
PS: A bit too much make-up for the occasion but the singing is spectacular.
PS: A bit too much make-up for the occasion but the singing is spectacular.
09/10/2010 20:39 #52698
I think I now believe...Category: music
... in reincarnations. Bublé is really like Sinatra singing Baroque style (as someone else once said).
Somehow, listening to Bublé makes me wish Ella Fitzgerald were still alive to sing a duet with Bublé. And while that might not be such an outlandish wish, I also wonder about how Bublé's interpretations of Whitney Houston's most famous hits might be. I wish he would try them someday.
Missing Image ;(
Somehow, listening to Bublé makes me wish Ella Fitzgerald were still alive to sing a duet with Bublé. And while that might not be such an outlandish wish, I also wonder about how Bublé's interpretations of Whitney Houston's most famous hits might be. I wish he would try them someday.
Check out pyroom (e:paul,52769). I can make it do the typewriter sounds if you want them. Its wonderfully open source.
I would also look at open office again, in case it has changed at all since you last used it. They are constantly working on and updating it.
Looks like Wine might be able to support Office 2007 as well. :::link:::
This laptop that I have came with Vista - which was unbearable. So I had to switch to a very stripped down and modded version of WinXP, add SATA drivers that were not in WinXp and jump through other crazy hoops to make it all streamlined and minimal --> :::link:::
But this whole fedora switch required almost 90% less effort for 50% more performance. Pretty impressive! :-)
You know if this experiment runs successfully, I am going to be writing a LOT about this switch to encourage half the WinXP people hovering on the hedge to fall into Fedora. Who knows, it might just overtake all those google hits for the Penang sauce.
When saving files rom wine apps, make sure to choose Z: drive (which is your linux area) and then home, then you user, then documents or desktop or wherever you want. I love fedora even more today.
I got PDF-XChange to run in fedora natively with wine. you don't need to switch. I posted instructions at (e:paul,52766) in case anyone else needs them.
Same thing for Q10. I didn't try the others but I am sure you can either use or find alternatives.
For PDF printing, you do not need anything. It is built in by default. Just go to print anything with regular print dialogue, choose print to file option and select PDF. I think PS is the default.