[scribus] New Linux User -- Scribus in place of PageMaker 6?

[John Beardmore]

Frank Swygert wrote:

> I tried PagePlus... 8 or so, can't remember. It wouldn't run well on my 
> particular hardware at the time for some reason and the support team 
> wasn't much help, just noted that apparently there was a problem with my 
> hardware combination.

Never tried P+.  Looked at it and some of my friends like it, but prefer 
'where Scribus is coming from'.


> Anyway, I'm not looking for an alternative to PM6 -- I'm quite happy 
> with it!

I can see the writing on the wall for PM6.

Even under win2k it seemed to have the habit of turning into a zombie 
process on termination, not freeing system resources, and locking access 
to the printer. And it was none too stable when printing, had problems 
making high resolution PDFs, issues with the reusability of material, 
and no spelling checker. OK, it works under XP, but vista and
beyond ?


> I wouldn't "upgrade" it to any other version, the later 
> versions change the whole aspect of the software IMHO (I bought and sent 
> back PM7, and looked at a demo of InDesign -- obviously PM7 was a 
> gateway between the two, trying to "push" PM users in that direction).

I'm not sure about that. InDesign came out long before PM7 as I recall. 
The way Adobe did that in itself irritated me immensely.

The best gateway would have been for Adobe to make InDesign import P65 
files properly. Not a happy experience !


> What I'm looking for is an alternative to Windows that I can work with. 
> PM6 might run under WINE just fine,

Interesting thought. Does anybody know if it does ?


> but I'd prefer a native Linux 
> version of my main application. Otherwise I'll just stick to PM6.
> It seems to me that Serif is missing a great opportunity by not porting 
> to Linux, but then much of the Linux community is pro open source and 
> Serif needs to keep their software proprietary. With so many Linux 
> supporters anti-proprietary there really isn't a big market. It's 
> something that the Linux community will have to come to grips with in 
> the future.

?  I think Scribus has an excellent grip on this issue !

Why should the Linux / OSS community feel that having the cheapest and 
best supported software there is, is in any sense a problem that needs 
to be addressed ?

Any anyway, there are plenty of people selling software for Linux. If 
you have a narrow niche product that requires a lot of development it 
may be the only way to go, but if it's not niche market, chances are 
that OSS will deliver what you need.


> To realistically compete with Windows on a user base level 
> they have to have boxed software IMHO.

I can't see why. There seems to be an ever increasing slug of the 
population that knows better !


> I know that so much can be 
> downloaded now that "hard" packaging seems to be obsolete, but that's 
> not the reality of the situation. Joe and Jill Common still want to go 
> to the store and see and touch something before they buy, and feel 
> assured they can take it back if it's not what they expected/wanted. 

If the store will take it back... Many won't if the package has been opened.

But their children will just download.


> Seems to me that too many Liunx people are way out of touch with the 
> bigger non-tech world out there(meaning bigger than those of use with a 
> technical background).

Seems to me that the wider population will become more technically 
literate and catch on.


> Admittedly the techs will eventually out number 
> the non-techs, but that's going to take a lot of time.

For sure.


> I'd really like to see a "Linux Store" in a mall.

That's fine if people want to pay for real estate when they buy 
software, and want a commercial approach to support.

My experience with commercial support as an end user (Adobe), and 
working  for corporate clients with a support contract (Microsoft), was 
that support was universally very poor. Problems weren't fixed quickly 
if at all. Software didn't necessarily evolve in directions users might 
benefit from.

The grass seems to taste as well as look greener in the OSS community, 
and if you get desperate for a feature, you can always get involved with 
the source.


> Maybe just have a bank 
> of computers where people can preview different programs and burn a CD 
> with it for a small fee. Maybe just a big kiosk instead of a full store. 
> I just don't know how the GNU licensing would be affected for a lot of 
> products. Wish I had about $50K to play with, I'd try it!

I wouldn't. The people with that level of curiosity mostly have broadband !


Cheers, J/.
-- 
John Beardmore, MSc EDM (Open), B.A. Chem (Oxon), CMIOSH, AIEMA, MEI
Managing Director, T4 Sustainability Limited. http://www.T4sLtd.co.uk/
Carbon Trust Consultant: Energy Audit, Carbon Footprint, Design Advice
Energy Efficiency Accreditation Scheme, (EEAS), Registered Assessor
Phone: 0845 4561332   Mobile: 07785 563116   Skype: t4sustainability