[scribus] ! ;-)

[John Beardmore]

JLuc wrote:
> Christoph Schäfer a écrit :

>>> Specialy when there is no elaborate word (& character) styles
>>> import abilities in Scribus.
>> What are word styles? Scribus 1.3.3.x has paragraph styles and imports 
>> them from ODT, SXW and HTML and, of course, its own files. Scribus 
>> 1.3.5 has character styles, so could you be more specific about its 
>> alleged shortcomings, please?
> 
> I have great hopes toward future versions,
> and that is why i keep informed and try each new version.
> 
> However I am afraid the 1.3.5 wont fit my needs
> (I was once said that only the 1.3.6 would have the
> "through linked-text-frames selection actions" bug corrected).

I'm not sure that many people find this show stopping. I've yet to find 
it at all.


>>> Generaly writing, not understating the problems and weaknesses
>>> would help commmunicate with the crew though.
> 
>> you always join the list when someone asks if he should use the 
>> program and tell all readers that it's completely 
> useless for you and that it's utter crap anyway. It would certainly help 
> if you could be more constructive/specific or even help fixing issues, 
> since you claim to have C++ experience. Sending your ceterum censeo to 
> this list again and again is a waste of time, and it _does_ _not_ help.
> 
> When somebody asks about usability I share my experience...
> and all the more if such an expression is usually rejected ! :-(
> 
> (PS : words such as "utter crap" might contribute to the so-said 
> "snottyness" feeling
> of the list.)

If you assert or imply that problems that most people don't find 
particularly problematic preclude use of the software I can see why 
people may disagree with you.  How you interpret that is between you, 
your conscience (and your psychologist).


>> Given the millions of downloads of Scribus, mostly positive reviews in 
>> magazines and many succesfully completed projects, your behaviour 
>> reminds me of a driver who hears a warning about a wrong-way driver on 
>> a motorway and says "Only one? There are hundreds of them" ;)
> 
> Except the unsatisfied : they dont subscribe to the list :-(

Nor do they hang around making people miserable.


> I could also follow their example.

Yup.


> I could quietly wait for the 1.3.6 or some later version

Yup.


> hoping the programmers will in some mysterious way
> correct the supposed-not-to-exist bugs

If you disagree with the rest of the community about the presence of 
certain bugs, wouldn't a rational approach be to see under what 
circumstances they can be reproduced ?  Wouldn't this be more productive 
than telling newcomers that the software is unusable ?  It does after 
all seem likely that the problems you encounter may not affect them, 
just as they seem not to affect many / most of us.


> and scribus become nice and friendly usable.

Well -  that's pretty much how I find it already. Granted I've has one 
crash in the last 24 hours of fairly heavy work, but doing frequent 
backups (and scribus save quickly !), I only lost a few minutes work.


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