[KLUG Members] [Off-topic] Desktop Applications Introduction PART I: THE PRINCIPALS

[Bryan-TheBS-Smith]

Slightly "off-topic" post here.  I originally wrote this for my
local user group, but the "management" felt it was "off-topic" for
the main list (and suggested I post it to an application SIG, which
doesn't have a list yet because they are still arguing about how to
do it ;-).

Anyhoo, I posted it to another LUG (JAXLUG) who thought it was
enlightening (and several people have mentioned additional products
to add -- I'll eventually make it an HTML page with them all).  But
their server isn't exactly "reliable" at this point, and isn't
archiving anything.  So I'm reposting it here in the hope it makes
it into your archive and a search engine somewhere.

Comments, corrections, flames ... all welcomed!

-- TheBS

-------- Original Message --------

PREAMBLE:

Most people focus on Linux interoperability via its services, but
often ignore the real issue of application data.  Many just wait
endlessly in the hope that a future version of Linux application X
will read Windows application Y.  Worse yet, some are entangled in
the Microsoft "upgrade cycle" which leaves them well outside of this
option becoming a reality.  As I have always advocated, getting away
from closed data formats, especially ones who have applications that
do not support reading documents from earlier versions (or only "one
back"), is your first move.  Because the longer you use these
closed-source, closed-standard applications, the more data you put
at risk.  And when you use them to publish or browse the Internet,
you are turning the Internet into a proprietary playground for
Microsoft and its partners.

I organize applications by category, listed/reviewed alphabetically
instead of each.

PART I: THE PRINCIPALS:
- DOCUMENTATION
- SPREADSHEET
- PRESENTATION
- INTERNET BROWSER


DOCUMENTATION

There are several applications available for Linux and Windows for
documentation.  I will briefly cover their current import/export
capabilities and features.  It should be noted that there are three
different documentation application approaches:
   Typeset -- the original, document layout method used by
              publishers, revived in the markup-driven Internet age
   Word Processing (WP) -- arrived shortly after the PC
              continues today despite advent of DTP
   Desktop Publishing (DTP) -- WYSIWYG layout introduced with the
              advent of GUIs like the Mac and Windows

602Text, free commercial, Windows
http://www.software602.com/products/pcs/

Although this is strictly a Windows application, I figured I'd
mention it since many IT shops have to fight internal piracy by
their own employees.  602Software produces a free, closed-source
Windows office suite named 602Pro PC SUITE 2000 that sports a MS
Office 2000 document compatible Word Processor (602Text),
Spreadsheet (602Tab) and Photo/Paint (602Photo) program in a ~15MB
download that doesn't bloat your desktop (like StarOffice 5.x).  The
company, originally from eastern Europe, is based in Jacksonville,
FL.  Their "catch" is that they want to sell you add-ons to the
suite with extra functionality, like network faxing, PDF and XHTML
export, etc...  But even the basic word processor produces standard
HTML with CSS (cascading style sheets) which is nice for those
looking for a good WYSIWYG HTML editor.  It also has extensive
vector graphics drawing capabilities which removes the requirement
to use a separate application to do such.

AbiWord -- Word Processor, OSS, Linux/Windows/other
http://www.abiword.com/

AbiWord's focus seems to be Word Document compatibility.  It is
lacking in features, but I find it very good at reading Word docs,
sometimes good enough to modify and share with others.  It all
depends (e.g., styles are usually "stripped," but the formatting is
still there).  But it is definitely _better_ than Star/OpenWriter
for MS Word import/export at this time.  It also runs on Windows.

FrameMaker -- Desktop Publishing, commercial, UNIX/Windows
http://www.adobe.com/products/framemaker/

A "staple" of technical and publication houses, Adobe FrameMaker is
a costly, but capable documentation publication suite in the spirit
of a Desktop Publishing (DTP) application, although it has a number
typeset capabilities.  It supports native PDF creation and offers a
SGML version.  Unfortunately, after a beta test program in 2000,
Adobe decided the Linux market was not large enough to warranty a
separate Linux version.  Worse yet is the fact that Adobe still
continues to sell a UNIX version (Solaris, HP-UX and AIX in one box
I believe) without including a Linux version.  Fortunately
all of Adobe's publication technologies like Postscript and PDF are
freely usable and many replacement OSS applications and utilities
exist to make full use of them.

KWord -- Desktop Publishing, OSS, Linux
http://www.koffice.org/kword/

The KOffice suite has chucked the traditional word processing avenue
and has adopted the "frame layout" approach common to Desktop
Publishing (DTP) applications.  KWord offers a very
FrameMaker/MSPublisher approach to documents, making the creation of
newsletters, flyers and other documents very easy and simple.  The
focus on features and capabilities means that MS Word import/export
is still lacking, but being worked on.  But it does use the same
underlying import/export engine as AbiWord, so it is only a matter
of time before it gets better.  KWord is arguably the most
"advanced" application in the KOffice suite.

LyX -- Typeset Processor, OSS, Linux/Windows*/other
http://www.lyx.org/

LyX is one of the few WYSIWYG applications out there based on a
standard, long-standing typeset language -- whereas nearly all
others
are proprietary, non-standard or XML without documented namespace
(which is _very_important_).  Based on Donald Kunnath's 22-year-old
TeX and, increasingly, the new DocBook standard (based on IBM's
30-year-old SGML), LyX documents are designed for longevity, which
is important to technical and other publication industries.  Because
LyX is TeX/DocBook based, there are a wealth of non-GUI utilities
and options for conversion to/from other document formats.  RTF,
HTML, SGML, PDF (using the more capable pdftex program _instead_ of
ps2pdf like other programs), etc...  Using RTF2TeX/TeX2RTF, some
"import" capabilities are available -- and I find them useful enough
for myself (letters, simple articles, resumes, etc...).

[ *NOTE:  LyX requires Cygwin/XFree86 to be installed and working
under Windows, as well as a TeX distribution like TeTeX. ]

Star/OpenWriter -- Word Processor, OSS/free, Linux/Windows/other
http://www.sun.com/staroffice/
http://www.openoffice.org/

OpenOffice is the OSS effort based on the release of StarOffice
source code which also removes the requirement to run the entire
StarDesk (i.e. you can run the applications individually without
launching the StarOffice desktop app).  The "Writer" module is the
word processor.  StarWriter is actually 2 years old now, so it
definitely not a good example of what OpenWriter will do (which has
public "build" betas).  One thing I find Star/OpenWriter _excellent_
at is generating HTML in its WYSIWYG -- although it still produces
older HTML 3.2.  Unfortunately, I find it lacking as a word
processor.  It _does_ have some nice "applets," although
WordPerfect's add-ons are usually better.  MS Word import/export is
good, but not as good as AbiWord.  Like AbiWord, it runs on both
Linux and Windows.

WordPerfect -- Word Processor, commercial, Linux/Windows
http://www.corel.com

Part of Corel's PerfectOffice suite, WordPerfect 2002 (10) is
available for Windows and WordPerfect 2000 (9) is available for
Linux today (2002 is planned for Linux).  According to Ziff-Davis
reviews, WordPerfect has the best import/export capabilities of any
Word Processor available for Window or Linux -- including importing
earlier Microsoft Word documents better than even the latest version
of Microsoft Word.  As such, Corel WordPerfect is the "most
compatible" word processor available both Windows and Linux.  A
recent Ziff-Davis review of PerfectOffice 2002 found it more feature
rich, more compatible and more integrated between applications than
Microsoft Office -- including better compatibility with Microsoft
Office applications than itself.


SPREADSHEETS

Ever since Lotus' 1-2-3 made the concept of a spreadsheet
commonplace on the PC, productivity has found a new avenue.  I would
even argue that spreadsheets are better applications to use than
single-user databases for many things.

602Tab -- free commercial, Windows
http://www.software602.com/products/pcs/

The spreadsheet portion of the 602Pro PC SUITE 2000 office suite is
Excel 2000 document compatible.  It offers your standard spread
functions, data manipulation and 2D/3D graphing capabilities. 
Again, it is a Windows-only product, but one Windows IT shops (among
home users) may wish to consider for cost considerations.

Gnumeric -- OSS, Linux
http://www.gnome.org/projects/gnumeric/

If KWord is the most "advanced" application in the KOffice suite,
Gnumeric has been a primary focus of the GnomeOffice team.  Gnumeric
sports excellent capabilities, on-par with Excel 2000 IMHO.  It
offers endless functions, awesome import/export features (especially
from text files, like legacy mainframe apps), powerful formatting
capabilities and native PDF writer.  It's MS Excel import is
definitely better than the one in Star/OpenCalc.  If you are looking
for an Excel 2000 replacement on Linux, this is yet.  Unfortunately,
it is not available for Windows.

KSpread -- OSS, Linux
http://www.koffice.org/kspread/

KSpread is coming along nicely, but I'd have to gage that Gnumeric
and Star/OpenCalc are better alternatives at this time.  But
KSpread, as part of the KOffice suite using KParts, is still capable
chart/table generator for use with KWord.  It's features are
extensive enough to be productive and graphing is implemented.  Just
don't look for it to import your existing Excel spreadsheets being
that it won't pull in more than just CSV (comma separate values --
but that's the same issue with even MS Excel for Windows file
exchange with MS Excel for Mac!).

QuattroPro -- commercial, Linux/Windows
http://www.corel.com

Formerly a Borland product, Quattro Pro has finally been fully
transitioned into a Corel PerfectOffice component -- including being
labeled by Ziff-Davis as "better integrated and uniform" than
Microsoft Excel in MS' Office.  Quattro Pro has always led the
spreadsheet pack in number of functions and analytical/data
manipulation capabilities and will import just about any Excel
attribute or function.  Unfortunately, that technical focus (which
is obviously because of the original Borland design) means less
technical individuals prefer other alternatives.  Quattro Pro 2002
(10) is available for Windows and Quattro Pro 2000 (9) is available
for Linux today (with 2002 planned for Linux).

Star/OpenCalc -- OSS/free, Linux/Windows/other
http://www.sun.com/staroffice/
http://www.openoffice.org/

Star/OpenCalc is a basic spreadsheet application in the
Star/OpenOffice suite.  As far as capabilities go, most of the
suite's applets are capable and the functionality of the spreadsheet
itself is productive enough.  The import functionality is probably
the worst of the Star/OpenOffice set, with Writer's DOC import and
Impress' PPD import getting more attention by the developers than
Calc's XLS import functionality.  But it is the _only_ free
spreadsheet
listed that has both a Linux and a Windows version, and that is
probably the most important attribute to heterogeneous IT shops.


PRESENTATIONS

The only Microsoft application I actually preferred was PowerPoint. 
Unfortunately, PowerPoint has changed little since the 95 version
(97 and XP were basically 95 unchanged IMHO) and offers few
advantages over other applications.  Especially StarImpress, which I
discovered in 1996 and preferred over PowerPoint even when I used
Windows.

KPresenter -- OSS, Linux
http://www.koffice.org/kpresenter/

Although KWord might be the most "advanced" component of the KOffice
suite, KPresenter is a quality application on its own.  Although a
few features are still lacking, good layout, graphics and, most
importantly, HTML export are there.  If you are standardizing on
KWord and/or KOffice, you'll find KPresenter up-to-the-task,
provided you are not importing many MS Office files.

LyX+XPDF/Acrobat -- OSS, Linux/Windows*/other
http://www.lyx.org

Again, LyX is a WYSIWYG editor for typeset.  This means it can be
used for presenting as well as documentation.  LyX/TeX includes
styles like FoilTeX and Seminar that can be used to produce
landscape Postscript/PDF files.  These files can then be used to
present with XPDF and Adobe Acrobat Reader.  The latter offers "page
transitioning effects" like typical presentation applications. 
Probably the best thing about using Postscript/PDF to present is
that the fonts/type have been _pre-rendered_ and _fully
anti-aliased_ at 600-720dpi which means type in the presentations
are _much_sharper_ than most presentation programs.  And unlike most
presentation programs that turn their slides into huge files with
bitmap images when exported HTML, the Postscript/PDF files created
by LyX (and its underlying pdftex utility -- which should used
_instead_ of the ps2pdf utility in Ghostscript) are very, very small
(~1KB/page) and vector-based for small downloads and traffic usage
on a web site.  Unfortunately, unless you can get your PowerPoint
file into RTF form (not likely), importing is virtually impossible.

Presentations -- commercial, Linux/Windows
http://www.corel.com

Both the standard and professional/deluxe versions of Corel's office
suites come with their Corel Presentations component.  Like
WordPerfect and QuattroPro, 2002 (10) is available for Windows and
2000 (9) is available for Linux (with 2002 planned).  I have never
used this product personally, but have seen it in action at a few
LUG meetings (ELUG, MLINUX).  Like other Corel programs, it seems to
have excellent PowerPoint import capabilities, and surely benefits
from the features of the graphics application leader on the Windows
platform (which is only going to increase with their recent purchase
of Micrografx).  The latest 2002 version for Windows includes native
Macromedia Flash creation, for lightweight, rich web presentations
along with MP3 audio support.

Star/OpenImpress -- OSS/free, Linux/Windows/other
http://www.sun.com/staroffice/
http://www.openoffice.org/

By far the most capable presentation program in the Star/OpenOffice
suite is Star/OpenImpress.  It's HTML export features have always
been superior to PowerPoint, and its 2D, eye-candy 3D and other
graphics effects/features are even more impressive.  If you are
looking for a solid presentation program with good PowerPoint
importing capabilities, superior drawing and graphics capabilities
and, most importantly, standard HTML publication, Star/OpenImpress
is what you want.


INTERNET BROWSER

Why do Windows users stick with MS IE and why do Linux users stick
with Netscape Communicator?  Laziness I guess.  Both platforms have
_excellent_ alternatives.  And while users complain about privacy,
cookies, pop-ups and script viruses, there are OSS alternatives that
guarantee no hidden code (which is _important_ for guaranteeing
privacy), and endless options to manage cookies, scripts and
pop-ups.

Amaya -- OSS, Linux/Windows/other
http://www.w3c.org/amaya/

The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) doesn't make the distinction
between web browser and html editor/authoring tools.  Amaya is
both.  It will let you create endless pages using the latest
standards, all WYSIWYG.  What you edit on the page looks _exactly_
like HTML, XHTML, CSS, XML/XSL, MathML, etc... is supposed to look
like in a browser according to the DTDs (document template
definitions) for each.  The only "downside" to Amaya is that its
focus is on technology and features -- being that the W3C has to
"demonstrate" new features before even the browsers support them --
and not stability, which means crashes are a little more common than
other software.  The latest "stable" release of Amaya is 4.3.2 and
"current" release is 5.1.

Galeon -- OSS, Linux
http://galeon.sourceforge.net

"The Web and Only the Web" -- damn straight!  In the bloated world
of web browsers, Galeon is really setting itself apart.  Using the
standards-based Gecko engine from Mozilla, Galeon cuts out the
eye-candy and additional functionality and is strictly a web
browser.  It sports an Opera-like "tabular" mode, endless image,
cookie and scripting options, handles pop-ups in a variety of ways
(like "poping" a new tab that is *NOT* focused on), etc...  It is
fast loading, fast rendering, fast surfing, but still supports all
the existing Netscape-Mozilla features (like plug-ins -- it uses
Mozilla's plug-in directory).  Since it is based on the ever
fluctuating Mozilla release schedule, nailing down a compatible
Galeon-Mozilla package set can get a little frustration.  Galeon is
also not crash free, although it's exception handling is the best
I've ever seen in an application (e.g., it sets "temporary
bookmarks" and presents them when you restart it after a crash). 
All in all, Galeon *IS* what a pure web browser should be!  The
latest version is 0.11 and was quite "feature complete" as of 0.9
(most version changes are due to Mozilla releases).

KMeleon -- OSS, Windows
http://www.kmeleon.org

KMeleon is the Windows answer to Galeon, albeit a newer development
and not nearly far along.  But what sets KMeleon apart is its MS
IE-like interface which includes full IE bookmark importing and
support for importing a number of MS IE folders.  And unlike Galeon
which relies on Mozilla to be installed on the same system, KMeleon
is also released as a single, self-installing binary that weight in
at only a couple MBs -- no Mozilla required.  For quick web surfing,
making sure pages render correctly, or when I have to borrow someone
else's Windows desktop or notebook, I find KMeleon an _invaluable_
application to have.  I keep a CD with it at all times, although
downloading over even 33.6Kbps modem is only a 20 minute ordeal (<<1
minute on most high-speed lines).  The latest version is 0.4.

Konquerer -- OSS, Linux
http://www.kde.org

If Linux has an "equivalent" to the all-encompasing,
system-controlling Internet Explorer for Windows, it is KDE's
Konquerer.  Based on the various underlying KDE components KHTML,
KParts, etc..., Konquerer is a file manager, web browser, launcher,
Internet-enabled application and component that just about anything
can use.  It even has advanced "network browsing" capabilities for
file services -- e.g., SMB, NFS, etc...  If KDE is your Linux
desktop, you are already using and benefiting from Konquerer.

Mozilla -- OSS, Linux/Windows/other
http://www.mozilla.org

Often called "Netscape 5," Mozilla was the resulting project of
Netscape's 1998 source code release of its Netscape 4 code base
after it deemed its web client profit model un-viable.  The source
code release, and subsequent development by the community, resulted
in the Gecko engine which is at the core of Mozilla.  Built around
Gecko, Mozilla aims to bring a complete, Internet application
framework to developers and endusers alike.  From browsers, to web
management consoles to even integrated development environments
(IDEs) like ActiveState's Komodo, Mozilla offers a royalty-free
source code set to do just about anything related to the Internet. 
Everything in Mozilla is standards-based, which means even some
Netscape 4 compatibility is removed.  The current version is 0.9.3
which is quite usable, features almost all components (navigator,
mail, news, security agent, etc...) and will replace Communicator in
most future Linux distribution releases.

Nautilus -- OSS, Linux
http://nautilus.eazel.com/

Nautilus is the new Gnome 1.4 file manager and, optionally, desktop
manager originally released by the, now defunct, Eazel corporation
founded by many original Mac developers.  It uses the underlying
Mozilla engine, along with many other Gnome Bonobo components to
thumbnail and render documents.  Although early versions had
performance issues, the latest version, 1.0.4, has improved in many
regards and continues to be developed by the community, including
former Eazel developers, in the Gnome project.

Netscape Communicator -- OSS/free, Linux/Windows/other
http://www.netscape.com

The old "staple" web browser, Netscape Communicator (which is based
on the Netscape 4 source code) is included in almost every recent
and current Linux distribution.  The latest version is 4.77, and is
available for a wide range of platforms (with the "Navigator-only"
4.0x releases available for others as well).  Unfortunately,
Netscape Communicator is showing its age, with little support for
CSS, PNG and other web standards.  But many sites still have
non-standard Netscape 4 tags and/or use plug-ins that are not yet
totally compatible with Mozilla (or programs that use Mozilla like
Galeon), so it is not gone just yet.

Netscape 6 -- free commercial, Linux/Windows/other
http://www.netscape.com

Netscape 6 is AOL-Netscape's commercial releases of Mozilla, based
on a fork of the Mozilla source code back before version 0.7.  Most
reviews find Netscape 6 much more standards-based than MS IE, faster
and more capable than MS IE 5.x (haven't seen it compared to the MS
IE 6.0 beta yet), but most users just use MS IE built-into their
Windows system.  Most Linux users prefer (or at least the distros
themselves prefer) the Mozilla software it is based on, as Netscape
6 is closed-source and there is no guarantee that AOL-Netscape will
collect any less system/browsing info than Microsoft does with MS
IE.  The latest release is 6.1.

Opera -- free commercial and commercial, Linux/Windows/other
http://www.opera.com

Opera is an original, independent, closed source application for a
variety of operating systems, including BeOS, OS/2-EPOC, QNX and CE
(for PDAs/set-tops) among Windows and Linux.  It is released in two
forms, a free version with pop-ups and spyware and a commercial
($29) version without the pop-ups/advertising (and, supposedly, the
spyware).  What really sets Opera apart is its award winning 3-pane
approach with tabular layout (instead of multiple windows).  Many
people who have tried Opera have stuck with it and it really has no
equivalent from any other vendor (although Mozilla-based Galeon is
becoming very Opera-like).  At $29, there is no reason not to
support independent developments like Opera if you like its approach
to productive, 3-pane web browsing.


TO COME IN PART II:

Single and Multiuser Databases, Personal and Business Finance
Management, PIMs (Personal Information Managers) including PDA
synchronization, etc...