mailing-list for TeXmacs Users

[Javier Arantegui <address@hidden>]

Hello,

El Viernes, 30 de Septiembre de 2005 10:46, Magnus Rohde escribió:
> As I have never used Xfig, I cannot compare the two, but when you
> compare TeXmacs to any other drawing program (eg. OpenOffice Draw) you
> notice several things:

I agree in many things you say in your message, but remember that the 
graphics 
mode in TeXmacs is just an alpha. So, it is normal that either it lack of 
many features or it is buggy.


> (1) You have to use more than one mouse button to create a line. It may
> seem inefficient to only use one mouse button, but that is the way most
> programs work and it is therefore the most familiar. (actually this
> goes for the entire interface)

Well, in Xfig you use the 3 buttons of the mouse to draw. In the beginning is 
pretty strange but eventually it's great. Altough Xfig interface is quite 
old, 


> (2) No colour gradients or transparency.

No gradients or transparency in Xfig. I know that this is a must for many 
people but I don't use them because I don't need them.


> (3) I cannot import and place graphics from other sources (pdf files
> etc.)

> (5) There is no align/distribute function.

Yes, that's important. But I'm sure that they are in the developer team To-do 
list.


> The most important here is (1). If I need more that one mouse button
> it's too complicated.

Not for me. I think that (3) is the most important. 

>
> > Money is not relevant for defining what value is. Rather, value is
> > defined in the first place, and money is then used as a tool that
> > allows people to invest in this or that particular value.
> >
> > In other words : the fact that some software is free and some other
> > software is not free is irrelevant : it doesn't free us from the task
> > of explicitly saying what we want. Saying "this software, being driven
> > this way or that way, offers real value" is not even an argument : it
> > is politics.
>
> I wasn't the one who started discussing politics, that was Alvaro when
>
> he said:
> > On the Illustrator point I only have to add that it is rather the
> > opposite way
> > to the one you put it. It is impossible for Illustrator to compete
> > with any free
> > application because it is not free.
>
> I consider software as tools, and if a tool cannot get the job done it
> offers zero value for money, even if the tool is free (like beer or
> speech, doesn't matter).
>
> > On the other hand, by stating that the feature A is missing, or that
> > the feature B should, in your opinion, be modified this way (the said
> > way being described in sufficient detail), you do something useful,
> > because you bring explicit, clear and logical arguments that people
> > can understand, reuse, and improve. If nobody ever does this, no
> > wonder that the development of TeXmacs is driven by the developers,
> > because without such a task of turning problems into explicit
> > (possible) solutions, no software development is possible !
> >
> >> I know that Joris does put many hours into the project, and my
> >> comment wasn't on his or any other's work. What I was trying to say
> >> was that I don't think that the direction of development should be
> >> guided by the interests of the available workforce.
> >
> > It is not a matter of available workforce : it is a matter of writing
> > specifications. If you want that your ideas become implemented, you
> > must first describe them in sufficient detail, otherwise it is
> > **impossible** to take any ideas into account, because unfortunatly,
> > the current "available workforce" has no telepathic abilities yet.
>
> My original comment wasn't  on specific features, but rather on the
> general direction of development (the big picture or the whole
> scientific office thing). However, this discussion have given me the
> idea that a user survey would be useful for determining where the
> developers should concentrate their efforts.
>
>
> Magnus

-- 
Javier Arántegui
Dept. Tecnologia de Alimentos / Dept. of Food Technology
Universitat de Lleida / University of Lleida (Spain)
         
Tel. +34 973702595
Fax  +34 973702596
IM: Jabber - javier.arantegui (AT) jabberes.org
http://www.tecal.udl.es