*BSD News Article 90785


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From: les@MCS.COM (Leslie Mikesell)
Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.misc,comp.os.linux.networking,comp.os.linux.setup,comp.unix.bsd.bsdi.misc,comp.unix.bsd.misc,comp.os.ms-windows.nt.advocacy
Subject: Re: Betting on Unix
Date: 10 Mar 1997 10:40:25 -0600
Organization: /usr/lib/news/organi[sz]ation
Lines: 74
Message-ID: <5g1dhp$1uj$1@Jupiter.Mcs.Net>
References: <5d3sr2$44n@nntp1.best.com> <5fsull$gqd@web.nmti.com> <5g02nk$q63$1@Venus.mcs.net> <5g0je7$fk3@ousrvr3.oulu.fi>
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In article <5g0je7$fk3@ousrvr3.oulu.fi>,
Tuomas Haarala <tuoppi@stekt.oulu.fi> wrote:
>Leslie Mikesell (les@MCS.COM) wrote:
>>>If I defer making it pretty until the last step why am I bothering with a
>>>WYSIWYG environment?
>> Because you can see what you're doing,
>
>	Latex: I know what I'm doing and I can definately see it 
>	as long as my monitor is functional. 	
>
>> because you can let someone else do it for you, 
>
>	Check, I can. 

Can you call up your local office temp center and ask for someone
proficient in Latex for a few hours without being suspected of
some kind of perversion?  Has enlightenment really reached the masses
in Finland?  You can't do that in the US...

>> because your file will be usable by 80% of the computers in the world, 
>
>	Somewhat 100% coverage, there is somekindof tex for m$
>	environment also - and it's damn easy to install some
>	free *x into 'em. 

Take a walk to the corner computer store with your disk.  Ask the
salesperson to print something for you as a demonstration.  Repeat
with MSword.

>> because you can get print drivers for hundreds of printers,
>
>	Yup. 

Everything Windows supports?  (Or I should say support from all
vendors that support windows?).  I doubt it.

>> because you can use thousands of cheap fonts?  
>
>	Free fonts, correction - Oh sorry, you was talking about
>	some m$? Forget it.

No, there are dozens of sources for decent TrueType fonts.

>	"Yea, but my fonts are better because I've paid for them!"

Try installing CorelDraw on a Window machine.  You get hundreds (or is
it thousands now?) of fonts that all of your other programs can
automatically use.   What do you have to do to get (say) a database
report to use a font that you have for TeX?  Is it as simple as
selecting from a list that can give you a preview while you are
in the database program?

>	Most of the trouble with these "wysiwyg"-programs is that
>	that you can see what you've managed to do, but you don't 
>	have a slightest idea how to get what you want. (Of course,
>	in time you will adapt and stop demanding so much..)

Perhaps you haven't experienced the Office95 or Wordperfect7 answer
wizards.  If you want to know something, just ask and you usually
get a choice of reading how to do it or having the program step
you through it. When Latex adds that feature I might try it again.

Also, if you ever need to conduct a business session where the
contents of a document are discussed, ammended, etc. using
projection equipment, you really have to have something that
relates the screen attributes to the markup codes so you can
talk about proposed deletions, additions, and possible separate
ammendments.  DOS Wordperfect could handle this with color
attributes, but Windows is nicer (you can show strikeout as
strikeout) now that you can get vga projectors suitable for
large rooms.  I don't see how this would be done in Latex.

Les Mikesell
  les@mcs.com