Thanks to Everyone working on the Open Source Project

[jedfrechette]

The only open question is, if working in an pure Linux environment without Windows on the Client is really possible?

I've got to agree with Korab on this one, I don't see why not. I've been doing it for 5-6 years. My ability to hack together a couple of data analysis scripts in Python or Matlab certainly doesn't qualify me as a developer, however, I would place myself in the savvy user category. With the porting of Xara and the recent progress that Inkscape is making the final gap in reliable software that I need is about to be filled.

With that being said, I don't think there are any programs that I use regularly which aren't available for nonfree operating systems. My laptop runs OS X but it is strictly for mobile use, the Linux box is definitely my workhorse. Use whatever works for you and from what I hear Windows works now. Although having mostly abandoned it in the Windows 98 days it certainly didn't work back then.

What keeps me on Linux is the fact that I can't remember the last time the OS crashed and I don't need to run 5 different programs in the background just to keep me safer on the Internet. I have also become addicted to multiple desktops and 'apt-get xaralx'.

Jed

[remi]

Hi Korab,
hi Jed,

Why not ? If you don't need specific software (written only for win) it's possible.

I've got to agree with Korab on this one, I don't see why not. I've been doing it for 5-6 years.

I understand, that you're able to work with Linux and don't need specific Windows software.

But that's my problem: There is no Linux version of

• Macromedia Dreamweaver (yes, I'm also able to code pure HTML with Eclipse, but sometimes I like to use a WYSIWYG-HTML-editor)
• Macromedia Flash
• Adobe Photoshop (it's a "little bit" better than Gimp)
• Adobe Illustrator
• Carrara Studio 5 Pro (I like it because of their really good interface)
• Hexagon 2

And the most important: Xara Xtreme (there was no Xara Xtreme LX under Linux in 2000/2001).

Some other software packages are available under Linux (IDEs like Eclipse, Office-Packages, Systemtools, Communication-Tools, ...).

Remi

[SorinN]

I use Dreamweaver 8, Flash 8, Fireworks 8 in Ubuntu via Wine.

references by mail if U want ( nemes.sorin@gmail.com ), because here is a bit out of topic.

anyhow, the way that Dreamweaver 8 can work under Linux just make me to think - how powerfull he can be if Adobe can do a Linux native version.

[jedfrechette]

I understand, that you're able to work with Linux and don't need specific Windows software.
But that's my problem: There is no Linux version of...

Yep, having the applications you need is always the deal breaker, as it should be. Being a user of Super Cool OS 1.0 doesn't do you much good if all you can do is play solitaire.

On the other hand, software availability works both ways. For example, a very important criteria for me when shopping for a new software package is whether or not it has reasonable cross platform support. Learning to use any moderately complicated software package efficiently requires a significant investment in time. Therefore, although I am currently happy with the operating systems that I am using I want to know that when that changes I won't have to learn an entire new set of applications at the same time I am learning a new os. That is part of the reason why I try to encourage people who are considering switching to Linux to start by switching the applications that they use everyday.

Unfortunately, most companies selling proprietary software probably won't be providing Linux versions any time soon. Which is part of the reason I commend Xara so much for opensourcing Xtreme. They even got me to buy a copy of the Windows version. To bad it doesn't run under Wine.

Speaking of which seeing as SorinN addressed your Adobe needs somebody has to mention Blender. From talking to people who use it you should plan on spending a day or two getting used to the interface but apparently after that it is quite logical and intuitive.

Cheers,

Jed

[Spectre-7]

Speaking of which seeing as SorinN addressed your Adobe needs somebody has to mention Blender. From talking to people who use it you should plan on spending a day or two getting used to the interface but apparently after that it is quite logical and intuitive.

I just started learning Blender this week, and I can second that. It takes a day or two to wrap your head around the interface, but it's an excellent piece of software once you're acclimated. In fact, there's some methods of dealing with vertices that I wish had analogues in Xara's node interface.

[BPFowler]

I don't have a Mac or know anyone that uses one to ask if they have success using it on their platform.

Neither of those XARs open on MacOS X because they contain PNGs and the file IO code has not yet been upgraded to byte swap PNGs (or that's the story, at least). I expect that the same will be seen on Linux PPC. This is Bug 929 "Failure reading PNG bitmap".

Are you willing to post a XAR with has neither a PNG nor a JPEG - the Mac will probably open it? I appreciate that the artwork shown here does need a background picture to work.

Ben

[Soquili]

Hi Ben,

The only bitmaps in the .xar files are those created within Xara Xtreme as bevels and fractal plasma fills. No bitmap images were imported to create the effects or backgrounds.

I edited the second gold file I posted above. I was surprised that Xara Xtreme LX did not recognize the existance of the bevels when I tried to remove them. I had to convert the shapes to Editable Shapes, and Ungroup to remove the bevels. I simply deleted the factal plasma filled rectangle used for the brushed metal effect. After removing the bevel from the text, I added an outline so it could be seen clearly. The shapes for the screws were removed completely as they were mostly beveled shapes and wasn't much remaining after removing the bevels.

Ben, if you receive the same error when trying to open the attached .xar file there is something more amiss than .png and .jpgs being used within Xara LX to simulate bevels and fractal plasma fills.



EDIT: Further examination of the original file shows that when first opened if you select a beveled object and then the bevel tool the program reports the bevel as None. If you make any change to the object, the bevel tool then recognises the bevel and reports it's type and allows it to be edited. I'll download the latest revision to see if this behavior is still happening.

[remi]

Bill, this is Bug 1234.

Regards,
Remi

[BPFowler]

Ben, if you receive the same error when trying to open the attached .xar file there is something more amiss than .png and .jpgs being used within Xara LX to simulate bevels and fractal plasma fills.

I can open that file. At the moment, there is a bright red cast to most of the files that I can open, as though looking through red cellophane (a few weeks ago it was blue), but I am pretty sure that it is rendering the same as your preview, and it is (to at least some extent editable).

Ben

[Soquili]

Thanks Remi. I got distracted doing yard work and didn't check to see if it was already on the bug list. Temperature today is only 104 F (40 C) degrees, so it was good weather for yard work compared to the evenings this past week.

Ben, it sounds like there is a considerable colour shift you see from the Linux files. Do you see the same shift when opening a .xar created in the windows version? Probably so, as I can open files from either version and see the same colours.

I'm curious as to whether or not you get an error when you apply a bevel to an object as you run Xtreme on your Mac?