óƒMOBIýéYe‹ Technical Collection

Technical Collection

by Ben Huot

Table of Contents

Title Page Table of Contents Chapter 1 1.1 License 1.2 Introduction Chapter 2 2.1 Computers and Internet Basics 2.1.1 Computer Fundamentals 2.1.2 Major Categories of Software 2.1.3 Common Software Terms 2.1.4 How the Internet Works 2.2 Choosing Computers 2.2.1 How Much Do I Need to Know? 2.2.2 Computers and Choice 2.3 Computer Compatibility 2.3.1 Why Upgrade? 2.3.2 Reasons for Incompatible Electronics 2.4 People and Computers 2.4.1 Joy of Software Plus Internet 2.4.2 Tech People Hate Change 2.4.3 Computer Cultural Issues 2.4.4 Why Support Everything? 2.4.5 Lack of Gratitude 2.5 Apple and the Future 2.5.1 Apple Learned from its Mistakes 2.5.2 Paradigm Shift 2.5.3 The Dream of Convergence 2.5.4 The Death of Tinkering 2.5.5 Why Brand is King 2.6 File Formats Background 2.6.1 Help with File Formats 2.6.2 Native vs. Exchange File Formats 2.6.3 Common Internet File Formats 2.7 File Format Choices 2.7.1 Different Versions of My Books 2.7.2 What is a Zip file? 2.7.3 What is DjVu? 2.7.4 Why I Don't Use Certain File Formats Chapter 3 3.1 Help for All Users Accessing my Website 3.1.1 Not All Browsers are Equal 3.1.2 Help for All Users: Simple Explanation 3.1.3 Help for All Users: Levels of Support 3.1.4 Help for All Users: More Complex Explanation 3.2 Help for PC Users Accessing My Website 3.2.1 Why Not Use Internet Explorer? 3.2.2 Which Version of Internet Explorer? 3.2.3 Help for PC Web Browsers and Flash Player 3.2.4 Help for Windows PDF and other Viewers 3.2.5 So you have a Dell 3.2.6 Microsoft and the Future 3.3 Help for Apple Users Accessing My Website 3.3.1 General Help for Mac OS X Users 3.3.2 Help for Mac OS X by Version 3.3.3 General Help for Apple iPad Tablet Users 3.3.4 Books on Apple iPad Tablet 3.4 Help for Other Users Accessing My Website 3.4.1 General Help for Linux, PC-BSD, and OpenSolaris 3.4.2 Help by Version for Linux, PC-BSD, and OpenSolaris 3.4.3 Help for Alternative Desktop Systems 3.5 Different Ways to Access My Website 3.5.1 Help for Mobile Users 3.5.2 Help for Game Console and other Embedded Users 3.5.3 Help with Accessibility 3.5.4 Ethical Considerations Chapter 4 4.1 Introduction to Design 4.1.1 The Meaning of Design 4.1.2 When to Use a Computer 4.1.3 Managing Design Complexity 4.2 Web Design 4.2.1 Realities of Web Design 4.2.2 Myths of Website Accessibility 4.2.3 My Web Design Decisions 4.2.4 Should I Build a Website? 4.3 More Design Decisions 4.3.1 Open vs. Proprietary Technology 4.3.2 My Book Design Decisions 4.3.3 Design Services and Resources Chapter 5 5.1 Microsoft Problems 5.1.1 Which Version of Windows? 5.1.2 Different Types of Malware 5.1.3 How Microsoft and Apple are Different 5.1.4 Microsoft Business Tactics 5.1.5 Thinking Errors, Myth of Objectivity 5.2 PC-Specific Problems and Solutions 5.2.1 Mac Mentality vs. PC Mentality 5.2.2 Examples of Big Design Mistakes 5.2.3 Virtual Machines (Virtualization) 5.2.4 Wine “Windows Emulator” Solution 5.2.5 Google vs. Microsoft 5.3 Advantages of Microsoft Alternatives 5.3.1 Good News for Potential Switchers 5.3.2 The Transition: Try Before You Commit 5.3.3 UNIX Means No Maintenance 5.3.4 The Rationale for Open Source 5.3.5 What Make Current Macs Unique 5.3.6 The Best or Worst Option Chapter 6 6.1 Keeping Your Data Safe 6.1.1 Intellectual Property and Copyright Law 6.1.2 Managing Information from the Internet 6.1.3 Computer Security Common Sense 6.1.4 Why Make Backups and How to Do Them? 6.2 General File Concepts 6.2.1 Structured Document Formatting 6.2.2 Drawing vs. Painting 6.2.3 File Formats 6.3 Instructions for Specific Programs 6.3.1 Chinese Watercolor 6.3.2 LaTeX 6.3.3 Book Authoring with OpenOffice.org 6.3.4 Text File Format Conversions 6.3.5 Vector Graphics File Format Conversions Chapter 7 7.1 Microsoft Articles 7.1.1 Why Not Microsoft Office? 7.1.2 Making PDFs on Windows for Free 7.2 Choosing Linux 7.2.1 Why I Don't Use Linux 7.2.2 Why Desktop Linux Again? 7.3 Linux Applications 7.3.1 Linspire Product Reviews 7.3.2 Installing Popular Freeware on Ubuntu 7.3.3 Getting VMware Player Set Up on Ubuntu Chapter 8 8.1 Mac Articles 8.1.1 Why Macs Cost More than Cheap PCs 8.1.2 Basic Design Tools 8.1.3 How to Buy Mac Hardware 8.2 Apple iPad Tablet 8.2.1 Background Information 8.2.2 Reference Recommendations 8.2.3 Design Recommendations 8.2.4 Current Information 8.2.5 Activities Recommendations 8.2.6 Location Based Recommendations 8.3 Apple TV: First Impressions 8.3.1 What is an Apple TV? 8.3.2 Why Haven't I Heard of it Yet? 8.3.3 PC or Mac Storage Space Issues 8.3.4 Apple TV Media Management 8.3.5 Wireless Router 8.3.6 Why You Cannot Copy DVDs

Technical Collection

Benjamin Huot

Technical Collection

Title Page

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Technical Collection

Ben Huot

July 8, 2010

Technical Collection

Table of Contents

Back to table of contents

Chapter 1 15 1.1 License 15 1.2 Introduction 15 Chapter 2 16 2.1 Computers and Internet Basics 16 2.1.1 Computer Fundamentals 16 Computers are not Magic 16 What is a computer? 17 What a Computer Does Well 17 The Same Laws Apply to Computers 17 Illegally Downloading or Uploading Files is Stealing 17 2.1.2 Major Categories of Software 17 Applications 17 Operating Systems 17 Open Source 17 Drivers 18 Libraries 18 2.1.3 Common Software Terms 18 Viewer vs. Editor 18 What is a Beta? 18 Compatibility with Different Versions 18 2.1.4 How the Internet Works 19 Clients and Servers 19 Legal Issues 19 How a Website Works 19 How Web Pages and Plugins Work 20 Uploading and Downloading 20 2.2 Choosing Computers 20 2.2.1 How Much Do I Need to Know? 20 Workaholics Recruiting Converts 20 Technology and Normal People 20 The Fundamental Question 20 Specialization is Normal and OK 21 2.2.2 Computers and Choice 21 Everyone is Different 21 What Do You Want it to Do? 21 Consider Total Cost of Ownership 21 Quality is Most Important 21 Level of Integration and Complexity 21 Does the Manufacturer Want You? 21 2.3 Computer Compatibility 22 2.3.1 Why Upgrade? 22 Why Require New Versions of Web Browsers? 22 The Microsoft Approach 22 PDF vs. HTML 22 Legacy and Innovation 22 Microsoft Destroying Competition 22 Origins of Internet Explorer 22 Origins of Firefox 23 The Fight Continues 23 Microsoft Never Learns 23 2.3.2 Reasons for Incompatible Electronics 23 Proprietary File Formats 23 Cable, Satellite, and Cell Phone Monopolies 23 Frivolous Software Patents 24 2.4 People and Computers 24 2.4.1 Joy of Software Plus Internet 24 Possibilities of Software and Internet 24 Democracy through Technology 24 Irony in Who is Empowered 24 Increases in Specialization and Decreases in Cost 24 2.4.2 Tech People Hate Change 24 Fighting New Technologies 24 Technology Experts Don't Understand Consumers 25 The Curse of Becoming Mainstream 25 Technology Experts are Only Microsoft Experts 25 A Shortcut to Avoid Real Learning 25 Engineering vs. Sociology 25 Google Needs Paying Customers 26 Apple can Outdo Google 26 2.4.3 Computer Cultural Issues 26 Computers as a Belief System 26 Microsoft Culture: Brand Loyalty 26 Microsoft Culture: It is Always the User's Fault 26 Microsoft Culture: Your Only Choice 26 Apple Culture: User Friendly 27 Apple Culture: Bullying Apple Supporters 27 Linux Culture: You Get What You Pay For 27 Linux Culture: Millions of Options 27 Linux Culture: Increasing Complexity 27 Linux Culture: In Fighting 27 Linux Culture: Eye Candy 27 Linux Culture: No Money in Graphics 27 Linux Culture: Attitudes Towards Outsiders 27 Linux Culture: Jealousy of Apple 28 2.4.4 Why Support Everything? 28 Why do you support every kind of computer? 28 Why do you have your writings in many formats? 28 The Underlying Problem with Web Design 28 2.4.5 Lack of Gratitude 29 Lazy Developers 29 Everything Costs Something 29 Web Ads do not Cover the Costs 29 Respect Volunteers 29 Analogies of Similar Disrespect 29 Be Polite or Pay For it 29 2.5 Apple and the Future 29 2.5.1 Apple Learned from its Mistakes 29 Tech People have Bad Memories 29 Apple Handed Microsoft its Market 30 Apple Depended on Others 30 Apple Refused to Compete 30 Apple Stopped Depending on Others 30 Apple Took Back its Market 30 Hedging Your Bets 30 Competing on Product Quality 30 2.5.2 Paradigm Shift 31 From the Desktop to the Network 31 Tech Industry Needs to Adapt 31 Cannot Sell the Same Technology Forever 31 New Opportunities for Tech Industry 31 Specialize and Upscale 31 Only The Web is Future Proof 31 Free Content Travels Farther 31 2.5.3 The Dream of Convergence 32 What is Convergence? 32 Ecosystems: Apple's vs. Microsoft's 32 Consumer vs. Business 32 Software vs. Hardware: Differentiating Your Company from the Competition 32 Different Target Markets = Different Focuses 32 Burden of Legacy 32 2.5.4 The Death of Tinkering 33 Easy to Use = Limitations for Power Users 33 Choice = Complexity 33 Software as and End unto Itself 33 Computers Become Mainstream 33 Transition from Mouse to Touch 33 2.5.5 Why Brand is King 33 Sony vs. Apple 33 Embracing Industry Standards 33 Competing on Quality 34 The Hardware is the Device 34 People Don't Upgrade Software 34 Useful Choice 34 Creating an Ecosystem 34 Apple is a Methodology 34 Consumer is King 34 2.6 File Formats Background 35 2.6.1 Help with File Formats 35 What are File Formats? 35 Open and Proprietary Formats 35 Problems with Definitions of Open Formats 35 2.6.2 Native vs. Exchange File Formats 35 History of File Formats 35 Why do I have to buy Microsoft Office? 36 How to get documents out of Microsoft Office? 36 2.6.3 Common Internet File Formats 36 What is Flash? 36 Advantages and Disadvantages of Flash 36 What is a PDF? 37 Advantages and Disadvantages of PDFs 37 2.7 File Format Choices 37 2.7.1 Different Versions of My Books 37 Red Letter Editions 37 Plain Versions 37 Mobile Versions 38 Versions for Sight Impaired Persons 38 My Books for E-Book Reading 38 2.7.2 What is a Zip file? 38 More Information 39 Compatibility 39 2.7.3 What is DjVu? 39 Overview 39 Advantages 39 Disadvantages 39 2.7.4 Why I Don't Use Certain File Formats 39 Why Don't I Use Microsoft Office Formats 39 Alternative Office Formats 40 Why I Don't Use MP4 Video (also known as H.264) 40 Alternative Audio and Video Formats 40 Why I Avoid Writing my Own Javascript for Interactivity 40 Chapter 3 41 3.1 Help for All Users Accessing my Website 41 3.1.1 Not All Browsers are Equal 41 Incredible to Pitiful 41 Best Rendering Engines 41 Webkit 41 Presto 41 Opera Mini Popularity 41 Defects of Opera Mini 42 Solutions to Opera Mini Defects 42 Trident 42 Worst Web Browsers 42 3.1.2 Help for All Users: Simple Explanation 42 Trouble seeing things? - Simplest Answer 42 For the Ultimate Experience 42 Everything Already in Newer Apple Products and New Linuxes 42 Windows Users Ready for a Basic or Minimal Experience 43 Importance 43 Quick Answer: Audio and Video Playing Plus New Website Font 43 3.1.3 Help for All Users: Levels of Support 43 Level 1 Support: Ultimate Experience 43 Level 2 Support: Good Experience 43 Level 3 Support: Basic or Minimal Experience 43 Totally Unsupported 44 Consumer Software Choice is Morally Neutral 44 3.1.4 Help for All Users: More Complex Explanation 44 Fuller Answer: Audio and Video Playing Built into Latest Web Browsers 44 Fuller Answer: New Website Font With Latest Web Browsers 44 Technical Answer: Other Web Browser and PDF Viewer Compatibility 44 3.2 Help for PC Users Accessing My Website 45 3.2.1 Why Not Use Internet Explorer? 45 Dealing with Internet Explorer 45 Special Recommendations for Internet Explorer 45 Supporting and Testing for Internet Explorer 45 3.2.2 Which Version of Internet Explorer? 46 Internet Explorer Compatibility 46 Upgrading Old Computers and Old Software 46 Technical Reasons to Support Version 7 46 3.2.3 Help for PC Web Browsers and Flash Player 46 Do I need Flash Player for this website? 46 Ultimate Experience for Windows Users 46 New Font and Built in Audio for Windows Users 47 Working with Older and Less Functioning Web Browsers 47 Many Better and Free Choices for Web Browsing 47 3.2.4 Help for Windows PDF and other Viewers 48 Do I need Flash Player for this website? 48 Adobe Reader and Several Better Free PDF Viewers 48 Check to see if you have Adobe Reader 48 Solving Windows Specific Application Installation Problems 48 3.2.5 So you have a Dell 48 3.2.6 Microsoft and the Future 49 Microsoft Playing the Victim 49 Microsoft Needs a History Lesson 49 Microsoft's Vision of the Future 49 3.3 Help for Apple Users Accessing My Website 50 3.3.1 General Help for Mac OS X Users 50 Ultimate Experience for Mac OS X Users 50 New Font and Built in Audio for Mac OS X Users 50 Special Instructions for Mac OS X Users 50 3.3.2 Help for Mac OS X by Version 50 Mac OS X - All Supported Versions 50 Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) Users 51 Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard) Users 51 Mac OS X 10.6 (Snow Leopard) Users 51 3.3.3 General Help for Apple iPad Tablet Users 51 General Information 51 My Website Compatibility 51 Special Instructions for Apple iPad Tablet Users 52 Apple iWork Office Suite 52 Other Applications and Add-ons 52 Device Testing 52 3.3.4 Books on Apple iPad Tablet 53 My Books on the iPad with iBooks 53 My Books on the iPad with Stanza 53 Downloading to the iPad with Third Party Applications 53 Buying Books on the iPad 53 3.4 Help for Other Users Accessing My Website 54 3.4.1 General Help for Linux, PC-BSD, and OpenSolaris 54 Ultimate Experience for Linux Users 54 New Font and Built in Audio for Linux Users 54 Improving your Experience Level with Linux 54 Special Instructions for Linux Users 54 3.4.2 Help by Version for Linux, PC-BSD, and OpenSolaris 55 Linux Users 55 PC-BSD Users 55 Open Source Users 55 Testing 55 Other Formats 55 3.4.3 Help for Alternative Desktop Systems 56 Get Firefox and PDF Viewer 56 BeOS Specific 56 OS/2 Specific 56 RISC OS Specific 56 Amiga OS Specific 56 3.5 Different Ways to Access My Website 56 3.5.1 Help for Mobile Users 56 2 Different Ways to Access Content on Mobile Devices 56 Simplified Version of Website (Mobile Website) 57 iPhone and iPod Touch (Main and Mobile Website) 57 Testing (Main and Mobile Website) 57 Google Phone, Palm Pre, or Opera Mini (Website) 57 iPhone and iPod Touch (Download Files) 57 E-Book Reader (Download Files for Mobile Device) 57 Handhelds (Download Files for Mobile Device) 57 3.5.2 Help for Game Console and other Embedded Users 57 2 Different Levels of Access 58 Playstation and PSP (Mobile Website) 58 Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS (Full Website) 58 Testing (Full and Mobile Website) 58 3.5.3 Help with Accessibility 58 Open Source Friendly and Accessible 58 Special Versions for the Sight Impaired 58 Voice Over: Apple's Built-In Screen Reader 58 Other Help for Sight Impaired Users on Mac OS X, iPhone, and iPad 59 Linux and Firefox for the Sight Impaired 59 I Still Cannot Access PDFs 59 3.5.4 Ethical Considerations 59 No Software Restrictions (No DRM) 59 Why I Try to Avoid Microsoft Formats 60 Chapter 4 60 4.1 Introduction to Design 60 4.1.1 The Meaning of Design 60 General Concepts 60 Specifics 60 Real World Examples 61 4.1.2 When to Use a Computer 61 What a Computer is Good at 61 Using a Computer Increases Complexity 61 The Reality of Sharing Information 62 4.1.3 Managing Design Complexity 62 Keep Things Simple for Yourself 62 Use the Correct Software and Don't Push it 62 Understand How Everything Works 62 Be Easy on your Computer 63 4.2 Web Design 63 4.2.1 Realities of Web Design 63 Designing a Brochure vs. Designing a Website 63 Why HTML Causes Design Problems 63 HTML Does More Things than PDFs 63 HTML has Less Formatting Options 63 Design vs. Accessibility Conflicts 64 Problem Caused by Lack of Vector Graphics 64 Idea of CSS 64 Power of CSS 64 4.2.2 Myths of Website Accessibility 64 Definition of Accessibility 64 More Difficult for Designers 64 Problems with Device Accessibility 64 Problems with Disability Accessibility 65 Lack of Consistency 65 4.2.3 My Web Design Decisions 65 Why I Don't Use Professional Adobe Design Tools 65 Alternative Options to the Adobe Creative Suite 65 Why I Don't Just Use a Blog or CMS 65 Why I Avoid Writing my Own Javascript for Interactivity 66 4.2.4 Should I Build a Website? 66 It's a Lot of Work 66 Make is Easy for Yourself 66 Advertise 66 Sharing Content 66 Don't Try to Please Everyone 66 4.3 More Design Decisions 67 4.3.1 Open vs. Proprietary Technology 67 Neither is Perfect 67 From the Vendor's Point of View 67 Issues with Open Standards 67 Patents and Open Standards 67 Proprietary Technology Issues 67 Proprietary Technology and Future Support 67 4.3.2 My Book Design Decisions 68 Recreating the Same Design for Another Document is Easy 68 Easy to Keep Formatting Consistent and Professional 68 Wide and Long Lived Support of the Same Format 68 Speed, Adaptability, and Fine Grained Control 68 4.3.3 Design Services and Resources 69 Print on Demand 69 Social Networking 69 Chapter 5 70 5.1 Microsoft Problems 70 5.1.1 Which Version of Windows? 70 History Repeats Itself 70 All Versions of Windows 70 Microsoft is Run by Salesmen 70 Microsoft Security Continues to Get Worse 70 UNIX Security Continues to be Stellar 71 Why these Problems will Never be Fixed 71 5.1.2 Different Types of Malware 71 Viruses and Worms 71 Spyware 72 Trojans 72 Adware 72 Root Kits 72 5.1.3 How Microsoft and Apple are Different 72 Why Other Big Corporations are so Mad 72 Why is Microsoft Different? 72 Why Microsoft is Mad (at Apple) 73 The Most Famous Thing Microsoft Did Wrong 73 The Method to Apple's Madness 73 Apple vs. Its Competition 73 Why Do People Buy Apple Products? 73 5.1.4 Microsoft Business Tactics 73 FUD 73 Vaporware 74 Astroturfing 74 Embrace, Extend, and Extinguish 74 Patents for Obvious Ideas 74 Not Invented Here Syndrome 75 5.1.5 Thinking Errors, Myth of Objectivity 75 All Products are Equally Good Assumption 75 Writing without Reviewing the Products 75 Apples to Oranges Comparisons 75 Its OK for Me, But Not for You 75 5.2 PC-Specific Problems and Solutions 76 5.2.1 Mac Mentality vs. PC Mentality 76 The Computer as an Appliance 76 Managers and Engineers 76 Software Resilience 76 Out of Touch Programmers 76 Paradoxical Phenomenon 76 The Price of Mainstream Acceptance 77 Apple Software Regulation Benefits Consumers 77 5.2.2 Examples of Big Design Mistakes 77 Backwards Compatibility 77 Big Business Attitudes 77 Variety of Hardware 78 Linux Specific Problems 78 5.2.3 Virtual Machines (Virtualization) 78 Windows Problems 79 Linux Problems 79 Virtual Solution 79 5.2.4 Wine “Windows Emulator” Solution 80 The Purpose of Wine 80 Wine, CrossOver, and Codeweavers 80 How Wine Works 80 Other Wine Features 80 Supported Applications and Operating Systems 80 Other Wine Compatibility 80 5.2.5 Google vs. Microsoft 80 Who is More Locked In? 81 Who Really Cares About the End User? 81 What Data Does Google Actually Collect? 81 The Reality of End User Data Backup 81 The Internet is not Private 81 5.3 Advantages of Microsoft Alternatives 81 5.3.1 Good News for Potential Switchers 81 Microsoft Moved Everything Around 81 Apple and You: Graphics and Multimedia 82 Creative Mac Only Software 82 Pay the Same for Less 82 Microsoft Approach 82 Apple's Approach 82 Get Everything with Linux 82 Have Total Control and Choice with Linux 82 Office and Internet Compatible 83 Open Source Compatibility 83 5.3.2 The Transition: Try Before You Commit 83 Software Changes Fast 83 Platform Independence 83 Open Source on Windows 83 Specific Open Source Applications 83 Firefox 84 OpenOffice.org 84 Gimp 84 Web Applications 84 Open File Formats 84 5.3.3 UNIX Means No Maintenance 84 What is UNIX? 84 Why UNIX Is Better 85 UNIX Security and Stability 85 UNIX Permissions 85 Windows Registry 85 UNIX has Package Management 85 5.3.4 The Rationale for Open Source 85 5.3.5 What Make Current Macs Unique 86 What is Mac OS X? 86 What is the Difference Between OS X and OS 9 and Earlier 86 UNIX 86 Cocoa 87 Mac OS 10 is Not Related to Mac OS 9 and Earlier 87 Mac OS 10.3 (Panther) 87 Mac OS 10.4 (Tiger) 87 Mac OS 10.5 (Leopard) 87 Mac OS 10.6 (Snow Leopard) 87 5.3.6 The Best or Worst Option 88 Different Open Source License 88 Advantages and Disadvantages Overview 88 Overcoming Disadvantages of FreeBSD 88 Chapter 6 88 6.1 Keeping Your Data Safe 88 6.1.1 Intellectual Property and Copyright Law 88 6.1.2 Managing Information from the Internet 89 Navigating to Moved Pages 89 Controlling Web Site Formatting 89 Temporary Folder 89 Managing Bookmarks 90 Archive Important Information 90 How to Archive Data 90 6.1.3 Computer Security Common Sense 90 Don't use Windows 90 Use User Accounts 90 Network Securely 90 Use a Firewall 90 Use an Antivirus Program 91 Use a Spyware Scanner 91 Use Encryption 91 Do Not Use File Sharing Programs 91 Don't Open Files with Unknown Extensions 91 Make Regular Back-ups 91 Read Up on Security Problems 92 Secure Delete Hard Drives Before Disposal of Computer 92 What is Your Data Worth? 92 6.1.4 Why Make Backups and How to Do Them? 92 6.2 General File Concepts 93 6.2.1 Structured Document Formatting 93 Advantages 93 Examples 93 6.2.2 Drawing vs. Painting 93 Vector Drawing 94 Outline of Shape 94 Attributes 94 Sharing with Others 94 6.2.3 File Formats 94 Text and Page Layout 94 Graphics and Interactive Media 94 6.3 Instructions for Specific Programs 95 6.3.1 Chinese Watercolor 95 Traditional Method 95 By Computer 95 6.3.2 LaTeX 95 Document Structure 96 Text Formatting 96 Recommendations 96 6.3.3 Book Authoring with OpenOffice.org 96 Create Chapter Documents 96 Mark Headings 96 Create a Master Document 96 Create an Index 97 Add Introduction and Title Page 97 Create PDF 97 6.3.4 Text File Format Conversions 97 Background 97 Using Command Line Programs 97 Finding the Command Line on Linux 97 Finding the Command Line on Mac OS X 97 How to Enter Commands 97 How to Copy and Paste 97 Getting the Programs Needed 98 How to Add Programs to Ubuntu via Synaptic 98 You Need 98 Conversions 98 Note 98 Kompozer 98 gnuhtml2latex 98 Winefish 98 latex2rtf 99 tex4ht or SimpleTeX4ht 99 odt2daisy 99 Daisy Pipeline 99 if the latex2rtf command works, do the following in OpenOffice.org 3.1 99 if the tex4ht command works, do the following in OpenOffice.org 3.1 99 Ghostscript 99 Adobe Reader 100 Daisy Pipeline 100 6.3.5 Vector Graphics File Format Conversions 100 Background 100 Using Command Line Programs 100 Finding the Command Line 100 How to Enter Commands 100 How to Copy and Paste 100 Getting the Programs Needed 100 How to Add Programs to Ubuntu via Synaptic 100 You Need 101 pdf2ps 101 pstoeps 101 Scribus 101 Inkscape 101 uniconv filename.svg filename.wmf 101 Cenon 101 Chapter 7 102 7.1 Microsoft Articles 102 7.1.1 Why Not Microsoft Office? 102 Introduction 102 Price 102 Security 102 Quality 102 Respect 103 Prisoners 103 Examples 103 7.1.2 Making PDFs on Windows for Free 103 Introduction 103 PDF Creator 103 Description 103 License 103 Compatibility 103 Website 103 OpenOffice.org 3.0 with Sun PDF Import Extension 104 Description 104 License 104 Compatibility 104 Website 104 CutePDF Writer 104 Description 104 License 104 Compatibility 104 Website 104 Tomahawk PDF 104 Description 104 License 104 Compatibility 104 Website 104 Fox it PDF Creator 105 Description 105 License 105 Compatibility 105 Website 105 Adobe Acrobat Professional, Standard, Elements 105 Description 105 License 105 Compatibility 105 Website 105 7.2 Choosing Linux 105 7.2.1 Why I Don't Use Linux 105 Introduction 105 Why I Started with Linux 106 Why I Changed from Linux 106 Why I Went Back to Windows 106 Why I Went to Mac OS X 106 Before Switching Back to Linux, I am Waiting for 106 7.2.2 Why Desktop Linux Again? 106 Reasons for Leaving Linux 106 Main Reasons for Returning to Linux 108 Why I Prefer Linux over Mac OS X 108 What Linux Doesn't Do that the Mac does 109 Linux Box Specifications 109 7.3 Linux Applications 109 7.3.1 Linspire Product Reviews 109 Good Reviews 109 BibleTime 109 Cinepaint 110 DebugMode Wink 110 Digikam 110 Flash 7 PlugIn 110 GFTP 110 Good Weather 110 HTMLDoc 110 Inkscape SVG Vector Illustrator 110 Jalbum 111 Komics 111 Nautilus 111 Nvu 111 Opera 111 Quanta Plus 111 QtFpro Anti Virus 111 Spreadsheet Pro/Kspread 111 Superkaramba Liquid Kalendar 111 Thunderbird 112 Write Pro/Kword 112 Ximian Evolution 112 Bad Reviews 112 Gnome Desktop Environment 112 Lphoto 112 Lsongs 112 Passepartout 112 7.3.2 Installing Popular Freeware on Ubuntu 112 Flash Player 112 Adobe Reader 113 Real Player 113 Java 113 7.3.3 Getting VMware Player Set Up on Ubuntu 113 Installing Vmware Player (the easy way) 113 Downloading Virtual Appliance 114 Running the Virtual Appliance 114 Chapter 8 114 8.1 Mac Articles 114 8.1.1 Why Macs Cost More than Cheap PCs 114 In Stock and Functional at Base Price 114 One Version of Industrial Strength OS 114 Runs Windows Better than on a PC 115 Built in Network Card for High Speed Internet and Networking 115 Backups 115 Multimedia 115 Graphics Support 115 Programmers Dream 115 Technical Support 115 Statistics 116 8.1.2 Basic Design Tools 116 Software 116 Hardware 116 Rationale 117 8.1.3 How to Buy Mac Hardware 117 Know What You're Buying it For 117 Know How Much You are Willing to Pay for a Given Quality 117 Mac OS X Compatibility 117 Good Name Brands 117 Try it Out First 117 Good Deals 117 iLife integration 117 8.2 Apple iPad Tablet 118 8.2.1 Background Information 118 General Apple iPad Information 118 Purchasing Advice and What to Wait For 118 Best of iPad 118 Apple iPad Navigation Techniques 119 Advice for Using iTunes 120 Advice for the App Store 120 8.2.2 Reference Recommendations 121 Recommended iPad Academic Applications 121 Recommended iPad Technical Applications 122 8.2.3 Design Recommendations 123 Recommended iPad Graphics Applications 123 Recommended iPad Multimedia Applications 124 8.2.4 Current Information 124 Recommended iPad Navigation Applications 124 Recommended iPad News Applications 125 8.2.5 Activities Recommendations 126 Recommended iPad Pastimes 126 Recommended iPad Fitness Applications 126 8.2.6 Location Based Recommendations 127 Recommended Worldwide Information for iPad 127 Recommended Local Information for iPad 127 8.3 Apple TV: First Impressions 128 8.3.1 What is an Apple TV? 128 8.3.2 Why Haven't I Heard of it Yet? 128 8.3.3 PC or Mac Storage Space Issues 128 8.3.4 Apple TV Media Management 128 8.3.5 Wireless Router 129 8.3.6 Why You Cannot Copy DVDs 129

Technical Collection

Chapter 1

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First Things

Technical Collection

1.1 License

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This entire PDF is licensed together under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License as a whole, and nothing is to be separated, added on to, or modified in any manner.

Clarification on what no derivatives means:

No changes may be made in any way including but not limited to:

the material content and design must be copied as a whole (everything contained in this pdf file)

1. with nothing added

2. without anything taken away

must be kept in its original form with no additions or subtractions to

1. file formats

2. HTML and CSS code

3. PDF files

4. graphics and movies

5. sounds, music, and spoken word

6. interactivity and flash

7. file and directory structure

8. filenames and directory names

9. links

10. distribution method

Technical Collection

1.2 Introduction

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And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you. And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed.

Joel 2:25-26

In that day, saith the LORD, will I assemble her that halteth, and I will gather her that is driven out, and her that I have afflicted; And I will make her that halted a remnant, and her that was cast far off a strong nation: and the LORD shall reign over them in mount Zion from henceforth, even for ever.

Micah 4:6-7

Behold upon the mountains the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace!

Nahum 1:15

My last 12 years of experience with computers are partially expressed in the following articles. My computer work is mostly graphic design, with Apple products and Open Source products.

The articles in the first section, Technical Background, give general information about computers and the Internet, give information on how to choose computers, give information about computer compatibility, give information about people and computers, give information about Apple and future trends, and explain what file formats are and what my file format decision were.

The articles in the second section, Technical Help, explain how PC users can access my website, explain how Apple users can access my website, explain how other desktop users can access my website, and provide different ways to access my website.

The articles in the third section, Technical Design, give an introduction to design, explain about web design, and give more design ideas.

The articles in the fourth section, Technical Choices, explain Microsoft problems, explain PC-specific problems and solutions, and give some advantages of Microsoft alternatives.

The articles in the fifth section, General Tech Challenges, explain how to keep your data safe, general file concepts, and I provide more detailed instructions on specific programs or types of programs, but only require programs that are free, or similar techniques will work in a variety of different software titles. The command line techniques work similarly on Mac OS X as they do on Linux, although downloading and installing them is different.

The articles in the sixth section, PC Challenges, explain why Microsoft Office is a bad choice and how to make PDFs from Microsoft Office files, help your decide whether to use Linux or not, and tell about some popular Linux applications and how to get them up and running.

The articles in the seventh section, Apple Challenges, explain why Macs cost more, how to choose Mac hardware, and recommend Mac design programs, explain what the iPad does and what it does not do well, recommend iPad programs, and introduce the Apple TV.

I also give practical advice for working with the Apple iPad tablet and the Apple TV.

This book plus many more books, free graphics content, my Budget Mac Software Links, and my Recommended iPad Software are available, for free download, at my website www.benjamin-newton.com

Technical Collection

Chapter 2

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Technical Background

by Ben Huot

Technical Collection

2.1 Computers and Internet Basics

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2.1.1 Computer Fundamentals

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Computers are not Magic

It shows that many people know nothing about computers, when they cannot apply common sense to Internet policies. Many people even think that you just push a button and the computer does all your work or think that the computer is some sort of magical device.

What is a computer?

Computer are basically really sophisticated calculators. A computer takes in input from your keyboard, mouse, digital tablet, digital camera, web cam, scanner, and other input devices and performs calculations to them. Computer programming is based on a form of mathematics and everything from performing filters on images, to searching for information on a computer takes in data, processes it by performing mathematical operations, and then comes up with modified output.

What a Computer Does Well

A computer does not think very well and although a computer can count the number of words or occurrences of a given word in a document instantly, it cannot tell you any kind of summary or opinion of what the story is about. Creating content has to be done by humans, unless you just want to apply certain pseudo random calculations of existing data. Creating data is as hard on computers as doing so by hand. But computers are even better at another thing: copying data. One of the best things about the virtual world is that perfect copies can be made, of the virtual representation of input and processed data.

The Same Laws Apply to Computers

All the data on the Internet is in a very specific location, on a given computer at any time, so laws don't need to be re-invented for computers. If someone violates a law with computers, the jurisdiction that applies is obvious, because it is the one in which the data resides. Whenever someone views data, it is downloaded to their computer and whenever you transfer data, from one computer to another, a copy of the data is made. This means that distributing data, by posting it online, is the same as stealing, because more copies are made, every time someone downloads the file.

Illegally Downloading or Uploading Files is Stealing

Just like with a book, you can do whatever you want, with your copy of the data, that you acquired legally, but you are not permitted to reproduce it, without permission. People seem to think it is ok to copy digital information without permission, but would never take a book, photocopy, it and give away or sell those copies. Some people also justify data theft, because they think that it costs too much money, but most people would not go into a store and steal some food, because they think that the price is too high. The main reason why people steal data online is because they think they are anonymous and that it is easy to do.

2.1.2 Major Categories of Software

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Applications

Applications are the software programs that people use to directly: create, modify, and view data. Without applications, we would have nothing practical to do with operating systems. Applications include: word processors, spreadsheet programs, presentation programs, databases, photo editors, page layout programs, illustration programs, web browsers, im clients, and the like. But applications need an operating system to run on.

Operating Systems

An operating system is what applications are designed to run on. They operate between the applications and the hardware. Examples of operating systems include: Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux. When people talk about application compatibility with Windows, they mean that they use applications that only work on the Windows operating system. Many applications run on more than one operating system. These applications are referred to as cross-platform. Some of the best cross-platform software is a type of software called open source. The process by which an application that runs on only one platform like Windows is modified, so that it can run on one or more other operating systems, like Mac OS X or Linux, is called porting.

Open Source

The word “source” in open source refers to the source code files that applications are written in. which are then compiled into binary formats. that cannot be modified or reconstructed. With most commercial applications, that most people are familiar with, like Internet Explorer, Microsoft Word, or Adobe Photoshop are closed source, in that no source code is distributed with the binary application. Source code is useful in that it allows computer programmers (also known as software developers) to see how a program runs, allows them to modify and improve it to make it more efficient, fix bugs (malfunctions), or fix security issues (holes in software that allow malicious people to deliberately cause problems on computers or steal information with viruses and spyware).

Drivers

Drivers are special software that are needed, for the operating system, to communicate with hardware devices. There are drivers for everything other than the processor (the computer's brain). When you buy new hardware, you need to install the drivers that come with the device, usually in a CD or DVD-ROM disc that comes with the: printer, scanner, graphics card, router, network card, and the like. Some drivers are generic or old enough and so come with the operating system, like drivers for USB flash drives and some digital cameras.

Libraries

Libraries are special software that allow programmers to create their software, without having to write everything a program does by themselves. Many libraries actually allow programmers to more easily write software, that runs on more than one operating system. There are often libraries, that come with an operating system that make it much easier to write, for that operating system and a lot more work, to make it available, for other operating systems. Most well known cross-platform libraries are open source, like: Java, GTK, Qt, Mozilla's XUL, Adobe's AIR, Runtime Revolution, some versions of Basic, and Mono.

2.1.3 Common Software Terms

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Viewer vs. Editor

For many people, who create documents for e-mail or print, do things the old way and use a file format that is edited and viewed by the same application, so that they can make changes, and they just assume that every on else has that specific program. The Internet is based on the concept of open standards and on the idea of having file formats that don't require people to buy a specific program just to view the file.

On the Internet, you run into many read only viewing applications called web browsers, PDF readers, and Flash Player which are given away for free. Web pages and PDFs can both be created and viewed by any programmer that wants to write a program to do so, without paying any money and they work seamlessly, because the blueprints are available for free.

This is the direction the future is moving in. Sending Word documents that require people to pay hundreds of dollars to view your work is considered rude and outdated. Even on Windows there are many totally free ways to create PDFs from any document. You do not need to use any Adobe software to do so. Just as there are many free web browsers, there are also many free PDF readers as well.

What is a Beta?

Software is often released for testing at a variety of stages before it is the final release of a major or minor version. The first stage of testing is called Alpha and software at this phase of development may not even load, are usually not feature complete, and are only useful for advanced users to test. The next stage of testing is called Beta and this is a good time for a wider range of people to test, who are not depending on the application for any production work. The final stage of testing is called a Release Candidate and if there are no “show stopping” bugs (problems that cause the program to not offer basic functionality), the current release candidate becomes the final version, sometimes referred to as Gold Master. In open source software, there are many different numbering systems, so the only thing that holds true is that there are stable and unstable releases, where the stable releases can be used for real work, while the unstable should only be used for testing purposes.

Compatibility with Different Versions

Unless noted otherwise, you can almost always assume that if a certain version of software is compatible with a given piece of software, file format, website, etc. that later versions will be too. For example, if someone says that you have to have Firefox 3.5, Firefox 4.0 should also work as well.

2.1.4 How the Internet Works

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Clients and Servers

The Internet is the largest network of computers connected together across the entire world. There are two basic distinctions in the types of computers: one type is called a client and the other is called a server. The computer that the average user uses like a desktop computer, a laptop, a handheld computer, a mobile phone, a game console, and the like is a client. The user connects to the Internet to access information and services provided by specialized computers called servers.

Whereas a client computing device usually has a graphical interface, a monitor, a printer, and is made of commodity parts, a server is made of industrial strength components that are very reliable and high performance, because they provide services and information for many people at once. These servers are constantly connected to the Internet, do not have monitors, or any kind of graphical interface, and have components designed for high speed access and constant use.

Servers run specialized software like web servers, email servers, chat servers, time synchronization servers, and the like. The web browser is the client software that receives information from the web server. The web server provides a central location for the website to reside at and transfers the information to the client web browser and the two talk to each other as you browse a website. The same is true with email programs, chat programs, and the like.

Legal Issues

Many people think that that since the data is out there somewhere in cyberspace that no normal laws apply, but that is not true. The data is only in one location at once which is stored on a computer in a certain city, in a certain district, in a certain country at any one time. All normal laws apply to the data, depending on where it is located in the world.

Some of the most important laws are called intellectual property (IP) laws. Two main types of intellectual property are the patent and the copyright. A patent is an idea applied to a technology using a specific method and requires others to license or pay money to the owner of that method for the use of that method. File formats, protocols, APIs, and almost every other aspect of computers can be patented. A copyright governs the copying and distribution of creative works including writing, graphics, music, video, software, and the like.

Whenever information is transfered to or from a server or from one computer drive to another, the file is copied. Generally copyrighted material must be paid for per copy, so uploading a file to a server is violating copyright law, each time it is downloaded or uploaded. The original copyright laws came in effect in colonial America, because people were printing other people's books, because of the explosion of the printing press. So the reason for copyright originally was because it was easier to copy IP due to the technology. And copyright laws will become more and more invasive as it gets easier and easier to copy information.

Everything created after 1989 is automatically copyrighted, even if no notice of copyright is given. The mere creation of something covered by copyright law such as writing, creating art work, recording music, coding software, and more creates a copyright. That means that everything on the web is copyrighted unless it is labeled as public domain.

There are a number of different licenses where the author retains the copyright but allows certain usage of the copyrighted material under certain conditions. Examples of this situation are open source and creative commons licenses. The best way to avoid copyright infringement (a fancy word for stealing) is to not use what someone else created without their permission. The moral concept behind copyright law is to compensate someone else for their work.

How a Website Works

Websites are just a collection of files in various folders, on a computer some where. The first part of the address is http://, which means the Hyper Text Transfer Protocol, which is corresponds to the language in which the web server communicates with the web browser client.

The next part is the domain name, followed by a domain name extension depending on use and country. That is the benjamin-newton.com part. The other major US extensions are .net, .us, .info, .biz, and the like, which all can be purchased for any use. US .gov and .edu extensions must provide proof they are part of the government or are a certified institution of higher learning like a college or university.

The final part of the web address is the collection of files and folders that lead to the file you are browsing. Every / stands for another folder. At the very end you will either see a / which means a folder default file like index.html or you will see a filename at the end with an extension like .html, .php, .asp, .jsp, cfm, or really any type of file. HTML stands for Hyper Text Markup Language and the other ones correspond to server programs that return to the client web browser HTML.

How Web Pages and Plugins Work

When you click on what is called a link, you go from one web page to another. To create a web page, you use a web page editor or any program that can save to the HTML file format. To get it to the website, you upload it using an FTP or File Transfer Application program or web folders.

An HTML page consists of what are called tags that mark what is called structure in a document, like: title, heading 1, heading 2, ordered list, unordered list, list item, link, emphasis, strong emphasis, table, table row, table data, and the like. All the pictures used on a web page as well as the formatting are in separate files and are linked in. The same picture like a logo only has to download on the first page browsed to and then for every other page, it stays on your client computer, in what is called a cache and is just referenced to its location in each HTML document.

Any other file format other than HTML and a couple picture file formats like JPEG, PNG, and GIF need another viewer application to see it, like a web browser for other types of files. Some of these viewers run inside an HTML page, within the browser and are called plugins like Flash or Quicktime. For the web browser to determine what program to open these other files with, it looks at the extension at the end of the file like .pdf, .swf, or .mp4.

Uploading and Downloading

When you transfer a file to your computer from another computer, that is called downloading. A website functions by making a connection to the web server, downloading a file to you, and then terminating the connection. The way people get files onto a website is called uploading which is usually done by using an FTP or WebDAV (also known as web folders) program. Upload speeds are usually much slower than download speeds as most people download far more than they upload. This is especially true because those uploading web pages are uploading relatively small files. Whereas people downloading software are downloading much larger file sizes.

Technical Collection

2.2 Choosing Computers

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2.2.1 How Much Do I Need to Know?

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Workaholics Recruiting Converts

Some people believe that people are only empowered, by knowing everything about technology. They believe, that if you don't know how everything works, than you are somehow a slave, to spend all your time consuming information, created by others. Some people actually do things, that contribute to society, which are often referred to as jobs, and when they get home actually want to relax and enjoy themselves. These people do not feel the need, to do more work, in their free time and consider anything, that takes away from their free time, as the real obstacle, to their freedom and happiness.

Technology and Normal People

In other words, most people have better things to do, than spend their time, after work, trying to get their computer to work. These people are looking for ways to make their lives simpler, not more complicated. These are what programmers refer to as end users. It is the job of the technology professional, to make the lives of those using this technology easier. These people are considered, by most other people, as normal people.

The Fundamental Question

A philosophical question constantly comes up when talking about technology, which is: how much do I need to know? This is a value judgement and is different for everyone. But consider other areas of your life - wouldn't it be best if everyone knew: how to cook, how to grow their own food, how to raise livestock, research the best belief system, master medicine and psychology, master all of world history, know how to defend themselves in a fight, understand how the economy works, raise their kids to be good citizens, get good at writing, serve in the military, travel to every other part of the world, get involved in politics, and the list goes on and on.

Specialization is Normal and OK

If you try to do all of this, you will drive yourself mad, never make any money, never have any fun, and never have any lasting relationships, with other people. Even, early on in history, it was common for people, to specialize in one area and it is becoming more and more necessary, as things get more and more complicated. So let us just accept the fact, that not everyone needs to understand everything, about every process, that takes place, that is necessary, for them to function, in our society. It is ok to NOT be an expert with technology. Technology should be designed, so that it is easy for you, as you are an end user.

2.2.2 Computers and Choice

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Everyone is Different

When someone wants to buy a computer, they often ask someone they know who works with computers to help them. They will generally get the one that gets that person the most money, or else one that that other person likes best. It is very bad to make assumptions in almost any situation.

What Do You Want it to Do?

A computer is like any other tool and which one is best for you is different. What the user does with it should be the determining factor in buying it. As non-programmers are using programs other people wrote, it is important to consider what software you need or want to run and the find a computer that is compatible with that software and runs it fast enough and stable enough, so that you accomplish, what you need or want, with the device.

Consider Total Cost of Ownership

You should also consider all the costs involved, like: service plans and warranties, what is costs to repair and the reliability of the device, how hard it is to use and how much training will cost you, what you have to pay for support and how much support you need, how much work it is to maintain and if you need to pay someone else to do that, how hard it is to screw it up and what you have to pay someone to fix it, and the cost of the software you need or want. Often the speed of the processor and the size of the hard drive are some of the least important components. You need to first see what the system requirements are for the software and operating system you want to run.

Quality is Most Important

What you really want to know is not how fast a particular component is but how fast and well the software you need runs on it. Two of the biggest factors are RAM and processor cache, but the most important factors are the quality of the operating system and the quality of the hardware. Some manufacturers make higher quality hardware than others. Apple is the only well-known name brand that makes quality hardware and software.

Level of Integration and Complexity

You also need to realize that the more companies involved in building your computer components and the less effort spent tuning the hardware to the software will result in: incompatibilities, performance problems, less clear understanding of who is responsible to fix or troubleshoot problems (companies love to blame the other ones for problems), and less ability to track down what causes problems, so they can be fixed. Apple controls the entire system, so things work better and are supported better, by Apple, than competitors can.

Does the Manufacturer Want You?

Another important factor is to consider what the manufacturers target market is. Apple targets the consumer, creative, education, and small business markets, while most other tech companies specialize in the enterprise, which means large corporations. Just because it makes sense for your employer to use a particular product, does not mean that it is better for your needs.

Technical Collection

2.3 Computer Compatibility

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2.3.1 Why Upgrade?

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Why Require New Versions of Web Browsers?

One of the reasons why I as a web designer continue to encourage people to upgrade, to the latest browser is that, while Adobe Reader from 2001 has plenty of formatting features for me and most others, HTML is still very limited in formatting options. Recently, non-Microsoft web browsers have added a couple of very useful capabilities, including video without plugins and a much wider variety of fonts.

The Microsoft Approach

When Microsoft gets caught with factual and independently verified flaws, they change the way they count the numbers of security flaws or redefine words in ways that no one else does. It is Microsoft's attitude that the consumer is the problem and that if you have problems with your computer, then it is your fault, because Microsoft can never admit they ever do anything wrong. With Microsoft, everything is a test of loyalty: you either use, only their products, all the time, for everything, or you are an enemy to crush, by any means, even illegal and unethical. Microsoft is run by salesmen and that is why they produce such inferior software: salesmen will sell you anything - there is no focus on product development and they have no standards. If anyone else produced a product, with as many flaws in it, as their software, they would have all the products recalled, but somehow people have accepted that it is ok for PCs to fail. If their microwave or their car worked like their PCs, they would return them and the government would make the company return their money. Think about it: why is the number one reason why you buy a PC vs. why you buy an iPod. You buy the PC because of compatibility (meaning you have no choice), but you buy the iPod because you want to.

PDF vs. HTML

Whereas the PDF specification was put together by one company (Adobe), who develops design software and makes money off of it, web browsers have to conform to standards, dictated by committees, which take decades to decide upon, and are often not realistic practically or technically. One of the things holding back web browsers is that when HTML was first introduced, basic formatting features were added, without regard to how hard it would be to develop web browsers, to interpret them or designers to update websites (mainly because of mixing presentation with organizational structure), and the decision to make the HTML language accept such sloppy syntax.

Legacy and Innovation

Because web sites designed 10 years ago need to be able to be viewed by current browsers, it has made it slower to add formatting features. Some formatting, like page breaks, were not added, due to philosophical decisions. And web browsers constantly have a chicken and egg problem of web designers needing browser support, before they try new features, while browser developers wait for demand to build, before implementing new features.

Microsoft Destroying Competition

Along the way, Microsoft has always been afraid, that if the web was easy enough to use, that it would break its monopoly and allow competitors, to effectively compete with them, based on product quality and features, and not be able to own the entire market, by making things incompatible, so that their customers had no choice in vendors. Flash was successful, because Microsoft bundled it with Windows XP to kill Java and made Quicktime incompatible with Windows, so that Flash got the critical mass install base, to allow designers, to do things, that were not possible, with the HTML of that era.

Origins of Internet Explorer

Microsoft also designed Internet Explorer, to not work properly with standard HTML and Javascript, and threatened to raise the price of Windows licenses for Compaq, if they bundled the then most popular browser, called Netscape. Once Netscape was killed off, as a company, and Microsoft took over the web browser market, by bundling Internet Explorer with Windows, they stopped development of Internet Explorer. Then some developers began to clean up and make lean the rewritten next generation layout, for the successor to Netscape (Netscape open sourced its browser, before dying, as a company, so that its software lived on).

Origins of Firefox

This software is now known as Firefox and, as it got back the market share that Netscape had lost to Internet Explorer, web developers began to start writing websites, that worked correctly, so that non-Microsoft browsers could see the pages. Along the way, Apple has captured the future (mobile) computers market, with their mobile devices and Google has dominated the Internet, so that Microsoft is too busy extending itself, into new markets and being blocked and failing to make any money, or take serious market share and so has not had time, to continue to sabotage HTML and Javascript.

The Fight Continues

Currently Microsoft has released a number of copycat technologies in Windows Vista and 7, to destroy: JPEG, OpenOffice.org, Flash, and PDF; so that we can use incompatible Microsoft only versions and pay through the roof for them, once there are no viable alternatives. Internet Explorer seems to lose a percentage point, in market share, every month, even as they are releasing new versions of Internet Explorer. Most of this has happened by word of mouth. One of the reasons why users do not want to update Internet Explorer is because most sites have to do hacks, to get Internet Explorer to work, so that when a new version is released, it is not flawed in the same way, as the previous version, but still doesn't conform to standards, so new hacks have to be added, for each new release.

Microsoft Never Learns

One of the things that hasn't changed, with all these new web browser releases, from Microsoft is that they continue to have: terrible security records, continue to fail to offer competitive performance, and they still haven't fixed most of the incompatibilities and bugs, while introducing new ones. There is a very small Norwegian company that makes one of the best browsers and it is considered, by almost everyone knowledgeable in the field, to be many times better than Internet Explorer. By independently verified standards, that every other browser measures itself by, called Acid tests, Internet Explorer moved up from an F- to a higher F- over the last 3 versions. Microsoft can obviously afford to hire decent programmers, so there is no excuse for their failures, as they are obviously deliberate.

2.3.2 Reasons for Incompatible Electronics

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Proprietary File Formats

Do you ever wonder why you have trouble opening a Word document with all the formatting in another office suite, why some websites only work with Internet Explorer, or why the iPhone doesn't have the Flash Player? It is true that Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux are very different and it is hard to take advantage of all the features of a given operating system, while still making it compatible with more than one. But the glue that holds together our data to each device can be made compatible, so that if a certain application is not available for one system that one can be designed with all the features and be able to exchange files seamlessly with each application. The only reason for this incompatibility is not because this is impossible, but rather that software companies don't want to compete with each other based on how reliable its is, how efficient it is, how useful it is, or what features it offers. Instead, they wish to have a monopoly position, by holding your data hostage, so that you cannot use a competitor's product.

Cable, Satellite, and Cell Phone Monopolies

Why can't you buy all television shows over the Internet, make calls across the Internet for free, can't turn the songs you bought into ringtones for free, or why you cannot use an iPhone over any phone company's network? The barriers between your game console, your cell phone, your TV are all artificial and not technical. The reason all these are not able to share content freely is the result of phone and cable companies not wanting to give up their monopoly control over what you pay to access certain content, so that they don't have to compete with Google or Apple on cost, easy of use, and features alone. Again, developing for each platform may require the same application to be designed more than once, but getting them to communicate together with each other is, in comparison, technically trivial.

Frivolous Software Patents

Why can't you use the latest Microsoft file system to network with Linux, why can't Firefox add support for H.264/MP4 video, why Linux can't ship with certain video and audio codecs, or why did it take so long for Macs and Linux to support the zip archive format? These issues do not exist because of technical reasons, but because the patent system in America is corrupt, doesn't have enough resources, and doesn't understand technology very well. A lot of the problems in the tech world exist, because the people in power are so old, computer illiterate, or corrupt that it is easy to snow them about whether or not a given technology is revolutionary enough to warrant a patent. As a result of these problems, the implications of having so many patents in a certain area, makes it impossible to advance the state of certain technologies, like compressed video, without being held hostage by patent holders.

Technical Collection

2.4 People and Computers

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2.4.1 Joy of Software Plus Internet

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Possibilities of Software and Internet

Software is one of the best parts of computers. When you get your computer home and turn it on, you can't do much with it. As you add software to it, which more and more of it is low cost or free, you get to do more and more things with it. The software basically unlocks this little box and gives it the ability to do what used to take many other tools to do. And for anyone who creates things the computer is a blessing, because it is so easy to keep your work safe, you can make an unlimited amount of identical copies of what you create, and with the Internet, you can reach people all around the world.

Democracy through Technology

The Internet lowers the barrier to entry, into the marketplace, or into publishing, lower than it ever has been before. The irony is that although the Internet has allowed for greater freedom of expression, easier and cheaper organizing for non-profits (political and religious groups), and an easy way to avoid censorship and a way to bypass traditional information gatekeepers, like the big corporations that control TV and Newspapers, this was all made possible by communist China.

Irony in Who is Empowered

We can actually thank the oppressive regime now in power in China, for making computers cheap enough, so that the Internet is actually useful, which enables us to have more freedom and accountability of political figures in the United States. Another irony is that a big driver of the success of modern America comes from the increase in efficiency created by computers, which allows Americans to have more buying power, because prices are kept low, which also has made it easier for China and India to move up the value chain, from factory workers and call support, to white collar jobs like journalism, marketing, and engineering.

Increases in Specialization and Decreases in Cost

When you combine the Internet with software it makes it possible to distribute information like software, music, movies, and books so cheaply that open source software and open media has been a reality and is in common use. This forces down the cost of traditional media and makes it very difficult to control any information that has been digitized. It also allows people to take part in specialized hobbies and interests with other people, which would not have been practical before, because of the previous difficulty in finding and distributing information around, without the approval and infrastructure of big corporations, which are only interested in mainstream and generic media.

2.4.2 Tech People Hate Change

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Fighting New Technologies

This may surprise many people, because it is so obvious to most that technology changes fast. Most people have trouble keeping up with new software releases. But people, who repair and manage computers, as their chosen profession, many times hate major changes in technology and fight its inevitable obsolescence tooth and nail. Just like when the cars came out and people in the industry were sure horses were better and that cars would never take on, or people in the industry were fine with mail and telegraphs and could not see the point of telephones, or just like people in the industry were sure that buttons were better and zippers would never catch on, or when US military personnel first saw the M-16 they thought it was a toy because it had plastic parts, or how early computer users didn't see the point of using a mouse.

Technology Experts Don't Understand Consumers

Whenever Apple releases a new product, everyone who thinks they are technology experts tells how it will fail, because you can't use all your software and hardware you bought ten years ago on it. Many so called technology experts don't understand the importance of the length of battery life a device gets, or how making it easier to use or smaller actually increases mobility and makes the device more useful, to the average person. Many people, who want to make money telling other people what technology to buy are so isolated from the average person, that they are clueless as to what people's needs are, or what they value the most.

The Curse of Becoming Mainstream

People who claim to understand technology often fail to realize that although for tech nerds Apple has done unforgivable sins in their eyes, that doing these same things that they are so opposed to will ensure the success of Apple with the other 95 percent of the population. Apple has become mainstream and so a certain group of people will reject them just because they are popular. The reality for the average person is that they barely know how to do a couple things on the computer, which they spent years memorizing. Most people realize that computers change very often and that it takes so long to learn how to do things, that will be obsolete tomorrow, that it makes little sense for them to spend their very short free time learning new technology.

Technology Experts are Only Microsoft Experts

The underlying reason why many people in the tech industry are resisting the migration from mouse based devices to touch based devices is because they really don't understand how the underlying technology works. This is because many people have gotten jobs, because they filled out multiple choice tests, on how to use various Windows products. They were not trained on how computers work, but rather which buttons to push, when certain set things went wrong. Instead of learning the underlying concepts, which require a person to think and take years to master, they found a shortcut to an easy way of making money.

A Shortcut to Avoid Real Learning

Many people are making large amounts of money and choosing what to technology to buy, based on a poor understanding of the way computers work. Many people who only know Microsoft products decided to go this route, because they believe that if everyone uses the same programs, that they can keep from having to think, to use technology. When they are confronted with different software, their customers realize, that they only have superficial knowledge of computing. People need to learn what computers are, how they work, computer concepts and not just learn how to use Microsoft Office or Windows. These people have been able to force the world, to do things their way, by requiring people use their products at work and therefore at home, but the current situation is that people are now adopting Apple technologies, which they are bringing into businesses from home, and then their technology people don't know how to support the Apple products. Whereas the business community was able to push Microsoft products on consumers, now consumers are pushing Apple product on businesses. I look forward to the day when an iPad is required for school and Microsoft Office is optional.

Engineering vs. Sociology

The truth is that even when companies like Google have many smart people in them and have very good ideas about how things work, they have no idea what consumers want, or value the importance of designing interfaces, that don't require people to think, to use them. They are approaching the technology, from an engineering point of view and Apple is approaching technology, from a human point of view. Just as Apple has found out that they sell well to consumers and Microsoft sells well to businesses (and not vice versa), Google is still looking for who to sell their products to.

Google Needs Paying Customers

Not everybody has the same business model as everyone else does. Just because Apple makes its money on hardware, but differentiates itself on software, making it king of premium consumer electronics, so Microsoft makes money selling software licenses to businesses, by establishing relationships with technology managers, and they are king of businesses. Google seems to make money, by selling people's personal information, to the highest bidder, that it collects in the products, that it gives away for free. Whereas Apple is in a very good position, in that it sells hardware and not content (people can steal software but not hardware) and does not try to compete on price, so that it can sell its products at a premium, and Microsoft sells licenses, because nothing else is compatible and it has a monopoly, Google only makes money from advertising and that is becoming less and less profitable, because it sells too many ads for and has very poor quality content.

Apple can Outdo Google

When it comes down to it Apple products are difficult to copy and Google's competition is just a click away. If Google decides to go into Apple's territory, Apple has proven they can master new skills, while Google has not. Most of Apple's consumers, who advertisers want, because they consist of people, who are not cheapskates, do not care about whether they use Yahoo, Bing, or Google, but are definitely not going to buy a Google phone. How does Google differentiate itself on devices that the customer cares about? Google devices are not cool, easy to use, cheaper, or have any unique capabilities. They also have fewer applications, poorer tech support, less retail channels, confusing advertising, inferior hardware, and are far behind in technology. Developers make less money on them and have to work harder for that money, as their customers expect all software to be free.

2.4.3 Computer Cultural Issues

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Computers as a Belief System

When people think of other cultures, they often think of: other countries, other regions of their country, people with different religious or political beliefs, or subcultures like Goths or Emos. What people who aren't computer experts understand is that there are different cultural issues, with people, who use different software. People often know to avoid political or religious issues, with people, who don't share their beliefs, but most people do not know that computer experts find what software you use to be more controversial and divisive than politics or religion.

Microsoft Culture: Brand Loyalty

Believe it or not, Microsoft actually has fans. Most people buy their computer, with Microsoft software, because they have to, for compatibility reasons, but there are some people, who actually prefer these products, to Apple products. Unlike the rest of the world, these users claim they never have had any problems, with any Microsoft products. They claim that Microsoft won the market, because they make better products, than everyone else.

Microsoft Culture: It is Always the User's Fault

When you ask them for help, the response is that you are stupid, or else you wouldn't have that problem. They are very defensive about anything, that could be construed as negative, towards Microsoft, or its products, even to the point of refusing to believe anyone, when they have problems, with their computers. They go on and on about how much money they have saved with their products, making claims that are pretty unbelievable, on how much they could get, for their money, for a given quality of computer.

Microsoft Culture: Your Only Choice

They don't understand how anyone would want an easier to use computer, or is willing to pay more, for less problems and higher quality software and hardware. These are the same people, who refuse to buy any Apple product, even iPods, or use any Apple software, even iTunes. They think the only reason any person would buy Apple products is because they are brainwashed. These people enjoyed Windows Vista and think the latest version of Internet Explorer is the best browser which they use by choice, not for compatibility, even when knowing about the alternatives.

Apple Culture: User Friendly

Apple products are often thought of as easier to use than their competitors, even going by the label user friendly. This brand image affects the advanced users in a very direct way. Advanced Apple users are often very friendly and are willing to help anyone, if they will just give their computer specs and follow the simple advice they give.

Apple Culture: Bullying Apple Supporters

Many tech writers deliberately make fun of Apple products and users, as a way to generate more web traffic, so they can make more money off their ads. Apple users, like any other software users, who are happy about their purchase, is going to be offended and you are not going to give a positive response. Also, there are a few anti-Apple advocates, that are obsessive compulsive, with their harassment of Apple fan websites, with ridiculous claims, that aren't even factually correct.

Linux Culture: You Get What You Pay For

The motto for Linux is “do it yourself.” When you ask for help online, from other Linux users, you generally get no response. If you do get a response, often other users respond, by saying, to search for the answer, on Google. I can accept this, because I know that you get what you pay for, and do not depend on Linux, for anything important.

Linux Culture: Millions of Options

In the rare case, that you do get a helpful response, it generally requires advanced knowledge of Linux, to figure out how, to use the terminal command, they often give. One of Linux's biggest problems is that there are so many different choices, as far as Linux software is concerned, so although Linux can be used completely graphically, without using the command line, it is different, depending on what Linux software choices you make.

Linux Culture: Increasing Complexity

There are at least 3 different mainstream choices, for everything, so it gets complicated, very fast. And the Linux users are usually equally divided, amongst the different choices. That is why they give you something, to type at a command line, because this is the only thing, that is consistent, amongst the different Linux software choices. I describe Linux as making computing more complicated, a million steps at a time.

Linux Culture: In Fighting

If you are pro-Microsoft or pro Apple, you will get a good response in their forums, but if you are a pro-Linux, you will not get a good response in their forums, because other users will be using different combination of Linux software, than you and so they will pick on you for it. Later on you find that other Linux users will expect you to volunteer your time testing their software and giving detailed instructions on how the problem happened, while later having to prove to them, that it is not your fault and other users have the same problem.

Linux Culture: Eye Candy

Another big cultural issue, with Linux is that graphics are considered unimportant and efficiency and public discussion, on developing Linux software are considered the most important aspects of software. Graphics are referred condescendingly as eye candy. Most Linux users are comfortable with coding, so they often look down upon graphic designers.

Linux Culture: No Money in Graphics

There is very little money on Linux, for designers and so the tools are very crude. They are very good, once they are written, but since there is no money in it, the developers are all volunteers and are only going to develop what they want to use, so many important things, like a wide variety of fonts, are poorly supported amongst Linux software.

Linux Culture: Attitudes Towards Outsiders

Linux users often say that the reason why Microsoft software has so many problems is that it is too easy to use. Linux users often think that Windows users deserve what they get, because they are not bright enough to use Linux. Many Linux users think that the Mac is way to easy to use, costs too much, and is too good at graphics, so it cannot used for serious purposes and that it cannot be secure. Many Linux users also look down on Apple, because since Apple gives some things away, but does not give everything away, so Linux users are confused.

Linux Culture: Jealousy of Apple

Many other companies don't give anything back or less than Apple and they are considered ok. There seems to be a lot of hypocrisy going on here and I think it comes out of jealousy, because Mac OS X has been more successful on the desktop, even as much as Linux developers try to model their desktop computers after Apple. Now Apple is looking like it will take over the future of the consumer computer, Linux developers are upset, because their software cannot be run on the iPad and iPhone, due to licensing issues, both made by the developer and by Apple.

2.4.4 Why Support Everything?

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Why do you support every kind of computer?

I started out with this idea, because I couldn't test on Internet Explorer, which is still used by 60% of web users and so I felt that if I was already losing that many users, it would be unwise to eliminate any other users. This is because I was using Mac OS X and Linux, I did not want to expose my data to viruses, and didn't feel I had the money to dedicate an entire computer to testing

The only reason why this website works in Internet Explorer now is due to specific direction from my Uncle Clive. I could not have figured out how to get past the complex and confusing bugs in Internet Explorer without him telling my exactly what to do to make my layout work.

The other idea behind this is that I want what I create to last many years into the future. If we still are able to hold onto our technology into the future, new software will likely come about that never existed before. There are some website designed in the late 90s that only work now with Internet Explorer and Netscape. Even though Firefox can handle the same data, it will not be allowed in because the name is not Netscape (Firefox doesn't use the name Netscape because it is a trademark owned by AOL Time Warner). Who would have foresaw in the late 90s that Apple and Google would have web browsers that might now be the future of web browsers for many years to come.

Why do you have your writings in many formats?

I started out putting everything in PDF format, as that made the most sense for long documents. You cannot make a web page that is only 1 file to download, still has easy navigation panel on the side, breaks into pages, and prints out well. I specifically forbid changing the file format of my documents, because I don't want my work to only survive in a Microsoft format. This would require people to pay them and use their software to access the documents, if Microsoft even exists and still supports those Microsoft formats at that time. There is not an easy way to explain what an open format is and since companies like Microsoft base their entire business models by claiming they support open standards and then sue competitors for using their technology, I am left with having to convert things myself.

Another problem I ran into is that people could not access PDFs, because some people buy Windows computers, without a PDF reader and are afraid to install it. Others hate Adobe for some reason and think they need to use Adobe Reader to create or view PDFs. Many people also think that PDFs cannot be made accessible to sight impaired readers or cannot be reflowed for mobile devices, because many people create PDFs the wrong way and abuse the format for things it was not intended, and just assume everyone who uses PDFs to distribute documents abuses the technology in the same way.

I remember many people disabling Javascript, because they hated pop up windows. Many people also disabled cookies, because they were afraid of storing information on their own computers, didn't realize that it was necessary for basic things like shopping carts, and was much better than keeping the information on a web server. Now you can't go to hardly any website without enabling cookies and Javascript. People now seem to love the same Javascript they hated 5 years earlier, because their were now pop-up blockers. Now people Flash because it is abused in similar ways. Only designers can realize the value that Flash provides to non-programmers to have control over the way their website looks on all major browsers.

The Underlying Problem with Web Design

You have no control over what software people who visit your websites use. People don't want to ever install any software or ever upgrade, because it is very hard to uninstall software on Windows, even with the latest version 7.

2.4.5 Lack of Gratitude

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Lazy Developers

As one of the ways in which web users try to vocalize their anger, at annoying ads and browser crashes caused by Flash, they complain that web sites they visit are bad, because they are designed, by lazy people. I know the solution to getting rid of ads: pay up a lot of money.

Everything Costs Something

The truth is that a lot of content is available, for free, online. Not only did someone have to create this content, but also has to pay fees, to keep it running and has likely invested a tremendous amount of time and money, learning how to get their stuff online, and a lot of time and money on programs, to help them do this. I find it unbelievable at this lack of respect, for people who are giving you something, for free.

Web Ads do not Cover the Costs

Even when there are ads on the website, these do not pay very much, as people like this are too cheap, to click on the ads. Even Google doesn't get much of its money off its ads, on other people's websites- it gets most money, through paid search placement. And when you see no ads, the person is making no money whatsoever, but if the website is fast and designed well, they are likely paying quite a bit of money for it.

Respect Volunteers

Most people do not realize it, but many web designers and content creators pay money out, to give things away for free. If you are not paying for a good or service, someone has volunteered their time and money for you. The least you should do is refrain from complaining and insulting them.

Analogies of Similar Disrespect

If you need some information, you either pay someone for it, or figure it out the best you can, from what others have provided for free. It is like when you give a homeless person money and they complain that you didn't give them more; when someone gives you a present and you say it is not good enough; when a friend asks to borrow something, forgets to return it, breaks it, and then he gets hurt and says it's your fault; or when someone takes you to dinner and you say the food was no good.

Be Polite or Pay For it

So instead of complaining, that your free gift is not good enough, try some time creating something, that takes a lot of money and time to complete, and later give it away, for free. Learn to empathize with others and stop expecting everyone else, to solve your problems, for free. You cannot expect anything of anyone, unless you pay the entire cost, of their time and effort, and all other costs involved.

Technical Collection

2.5 Apple and the Future

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2.5.1 Apple Learned from its Mistakes

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Tech People have Bad Memories

For people who did not live through it or were aware of it at the time, the history of Apple is not understood very well. Apple made some very big mistakes, in the past, that almost killed the company. Apple once had a huge percentage of the desktop operating system market and lost it to Microsoft. Many people are trying to say that the same thing will happen again. This is very unlikely to happen again, because it was a matter of stupid things done by Apple, which will not be done again, more than anything other reason because Apple got hurt bad enough, that they have learned their lesson very well.

Apple Handed Microsoft its Market

One of the big mistakes Apple made was to give Microsoft access, to the source code, of their Macintosh operating system, to get a few years more of having Excel exclusively on the Mac. This gave Microsoft the know how to build Windows. They later sued most of the other companies, that competed with Apple and Microsoft, in the OS market. This put Apple directly against Microsoft.

Apple Depended on Others

Then they kept from developing their own applications, so that that other companies would have the Mac application market open to them. The they were dependent on Adobe and Microsoft for critical applications, and this slowed how quickly Apple could adopt new technologies. Then they licensed the Mac OS to other companies, so that other companies could sell computers with Mac OS on them. This was stupid, because since Apple had to research and develop their software, their licensees could undercut them, because they didn't have to pay for the cost of software development.

Apple Refused to Compete

And all along Apple was run by salesmen, so they decided, to sell Macs, that were many times the price of PCs, never invested in new practical technologies, to enhance their software offerings and accepted a tiny portion of the market because of this. Apple has deliberately decided to appeal to the average person, as evidenced, by the exponential increase of sales, for its iPods, iPhones, and iPads, and at the same time there is more hate, for Apple, then ever, in the computer nerd community.

Apple Stopped Depending on Others

When Steve Jobs came back, he brought with him an entirely different operating system, called Next, which he developed, after being fired, by Apple. All the things that Apple has built since then are based on this technology. He developed this operating system in the 80s. Apple started producing its own applications, that competed, with parts of Microsoft Office and Adobe Creative Suite and instead of dropping the Mac, they improved their products, that Apple offered alternatives to.

Apple Took Back its Market

Instead of licensing the technology they got from Next, Apple used its own software, to power the: iPod Touch, iPhone, and iPad. Now Apple is run by a visionary, who knows what people are willing to buy and is a perfectionist. He has an entire team, that helps build the products Apple produces and he has groomed successors for years. In fact, Steve doesn't actually the one, who designs the products, that Apple produces.

Hedging Your Bets

Many people say Apple's and Microsoft's success comes from giving others your key technologies, for free, but the reality is that exerting control, over your software ecosystem, actually insures your success. A really popular concept, that has tried and failed many times, but is still tried anyway is to create software, that can run on multiple devices and operating systems. This is a way, to hedge your bets, when you don't know, who will be around and dominant a few years later.

Competing on Product Quality

The problem for someone like Apple, who sells a high quality product, who differentiates itself on software, but makes money on hardware is that it forces the hardware makers to compete on price alone and so takes out all the profit from the industry. The same control that makes things worse for computer programmers makes things better for the consumer. After all, what good is it to run your software like Linux and satisfy every developer at the expense of your users, and you will have very few users and applications.

2.5.2 Paradigm Shift

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From the Desktop to the Network

We are currently undergoing a paradigm shift in computing from the 1990s hard to maintain, complex to use, do everything poorly and nothing well, desktop computer, mouse, desktop publishing, office suite, dialup networking, CD-ROM drive, based technology to an appliance like, focused use, mainstream, low barrier to entry, mobile, touch driven, web browser based, social networking focused, high speed, wireless networking based technology. It is the death of mouse driven, wired, physically connected desktop peripheral, and client installed application technologies.

Tech Industry Needs to Adapt

What this means to the average person is that the web is still the future and computing is much easier to handle. This will kill off a lot of old technologies pushed by large corporations and computer programmers, repairers, and trainers who cannot adapt will need to retrain for another industry. What some of these big corporations like Microsoft and Adobe need to understand is if they are not willing to keep up with the pace of the rest of the industry, what they sell will become obsolete and people will stop buying it.

Cannot Sell the Same Technology Forever

It is ironic that what is considered an advancement for the average user is seen as a move backwards to those who form their identity in fiddling with computers. It is not surprising that some of the biggest corporations run entirely by salesmen, who sell terribly designed software, for tremendously large amounts of money, and are unwilling to fix their problems or update their technologies find themselves at a dead end. The lesson here is that technology changes fast and you cannot expect to sell the same software for decades and continue to grow or even keep your market, unless you have no competition.

New Opportunities for Tech Industry

So even as a lot of jobs may be obsoleted and entire industries permanently downsized, those willing to adapt and write new code and learn new technologies will find bigger markets for themselves. While Apple may be an enemy of the largest corporations, they are a blessing to small businesses. Even as the jobs for supporting computers will largely diminish, the markets for new types of products not thought of yet or specialized to the point that there is no mainstream market will experience tremendous growth.

Specialize and Upscale

If you are starting a business, don't try to be a billion dollar company. Stay small and flexible and specialize in selling high end products and services in an industry that you know about. There will not be a large market for traditional and mainstream word processors in the future, but if you are willing to find a niche not served well, than you can make a small fortune selling a specialized product like a print on demand type of business, where people can customize everything to the maximum.

Only The Web is Future Proof

For those who do not want to die when Apple no longer rules the industry, the path for open source, standards based, and future proof technologies will be web based. None of the big players is going to make it hard for you to control your own future, by basing your products on web technologies. Base your infrastructure on the front end in HTML, CSS, and Javascript and other browser based technologies and run any heavy lifting on the server end in whatever language and format that can interface with these browser based languages.

Free Content Travels Farther

For those who want to get their ideas out and are not interested in making money, the future only gets brighter. You will be able to better compete with the big publishing houses, TV networks, and music labels by delivering free content of high quality without any software restrictions and in open formats. For the present day Kierkegaard or Tolkien, the web is where you can preserve your ideas for the benefit of future generations. A well made piece of literature, art, or music can survive much better if it is made free of copy restrictions.

2.5.3 The Dream of Convergence

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What is Convergence?

One of the big things we looked forward to in the late 90s, that never happened, was something called convergence. Basically, the desktop/laptop/netbook is a multi-function device, whereas your TV or microwave is a single function device. There are advantages and disadvantages to both approaches. Convergence means bringing together the customizability of regular computers into appliances, by adding computer chips and software to them. Eventually, the regular computers will get easier to use and you will be able to do more, with your appliances.

Ecosystems: Apple's vs. Microsoft's

One of the big things that can make your appliances smarter and more useful is Internet and local networking capabilities. The best examples of convergence are Apple's new non-Mac lines like its iPod, iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Mac OS X, iLife, iWork, Mobile Me, Xcode/Cocoa development tools, which is brought together with your PC or Mac with iTunes and with the iTunes Multimedia, App, and Book stores you can extend what you can do with your device and what you can see can consume on your Apple device. A similar example of this interlinking of different software and devices is Microsoft who ties together: Windows, Office, Internet Explorer, Visual Studio .Net developer tools, ActiveX, Direct X, Silverlight, Visual Basic for Applications, Windows networking, Exchange Server, Internet Information Server, SQL Server, X Box, (and the unsuccessful consumer devices like Windows Mobile, Zune, and Bing) as well as many other total failures no one has heard of.

Consumer vs. Business

What really differentiates Apple, from other consumer electronics manufacturers, like Sony, Samsung, Nintendo, Nokia, Google, Palm, Microsoft, and the like is that Apple differentiates themselves with their software and Apple has a lot of related products, that help improve every other product and work seamlessly together, because Apple controls the entire making of the device, including: hardware, OS, apps, and services. The big difference between Microsoft's and Apple's interlinking of their entire ecosystem through software is that Microsoft's core market strength is businesses, especially ones collectively called the enterprise, which is another name for large corporations, and Apple's market, strength, which is with consumers.

Software vs. Hardware: Differentiating Your Company from the Competition

Another big difference between Microsoft and Apple is that Apple makes the entire product including hardware, whereas Microsoft gets a bigger portion of the market in businesses and limits itself in the consumer market by not having their own hardware, except for their side ventures like X Box, which they have never made any money off yet. While Apple talks a lot about software with their devices, while most their competitors talk about is the computer hardware they run on. The one area of consumers that Microsoft has done good at appealing to is what is called a “serious gamer,” which is the stereotypical guy, who lives in his parent's basement, playing games all night. Most gamers are called casual gamers and that is what Apple and Nintendo are better at.

Different Target Markets = Different Focuses

Another big difference between Apple and Microsoft is who their customers are and how they have taken different approaches that work well with those customers but not well with the other company's customers. One of the Big things that gets businesses upset about Apple's products is that businesses want legacy compatibility, which means support for outdated technologies, because they are cheap and do not want to pay for upgrading their infrastructure. Apple has made its products much better because they do not need to support legacy technologies like Flash, Java, etc because their customers don't have a lot of expensive software which needs one of these products to run.

Burden of Legacy

Many of the problems with Microsoft's software stem from providing compatibility with software, developed for computers, that were so underpowered, that they should never have been sold. Many consumers and businesses bought their computers, before the time, when personal computers were fast enough, to run software, that worked well. The big reason why Sun or SGI never went into the personal computer business is because to buy a quality computer, that worked well in the 80s, you'd have to pay as much for your computer, as you would for a nice car.

2.5.4 The Death of Tinkering

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Easy to Use = Limitations for Power Users

Many advanced computer users and programmers are upset about current Apple products, not just because of a lack of legacy support, but because the programmers have certain limits placed on them, so that the end users will have a better experience. Some people are actually unhappy with not being able to tinker as easily, with the latest Apple products. They would actually be happier, with computer systems, that are harder to use, so that they can customize them, to their heart's content.

Choice = Complexity

Most people want their computer experience to be simpler, but these people are excited about having as many choices, as possible and the ability to constantly fiddle, with their software, even if it means that they have less time, to actually use their computers. This is one of the big motivators for people liking Linux. Some people actually enjoy more complexity, because they don't actually use the computer, but rather like doing things, like installing software and doing various chores, to maintain their system.

Software as and End unto Itself

I think some people form their entire identity, on being able to fix other people's problems and being able to use a more difficult computer. They also likely make money off of computers being so complicated and are afraid, that they will lose their jobs and their status, if computers become too easy to use. The irony in this is that the same people are not upset that they cannot hack their Xbox, their car, or their microwave.

Computers Become Mainstream

I think this kind of person sees the computer world as a frontier and they are afraid that things in the computer world will become too orderly, civilized, and mainstream, so that using a computer is no longer an end into itself, but I subservient, to what the average person is trying to create, and, as a result, they lose the thrill, of being on a frontier of technology. These are the same people, who are upset, that they cannot fiddle, with the latest generation of cars.

Transition from Mouse to Touch

The earlier computer world had more excitement, because so many of the uses of the computer were novel and not done before like word processors, spreadsheets, web browsing, email, etc. The same people that are upset, about this transition, from the mouse based interface, to a touch based interface, a generation ago were upset about: the lack of a command line on the Mac, the emergence of the USB standard for peripherals in place of the floppy drive, and the having to make their website work on non-Internet Explorer web browsers.

2.5.5 Why Brand is King

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Sony vs. Apple

In consumer electronics of the 90s, Sony was king. They were a quality brand and made great devices. And now Apple has taken the place of Sony. One of the big differences between Sony and Apple is that Apple also makes great software.

Embracing Industry Standards

Apple is also willing to accept industry standards. If you ever get a Sony Camera, you will find that although most other manufacturers will standardize on parts like batteries and add-ons, Sony has its own proprietary way of doing things. One of the reason why Apple took the market from Sony in potable music players is because Apple decided to accept MP3s and Sony tried to push their own format. Microsoft did the same thing as Sony.

Competing on Quality

Apple has good focus, because they start by thinking about what the average customer wants to do with the device and prioritize development of their software and hardware, to make that possible. Whereas in the PC world, manufacturers have a hard time differentiating themselves, because they use commodity parts and run the same software, so the only thing they have to compete on is price. Apple does not feel that they need to trap the user with proprietary formats, but refuse to make their software a commodity.

The Hardware is the Device

The flip side of this that Apple has found allows them to pursue this path is that it gives its software away very cheaply or free and makes money on the hardware. It makes sense that you get the software for free and you pay for the device. As far as the consumer is concerned, the hardware is the device.

People Don't Upgrade Software

Very few people are used to upgrading their computers. They usually stick with what came with it and just buy a new computer, when they want new software. Most people never buy Windows or even consider a Mac, because they never buy an OS. Linux is totally foreign and uninteresting to most users, because they are interested in what they can do, with the computer and not how it works.

Useful Choice

When average people talk about having choice in computers, they mean that they get to choose the entry level model or the luxury model, that they get to choose the color, and that they have a wide variety of software for their specialized hobbies and careers. Windows enthusiasts are often proud of their wide selection of software. But the irony is that with all those options, most people just pick the most advertised products, that everyone else uses.

Creating an Ecosystem

So with software upgrades, that are easy to apply and works across several generations of models, people get to see what difference good software makes. By keeping some strict rules over how software is distributed, what content is not allowed, and by enforcing how the software is designed, they get the consumer comfortable with trying new software. These purchases then fund the development of more software, so that there is a big enough market, to make it financially viable, to create apps, that support the wide variety of careers and hobbies, that the average user wants to use software for.

Apple is a Methodology

So the real success of Apple is not either in software or hardware, but in their methodology. The Apple brand is what is the most important part of Apple's business. This is why they are so careful in how they manage people's private data, what they allow third party developers to do with their devices, and keeping their products secret, until they are ready to ship. While the rest of the industry thinks most people care about how their software is developed and find that to be the most important factor in what brand they purchase, Apple realizes that, with some well developed rules and limits in place, that the hardware and software work much better together and the consumer is happy with the results.

Consumer is King

So Apple does not give the world a new technology or a more powerful computer. What they give users is a well thought out approach to computing, that makes the average person's life better. With Apple the consumer or the end user is the king. Now that the consumer has had a chance to decide for themselves what they want, they have chosen Apple. Maybe other companies that are willing to learn from Apple will not focus on copying what Apple products look like, what methods are used in their development, or matching their hardware but rather change their priorities.

Technical Collection

2.6 File Formats Background

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2.6.1 Help with File Formats

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You can also browse my website via Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux. There are some formats that require software other than a web browser, so you will have to deal with these file formats through plugins (other programs that run in your web browser).

What are File Formats?

A file format is generally marked by the letters after the last dot of the file name. There is not just one file format that puts any data into the format that has the best performance, features, edit-ability, open specification, quality, and file size. There are good and bad aspects to each format. Often there are different formats that work better for text, graphics, video, sound, multimedia and page layout and many within each of those categories.

I spend a lot of time and effort thinking about and researching file formats to allow people to access my content without having to pay for or many times even download software. I also choose formats that are easy to view and support Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux at the least. I use many different formats to reach as many people as possible. Almost every part of my work is available in PDF/A-1A format which is tagged for accessibility and designed to be future proof as an option.

Open and Proprietary Formats

I use open formats whenever possible. There is no single requirement that makes a format open. Open formats generally have a specification that is freely available to create import and export filters for applications that view and edit in that format without any limitations like patents or monetary fees unless these are given away royalty free. The best way to see if a format is open is to see if there are open source viewers for that file format.

I often use proprietary formats like Quicktime, MP3, MP4 or Flash for audio and video because that is generally what people have installed. But every piece of content here is always available in at least one open format. My multimedia is always available in an open format like Ogg.

Problems with Definitions of Open Formats

None of my files that can be freely distributed with several conditions can be converted into another file format. This is to protect my potential readers from having to pay money to access anything I have created.

If there was an easy way to explain what an open format is and there were not large corporations like Microsoft and Adobe who try to deceive people by claiming some of their file formats are open while still having restrictions on them and in the case of Microsoft deliberately trying to sabotage compatibility with competitors products and open file formats, then I could theoretically allow any open format.

There are also other restrictions with some “open” file formats that might come about if other companies are able to collect royalties on use of the format if they can convince judges that the file format in question is infringing on their patents.

This is one of the main reasons why I have my texts available in so many formats and do not use any of the “newer” Microsoft formats.

2.6.2 Native vs. Exchange File Formats

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History of File Formats

In the 80s and early 90s PCs and Macs were to a large part totally incompatible with each other and most applications saved files in their native formats, that would only work with the program that created the file. Most Microsoft Office users deal with files in the same way. They choose “save” from the file menu, when they want to reopen or re-edit a document. Later on free and open formats like RTF, HTML, PDF, OpenDocument, PNG, and SVG were designed be read, opened, and saved by any software program, so people could exchange documents, with people who used other office or graphics suites.

Why do I have to buy Microsoft Office?

The main reason why so many people feel they have to pay for and use Microsoft Office, instead of a competing office suite like Corel Word Perfect Office, Lotus Symphony, OpenOffice.org, or Google Docs is not because Microsoft makes a better product, but rather when people save documents in the default format in Microsoft office, other programs have a hard time reading this format. This problem exists because the default format of Microsoft Office files is a Microsoft secret, which they won't license to any other software company, for any amount of money. So competitors like OpenOffice.org have to reverse engineer Microsoft office files and can't guarantee they can open any Microsoft Office document, with all the formatting.

How to get documents out of Microsoft Office?

One of the ways to get around this is to choose “save as”, “save a copy as” or “export,” when you save your document and choose a format like: RTF, HTML, PDF, or OpenDocument. You will likely lose formatting and you will have to use other manufacturers plugins for Microsoft Office, as Microsoft usually makes sure files saved in these other formats don't open properly in the other program. Microsoft does this so you have to continue to buy Microsoft Office forever. You can get many free converters, that will allow you to choose “print” and then save to the PDF format. For saving to Open Document file format, you can download the free Sun ODF Microsoft Office plugin.

Without these other free applications, you can save some of the formatting and all of the data, from a Microsoft Word or Powerpoint document reliably, by choosing “save as” Rich Text Format (RTF) or HTML, which can be reliably opened by almost any other office suite or word processor. Excel spreadsheets can be saved in Comma Separated Value (CSV) or HTML document formats, without the formatting to reliably save cells, rows, and columns in a format, that can be opened in almost any office suite or spreadsheet program.

2.6.3 Common Internet File Formats

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Flash and PDF are some of the most common Internet file formats, besides the HTML, JPEG, PNG, CSS, and JS file formats, which are known collectively as web pages.

What is Flash?

Flash software can mean 3 different things. First one is Flash, the $400-700 integrated development environment, which is the most common way to create .swf format files. These .swf files are inserted into web pages which are called Flash too. Then finally there is the free Flash Player which is used to play the .swf file. When people say you need Flash to view their web page, they are referring to the free Flash Player. Microsoft is the only major company, whose file formats are commonly linked to on the web, that requires you to buy software to view them.

The Flash file format was originally designed to create high impact, low bandwidth websites using vector animation. So Flash files, in the way they were originally designed, would load instantly. Later on people began embedding images and sounds in Flash and creating animations that responded to mouse interactions, so that things moved when you put your mouse over them. Later they added simple programming for advanced animation using Javascript and then they finally added the ability to put video into this mix as well.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Flash

The first big reason for using Flash is that to do the same without requiring Flash Player would require a professional programmer. It is not that Javascript is a particularly advanced language, but that due to the various levels of incompatibility between Internet Explorer and every other browser that it makes it much harder to get the same Javascript program to run on all major browsers. The second big reason Flash is used is that it is taking a long time for major browsers to add the same animation capabilities possible in Flash without Javascript. This is mainly because of political and philosophical reasons. Finally, Flash is often used for video, because it is the only format that will stream video (so you don't have to wait to download it) in all major browser and on all major operating systems.

Many people do not like Flash because it is used by many annoying ads, it is generally not made so blind people can browse it, it doesn't work well on mobile devices, because it takes too much battery power and the mouse interactions don't work, it is not a free and open format like other common web formats, and many older people do not like interactive web pages.

What is a PDF?

The PDF file format stands for Portable Document Format. It was originally designed for the print industry, so that you could produce from any program a file that could be seen exactly as it would be printed regardless of platform. This format was designed also to be hard to edit and so the design would stay fixed. The PDF format is very much like an office document with much better graphics, but is designed to be a final read only version.

One of the main downsides of the PDF format were that you couldn't reliably convert the format back into an editable version and it was not designed to be able to be read by blind people, because the only information saved was what was necessary to be able to view it and print it. To solve these problems, the tagging feature was added, which marks words, paragraphs, heading and other structured elements, if the original file was marked with headings and the like.

Later features added were hyperlinks, Javascript for making simple electronic forms, and finally you can now embed 3d models and Flash video in PDF files.

Advantages and Disadvantages of PDFs

After adding all these features, the original intent was not always met as it causes problems when printing some PDF files in a professional press, so there emerged sub formats that deliberately left out certain features or placed certain restrictions on and added properties the PDF file had to implement. The major sub formats are PDF/X for professional printing, PDF/A for long term archival uses (to make a future proof file format).

Many people do not like PDFs because they don't like Adobe's free Reader application which is designed for professional publishers, takes a lot of memory, and supports a lot of advanced features that most people don't want. As the PDF format is completely free and open, most major operating systems now have free, more efficient PDF readers that only allow for the most common features. Another reason why some people don't like PDFs is because they think that it is not ok that Adobe allows the author of the PDF to restrict what someone can do with that PDF file.

The reason why I use PDFs for my longer documents is that the only way to make a file easy to view, save, and print at the same time required using a PDF. A big difference between a web page and a PDF is that all the images and formatting are included in the PDF file, you can make page breaks in a PDF, and that PDFs print out much better than most web pages.

Technical Collection

2.7 File Format Choices

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2.7.1 Different Versions of My Books

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Red Letter Editions

The Red Letter Edition is 6 in x 9 in (in US Trade Paperback size), has quotes in red letters, includes graphics, and contains all formatting, including: page numbers, headers, footnotes, margin notes, and all other formatting of actual print version of book you can order. This file is meant to be read on the computer screen.

The Interactive Version has, in addition, hyperlinked tables of contents and the Interactive E-book/PDF version has, in addition: bookmarks, my web address and email hyperlinked, graphics are all vector based, and all the (free Postscript) fonts used are embedded in subset.

The Prepress Version is a special PDF with the entire fonts used in the document embedded and without any of the hyperlinks or bookmarks or anything else that doesn't print. This format is specially formatted for my publisher, Lulu.com, and is inferior for viewing on screen or printing out on a desktop printer.

The Large Print Editions are the same as the Red Letter Editions except the font size is 18 pt and the paper size is US Letter.

Plain Versions

these are in a standard size for a desktop printer with only black text

The Desktop Printer Version contains the PDF version of book that is formatted US Letter size with 1 inch margins, table of contents, header stating title, footer containing page number, graphics removed and only black and white text for easy printing out on a desktop printer. This special PDF is formatted with bookmarks, is tagged for accessibility, and is in a special sub format of PDF called PDF/A-1A which is designed for archival purposes so it should be future proof.

Also works with Adobe Digital Editions and Sony Reader. It should also work on other less well-known e-book devices, including: Endless Ideas BeBook, Bookeen Cybook, and Hanlin.

The Open Source Friendly version is an Open Document text file format version of the books. This version can be viewed in OpenOffice.org, Sun StarOffice, NeoOffice, Corel Word Perfect, Google Docs, Lotus Symphony, Abiword, Koffice, and more. The conversion has preserved most of the formatting of the PDF and structure of the original LaTeX source file. It was mostly designed with structure and styles, the graphics were removed and the text is just black and white. It is also designed to print out on a standard desktop printer at US Letter size with 1 inch margins, table of contents, header stating title, and footer containing page number.

Mobile Versions

Handhelds Version is in the eReader pdb format and can be viewed on the iPhone/iPod Touch, PalmOS, Symbian, BlackBerry, Windows Mobile Pocket, and PC/Smartphone handhelds with eReader. This is also the official format of e-books for Barnes & Noble.

Apple Mobile Version is in the standard epub format and can be viewed on the iPhone/iPod Touch, Windows, and Mac OS X with Stanza, and Google phones with FBReaderJ or Aldiko.

Amazon.com Kindle Version is in the Mobipocket format and can be viewed on the Amazon Kindle, the free Kindle Reader (for the iPhone/iPod Touch), and with the free Mobipocket Reader (for Symbian, Windows Mobile, Palm OS, Java ME, BlackBerry, Psion, and iLiad handhelds and e-readers).

Libris can be used to view Apple Mobile Version and Amazon Kindle Version ebooks on the iPhone/iPod Touch, Google phone, and Nintendo DS.

iPod Notes Version works on any iPod that connects to your computer via a dock. To use, select “enable disk use” under the iPod preferences, put your iPod notes e-book into “notes” folder on iPod disk, and then choose “extras” and then “notes on iPod”.

Versions for Sight Impaired Persons

Daisy XML Version is a special structured “talking book” format, for people suffering from blindness, impaired vision, dyslexia, or other “print disabilities”. The structured document works with a compressed audio file, so that you can navigate the audio file by chapter or by section, without having to listen through the entire thing. It is like the difference between a cassette tape and a DVD or an audio CD.

I have only included the structured part. You can produce the audio, from this format, very easily. The Daisy XML files can be read in large print on screen, on a Braille display, or with a screen-reader. It an also be further converted to a talking book, using a computerized voice, and printed in Braille, or in a large print format in a physical book.

I have verified the Daisy XML file and it should be valid. It can also be viewed in a web browser as well. I have also successfully converted it to the Daisy Talking Book audio format with Daisy Pipeline and then to a generic MP3 file format and an iTunes Audio Book format successfully with DTB2iTunes, but I have not put either of these audio versions online, because of the size of the files (they are too big for me to upload).

There is free software for viewing this file format, but as far as I can find, they are only available for Windows. There is also an open source program for Linux, BSD, Solaris, etc that is called EmacSpeak, although I couldn't get it to work on Ubuntu. I think it requires some sort of computer hardware device to work it.

BRL Braille Version is in a MicroBraille (Non-ASCII-Braille) file format that can be read by ED-IT PC/Braille 2000, Microbraille, MegaDots, and Pokadot. I have not been able to verify this file.

My Books for E-Book Reading

In any of my book formats, other than the Red Letter Edition, the text can be resized and can be reflowed, to make it adjusted to your e-book reader device shape, orientation, size, readability, and personal taste. You can adjust this at any time you want. Most of these versions are designed with structural elements like headings which your e-reading device should allow you to navigate between. The versions with these qualities are the Plain Versions, Mobile Versions, and Sight Impaired Versions. The Large Print edition is easier to read for those who have eye problems, but they cannot be resized or reflowed, so they are ideal mostly for printing out or for those who cannot figure out how to adjust the letter size on their e-book reading device.

2.7.2 What is a Zip file?

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Many of the files on my site end in .zip. Zip is an archival and compressed format used to put more than one file in one download or to make the file size smaller/download time shorter. The Zip file is opened with a program, which extracts the original file or folder with files in it, which is the one that has the text, graphics, audio, video, or program in it.

More Information

A Zip file can contain almost any file format or folder of files in it. Zip compression is unique in that it is a safe file on Mac OS X, because it cannot contain resource forks and is different than JPEG, because it uses lossless compression, meaning that you do not lose any quality in trade, for a smaller file. Zip compression is also very fast to create and to open. Zip compression is popular for packaging programs on Windows and sometimes Mac OS X. On Mac OS X, a program in a zip file must have the .app extension, or it will not work, so you can tell by the extension whether or not the file is a program.

Compatibility

Zip decompression is built into Mac OS X 10.3 and higher, Windows ME and higher (including XP, Vista, and Windows 7, and later), and recent versions of major Linux distributions. On Mac OS X, you just double click on the file that ends in Zip, and then a folder or file opens up, that can be any format, which can then be opened with the appropriate viewer/reader application. On Linux, you generally have to click on the button “extract” to open it up. The only reason why Zip compression and decompression wasn't built into previous major operating systems is that it once was protected by a patent, which has now expired.

2.7.3 What is DjVu?

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DjVu is an under appreciated file format that is superior to PDFs for some circumstances. The biggest advantage is that the files are almost always smaller than PDFs especially for graphics.

Overview

DjVu is a file format that can contain many pages, like a PDF, but is a entirely bitmap based format like a PNG, JPG, or TIFF. It is an open and free file format like PDF and can be created and viewed entirely with open source software, but it is not as commonly used as PDF. It was originally designed as a format for scanning books into the computer and viewing them online.

Advantages

The real advantage of DjVu over a PDF is that even text files and especially graphics (even vector graphics) can be compressed more than is possible in a PDF, so the file size is smaller and it downloads faster (even while preserving the highest visual quality and resolution).

Disadvantages

There are numerous disadvantages that apply to DjVu when used for files with text in them: DjVu files are not accessible; you cannot search them; they can only be converted to bitmap formats like PNG, JPG, and TIFF; and the document structure is not maintained. The only major reason for me offering DjVu versions of text only documents is for people who are ideologically opposed to the PDF format, even though PDF is a free, open, and internationally standardized format.

2.7.4 Why I Don't Use Certain File Formats

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Why I don't use Microsoft Office formats or the MP4 Video (also known as H.264) format.

Why Don't I Use Microsoft Office Formats

Some people seem to want every document to come in the proprietary Word doc format. I will never use this format as it is not open and there are other open formats which have free viewers which have a wide install base that do the same thing.

Another reason is that there are no free viewers for Word doc that support at least Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux. Another reason is I do not have Microsoft Office because all I would use it for is to view Word documents and it costs way to much for a viewer/converter and since Microsoft will not release the specifications to their Word doc format in an obviously open license, I cannot use anything other than Microsoft Office to make sure the file format is correct.

There are also many things in Microsoft Office that don't work correctly and Microsoft software is notoriously filled with security vulnerabilities. The final reason is that I do not trust Microsoft as their entire business model is based on fraud.

Alternative Office Formats

I do have most my work available in RTF which should be able to open fine in Microsoft Office or any other word processor. I also offer all my important texts in a truly open and vendor-neutral format like Open Document which will retain all the structure and formatting for advanced users. Anybody can open and edit it with the free and open source OpenOffice.org which is available for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux as well as many other operating systems.

Almost all other major Office suites support Open Document correctly except Microsoft Office, including Lotus Symphony, Lotus Notes, Google Docs, WordPerfect Office, Abiword, Koffice. Sun also makes a free plugin for Microsoft Office 2000 and higher users that allows them to correctly open and save in Open Document format.

Note: there is a plug-in you can download for Microsoft Office from Microsoft that claims the ability to save in Open Document format, but it does not work properly for many reasons: it is hard to use, slow, and doesn't save all formatting and Microsoft knew their method of designing this plugin wouldn't work. Other problems are that it doesn't preserve formulas in Excel documents and only it works with Microsoft Office 2007 SP2. There is also a more technical explanation available.

A similar explanation from the Free Software Foundation.

Why I Don't Use MP4 Video (also known as H.264)

Most video now is now being made available in MP4 (also known as H.264) format because it has gained almost universal industry adoption (Apple, Google, Nokia, Adobe, maybe even Microsoft, etc) to the point where most handheld devices like iPhones and iPods can only play MP4 video. That is good that there is finally one format that is almost universal. There are two problems with this file format though.

First, it has patents on it, so it is not an open format, so we depend on the good will of a wide variety of corporations willingness to allow us to access this our files in the future, because they can make it illegal to access our files (decode them) or can charge us fees to distribute them. My general solution in that situation is to offer the same video in multiple formats, but this does not solve the second problem.

And, secondly, they have already done so. If you read the summary of the MP4 video licensing, they say that when the first term has passed (now set for 2013), anyone who distributes even one file in this format will have to pay $2,500 for the license, even for personal and non-commercial use.

Alternative Audio and Video Formats

The good news is that Firefox as of version 3.5 added the ability to play audio and videos that are in an free, open file format that has neither of the previous problems. All my audio and video files are already available in this format. And there is a free plugin for Quicktime, that allows you to convert any file Quicktime can open into this format as well as play the free format. There is also a free player that plays this free and open formated audio and video called VLC.

This format is called OGG Vorbis for audio and OGG Theora for video. As far as file size goes, for the tools I have (Quicktime Pro), I can make an OGG Theora file of the quality that I find acceptable at the same file size or smaller than an MP4.

The downside is that people will not be able to play any of my videos on an iPhone or an iPod.

Why I Avoid Writing my Own Javascript for Interactivity

The main reason why I even use Flash is Microsoft's incompatibilities with Javascript and lack of support for CSS and SVG (which all the other major browsers support) which makes it a nightmare to do anything interactive that needs to work with Internet Explorer (without having to depend on 3rd party programmers keeping Javascript libraries update to date and tested with each version of Internet Explorer). Flash makes it possible for interactivity that works with Internet Explorer to be designed without having to be an expert programmer or paying one to code my website.

Technical Collection

Chapter 3

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Technical Help

by Ben Huot

Technical Collection

3.1 Help for All Users Accessing my Website

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3.1.1 Not All Browsers are Equal

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Incredible to Pitiful

Many products advertise that they have a web browser, but their support for websites ranges from incredible to pitiful. The part of the web browser, that is important for website compatibility is the rendering engine. The 4 major rendering engines are Trident (best known in internet Explorer), Gecko (best known in Firefox), Webkit (best known in Apple Safari, Google Chrome, iPhone and iPad browsers), and Presto (which is best known for Opera).

Best Rendering Engines

The two best engines are Webkit and Gecko. Gecko is an older engine, that is more resource intensive than Webkit, but also has many more features, like a platform independent development environment. Webkit is almost exclusively used for advanced mobile platforms like: Apple iPod Touch, iPhone, iPad, Google products like Chrome, Android, and Chrome OS, as well as Palm and Nokia's mobile devices.

Webkit

Webkit has lead the development of CSS 3 and other next generation web technologies, that allow us to do things one requiring advanced programming, or the use of Flash. There are some subtle differences between the different Webkit implementations, based on which company's version and what product version is being compared. Google's Chrome uses a different Javascript engine than Apple and Google Chrome sometimes disables certain features, for security reasons, like web fonts. Apple's mobile Safari only supports one type of web font, which is an unusual font format, and has restrictions on the amount of time Javascript can run, on its mobile devices. The effectiveness of anti-aliasing (making graphics smooth) in Webkit varies widely by platform.

Presto

Presto varies widely, from the advanced features of the desktop version of Opera, to the Opera Mini version, which reformats website, seemingly randomly and has serious problems, with rendering most sites, even legibly. Presto is also used in several Nintendo products, like the Wii and DS. No one else uses Presto, other than Opera, or those who pay for it, because Presto is not open source, like Gecko and Webkit.

Opera Mini Popularity

Opera Mini has as many users as Opera on the desktop. Opera mini is popular on cell phones, that cannot run a full featured web browser, or for people with slow connections, like 2G cell phones. Opera Mini's main feature is that it does the rendering on Opera' Server and then compresses the web page and the images, to make it load faster, but this causes problems with interactivity, security, and readability.

Defects of Opera Mini

The compression of images is particularly atrocious, because web graphics are generally as compressed, as they can be, without being unrecognizable. The layout, in terms of columns or headers and footers, is also compromised as well. Fonts are also only rendered in one typeface, one size, and one style.

Solutions to Opera Mini Defects

Another problem with Opera is that formatting could be specified, to be simpler for Opera, without dumbing it down, for the other more advanced web browsers. This could be done by just disabling images and stylesheets, or using the handheld stylesheets, specified by the site designer. Then, instead of pages becoming unreadable, they could just show a simpler version, of the website, for Opera Mini.

Trident

Microsoft uses Trident in its Internet Explorer and Internet Explorer Mobile browsers, but the mobile one is generally several versions behind the desktop version. Microsoft's Mac products have often used an entirely different rendering engine called Talisman. Internet Explorer does not render website correctly, so some hacks have to be used if you want precise layout and the other option is to give up precise positioning and allow your website's white space to vary between Internet Explorer and other browsers.

Worst Web Browsers

There are other less known web browsers, based on different rendering engines, including the web browser that comes with Sony Playstation and the one used in the Blackberry mobile phones. These browsers can hardly even render text properly, and should disable images and stylesheets. In addition, the Blackberry web browser also is terribly slow as well. And the testing software for Blackberry is written in Java, but is so poorly written, that it only runs, under Java, on Windows.

3.1.2 Help for All Users: Simple Explanation

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Trouble seeing things? - Simplest Answer

Then download the free Firefox 3.6 or higher and the free Adobe Reader 5.0 or higher. This only applies to desktop users using desktop, laptops, or netbooks (especially Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux users).

Visitors using Apple iPhones, iPod Touches, or iPad tablets will already have an ultimate experience with the included web browser. The same applies for other phones that are in that league including Google branded phones and Palm's latest phones. Blackberry and Windows mobile users will have a very bad experience and would do best to download Opera mini and just visit my mobile section. Other users need to see what applies to their device as described in the other devices section.

For the Ultimate Experience

For a whole new fully immersive experience beyond just the new font and built in audio, use Firefox 3.6 , Google Chrome 5.0 (stable channel version), SRWare Iron 5.0 (stable channel version), Apple's Safari 4.0 , or Opera 10.50 or higher. The latest browsers will provide stunning visual effects involving high impact graphics shapes, light and shadow, and conditional formatting tricks, like: angled rounded corners on images, headings, quotes pages, and select paragraphs; image, page, quote rotation; text drop shadows on headings; drop shadows on images, quotes, select paragraphs; stylized drop caps for quotes; alternating colors for featured links; featured links going to a different website, going to another one of my websites, and on the same page marked as such; featured links to zip files marked as such; faded featured previously visited links; and background gradients. This is all done without any plugins (including Flash Player), without any additional graphics or slower download times, it keeps the website just as accessible as before, and only needs to be edited in one place to change or update the entire website. Mac OS X 10.5.8 and higher, Apple iPad, and Ubuntu Linux 10.04 and higher users have this out of the box, without installing anything.

Everything Already in Newer Apple Products and New Linuxes

Mac OS X 10.5.8 and higher, Ubuntu Linux 9.10 and higher, and openSUSE Linux 11.2 and higher all have this functionality (included in Firefox and Seamonkey) plus PDF viewing (equivalent to Adobe Reader) and audio playing (either open source friendly or Apple and standard versions) built in without installing anything else.

iPhones and iPod Touches can see and hear everything fine. I recommend the simple format of the full website or the mobile website. You will have no need to install anything.

Windows Users Ready for a Basic or Minimal Experience

For a basic or minimal experience, Windows users will need Internet Explorer 7 plus Flash Player 9 , Firefox 2.0, or Google Chrome 5.0 (stable channel version) or higher, Adobe Reader 5.0 or higher, and iTunes for my audio content. Most Windows XP and higher users already have all this installed.

Importance

These are all free and are used prominently throughout the web, so if you don't have them installed, you are missing out on a lot, so install them for free now.

See what browser you have currently and what your other options are. Google's Youtube is stopping support for Internet Explorer 6 and other older browsers, as of 13 March 2010.

Quick Answer: Audio and Video Playing Plus New Website Font

The only browsers that support Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux that will both play my open source friendly audio without plugins and show my new website font are Firefox 3.5 , Seamonkey 2.0 , or Google Chrome 5.0 (stable channel version), and higher.

3.1.3 Help for All Users: Levels of Support

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Level 1 Support: Ultimate Experience

For the ultimate experience, I recommend using Firefox 3.6, Google Chrome 5.0 (stable channel version), SRWare Iron 5.0 (stable channel version), Safari 4.0 (plus iTunes - just for Safari users), or Opera 10.50 or higher. This allows you to see my website as intended. Most of this is extra formatting is not necessary for my website to function. Mac OS X 10.5.8 and higher, Apple iPad, and Ubuntu Linux 10.04 and higher users have this out of the box, without installing anything.

Mac OS X 10.4 users can get the same experience, by applying the free updates, provided by Apple. iPhone and iPod Touch users can see all the ultimate level formatting, but the experience is not ultimate, because the device is too small (for this style). PC-BSD 8.0 users can upgrade to Firefox 3.6 easily, for an ultimate experience.

Windows users need to install Adobe Reader 5.0, Foxit Reader 3.0, or Sumatra PDF reader. For Windows users, most brand name PCs that came with Windows XP and higher already have a new enough version of Adobe Reader already installed on your computer.

Level 2 Support: Good Experience

For most of the main features of the website, Firefox 3.5 and Seamonkey 2.0 and higher will work great. With one of these browsers, you will see the special fonts and have audio built in without any plugins. Ubuntu Linux 9.10 and openSUSE Linux 11.2 and higher users have this out of the box without installing anything.

Level 3 Support: Basic or Minimal Experience

For the basic features of my website, you can use Internet Explorer 7 plus Flash Player 9, Firefox 2.0, Seamonkey 1.1, Flock 1.0, Camino 1.6, or K-meleon 1.5 or higher. You will not see the more advanced features of the website and you will need plugins for hearing the audio on my site like iTunes or VLC player.

Windows users need to install Adobe Reader 5.0, Foxit Reader 3.0, or Sumatra PDF reader. Most Windows XP, Vista, or Windows 7 or higher users will likely have this already installed. Safari 3.0 and Opera 8 or 9 and higher should support the same level of experience.

This is the same level experience supported on the Nintendo Wii and DS. RISC OS and BeOS are at this level currently, but will likely move up to ultimate experience in the next couple of years.

Totally Unsupported

Internet Explorer 6 and lower and all versions of Netscape and Mozilla are not supported.

Consumer Software Choice is Morally Neutral

Even though I don't like older software or Microsoft software, you need to make the decision that is right for you. There is nothing wrong with being satisfied with a basic or minimal web experience. Whichever choice you make, be happy that you still do have a choice. That is the beauty of the web and open standards: you are never locked in or out because of a lack of compatibility. That is why I keep all my work in open file formats.

Nobody has the time to be an expert in everything. For some people, it may not be worth the time to learn what a web browser is. It is not your fault that Microsoft refused to make Internet Explorer compatible with the web and it should have never been necessary for you to concern yourself with what browser you use, but that is the situation today. That is why I look forward to new consumer electronics from Apple and web based Google software, because with Apple and Google products you do not need to concern yourself with things like this.

3.1.4 Help for All Users: More Complex Explanation

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Fuller Answer: Audio and Video Playing Built into Latest Web Browsers

If you are using Firefox 3.5 or the free Seamonkey 2.0 or higher, the best free browsers for most Windows users, then you can experience all my open source friendly audio without any plugins. No media player is required. Everything necessary to hear the audio is built into Firefox 3.5 and Seamonkey, 2.0

Firefox 3.5 and Seamonkey 2.0 are not a big deal for Mac users because they already have Quicktime installed by default if using Mac OS X 10.3.9 or higher, so they don't need to install or update anything to play my Apple format audio. Windows users with the latest version of iTunes, can also play my standard and Apple format audio, so for them Firefox 3.5 and Seamonkey 2.0 are no big deal either.

Google Chrome 3.0 and higher supports all the types of audio you will find on my website, including the standard, open source friendly, and Apple/iPod/iTunes versions.

Unfortunately you see that different browsers support different audio formats, which makes things more complicated, than necessary. This will likely not change, because of licensing fees and fears of being sued for using someone's unknown patents and these issues will not be resolved for many years, if ever. I have made listening to my songs and readings on my website simpler and less technical, for my visitors, by setting up my audio, to auto detect the correct version, for your web browser. If you use one of the above browser listed versions or higher, the audio on my website will automatically determine the correct file format, that works best, with your web browser.

This simpler audio and video playback is not possible with Internet Explorer even the latest version.

Fuller Answer: New Website Font With Latest Web Browsers

Also, if you are using Firefox 3.5 , SeaMonkey 2.0 , Google Chrome 5.0 (stable channel version), SRWare Iron 5.0 (stable channel version), Safari 4.0 , or Opera 10.0 , or higher, then you can see my website with the new font (which will work without any installation necessary).

Most major and even minor web browsers support my new font in their most recent fully tested versions. The only web browsers that don't support my new font that I support are: Internet Explorer (because they only support a version of font embedding that uses DRM which I do not support because of ethical reasons), Camino and K-Meleon (probably because they don't have many developers) and NetSurf (probably because they had to develop their own renders, because of memory requirements for some of their supported platforms).

Technical Answer: Other Web Browser and PDF Viewer Compatibility

For using secondary browsers, based on the Firefox Gecko or the Safari Webkit renderers, either use the latest version or a version that uses Gecko 1.8.1 or higher (released October 2006) which should provide a basic or minimal experience and Gecko 1.9.2 or higher or Web Kit 530.17 or higher (released June 2009) which should provide an optimum experience. Note: some lesser known Web Kit browsers on Linux and the cross-platform Arora browser do a poor job of rendering my website.

And for third party PDF viewers, they must support PDF 1.4 (Adobe Reader 5.0) or higher. The PDF viewers do not have to be able to handle transparency. If you have Mac OS X 10.4 or higher or a recent version of Linux, you already have a PDF reader included that works better than any version of Adobe Reader for any of my PDFs (and most other PDFs you will find on the Internet). For Windows users, most brand name PCs that came with Windows XP and higher already have a new enough version of Adobe Reader already installed on your computer.

The only reason you should run into PDFs that won't work with these PDFs readers is if they use Flash for PDF portfolios, but most of those PDF files will be in the ballpark of 50 MB and up, or you are working with PDFs produced by professional designers or for professional design uses.

Technical Collection

3.2 Help for PC Users Accessing My Website

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3.2.1 Why Not Use Internet Explorer?

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Dealing with Internet Explorer

If you use a browser other than Internet Explorer, you will get much less spyware. Using another browser will help web designers because it is hard to get web pages to work with Internet Explorer. This is because Internet Explorer is flawed in its design. This makes designing websites that work in Internet Explorer plus all other browsers requires 2x the work for each version of Internet Explorer you support plus all the hassles with testing.

Special Recommendations for Internet Explorer

If you are using Internet Explorer 6 or higher, I recommend selecting the simple format of my main website. Internet Explorer users should install Flash Player 9 or higher on my website, as performance will be bad without it. If you don't use Internet Explorer, then you won't need Flash Player for this website. If you have Flash Player installed for another browser for another website, it will work fine on my website too, but you will get better performance disabling it or all plugins, when browsing my website.

Supporting and Testing for Internet Explorer

Designing a web page to be compatible with more than one version of Internet Explorer requires you to be able to test every version of Internet Explorer that you support, because you have to use different hacks for each version of Internet Explorer. This is because Microsoft deviates from the commonly accepted ways of interpreting standards every other major browser was able to abide by (with much less money even though all the other major browsers are designed with completely different software).

Not only does Microsoft not abide by the standards, but they have various levels of incompatibility (with these standard ways of doing things in web pages) with each version of Internet Explorer. Another limitation is that you have to pay for and deal with the security problems and the instability and maintenance just to test for Internet Explorer as it is Windows only. And the final difficulty is that you can only install one version of Internet Explorer on any one installation of Windows.

The way I deal with this, is to allow extra space in my web page layout, so I am not able to get precise positioning of elements like you can in any desktop publishing software or PDFs. The only reason why this website works in Internet Explorer is due to specific direction from my Uncle Clive. I could not have figured out how to get past the complex and confusing bugs in Internet Explorer without him telling my exactly what to do to make my layout work. I test for Internet Explorer 7 in Crossover 8.0 on my Ubuntu Linux 9.04 Virtual machine I run in Vmware Fusion 2 on my iMac, so I don't risk losing my data due to a virus or get spyware.

3.2.2 Which Version of Internet Explorer?

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Internet Explorer Compatibility

This website has been tested and works on only one version of Internet Explorer: Internet Explorer 7 (released in October 2006), which comes as a free update to Windows XP and is the default browser that comes with Windows Vista. Internet Explorer 8 is the default browser that comes with Windows 7 and is a free update for Windows XP and Vista. Version 8 and later of Internet Explorer should work with my website fine too. This site will likely work with Internet Explorer 6 too as I am not doing anything that will change the compatibility, but I think it is best to test on the version that most people have and that is version 7. You would do a favor for yourself and every web designer, if you downloaded and used another browser.

Upgrading Old Computers and Old Software

You more than likely have Internet Explorer 8 already. Internet Explorer 8 has been listed as a critical security update for Windows XP and higher since April 2009. If you have Windows set up to automatically update, you already have version 8. You can even apply the update on stolen/pirated versions. The only reason you might not have it is because you are accessing the Internet at work (and your employer is still using a very old and poorly designed application that requires it) or you are using a version of Windows that is over 9 years old.

Most PCs bought, since Windows XP was released, are only designed to last 3 years, so if your computer is that old, you have likely spent more money upgrading it, than it would cost to buy a new one. Even a cheap netbook will outperform a five year old computer, even a top of the line one. If you are unwilling to buy a computer new every 5 years, than it would be better for you to just not use a computer. You can tell it is time for you to buy a new computer, when the latest version of your web browser no longer supports the Windows operating system that came with your computer (as most people are not able to perform Windows OS upgrades) or your computer's hardware specifications.

Technical Reasons to Support Version 7

Internet Explorer 7 adds the ability to have transparency in images, which version 6 cannot do, so you don't have to change the background of all your images whenever you change the page background, but also introduces a new incompatibility with Flash.

A company sued Microsoft as the only commercial browser manufacturer for allowing Flash to start automatically within Internet Explorer, if it allows any interactivity. Instead of paying from its deep pockets like it requires other companies to do to use its patented software with as equally ridiculous reasons for its patents (if it allows anyone to license its products at all, depending on the product), it decided to just remove the functionality from Internet Explorer. This makes it unnecessarily more complicated to insert Flash into a web page. This is new with Internet Explorer 7.

3.2.3 Help for PC Web Browsers and Flash Player

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Do I need Flash Player for this website?

If you don't use Internet Explorer, then you won't need Flash Player for this website. If you have Flash Player installed for another browser for another website, it will work fine on my website too, but you will get better performance disabling it or all plugins, when browsing my website.

Ultimate Experience for Windows Users

For a whole new fully immersive experience beyond just the new font and built in audio, use Firefox 3.6 , Google Chrome 5.0 (stable channel version), SRWare Iron 5.0 (stable channel version), Apple's Safari 4.0, or Opera 10.50 (featuring sharper text and smoother graphics) or higher. The latest browsers will provide stunning visual effects involving high impact graphics shapes, light and shadow, and conditional formatting tricks, like: angled rounded corners on images, headings, quotes pages, and select paragraphs; image, page, quote rotation; text drop shadows on headings; drop shadows on images, quotes, select paragraphs; stylized drop caps for quotes; alternating colors for featured links; featured links going to a different website, going to another one of my websites, and on the same page marked as such; featured links to zip files marked as such; faded featured previously visited links; and background gradients. This is all done without any plugins (including Flash Player), without any additional graphics or slower download times, it keeps the website just as accessible as before, and only needs to be edited in one place to change or update the entire website.

None of this is possible with Internet Explorer, even the latest version.

New Font and Built in Audio for Windows Users

The only browsers that support Windows that will both play my open source friendly audio without plugins and show my new website font are Firefox 3.5 , Seamonkey 2.0 , Google Chrome 5.0 (stable channel version), SRWare Iron 5.0 (stable channel version), and Opera 10.50 and higher.

If you are using Firefox 3.5 or higher, the free Seamonkey 2.0 or higher, the free Google Chrome 5.0 (stable channel version), the free SRWare Iron 5.0 (stable channel version), or the free Opera 10.50 and higher, the best free browsers for most Windows users, then you can experience all my open source friendly audio without any plugins. No media player is required. Everything necessary to hear the audio is built into Firefox 3.5 , Seamonkey 2.0 , Google Chrome 5.0 (stable channel version), SRWare Iron 5.0 (stable channel version), and Opera 10.50 .

Windows users with the latest version of iTunes, can also play my Apple format audio, so for them Firefox 3.5 is no big deal.

Google Chrome 3.0 and higher supports all the types of audio and video you will find on my website, including the open source friendly and Apple/iPod/iTunes versions.

None of this is possible with Internet Explorer, even the latest version.

Working with Older and Less Functioning Web Browsers

If you are using older versions of one of these browsers listed above or one of the browsers listed below, I recommend selecting the simple format of my main website.

Most major and even minor web browsers support my new font in their most recent fully tested versions. The only web browsers that don't support my new font that I support on Windows are: Internet Explorer (because they only support a version of font embedding that uses DRM which I do not support because of ethical reasons) and K-Meleon (probably because they don't have many developers).

Many Better and Free Choices for Web Browsing

You can have as many browsers on your machine as you want and they won't interfere with each other, so you can use the free Firefox for most browsing and use Internet Explorer for those few websites that are broken.

Try the latest version of the Mozilla's free Firefox 2.0, Mozilla's free SeaMonkey 1.1, Google's free Chrome 1.0, Apple's free Safari 4.0, or the latest free Opera,

Learn about switching from Internet Explorer to Firefox. This page will answer most of your questions.

For those whose computers are too old to run the latest Firefox, try an older version, starting with 1.5 (released in August 2008). My website should look fine in Firefox 2.0.0.20 or higher .

K-Meleon is another free and open source program, using the same web page renderer as Firefox, but with lower system requirements, so K-Melon would be great for older computers, who want the same browsing capabilities of Firefox, without the steeper system requirements. K-Melon 1.5 or higher should work fine for browsing my website.

3.2.4 Help for Windows PDF and other Viewers

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Do I need Flash Player for this website?

Adobe Reader and Several Better Free PDF Viewers

You probably have the free Adobe Reader 5.0 or higher (released in May 2001) that came with your computer, which I tested version 5.05 successfully with all the types of PDFs on my website and the looked and worked fine.

My all types of my PDFs were successfully tested with the free Foxit Reader, version 2.3 and they look and work fine with it. Foxit Reader is a much simpler viewer, that is faster to use, and is a much smaller download. It is free for personal use.

Sumatra is a free and open source PDF viewer based on Xpdf, which is also faster to use and a smaller download. I have successfully tested my types of PDFs with Sumatra version .9.3 and they look and work fine.

Firefox, Seamonkey, K-Meleon, and Sumatra are free and open source so you can be sure they have no viruses or spyware.

Adobe's free Reader, Adobe's free Flash Player, Apple's free Quicktime/iTunes, Apple's free Safari, and Google's free Chrome are done by very well known, reputable companies and will not contain any viruses or spyware.

Check to see if you have Adobe Reader

For Windows users, most brand name PCs that came with Windows XP and higher already have a new enough version of Adobe Reader already installed on your computer.

To see if you have Adobe Reader installed, check under the Start menu and look for a sub menu labelled Adobe or an icon that says Adobe Reader. You may have to click on little black arrows to expand your Start menu to show it. Another way to tell if you have Adobe Reader installed, is to enter about:plugins in your web browser address bar and then hit enter and if you scroll down you will see the words Adobe Reader if it is installed.

You can also see if it is installed by clicking on one of my linked files that ends in .pdf and if you see text rather than some garbled computer code, then you have it installed. To see the version number of Adobe Reader, locate it in the start menu, click on it and then choose about from the help menu and you should see the version number.

This software is tested and supported on Windows as well as other systems and shouldn't create any problems for you on your computer other than the problems and limitations normally associated with Windows. I do not recommend upgrading on my account if you have a version 5.0 or higher of Adobe Reader.

Solving Windows Specific Application Installation Problems

One of the ways of getting around the reality that Windows applications are hard to uninstall, because there is no way for Windows to keep track of what files belong to each application, is to use portable apps. Another advantage of portable apps is that you can take your applications on a USB flash drive and carry around all your applications to any Windows computer, without having to leave any personal data behind or mess with installing or changing the configuration of the computer you are using. All these applications are open source and are free from viruses and spyware. You can get Firefox 3.5, SeaMonkey 2.0 , OpenOffice.org 3.1, Sumatra PDF reader .9.4 , and VLC Player 1.0.2 there.

3.2.5 So you have a Dell

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I asked on the official Dell forums if Adobe Reader was included with their computers as a preinstallation as it makes viewing my website easier and it would be easier for my viewers if it was preinstalled.

The following is my question verbatim. I put it in the right forum and didn't say anything negative about Dell or Windows. This is my first post to the Dell forums. I even registered and gave my real name.

“Is Adobe Reader pre-installed on Dell PCs? If so, after what year? ”

The following is the actual response. I am not making it up - I just cut and paste it in.

"Does it matter if Dell preinstalls Adoboe Reader, or not? If you need it, go to this link and download version 8 for FREE. Even if you have an earlier version, it's worthwhile updating to this newest version because some (all? ) earlier versions have a security flaw.

http://www.adobe.com/products/reader/"

So I guess Dell seems to have some sort of vendetta against Adobe Reader. How did I come to that conclusion. First, he doesn't answer my simple question. Then he says “why does it matter? ” Well, Linux users and Apple users consider having a PDF reader pre-installed by default to be the norm. It would definitely help Dell's users. People could also download Windows from a player to player network or purchase it online. Then he mentions the security problems of a certain version of Adobe Reader. Isn't that the pot calling the kettle black - a Windows reseller points out a security flaw in an Adobe product. Does he want me to detail all the security problems with owning a Windows PC?

3.2.6 Microsoft and the Future

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Microsoft Playing the Victim

For web users who don't follow the tech news, Microsoft is in the early stages of testing a new browser (version 9) which it claims (like all the others before it) will miraculously solve all the problems of the previous one. Microsoft is trying to claim that they are the victim of their tiny rivals and that getting a monopoly on 80's technology and then stopping the development of new technologies, so that we have no choice in who we buy computer hardware and software from is desirable.

Microsoft's argument is that the only standards that matter are what they have come up with. They want to wait another 12 years to implement the new features other browsers have already added, because they some how think that purposely making Internet Explorer incompatible was something done by someone else to them, rather than self inflicted. They say that they have somehow trail blazed with their proprietary incompatibilities they added to corrupt already implemented standards like: CSS, HTML, JavaScript; so that they are afraid of getting falsely labeled as proprietary, if they implement standards before they are set in stone. The reality is something else.

Microsoft Needs a History Lesson

Microsoft claims responsibility for creating AJAX, although the key ingredient, called Javascript, was purposely sabotaged by them and the reason why it had become popular later on is that Microsoft stopped releasing new versions of Internet Explorer, so web developers could find permanent workable hacks for Internet Explorer. And for the last time, Microsoft did not get convicted of illegally using its monopoly in operating systems to get a monopoly in web browsers simply by bundling Internet Explorer with Windows. They got in trouble for forbidding Compaq from bundling Netscape (the market leader of that era) with Windows and changing Windows internals to make Netscape perform poorly on Windows.

As soon as Microsoft destroyed Netscape, they stopped developing Internet Explorer for 5 years, until Firefox started regaining significant market share. Microsoft say numbers don't matter, for measuring speed (as they are much slower than everyone else) and they decided to optimize this version of Internet Explorer, for brand new high end desktop gaming machines, that cost as much as a Mac and not on cheap netbooks (which represent most of the newer machines being bought today and recently). They also decided to stop supporting XP (the OS most of the world is using and the reason why they have the market share they do) as they are still having trouble getting people to buy, what the claim as the superior fix up, of the failed Windows Vista.

Microsoft's Vision of the Future

What is happening in the computer revolution is that a whole new generation of users has grown up and they have higher expectations of computers. Whereas my parents generation were impressed with being able to see the Olympics online, my generation expects more out of computers. The generation following mine expects to be able to use their computer everywhere and expects the Internet to always be present. Apple and Google are preparing for the next generation, whereas Microsoft wants to keep people technologically a generation behind and wants us to use computers the way they were in the 80s forever, so it can continue to sell software, that is fundamentally designed the same, for the entire future of human civilization.

This is an epic battle and it will take a long time, to get rid of the Microsoft legacy, as they continue to try to hold us back from the future, and businesses will continue to use their software, for another generation or longer, as they have invested heavily in Microsoft-only solutions. As businesses finally need to upgrade their entire infrastructure, they are going to build their next generation technology on open source software, so that they never get locked into one vendor again. Fundamentally, Microsoft wants to make the Internet as hard to use as possible, so that no other company has a chance to compete with it, as Microsoft cannot win, when everything is fair and equal. Microsoft wants there to be big hurdles, to overcome, to get to customers and doesn't want another Apple, Google, Youtube, Myspace, Facebook, or Twitter to come out of someone's basement.

Technical Collection

3.3 Help for Apple Users Accessing My Website

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3.3.1 General Help for Mac OS X Users

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If you are using Mac OS X, you most likely have everything you need. You're experience with my website will be optimum.

Ultimate Experience for Mac OS X Users

For a whole new fully immersive experience beyond just the new font and built in audio, use Firefox 3.6, Google Chrome 5.0 (stable channel version), SRWare Iron 5.0 (stable channel version), Safari 4.0, OmniWeb 5.10, iCab 4.6 , or Opera 10.50 or higher. The latest browsers will provide stunning visual effects involving high impact graphics shapes, light and shadow, and conditional formatting tricks, like: angled rounded corners on images, headings, quotes pages, and select paragraphs; image, page, quote rotation; text drop shadows on headings; drop shadows on images, quotes, select paragraphs; stylized drop caps for quotes; alternating colors for featured links; featured links going to a different website, going to another one of my websites, and on the same page marked as such; featured links to zip files marked as such; faded featured previously visited links; and background gradients. This is all done without any plugins (including Flash Player), without any additional graphics or slower download times, it keeps the website just as accessible as before, and only needs to be edited in one place to change or update the entire website.

New Font and Built in Audio for Mac OS X Users

Also, if you are using Firefox 3.5, SeaMonkey 2.0, Google Chrome 5.0 (stable channel version), SRWare Iron 5.0 (stable channel version), Safari 4.0, OmniWeb 5.10, iCab 4.6, or Opera 10.0, then you can see my website with the new font (which will work without any installation necessary).

If you are using older versions of one of these browsers listed above or any other browsers, you will have a basic or minimal experience on my website. I recommend selecting the simple format of my main website.

Special Instructions for Mac OS X Users

Mac OS X users won't need Flash Player for this website. If you have Flash Player installed for another browser for another website, it will work fine on my website too, but you will get better performance disabling it or all plugins, when browsing my website.

For Internet Explorer only sites, just ignore them as the main purpose is generally to put spyware and viruses on your computer. You are lucky you don't have to use Internet Explorer.

There is a bug in webkit on Mac OS X that affects Safari, Omniweb, iCab, and probably any other Mac browser that uses webkit that causes my interactive Flash widgets to fail to work with my standard stylesheets. There are 2 work-arounds: either disable all plugins in Safari, so you see the Javascript version or choose the simple stylesheet. This will not affect the Apple iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad as they don't have Flash Player for them. This issue does not affect Firefox, Google Chrome, or Opera. This bug is now fixed with Flash Player 10.1. If you upgrade to Flash Player 10.1, then no workarounds are needed. I have only tested this Flash Player fix with Safari 5.

3.3.2 Help for Mac OS X by Version

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Mac OS X - All Supported Versions

Preview, the version that comes with OS X 10.4 or higher (released April 2005), should be able to open my PDFs. Quicktime 7, which comes with OS X 10.3.9 or higher (released April 2005), should work for the Apple/iPod/iTunes formats of video and audio as well as MP3.

Upgrade to the free Safari 4.0 for Mac OS X 10.4 and 10.5, or if you are using Mac OS X 10.3 or lower, you need to upgrade to a newer version of Mac OS X.

This version of Safari will also work great on any site designed for multiple browsers which is 90% of websites. For the other 10%, keep a version of Firefox 2.0 or higher or Camino 1.6 or higher and Adobe Reader 5.0 or higher on hand. Also Google Chrome 5.0 (stable channel version), SeaMonkey 1.1, Flock 1.0, OmniWeb 5.10, iCab 4.6, or the latest Opera should work on my website as well.

Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) Users

For Mac OS X 10.4 (released in April 2005) or higher, you can download Safari 4.0 (released June 2009). First, you must update to the latest free bug fix release to OS X 10.4, OS X 10.4.11 (released November 2007) plus the latest security updates.

To upgrade from 10.4.x to 10.4.11, first, click on the desktop to get the Finder menus. Then click on Software Update from the Apple menu in the top left corner of your screen under Finder. It is totally free. You can update to the latest security updates and version 4.0 of Safari the same way.

Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard) Users

For Mac OS X 10.5 (released in October 2007) or higher, you can download Safari 4.0 (released June 2009) by updating to the latest free bug fix release to OS X 10.5, OS X 10.5.8 (released August 2009).

To upgrade from 10.5.x to 10.5.8, first, click on the desktop to get the Finder menus. Then click on Software Update from the Apple menu in the top left corner of your screen under Finder. It is totally free.

Mac OS X 10.6 (Snow Leopard) Users

For Mac OS X 10.6.0 (released in August 2009) or higher, you have everything you need, for the optimal experience, without any updates.

3.3.3 General Help for Apple iPad Tablet Users

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General Information

Apple has released the first generation of a new tablet device that looks a lot like a giant iPhone or iPod Touch (without the phone). It has a 10 inch screen, inch thick, 1.5 lbs, battery lasts 10 hours, and sells for $500. An iPad runs most of the same underlying software as the iPhone and iPod Touch, although the interface is evolved for the larger screen. You use your fingers to navigate the device, like the iPhone and iPod Touch. But there are some differences in software availability and the resolution and size of the screen changes things as well.

It connects via WiFi, so it will work on any wireless network like a hotspot, a wireless network at a school or office, and on your home wireless network (without any additional software, hardware, services, or contracts). I live in a medium size city and there are about 10 free hotspots, within a couple blocks of my apartment, that work perfectly, with my iPad. The battery lasts forever, as the 10 hour battery life is measured, for playing 10 hours of video. The machine turns on and off instantly. It is 10x easier to use than any other computer you have used, even if you are a Mac user.

My Website Compatibility

The iPad supports a high enough resolution and is physically big enough to browse my full website (and the parts that were just in Flash now also work in Javascript and on the iPhone, so they will work on the iPad), so the main website will work, with all the bells an whistles, so to speak and will support an ultimate browsing experience. The iPad will be able to detect what direction you have it turned, either landscape or portrait, and web pages and apps will adapt to the different orientation, so you can have it oriented like a book or for watching a movie, depending on the activity, just like with the iPhone.

The Apple iPad Tablet allows for a whole new fully immersive experience beyond just the new font and built in audio. The iPad browser will provide stunning visual effects involving high impact graphics shapes, light and shadow, and conditional formatting tricks, like: angled rounded corners on images, headings, quotes pages, and select paragraphs; image, page, quote rotation; text drop shadows on headings; drop shadows on images, quotes, select paragraphs; stylized drop caps for quotes; alternating colors for featured links; featured links going to a different website, going to another one of my websites, and on the same page marked as such; featured links to zip files marked as such; faded featured previously visited links; and background gradients. This is all done without any plugins (including Flash Player), without any additional graphics or slower download times, it keeps the website just as accessible as before, and only needs to be edited in one place to change or update the entire website.

Special Instructions for Apple iPad Tablet Users

There are some differences in the web browser, for the iPad, that do not apply, to the same browser (Safari), on Mac OS X.

One of these differences is that the custom web page fonts are done differently, so there was some trouble getting all the text, to display correctly, due to a bug specific to the iPad and maybe the iPhone and iPod Touch, as well. This seems to only affect the descriptions of the different file formats, that are listed, on my book pages, and I have applied some tricks, to get it to work, but it is not ideal.

Another thing is that my site is designed, to be seen, on a 1024 pixel wide, or greater display and the interactivity is likely expecting that, as well, so I would recommend rotating your iPad, to see my website and others, in the landscape orientation (the format widely used, for viewing videos and the direction in which the iPad is wider, than it is tall, when looking at it).

Another issue is that the interactivity is slow, because of the small processor, used in the iPad, so if you click on something, that is supposed to have something else appear, when clicked, then hit it an extra time and give it a second, to respond.

You can also try my simple format, which might resolve some of these issues.

Apple iWork Office Suite

Another additional application that is available for the iPad is Apple's iWork office suite, which includes a Word Processor/Page Layout application, a Presentation program, and a Spreadsheet application. The main strength of Apple's iWork is its quality of graphics and its ease of use. The iPad version will have most the features of the desktop version and will have the same file formats, but the cost is $10 an application, so it is about 1/3 the price of the desktop version. The interface will be significantly different. You can view my Word Processor Versions of my texts in iWork on the iPad. The Mac OS X versions of iWork offer more options than the ones on the iPad, so if you are exchanging files back in forth, you will likely lose formatting (but not data/information).

Other Applications and Add-ons

Most of the third party App Store applications should be available soon for the device. Most iPhone specific apps will work on the iPad, but they only appear in a little window in the center of the iPad, as big as the iPhone and you can double the size, if you hit the 2x option on the side, but the text then appears blurry. Most iPad applications cost $5 or less and many are free. There is already a wireless keyboard, digital camera cable connector, and cover accessories and a drawing program. You can also expand the memory on your iPad, by using an SD memory card (one of the types of memory, commonly used in digital cameras) and you can also print, from the iPad, to wireless printers. There is also at least one third party application that will allow you to print from almost any printer attached to your computer if you have a wireless network shared with the computer connected to the printer.

Device Testing

I have already tested this site on the first generation of the new iPad device and have it optimized.

3.3.4 Books on Apple iPad Tablet

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My Books on the iPad with iBooks

The Apple Mobile Version and Desktop Printer Version of my texts will definitely work, out of the box, after downloading the free iBook e-book reader application made by Apple. I have just re-converted my books to the ePub e-book format, so that all my Apple mobile versions of books now work with iBooks on the iPad. I have also tested the PDF/A-1A versions of my books and they work just as well with iBooks 1.1 and higher. You can download them with your computer, from the zip archive collections, or via the individual book pages and then you can transfer them by dragging and dropping them into iTunes books section. You then just plug in your iPad and open up iTunes on your computer and a copy of each of the books will be sent to your iPad. You just open iBooks on your iPad and you can view them offline. They will appear on the bookshelf or the book list with my name and the titles on the front. The PDF/A1-A format ones will appear under PDFs option, when you choose list view.

You can also get many books, for free, from Google books , that no longer have copyrights, due to being too old, or the author wanting, to give them away, for free. These should all work fine. I downloaded a little over 100 books total, including about 40 famous Asian and European religion and philosophy books, about 75 history books about Asia from 100-150 years ago, and about 20 rare books about the Syrian churches in Asia (the Nestorian and Jacobyte churches) and the Coptic and Eastern Orthodox churches, from Google books and they all look quite good, in iBooks on the iPad. Just make sure when you download the book to choose ePub or PDF format. You can then transfer them over to your iPad just, as I explained, for for my books.

My Books on the iPad with Stanza

The Handhelds Version and Desktop Printer Version of my texts will definitely work, out of the box, after downloading the free Stanza e-book reader application made by Lexcycle. I have just tested 5 different formats of my books, which had varying degrees of success. Stanze e-reader claims to support the epub, PDF, pdb, and DjVu formats. I couldn't get Stanza, to take the DjVu file, that I placed in the file sharing part, of the iPad apps page, in iTunes. Another annoying thing is that there is no easy way to tell which file is in which file format in Stanza, if you have more than one copy of a book in multiple formats. For my books, the Desktop Printer version (PDF/A-1A) and the Handhelds version (pdb) of my texts worked best, as they preserved all the bookmarks in my books. The Apple Mobile format (epub) also worked, but Stanza did not recognize any of the links and only the chapter level headings, so it would be hard to navigate. The Red Letter Edition (PDF) worked, but Stanza recognized none of the bookmarks or links, so it would be very hard to navigate.

Downloading to the iPad with Third Party Applications

The iPad device can handle my long PDF books, like the Red Letter e-book versions, which work great, out of the box, in the included web browser, but they may take some time to download and you cannot save them, with the included browser for viewing later offline, on the iPad (except with a third party application). You can transfer the PDFs over to the iPad via iTunes on your computer or download via the iPad web browser with a third party app like ReaddleDocs. You can even download the zip archive bundles of my PDF files and open them in Readdledocs right from the included web browser. Another way to do this is to use iUnarchive and PDF Reader Pro the same way.

You can also transfer files from iTunes on your computer to your iPad, if you first plug in your iPad, to your computer and then select “your name,” followed by the word “iPad,” on the left side panel of iTunes, then you click on the “Apps” tab, and finally scroll down, to where it says “file sharing”. You can then click on the application listed there, that you want the files transferred to, and then drag and drop my PDF books or your other files into that listing space. You can now see the PDFs or other files on your iPad, even when you are offline.

The web page versions should work best for the iPad and, if you want to download this version, to keep on your iPad, then you can download them, via a third party application, called Offline Pages, on your iPad and you will see them, as they appear, in the included web browser, but offline (and Javascript works offline as well, so you can use all the interactive features of my web pages offline).

Buying Books on the iPad

Amazon.com has a Kindle reader , for most major computing devices, including the Mac, PC, and the Apple iDevices, like: the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad. It worked for me, when I downloaded a free book, via the Amazon.com Kindle application, on the iPad. I tried downloading a free book, from the Apple iBooks application, on the iPad and it kept crashing, when I opened it, until I synced it and then I removed the book, I downloaded, from the iBook store, and it worked as before. Because of my experience and because you can only buy and see the Apple iBooks, via the iPad, I would have to recommend using the Amazon.com service, if you want to buy books, for now. You may run into the same problem, with Amazon.com's Kindle, but it won't screw up anything else. iBooks works so beautifully, with the free books I downloaded from Google and my own books that I would hate to lose the ability to use it just so I could buy a few books on it.

Barnes and Noble is now has an eReader app that is optimized for the iPad. I will try out the Barnes and Noble iPad application, soon, because I really like the way they have designed their website. It is so much simpler and easier to use than Amazon.com.

You should never enter credit card numbers, passwords, or any other information you don't want everyone else to see over a public wireless network. I would recommend getting a wireless network, in your home, with password protection, to buy things on, like the Amazon.com Kindle bookstore. All the apps on the application store can be bought, from your computer, via iTunes, so you don't need a wireless network, for that part, but many of the applications like Amazon.com's Kindle require that you buy books, from within their application, so you would need a wireless network, at home, for that.

Technical Collection

3.4 Help for Other Users Accessing My Website

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3.4.1 General Help for Linux, PC-BSD, and OpenSolaris

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Ultimate Experience for Linux Users

Firefox 3.6 , Google Chrome 5.0 (stable channel version), Epiphany 2.30.2, Midori .2.2 , or Opera 10.6 or higher will provide an ultimate browsing experience on Linux. The latest browsers will provide stunning visual effects involving high impact graphics shapes, light and shadow, and conditional formatting tricks, like: angled rounded corners on images, headings, quotes pages, and select paragraphs; image, page, quote rotation; text drop shadows on headings; drop shadows on images, quotes, select paragraphs; stylized drop caps for quotes; alternating colors for featured links; featured links going to a different website, going to another one of my websites, and on the same page marked as such; featured links to zip files marked as such; faded featured previously visited links; and background gradients. This is all done without any plugins (including Flash Player), without any additional graphics or slower download times, it keeps the website just as accessible as before, and only needs to be edited in one place to change or update the entire website.

New Font and Built in Audio for Linux Users

Also, if you are using Firefox 3.5 (or the very similar Swiftfox 3.5, Iceweasel 3.5, GNU IceCat 3.5, or Swiftweasel 3.5), SeaMonkey 2.0, Google Chrome 5.0 (stable channel version), KDE's Konqueror 4.3, Epiphany 2.28, Midori .1.9, Kazehakase .5.8 , or Opera 10.0, then you can see my website with the new font (which will work without any installation necessary).

If you are using older versions of one of these browsers listed above or any other browsers, I recommend selecting the simple format of my main website.

Improving your Experience Level with Linux

If you are using a major distribution of Linux or FreeBSD (and OpenSolaris should work fine too) you most likely have everything you need. You're experience with my website will be optimum. Current versions of Linux and FreeBSD come with a good experience level for my website built in, but could be improved to an ultimate experience if you can upgrade to Ubuntu Linux 10.04 or upgrade to Firefox 3.6 or a webkit browser, like Google Chrome 5.0 (stable channel version), Epiphany 2.30.2 or Midori .2.2 or Opera 10.6 or higher.

Special Instructions for Linux Users

Linux, PC-BSD, and OpenSolaris users won't need Flash Player for this website. If you have Flash Player installed for another browser for another website, it will work fine on my website too, but you will get better performance disabling it or all plugins, when browsing my website.

There seems to be a problem with the anti-aliasing in Epiphany, Midori, and Kazehakase, so that some of the graphics look somewhat choppy, as compared to: Firefox 3.6, Safari 4, and Google Chrome 5.0 (stable channel version). Arora and ReKonq could barely render anything at all on my pages. I guess webkit anti-aliasing is not uniform for different web browsers or even the same web browser on different OSes. Google Chrome 5.0 (stable channel version), Epiphany 2.30.2 , and Midori .2.2 anti-alias very well, so that graphics appear very smooth in these two browsers at those respective versions. The Linux version of Google Chrome 5 also crashes on Ubuntu, on my front page, with the version of Flash Player easily installable in Ubuntu 10.04 in the repository (Flash Player version 10.0.45.2), unless you disable plugins for Chrome.

3.4.2 Help by Version for Linux, PC-BSD, and OpenSolaris

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Linux Users

For Ubuntu 10.04 (released in April 2010) or higher, you should have Firefox 3.6 (which comes with Ubuntu), which gives the ultimate experience for my my website and Evince (which comes with Ubuntu), which works with all types of my PDFs. Mplayer or VLC (which can be downloaded through Ubuntu Software Center) works for my OGG (Open Source Friendly) formatted audio and video.

For Ubuntu 9.10 (released in October 2009) or higher, you should have Firefox 3.5 (which comes with Ubuntu), which works for my web pages, so you can see my website with the new font (which will work without any installation necessary), and Evince (which comes with Ubuntu), which works with all types of my PDFs. Mplayer or VLC (which can be downloaded through Ubuntu Software Center) works for my OGG (Open Source Friendly) formatted audio and video.

For openSUSE 11.2 (released in November 2009) or higher, you should have Firefox 3.5 (which comes with openSUSE), which works for my web pages, so you can see my website with the new font (which will work without any installation necessary), and Okular (which comes with openSUSE), which works with all types of my PDFs. Mplayer or VLC (which can be downloaded through Yast) works for my OGG (Open Source Friendly) formatted audio and video.

PC-BSD Users

For PC-BSD 8.0 (released in February 2010) or higher, you should have Konqueror 4.3 (which comes with PC-BSD) which works for my web pages and Okular 4.3 (which comes with PC-BSD) works with all types of my PDFs. Kmplayer (which comes with PC-BSD) works for my OGG (Open Source Friendly) formatted audio and video. I recommend upgrading to Firefox 3.6 from the Software Manager icon on the desktop.

This version of PC-BSD also has a choice of desktop environments for those who cannot get KDE 4 to work. You can also use Gnome, XFCE, and KDE 3.5.

Open Source Users

For recent versions of Linux (Intel, 64 bit Intel, PowerPC; open source and commercial) FreeBSD, and OpenSolaris (x86 and Sparc), you should have Firefox 2.0, Swiftfox 2.0, Ice Weasel 2.0, Gnu IceCat 2.0, Swiftweasel 2.0, Google Chrome 5.0 (stable channel version), SeaMonkey 1.1, IceApe 1.1, GNUzilla 1.1, Flock 1.0, Konqueror 4.3, Epiphany 2.16, Midori .1.9, Kazehakase .5.8, or Opera 10.0 , which work for my web pages.

All types of my PDFs work with Evince (or Document Viewer) under Gnome or XFCE and Okular under KDE 4.2, one of which should come with your desktop environment. xpdf 3 also works with all types of my PDFs for others without a desktop environment on an open source platform.

Testing

I have tested my website openSUSE Linux 11.2 under KDE 4.3 with Firefox and Okular, PC-BSD 8.0 FreeBSD under KDE 4.3.5 with Konqueror and Okular, and Ubuntu Linux 9.10 under Gnome 2.28 with Firefox and Evince (all on standard Intel 32 bit).

Other Formats

There are viewers for other file formats that can be installed under Ubuntu by clicking on Ubuntu Software Center and under PC-BSD by double clicking on Software Manager from the link on the desktop.

3.4.3 Help for Alternative Desktop Systems

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Get Firefox and PDF Viewer

The easiest way to make sure my website works and appears the way it is intended for alternative platforms is to use the latest Firefox available or NetSurf 2.1. The version of Firefox that is available for your platform will be the major factor in your level of experience. For most alternative platforms, you will have a basic or minimal experience, but this will likely improve over time. The OS/2 version of Firefox already offers a good browsing experience and will soon offer an ultimate browsing experience.

Firefox is also available for BeOS, OS/2, and RISC OS. For Firefox 3.0 and below users, I recommend selecting the simple format of my main website. All 3 also have an xpdf 3 port (BePDF, XPDF, and ! PDF) and which should work fine with my PDFs. Get the latest versions available.

BeOS Specific

BePDF should be able to view PDF versions of important texts. BeOS also has available a DjVu Viewer which should be able to view my optimized DjVu versions of popular texts. BeOS has Abiword available which should be able to open up the RTF versions of important texts.

Net Surf 2.1 works with my website, but I still encourage you to get Firefox. You can listen to my open source friendly audio with Sound Play.

BeOS Downloads

OS/2 Specific

OS/2 has XPDF which should be able to view PDFs of important texts. OS/2 has a recent enough version of OpenOffice.org to open OpenDocument version as well as the RTF versions of important texts (RTF versions can also be opened with Lotus Smartsuite). You can listen to my open source friendly audio with PLOGG.

Don't forget to get Firefox.

OS/2 Downloads

RISC OS Specific

! PDF should work to see PDF versions of important texts.

Net Surf 2.1 works with my website, but I still encourage you to get Firefox. You can listen to my open source friendly audio with Vorbis Tools.

RISC OS Downloads

Amiga OS Specific

For AmigaOS, the only browser I can test is NetSurf 2.1 which works with my website. You can listen to my open source friendly audio with Simple Play.

Amiga OS Downloads

Technical Collection

3.5 Different Ways to Access My Website

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3.5.1 Help for Mobile Users

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You can also access my website content on a mobile device.

2 Different Ways to Access Content on Mobile Devices

There are 2 types of mobile device specific content on my website and 2 different ways to access it. The first is by using a web browser on your mobile device, where you will find it optimal to view the simple format version of my main website, or my website optimized for mobile devices. The other kind of mobile access involves 2 steps: 1st step involves the use of a regular desktop, laptop, or netbook device to download the mobile device optimized files and 2nd step is to transfer those files, to your mobile device, for viewing them later, on the mobile device, in a 3rd party e-reader application.

Simplified Version of Website (Mobile Website)

If the main website is hard to navigate with the iPhone, iPod Touch, Google branded mobile phone, Palm Pre, or Opera Mini, try this part of my website optimized for mobile devices.

Only the iPhone and iPod Touch will be able to see all the multimedia and PDFs, unless you have the appropriate additional software.

iPhone and iPod Touch (Main and Mobile Website)

The iPhone and iPod Touch can browse my website fine including the PDFs. Almost everything important is made available in standard web pages and everything important is available in a PDF. If you are viewing the main website with an iPhone or iPod Touch, try the simple format.

You will be able to see everything including my interactive interfaces, because they no longer need Flash Player to function.

Testing (Main and Mobile Website)

The site has also been tested for compatibility with Safari, and in Apple's iPhone Browser Simulator which is included in the iPhone SDK 3.0 so it should work well with the iPhone and iPod Touch.

Be sure to upgrade to the latest iPhone OS 3.0, if you have any problems viewing anything.

Google Phone, Palm Pre, or Opera Mini (Website)

The main site will not work very well. Try the mobile version. You should be able to see the main pages, but not the multimedia or PDFs.

The Google phone and Palm Pre should be able to see the formatting and this should also apply to to other comparable phones as well as most use the same browser. Opera Mini will be able to read and navigate the web pages, but the formatting is more basic.

iPhone and iPod Touch (Download Files)

To see my animations and hear my audio, choose the iPod version from your desktop computer and import it into iTunes to transfer over when you sync your iPhone or iPod Touch with iTunes.

E-Book Reader (Download Files for Mobile Device)

You can get all my philosophy books in their collected edition in 3 mobile e-book optimized formats I call: Apple Mobile version (which can be viewed on iPhones/iPod Touches, Windows, and Mac OS X with Stanza, Google phones, and the Sony Reader) Handheld Version (which can be viewed on almost any handheld device and is the official format of Barnes & Noble e-books), and Amazon.com Kindle version (which can be read on the Amazon.com Kindle, the Kindle Reader for the iPhone/iPod Touch, and with the Mobipocket Reader on most mobile devices).

You can also see DjVu versions of texts with the Xdjvu application on the iPhone or iPod Touch.

You can get all the books together at my collected works page. More information is included in the zip archive that the e-books are in.

Handhelds (Download Files for Mobile Device)

PDF/A1-As should be viewable on Palm and Windows handhelds with the appropriate version of Adobe Reader.

3.5.2 Help for Game Console and other Embedded Users

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You can also access my website content on a game console and other embedded devices.

2 Different Levels of Access

There are 2 levels of embedded device access to my website: the main website can be seen with Opera-powered web browsers like on the Wii and DS (which can be viewed best with the simple format), but only the mobile website can be accessed (without formatting) on the Playstation, PSP, and other embedded devices.

Playstation and PSP (Mobile Website)

If the main website is hard to navigate with the Play Station 3, Play Station Portable, Sega Dreamcast, Nokia N-Gage, Sony Ericsson Phone, multifunction printer, digital TV, set top box, PDA, web phone, email terminal, or embedded automobile devices, try the version optimized for mobile browsers, which can be rendered but without the formatting, with the included Netfront-based browser.

Only the Nintendo Wii and the Nintendo DS will be able to see the full website (which can be viewed best with the simple format), as they use a fairly recent version of the Opera web browser.

Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS (Full Website)

Internet Channel of the Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS browser can browse my full website fine (which can be viewed best with the simple format), except without the new font. This website will offer a basic or minimal experience with these browsers.

You will be able to see everything including my interactive interfaces, because they no longer need Flash Player to function.

Testing (Full and Mobile Website)

The main website has been tested for compatibility with Opera and the Netfront Simulator has been tested with the mobile version of my website.

3.5.3 Help with Accessibility

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You can also browse my website via a screen reader

Open Source Friendly and Accessible

If for political or accessibility reasons (although my PDFs should meet both requirements) there are HTML, Open Document, DjVu, and RTF versions of most major texts.

Special Versions for the Sight Impaired

I have also recently figured out how to convert my books into Large Print Editions in PDF format, Daisy XML Talking Books format, and the BRL Braille format. These can be downloaded at my collected works page and all my philosophy books, in the collected editions, are all in this format.

The Daisy Talking Books format does not have the audio for download, as each book is 150 MB compressed, as much as I can, but I have successfully converted it to Daisy Audio, iTunes audio book, and generic MP3 formats.

The downside is that some of the software required appears to by expensive and is only available for Windows. I think this applies to the screen reader. There is free (Windows only) software for reading the Daisy format, if you already have a screen reader.

I have not verified the Braille format, so it may or may not work. More information about the Daisy and Braille formats is available, in the zip archive download, that contains the books.

Voice Over: Apple's Built-In Screen Reader

Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard and higher, which comes free with any new Mac, the Apple iPhone 3GS , and the Apple iPad tablet now include a screen reader, called VoiceOver, designed by Apple, for free. It will work with many Mac OS X applications and has support for 30 of the most common resfreshable braille displays included (with 10 more for free download).

Apple provides a quickstart guide in a number of accessible formats and printable keyboard layouts. There is a free email list of users that can help you. For help within your Mac, launch the Quick Start application, by the following keystroke combination: Control-Option-Command-f8, and you can launch Voice Over, by the following keystroke combination: Command-f5. To navigate a Mac via a screen reader is slightly different than using one on a PC, so you need to learn some of the basics about how Mac OS X is set up.

You can read a third party review of VoiceOver in Mac OS 10.5 Leopard , a third party review of VoiceOver in Mac OS 10.6 Snow Leopard, another third party review of VoiceOver in Mac OS 10.6 Snow Leopard a third party review of VoiceOver in iPhone 3GS , and a third party review of VoiceOver in Mac OS 10.6 Snow Leopard and the iPhone , or see Apple's VoiceOver part of their website. Unfortunately, I do not know if it is possible to read Daisy XML with VoiceOver on a Mac.

Other Help for Sight Impaired Users on Mac OS X, iPhone, and iPad

Mac OS X, Apple iPhone , and Apple iPad tablet include: Zoom, High Contrast, Closed Captioning, and Mono Audio. The Apple iPhone also includes: Voice Control, Speaker Phone, Audio/Visible/Vibrating Alerts, TTY support, Large Fonts for E-Mail, Visual Voice Mail, and more. Mac OS X also includes: Talking Alerts/Calculator/Clock, convert text to speech, and more.

I would recommend for sight impaired Mac users to use Preview (which comes with Mac OS X) to read my desktop printer versions, OpenOffice.org 3.0 or higher to read the open source friendly versions, Safari (which comes with Mac OS X), to read my web page versions, Text Edit (which comes with Mac OS X) to read my word processor version of my texts, or you can read the Daisy XML version in Safari, but you would have to navigate it like a web page.

Linux and Firefox for the Sight Impaired

Gnome, the default desktop for Ubuntu, Fedora, and OpenSolaris comes with Orca, which is a free and open source screen reader. Orca also supports Firefox 3.0, Evolution 2.6.1, OpenOffice.org 2.03, and Java applications. There is a list of Orca commands. Orca is supported by a mailing list.

Firefox 3 supports the following Windows based screen readers: JAWS 7.1, Window-Eyes 7, SuperNova 10, System Access 3, and the free and open source NVDA. The following Firefox add-ons might help the sight impaired: Accessibar, Firevox is a Firefox-based screen reader, Firefox Accessibility Extension, Adblock Plus removes ads on web pages, and Greasemonkey allows you to customize websites with downloadable scripts. There are also some special accessibility themes for Firefox. Firefox supports accessibility with a mailing list. A Firefox wiki gives a page that shows Firefox supported accessibility programs for Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X.

I Still Cannot Access PDFs

Remember, my PDFs texts are all text only, almost all are structures/tagged/bookmarked and do not use columns or tables, so if you are vision impaired, you should be able to read them fine.

If you have read through the information in this help section and still have an electronic device that is not compatible with any of the PDF viewers in the help pages for your computer or other Internet device or cannot view it for any other reason and a file is only available as a PDF, use Adobe's online converter.

If for some reason you ever run into a PDF file and are unable to view it, you can convert from a PDF to a regular web page (HTML) with this free Adobe service

3.5.4 Ethical Considerations

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I am ethical in my use of software.

No Software Restrictions (No DRM)

I have never and never will put any software restrictions on any of my content.

I feel that it is wrong to put restrictions on users who follow the law because some people commit crimes. It goes back to punishing the whole class for one student doing something bad. And it is also technically impossible to restrict someone's ability to copy a file that they can read. Whenever a company adds restrictions on its software, music, videos, pdfs, etc. the people who distribute it illegally always seem to find a way to get around it very quickly. It is the average user that ends up being restricted often without their knowledge and does nothing to limit crime.

You still need to follow the correct license conditions if you re-distribute my content. I do not restrict anything via DRM but I will take legal action if you violate my licenses. I don't use DRM for broader compatibility and so people can use my content without putting limitations on fair use. I also don't use DRM and give generous licenses because I think more things should be free and I find it more proactive to create content with less restrictions rather than pressuring others to do so. If you don't like the license or the conditions, then don't use the product or service.

Why I Try to Avoid Microsoft Formats

I generally don't put anything in a Microsoft controlled format as I do not trust that they will not try to scam me along the way. Their licenses are very complicated and for most businesses that have worked with them, things have gone bad for them. They have built their entire business on scams and illegal and unethical business practices instead of producing products that work. To get an accurate story on the criminal and deceitful activities done by Microsoft, read Roughly Drafted Magazine and Boycott Novel.

Technical Collection

Chapter 4

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Technical Design

by Ben Huot

Technical Collection

4.1 Introduction to Design

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4.1.1 The Meaning of Design

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General Concepts

Most people do not know what design is or value it. Most people think that design is a subset of art and that it is solely about making something look visually appealing. Certainly designs that make you want to “put your eyes out” are obviously not good, but design is more about: planning, purpose, organization, structure, consistency, psychology, self-restraint, subtlety, attention to detail, and being a perfectionist.

Most people also think that the computer can design things, by itself, without human judgement and decision making. Design is very much something a computer cannot do, because design is done for humans and so the designer has to take into account things only humans can understand. Basically, all the computer can do is perform very sophisticated calculations. A computer can only simulate a very useful multifunctional tool, that is a press, a pencil, an eraser, glue, and all the other things an artist uses when creating art (all in one).

Good design helps you communicate your message, by focusing the users' attention on what you want to inform or persuade people about. The first stage of design is determining what you want to communicate. Next step is to organize your thoughts and the structure of your ideas. Then you need to find a way to illustrate this in a consistent manner.

Specifics

In designing a book, you need to first write it, then organize it into chapters, and then find a way to uniquely identify the way the book is organized (and do it consistently). The structure is an abstract concept, but it needs to be communicated in the same way every time. It does not matter so much what font you choose or what graphics you use, as long as they don't distract from the message or overpower your ideas.

In a website, you need to decide what the purpose of it is. Then you create the content, which may be writing or photos, or whatever else it is you want to present. Then you organize it into a logical arrangement, which will serve as the basis for your document structure and file structure. You break everything down into headings and links, based on how your content is organized. Later, you specify what font, color, size, etc you want for each element like top level headings or links.

The kind or organization and structure you want for your site depends in specifics on what your topic and purpose is. The best way to organize something, in general, is to make it as simple as possible, while still maintaining an accurate representation of the ideas you are trying to communicate. Use lots of headings and hyperlinks, to break up ideas into simpler and smaller parts. Keep your structure separate from your formatting, so that you can change things easier and in a more consistent manner.

The best design should not require someone to think rationally, but rather be able to navigate your ideas by instinct alone. Don't try to make your audience think any more than they have to and let them get to what they want as fast and as easily as is possible. Keep everything up to date and make sure everything is accurate. Make sure that everything works as designed and quickly fix defects. This is how you keep people coming back.

Simplicity, consistency, and attention to detail are the most important things. The two things a designer has to know that cannot be taught is what looks good and they must be a perfectionist. Treat your designer with equal respect as any other member of your team. Design requires hard work and intelligence, but most importantly good judgement. Remember that your design is your face to the world and is how people will judge you for their first impressions.

Real World Examples

A good example of this idea is to look at how Apple or Google design their web pages and compare that to Microsoft. Microsoft has no sense of subtlety or self control. They want to control everything you do and have you use them for every conceivable service, no matter how little they know about it. Microsoft is of the school of advertising that thinks that they have to beat you over the head and scream at you to get your attention. Apple and Google represent themselves as cool and collected and they know what direction they want to go in and what they are good at and don't deviate from that.

Look at the simplicity of the Google and the Apple websites. They are not cluttered with ads trying to get you to see everything they do at first glance. They pick and choose what is most important to the user and let you find more information about their other products and services, at your leisure and only if you want to (without yelling at you).

Google has been very successful with their ads, because they realized that most ads are obnoxious, because they try to scream at you. These typical ads are very ineffective, because they can easily be ignored or even removed with software because of their volume. Google found a great solution was to offer text only ads, instead of animated ones, because they blend in better to the content and people are less likely to avoid them (as well as they are less annoyed by them).

Look at Apple's “I'm a Mac” ads. They are very low key and understate themselves and so they come across as very polite and modest. They show you how Apple likes to simplify technology for the consumer and that Apple has tact and will not harass you about using their services. When you get all frustrated about your computer, they will be friendly and knowledgeable and solve your computer problem (without treating you like the enemy).

4.1.2 When to Use a Computer

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What a Computer is Good at

Computers, especially when combined with the Internet, make information easier to copy then ever before. But while copying and even editing can be made easier with the computer, producing anything worthwhile still takes the same amount of time and cannot be automated. All the computer does is make calculations. Once the computer has some basic information, you can use the computer to process that information in almost any way. For example, when you want to send out a pile of letters with different addresses, you can get the computer to enter a different address on the top of each letter automatically, once you enter the addresses.

Since the computer only knows how to do simple processing of information, a computer can never create art. So unless you are doing 3d modeling or vector artwork, there is no advantage to producing art by the computer, versus doing it by hand. When you want to share it, all you have to do is scan it in or photograph it. If you are doing vector artwork, you would have to use a computer, and the advantage would be that you can adjust the shapes, arrangement, colors, styles, and size of the artwork very easily. 3D modeling ads the advantages of changing the vantage point, the rotation, and the skin easily, but loses the advantages of changing the shapes easily.

Using a Computer Increases Complexity

Just because everybody seems to want to do everything digitally, does not take away from the fact that there are several real disadvantages. First of all, you have to know how to use the computer program, buy it, and install it properly. Second, being able to use the program doesn't take away from the fact that you still need to know how to create art by hand. Third, although you don't have to buy supplies like paint and paper, you still have to buy computer ink, computer paper, and something to make digital backups like a USB flash drive, and if you want to share it online, you have to pay for a website and/or have to fill it with ads.

Fourth, you have to put things in the right file format, the right kind and amount of compression, and at the right resolution (as well as keep copies in the original format and in formats others can open) or else you will lose information or not be able to access it. Fifth, once you put the art on the computer, unless you want to give it away, you have to find some way to distribute it, without making it easy for people to copy it without paying you (which usually means only giving real small versions on your website). Sixth, if you want it protected against fire and theft, you have to have an offsite backup as well.

The Reality of Sharing Information

Since it is so easy to copy things that are put on the Internet, even via email, never send sensitive information, unless it is properly encrypted and the only people who have access to it are all trusted. Once something is posted by anyone on the World Wide Web, there is nothing that can be done to stop people from copying it. This also means that if you have ever entered any data into a document, that you later do not want someone to see, erasing it is not good enough. You need to buy professional redaction software, even with PDFs and especially with Microsoft Office documents. The simple idea is never put anything for public access that you do not want everybody to own a copy of forever.

There is something called DRM which means digital rights management. This is a software and or hardware method of artificially limiting people's ability to copy what they already own a digital copy of. The simple explanation is that it doesn't work and is not possible to do effectively because of the technical limitations. Anything that you can view on the computer can be copied and all the DRM does is make it more difficult for computer novices. It only takes one person to be able to figure out how to get a round the limitations, and then they can make it trivial even for even casual computer users to copy freely. What it does do is make it more difficult for honest people to: make legitimate backups, print the information out for their personal use, or be able to view the document with unsupported or software created in the future.

4.1.3 Managing Design Complexity

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Keep Things Simple for Yourself

One of the problems with designing things is that your design gets too complex very easily, and at that point, it gets exponentially more difficult to maintain. One of the prime examples of this is when you combine CSS and Javascript, for multiple browsers. One of the reasons why Javascript evolved from something most web users hated to being fundamental in web design came about because their were software libraries, that evened out the different layout paradigms of different browsers, which allowed more precise layout. This made Javascript combined with CSS much easier to maintain.

There are several different ways to design long documents, using structured document formatting. One of the big advantages of LaTeX over a variety of different XML based formats is the simplicity of it. XML is easy for other programs to read, but it is very time consuming to write and to work it requires a tremendous amount of precision. In other words, it is very easy to make errors in the code.

Use the Correct Software and Don't Push it

One of the ways to avoid being overly complex is to know what the language and what your software are good at and how they work technically (which you get from experience). Certain things are very hard to do with some kinds of software and very easy with others. LaTeX is very good at formatting books, but is horrid at doing tables or handling precisely placed images. CSS is very good at separating formatting from structure and its ability to change the appearance of any element for an entire site, in just one location. But CSS can't even perform the most basic formatting, that you can achieve in almost any desktop publishing application.

Understand How Everything Works

Another way to keep designs simple enough to avoid breaking them is to understand everything that you add to your design. One of the ways in which people can overcome some of the design limitations of software, when they are coding them, is to add code they found on a website, that is beyond their ability to understand how it works. The problem then is that you depend on another party, to continue to maintain this code, as these kinds of tricks often break, when new version of the viewing software comes out.

Be Easy on your Computer

Another way to keep things simple in design is to organize things in as simple a way as possible. One of the mistakes many designers make is that they rely on a much more complex arrangement of software to do what they need it to do. The problem with this is that just because it makes it simple for you, does not mean that what the software is doing is simple. So managing a website in your head may be more complex for you to do, but it makes the complexity for the computer much less.

The problem with this is that features are dropped or don't work many times when you start using the more advanced features of a program. Just like you can find many programs that do things like photo editing, you cannot expect to find replacement photo editors that edit videos or 3d models. One of the things that is a more advanced feature that you can easily lose support for is DRM. Adobe has kept on changing the way they do DRM in virtually each major version of Adobe Reader. Another thing many designers rely on that increases complexity is server side scripts. It is easier to manage things in a website if you use software on the server to allow you a simple framework to organize things with, but it still makes the computer's job more complex and creates more things that can go wrong.

Technical Collection

4.2 Web Design

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4.2.1 Realities of Web Design

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Designing a Brochure vs. Designing a Website

Most people's first introduction to design is a photo editor or page layout application. Most people could just drag and drop pictures, type text, and do some formatting to make a nice looking document and even turn it into a nice print out or even nice PDF with a little more knowledge. Then people try designing a web site and get very frustrated very fast. Most web sites seem to last for an average of 18 months and then the content is usually taken down and never appears again online. The main reason I think is that designing a website is much more complicated than making a brochure.

Why HTML Causes Design Problems

There are many reasons for that. One of the reasons why is because the PDF file format was designed, by one company, with one vision and does a very good job, for what it is intended to do, originally. The file format for web sites was designed, by a committee, that made arbitrary decisions, very slowly, that neither helped the designer nor the web browser developers. During this process, many pages were created that will likely never be touched again, by their creator, but might be very important, for many users, for a long time. So web pages cannot be designed totally differently, because of this need for backwards compatibility.

HTML Does More Things than PDFs

There are some really great things that a web page does, that most people do not try with PDFs, like interactivity and audio and video. Web pages also supported a wide variety of plugins, including the infamous Flash, but that is an entirely different thing, that should be discussed separately. Another thing that is different about a website is that it can be updated instantly, so many popular websites need to constantly be updated, to appeal to their users demands. This makes things much more complicated.

HTML has Less Formatting Options

One of the reasons why you can open most PDFs on the Internet, with a very old version of Adobe Reader, is that PDFs supported a wide range of formatting and features, long before HTML had them. Also, Adobe also had previous experience with Postscript, which was similar to the PDF file format and they learned a lot from that. Only with the very latest browsers do we have support for many of the common formatting, that PDFs allow, on web pages. The only thing that still is supported poorly is precise alignment of graphical elements and good support for printing.

Design vs. Accessibility Conflicts

One of the surprising things is that web pages could have used Postscipt and latter PDF, for their formatting, which would definitely worked technically and would have solved a lot of problems. One of the reasons why a format like PDF or Postscript was not used for web pages was that web visionaries wanted the same web page, to be able to be displayed on any size screen and any screen with a different height to width proportions (aspect ratio). In the effort to allow for this, we lost the ability to make precise alignment of graphical elements.

Problem Caused by Lack of Vector Graphics

While this could work and still make a good design, the obvious problem, which is still not fully solved, is that the only kind of graphics well supported amongst browsers are bitmap graphics. So the combination of having graphics, that cannot scale to any size, without distortion and the requirement for web sites to work, across any size screen, makes a designer give up the control of the size and proportion of white space (the space between the graphical elements).

Idea of CSS

One of the great things about HTML, that was invented much later, is called CSS. You here a lot about Javascript, but you rarely hear about CSS. CSS is the formatting language of the web. Using best practices for designing websites, and using HTML and CSS, you can structure your information, with HTML and place consistent formatting, to each of the elements, with CSS.

Power of CSS

CSS stands for Cascading Style Sheets, which means that you can use CSS in one file that affects your entire website or any number of pages, while you can also have specific styles for one page, or specify styles arbitrarily, for specific graphical elements. This ability to change, for an entire website, all the paragraph, heading, or image styles, in one place, is very powerful. You can have different style sheets for different purposes,: like for printing, for small screens, for people with poor eyesight, and a variety of other uses.

4.2.2 Myths of Website Accessibility

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Definition of Accessibility

One of the main requirements for websites is that they are accessible. Accessibility refers to a number of different things, including the ability for people with vision problems, people with hearing problems, people with motor skills problems, people with learning skill problems, and other disabilities; and for people accessing websites via non-computer devices like mobile phones, game consoles, and other similar devices to be able to access websites as easily as other people and from other devices.

More Difficult for Designers

In theory this is a great idea, but in reality it makes things that much more difficult for web designers, especially ones, who are volunteers. Most people, who advocate accessibility, seem to not understand anything about design or other problems we deal with, as web designers, like Internet Explorer compatibility. One of the big assumptions about accessibility, which does not work this way is that you can design a website to work the same on devices of any size and screen resolution. Another wrong assumption is that designing websites for people with disabilities doesn't require any more effort.

Problems with Device Accessibility

There are 3 problems with making websites accessible for non-computer users. One is that since most web browsers do not support vector graphics in web pages, to be linked in, like other images, so the designer, in the best scenario, will get extra white space. Another is that Apple has found out, when they tried to run their same applications, for the iPhone, unmodified on the iPad, although they worked technically, they didn't look right. Finally you cannot just shrink a website down to fit on a smaller sized device and expect people to be able to see everything correctly, especially when the website is large and complex due to the amount of content, for example, like looking at an entire book, on a mobile device does not work very well.

Problems with Disability Accessibility

Other problems relate to making a site accessible, to people with disabilities. Many of the things, that people with disabilities don't want you to use on websites, make designing them more complicated, like they don't want designers to use frames, image maps, and want them to make designs work when the user increases the font size. Frames are a very effective solution, to dealing with changing content, on the top, bottom, and sides of your web pages. They allow you to change your navigation panel, without having to update, every page on your website. Image maps allow you to make multiple links on one picture, which is useful for images you want close together, horizontally, as it is hard to position images close together, because of the bugs in Internet Explorer. The problem with allowing people to change the font size or zoom in on graphics is that you cannot just increase the font size or image size and expect that everything will fit together well, on the website, when you have any graphics or a moderately complex layout.

Lack of Consistency

The thing that really bugs me about accessibility is that web designers have to deal with this but print designers don't. When you publish a book, people don't expect you to make a braille version available and the same with brochures, posters, and all other types of print design. Another thing that is not fair is that blind people get all sorts of support, but no one seems to care about people with mental illnesses. There are definitely many websites that are difficult for me to figure out, but no one cares about designing for people with mental illnesses, because we don't have any powerful or famous champions. But the Persons with Disabilities Act applies to mental illnesses as well as physical ones.

4.2.3 My Web Design Decisions

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The web is based on open formats, so you can use different software and achieve the same result.

Why I Don't Use Professional Adobe Design Tools

I have nothing against Adobe products in general. I use Photoshop Elements for a lot of my web graphics and in my drawings.

The main reason why I don't use professional design software like Adobe Dreamweaver, In Design, Illustrator, Fireworks, Flash, and Acrobat is because these products start at $300-400 for basic features and the more advanced ones can easily cost $600-700. You can buy them in bundles for less money, but you only save if you are only doing web design or only doing print design.

Another related reason is that these professional products offer hardly any more functionality I can get with free or low cost tools. Another reason is that both the Adobe professional and free software have features that don't work right. The only thing worse than finding your free software doesn't work like you need it to, is to spend $600 on a product and still not be able to get it to work like you need it to. The reason why professionals buy these products is that they make enough in one project to pay for each program.

Alternative Options to the Adobe Creative Suite

A good example of these problems is illustrated in my experiences with Dreamweaver. I bought Dreamweaver for $400, which does little more than just design web pages. I was not any easier or provided any more features than a free web design program I use called Kompozer, based on Firefox.

Some people try using old versions of these Adobe professional design programs to save money, as they release a major new version every 18 months, which costs hundreds of dollars to upgrade each program. The downside is that they don't support older versions on the latest version of Mac OS X.

Finally, I take pride in using low cost tools. Many people can design with professional Adobe design tools, but few can design just as well on a budget. I also want to promote the use of open source software and show what can be done with them. I also am planning on migrating to 100% open source tools, so all my source files will eventually be in open formats as well as my published formats.

Why I Don't Just Use a Blog or CMS

Some people try to overcome the many design difficulties of authoring web sites by using software on the server called a content management system, so they don't have to worry about design details and rather focus on the content and they sound like a marvelous solution, especially as they don't require the user to have to install anything other than a browser. You can also update your website from any computer without installing anything on it.

The downsides are many though. First, you only get a narrow range of possible designs so your site will look like many others. Secondly, you are introducing more complexity and things to go wrong. Third, you also make it easier for people to hack your website. Fourth, you have to pay more money for web hosting, so that you can install the latest version of the software on your website. Fifth, you constantly have to update the software on the website to keep out hackers and fix bugs. Sixth, you rely on someone else for your website to work. Seventh, you will have a difficult time trying to move all your content over to switch software.

Why I Avoid Writing my Own Javascript for Interactivity

Flash makes it possible for interactivity that works with Internet Explorer to be designed without having to be an expert programmer or paying one to code my website.

4.2.4 Should I Build a Website?

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It's a Lot of Work

Whether you build a website or not depends on: your needs, your resources, and your definition of a website. If you want to build from scratch, as I have done, you need to realize that it will likely cost a lot in: software, time, and anyone you need to hire to help you and at the same time, you need to keep your expectations low. The best way to approach this is to minimize the amount of time and effort getting everything set up, as it is a never ending project and you will never be able to satisfy everyone, no matter how hard you try.

Make is Easy for Yourself

If you want to choose your design for your website, I recommend getting a new Mac and using iWeb, Rapidweaver, or Freeway, depending on your ambitions. For those with simpler needs, I would recommend using social networking services for your “website” and then tie everything together through Facebook, a blogging service, or something like that. If you want your own domain name, then register through a reputable service like Register.com and then set it up to forward to your blog, so you don't have to mess with uploading files or managing the blogging software yourself.

Advertise

If you want anyone to see your website, then you need to advertise. Some of the cheap ways to do this are to join a web ring or a banner exchange service. You also should find related websites and try to get them to link to you. Remember to never change your web address or your topic, because people who link to you will never update their listings, no matter what. It also will take a long time for the web site owner to add you to their links and you will never get any response from your message.

Sharing Content

If you are thinking of writing a book, I recommend just creating a PDF of it and then upload it to a files sharing website like Scribd or Yudu. For photos, there are many to choose from, but the most popular is Flickr. Do not put any material on the Internet or even send via e-mail or MMS, unless you want the entire world to have free access to the information, without any restrictions. Don't expect to make any money or even have the website pay for itself.

Don't Try to Please Everyone

If anyone ever asks you to: make your files available in another file format, your website accessible to the sight impaired, make a mobile version of your website, translate your website it into another language, or to support a specific browser or operating system on your website; don't even consider doing this, as you will likely have to redesign your entire website from scratch and do it manually, in order to accomplish it. No matter what you do, you will never be able to provide access for everyone, so don't even waste your time trying to. Most people stop doing a website a couple of years later at the most, because of how much work it is, so be good to yourself and keep your stress level low, so you can keep with it.

Technical Collection

4.3 More Design Decisions

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4.3.1 Open vs. Proprietary Technology

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Neither is Perfect

Those who use technology are constantly confronted with a choice between proprietary and open technologies. And many of these are a cross between the two. There are advantages and disadvantages to each. You have to sacrifice something for either choice.

From the Vendor's Point of View

The reason why companies make the choice with regards to their technology depends on their business models. Not everyone can have the same business model. Companies, that have given away all their technologies that differentiate themselves, often go out of business, if they cannot find some other way, to differentiate themselves. As far as the user is concerned open is usually best, provided it does the job well enough, but it is not always in the best interest of companies, to give away the differentiating factors, of the the software, to be open standards.

Issues with Open Standards

Open standards take away the ability for companies to differentiate themselves based on software, the take a large percentage of profits out of the market, and they make technology into a basic commodity. Essentially open technologies make technology cheaper for the end user. They also make it easier for competitors products to get into the market and make it easier to change technology providers. Open technologies create more options for the end users.

Patents and Open Standards

One of the other big downsides of open technologies is that they are incompatible with the patent system. If there is a patent, that is discovered, on a particular open technology it essentially becomes proprietary. People then have to pay for a license. This is not supposed to happen, as patent holders are supposed to let anybody know, who is infringing on their patents, as the technology comes to market, so that people don't adopt a technology, because it is open and then later on they have to pay for it. The patent system often slows down technology, like video compression, because there are so many different patents on basic technologies, so that it is almost impossible to create a format, that does not requires licensing of patents.

Proprietary Technology Issues

One of the major downsides of open technologies is that they are usually far behind proprietary ones in providing advanced features. They are also essentially generic, as most large companies are not going to promote open standards, or open up their software, that allows them to make money. It may be hard to find a big brand name to support open technologies and it is also hard to get a new technology marketed well without support of a big brand name. One of the big areas in which proprietary software excels is in multimedia. Most of the audio and video formats, that are most widely used, are proprietary like MP3, MP4, Flash, DivX, DVD, Blueray and others.

Proprietary Technology and Future Support

One of the big downsides of proprietary technologies is that you depend on a single vendor and you have no control over how well the technology is supported, or even if it is continued to be supported. Technology advances may make it obsolete, or the vendor may mismanage the technology, so that is is unreliable, has poor security, performs poorly or is not available for certain hardware or software. The vendor can even decide to no longer support it at all, if they lose too much of the market, or decide to go in a different direction, or they may be sold to another company, that decides to discontinue supporting the technology. They can also raise prices, for licensing and creation software, or decide to stop supporting the version you are using, so you are forced to upgrade.

4.3.2 My Book Design Decisions

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LaTeX is a lot like HTML plus CSS and is not any harder to learn. It is actually easier because you don't have different interpreters of the language like in web browsers. It is not a real computer language. It is what is called a markup language for document formatting and is a free and open file format.

It has a limited set of very simple commands and great documentation you can get on the Internet or in book stores. It hasn't changed in a long time, so chances are any documentation you find will be for the same version.

It is very fast even on old computers, free, and the latest version works on almost any operating system. It is of the highest quality and will make you look very professional. It makes great PDFs and can be converted to almost any format.

Recreating the Same Design for Another Document is Easy

Have you ever created a design one day with a program like Microsoft Office and then upgrade the program and then you have to learn where all the commands went to and you have to learn all over again how to do the same design with a new version of the same program? Then have you tried to teach someone else using a different version of the same program or write up how to do the design and find out later that an application update has rendered your write up obsolete?

That is the beauty of coding your document using a markup language like LaTeX. Once you create the design you like, you just copy the first few lines of code of the previous document and paste that code into the new document and all the settings remain the same.

Easy to Keep Formatting Consistent and Professional

Have you ever completed half your book and then realized that you need to change fonts for all your headings or update your table of contents? Have you changed the main font for your body and then add a few lines and have to reselect all and change the font? Have you ever had trouble making your document look consistent by forgetting which style you had for your chapter headings or having your fonts change on you in different parts of your document unpredictably?

If you are using a structured document approach, you can just specify in one place what style you want to have for all your headings and after changing that setting in one place, your entire document will be the updated consistently. Also, tables of contents can be auto-generated when you mark what are the headings instead of just formatting them manually, visually, and individually.

This is another thing that is built into LaTeX. With LaTeX, you are not going to accidently forget to make all your headings in the same style, because you specify the heading level in the content and in another central location, you style all the headings at that level to be the same. Another thing about LaTeX is that all its default settings look professional and are consistent, so you don't have to plan everything down to the smallest detail.

Wide and Long Lived Support of the Same Format

Have you ever tried a certain application on a certain computer and then have to switch to a different program or to a different operating system and then have to start from scratch in an entirely different interface? Have you had a program fail to load due to the activation process being screwed up or the license file corrupted or have you had a hard drive crash and lost the copy of your license?

This wouldn't be a problem with LaTeX. You can use a wide variety of different programs, many free and open source and the code will look the same. LaTeX also runs on almost every operating system you could imagine and the versions don't change very much at all even over a period of 10-15 years. All the documentation you find on the Internet is for the same version, because it has been kept the same for so many years.

Speed, Adaptability, and Fine Grained Control

Have you ever tried upgrading to the latest supported version of an application and not be able to run it because it was too slow on your computer? Have you thought that you needed the book to be put in a certain format and then have to make a version in another format or re-styled for a different medium? Have you ever had a section where no matter what you do you cannot change the style of the text or the font?

One of the greatest things about LaTeX is its speed. It was designed to run on computers that were produced 10-15 years ago, so LaTeX is very efficient. LaTeX also has free converters for almost any common format. You will never run into a time where you cannot find exactly what is changing the formatting to a given element and be able to remove the unwanted formatting code.

4.3.3 Design Services and Resources

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Print on Demand

Overview

Print on demand is a service, based on the idea of avoiding the set up costs of printing in bulk and the cost of keeping inventory in stock. With print on demand, you submit your book or graphic in digital form, the service prints them out in as low a quantity as one, and then ships the physical version to you or your customer. You then can set a royalty to be paid off each book. This way, you avoid any monetary investment in your publishing setup. Another good thing about print on demand is that you don't need to sell your copyright (all your rights) to your book, before you can get published. There is no publisher and instead you are self-published.

Lulu

Lulu is a print on demand service that is most famous for printing books, although you can print almost anything else with them as well. They are based on a “do it yourself” concept, where you do your own proofreading, translation, book design, and marketing. Lulu also has set up a “marketplace” where you can hire someone else to do almost any aspect of your book, but Lulu won't do it for you by themselves. You can also submit your book to get an ISBN number and to be sold on Amazon.com. They also have monthly book contests. The company was started by a former Red Hat employee, so they will give you help with OpenOffice.org, LaTeX, and Ghostscript on the forum as well as Adobe Acrobat and Microsoft Word.

Cafe Press

Cafe Press is known to offer printing of a custom image on almost anything you can imagine. The only stipulation is that you have to own the copyright to the image, which usually means creating it yourself. I first saw Cafe Press being used as a way to sell T-shirts that advertised open source software. I have ordered t-shirts, posters, grocery bags, mugs, pillows, mouse pads, and jewelry boxes of my logo using Cafe Press. I also have ordered a huge vinyl poster with some of my poetry and essays on it. Cafe Press is slightly limited in the free version, in that you can only have one of each item, so you can sell as many different products as you want, but they can only have one logo, for each one.

Social Networking

Overview

Social networking has been possible, since the Internet first began, but people have finally gotten comfortable enough with sharing information online to make it useful. Social networking sites like MySpace, Facebook, and Bebo are designed for people to meet and share things with each other. Each person has a simplified web page, where they add content, by uploading pictures and entering text in web forms.

Librarything

Librarything is a social networking site, based on sharing book lists. The service is free for up to 200 books at a time. When you add a book, you can search Amazon.com for it, to get all the information like publisher and ISBN number automatically. People add keywords, called tags, to categorize the books and to make searching easier. You can also review books. Users can join different groups, recommend other people books, and you can find out who else is reading the same books as you. You can also export your book lists as a spreadsheet.

Flickr

Flickr is a photo sharing website. You upload your photos and then you add keywords to organize them. There is a free version, but you can only add a certain amount of photos to it and there is a limit to how many people can see your photos. You can make slideshows and web galleries of your photos. You can also insert your photos from Flickr into other social networking sites and blogs.

Other Social Networking Sites

Belief Net is a community website that specializes in religion. Belief Net allows you to share blogs, videos, pictures, post widgets to give to a charity of your choice, and choose a theme for your web design. You can also join groups and add friends.

Bebo is the third largest social networking site, after MySpace and Facebook, and similar in function. It has an author section, so I use it to post my books, so people can comment on them, and to advertise them.

Technical Collection

Chapter 5

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Technical Choices

by Ben Huot

Technical Collection

5.1 Microsoft Problems

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5.1.1 Which Version of Windows?

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History Repeats Itself

Each time Microsoft releases a new version of Windows, from 1992-2009, Microsoft has claimed that the current version of Windows solves all the stability, security, and maintenance issues of previous version of Windows. Windows 7 is no different. It is true that Windows Vista was so bad, that even Microsoft fans hated it and refused to use it. Windows 7 is not as bad as Vista, but Microsoft had problems with XP as well.

All Versions of Windows

When I refer to a Windows problem, I am not referring to a specific version of Windows. I don't need to explain the problems with Vista, because they are self-evident and there are so many other problems with Windows, that even with my brevity, I could fill an entire book with its flaws. I have chosen not to get into overly technical explanations of Microsoft software problems, because I would fill volumes and it would take a lifetime to give an exhaustive technical explanation of what Microsoft has done wrong from a programmers point of view.

Microsoft is Run by Salesmen

The real reason why Microsoft products are so bad is that the salesmen run the company and a salesman will sell anything to you, no matter how bad it is and is extremely loyal to the company, regardless of whether or not the product works. Instead of focusing on making a good product, Microsoft managers try to find way to kill off competition, so that competitors products are incompatible with its operating system.

Microsoft Security Continues to Get Worse

Microsoft has tried to convince its users that they are the ones responsible for getting viruses and spyware and that Windows has gotten more secure over time. Actually, the opposite is true. When I used Windows 95, you only had to worry about getting viruses by downloading programs off the Internet or by copying programs from other computers. Then viruses started appearing in Microsoft Office files. Then the concept of spyware was invented, but you had to download programs to get it. Then when XP came out, people started getting viruses by just being online. Then you could just get viruses from jpegs or pdfs when using Windows. Then you could just get spyware from visiting a malicious website with Internet Explorer. Now you can get viruses from going to legitimate websites that have been hacked while using Internet Explorer.

UNIX Security Continues to be Stellar

During this same time period, as Apple's market share dropped from 10% to 2%, the Mac had an increasing numbers of viruses, many due to using Microsoft products on Macs. The last 7 years, Apple market share has grown from 2% to 10% again, but there are now no viruses for Mac OS X and no spyware. That is because Apple now has a UNIX based operating system. There are about 2 trojans you can get for Mac OS X, by deliberately downloading, installing, and entering your password, for a fake Quicktime update from a malicious porn site, or by stealing Apple's iWork office suite. Apple's latest operating system now even scans for these, before you download them, so even those who don't even have basic common sense about passwords are still protected be using a Mac OS X. Linux has some theoretical viruses, but you have to be using a 10 year old version, without the free provided security updates.

Why these Problems will Never be Fixed

All the problems I talk about apply to every version of Windows released, up to and including Windows 7 and any other succeeding operating system developed by Microsoft. The only way to solve these Windows specific problems is for Microsoft to re-design an entirely new and entirely incompatible operating system, which will require every Windows only application to be re-written from scratch. This scenario would mean that no previously written Windows program will be able to be installed on this new Microsoft operating system. In this situation, you would have to buy entirely new programs, for every thing you do with your computer, which will likely be developed by totally different companies, with likely totally incompatible file formats, after having to wait another few years for them to be written.

5.1.2 Different Types of Malware

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Malware is a very misunderstood topic. Malware is a general term which includes: viruses, worms, spyware, trojans, adware, root kits, or anything else unwanted, like DRM. Some types of malware are easier to remove, harder to get, and less destructive. Some are easy to prevent and others are social engineering techniques, that there is no way to protect fully via software.

Viruses and Worms

Computer viruses and worms are probably the most well known and least understood malware. There are over a million viruses for Windows and many of them can still infect a fully patched system, while there are still no known Mac OS X viruses (although there were a few dozen Mac OS 9 and lower viruses, due to it not being a UNIX and many of those were either Microsoft Office or Microsoft Works based). Technically there are Linux viruses, but to get them you need to be running a ten year old version of Linux without the free security updates already provided.

Viruses and worms are forms of malware that attack your computer and then replicate themselves and send themselves to others all, without any user permission or knowledge. A worm generally just slows down your computer and your internet connection, whereas viruses generally corrupt or delete files on the infected computer. Many people think that anti-virus programs protect them, but antivirus protection only works after a virus or a worm has already infected many users and the antivirus company finds a way to eliminate it. So you need to have your anti-virus definitions up to date and you are still not protected for a while, as a virus or a worm first spreads.

Another thing people don't know about viruses is that although most current viruses and worms are just there to control your computer, to do illegal activities like sending spyware to steal other people's credit card and social security numbers, viruses very well can also delete or corrupt all your files. Another thing is that many anti-virus programs will only find certain viruses and worms, as well as many times there are false positives. False positives mean that many times the antivirus will determine there is a virus or a worm, when there isn't one, and you can end up corrupting a program or document, trying to get rid of it.

Another thing is that you do not really know if you are free of viruses and worms, unless you do a reformat and re-install your OS, because many viruses know how to hide from antivirus software, or hijack it before it is turned on. Microsoft Windows requires you to authenticate it, by first going on the Internet, before you can install antivirus or firewalls and so you can get infected, before you can protect yourself. Many people think that they do not have viruses or worms, but many times when they are taken into the shop, they find viruses or worms on them anyway. You can never be sure that Windows is virus and worm free.

Spyware

Spyware is another form of malware. Spyware is designed specifically to steal the information on the computer it is on to sell to others. Spyware does not control your computer like a virus does. Most of this comes from using Internet Explorer (which is only available for Windows). You can best protect yourself, by using any other browser, like: Firefox, Chrome, Safari, Opera or any other browser that uses the Webkit or Gecko rendering engines.

Trojans

A trojan is a piece of software, that is designed to take control of a computer. It cannot install, without the user's permission. To get people to enter their passwords and install it, they rely on tricking the user to think that it is a useful and benign program. The only protection against this is to not install things from websites that are not trusted. There is no way for software to protect you against these.

One of the ways in which a Mac user could get a trojan can be more deceptive, as any file with any extension can be executable ie a program (on a Mac even OS X) This is because Macs have something called resource forks, which are a way of describing which program to open the file up with, without requiring an extension. So, for instance, if you download an archive file that can preserve resource forks, that is a file that ends in something like PDF or JPG, it can still be a program. But the only files that can do this are in archives, with extensions: DMG, SIT, and more rarely SITX, HQX, BIN, and SEA. You can see if it is a program, by selecting the file and then choosing “get info”, from the file menu.

Adware

Adware is a method of making money off software that is given away for free, often referred to as freeware or shareware. You get the software for free, in exchange for having ads displayed on your computer, whether you want them or not. They can be very hard to get rid of, but they don't spread themselves or cause damage to files. Open Source software is free of this.

Root Kits

Root Kits are not destructive in and of themselves, but rather they hide things, like files and programs (like viruses or DRM) from the OS (and your security programs as well). This means the only way to remove these is to have a program, that knows exactly how each one is designed and only if it is exactly the same can it detect it and remove it.

5.1.3 How Microsoft and Apple are Different

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Why Other Big Corporations are so Mad

Apple has recently had great success in consumer electronics and although it has made many small developers some small fortunes, it has earned the wrath of big corporations like Microsoft, Palm, Nokia, and other vendors with no vision. The reason why Apple's competitors hate Apple is because Apple has raised the bar and has truly differentiated itself from the competition. Not only has it done that, but it has outdone itself every year and has not had to compromise its profit margins or due anything illegal or unethical to do so.

Why is Microsoft Different?

Microsoft is very good at doing everything but creating a good product. It has many tactics it uses to try to kill of the competition and none of them include competing on its merits. You might wonder why Microsoft doesn't just sick with Microsoft Office, Windows, and Exchange Server as it has only lost money in every other market it has tried to enter. Microsoft doesn't want to make a healthy profit, but rather make as much as they possibly can and the ultimate goal of Microsoft is to control all information. Apple and Google, on the other hand, realize they are good at certain things and do not try to go outside these areas: Apple sells computer hardware to consumers and Google makes its money selling ads and neither of them is going to do anything that doesn't advance these areas.

Why Microsoft is Mad (at Apple)

The reality of why Microsoft is hurting nowadays comes from losing the high end of hardware that makes most the money from Apple and losing the low end high volume sales from big business customers to Linux clients and servers. Microsoft is mainly marketing that they are cheaper than Apple, but then people have found out that Linux is cheaper than Microsoft. So Microsoft also has many “fans” (otherwise known as paid Microsoft employees or people receiving free laptops for talking up Microsoft products) who go onto blogs and complain about Apple and are now trying to confuse Apple's popularity and market success with Microsoft's illegally using their monopoly of operating systems to get a monopoly in web browsers.

The Most Famous Thing Microsoft Did Wrong

Microsoft did this by illegally and technically tying Windows and Internet Explorer together while changing stuff on Windows that caused problems for Netscape to be able to run properly and forced PC manufacturers from bundling Netscape with Windows, despite market demand. Apple has a dominant market share in iPods, but you can use an iPod and buy music from Amazon.com or buy music from iTunes and use a generic MP3 player. Apple also has designed an easy to use programming hook to synchronize everything on the Mac with third party devices like the Blackberry, which compete with the iPhone (which includes synchronizing your iTunes library with your Blackberry).

The Method to Apple's Madness

As far as the iPhone is concerned, Apple still has a very small market share, but has created some restrictions to keep people from stealing third party software. Apple uses the same strategy as it does on iTunes by keeping costs low to keep people from wanting to go to the effort to steal what costs only a few dollars. Even with these restrictions, there are 75,000 applications for the iPhone and it has only been out for a couple of years. Apple charges half of what other vendors do to third party developers and handles all the accounting and hosting for their programs.

Apple vs. Its Competition

Most things that Apple gets criticized for are the same for their competitors, like requiring an exclusive contract with a certain cell phone carrier, for the subsidized version. People also made fun of the design of the iPhone, but all its competitors use the same browser and the same basic design. Apple also gets accused of not having multitasking like the Palm claims. The difference is that while Palm allows multiple pages of its web browser to run concurrently, the iPhone allows true multitasking that is actually useful like allowing people to run the web browser, email, phone, GPS, music, photos, etc. at the same time. What Apple doesn't allow is a program you are not using from taking away all your battery power. Another thing that Apple allows besides having a full featured browser is that you can open up PDFs, Word documents, and play all major formats of music, and the dominant multi-vendor video format (MP4).

Why Do People Buy Apple Products?

The biggest thing that Apple adds to the table is the integration between hardware and software and making the interface easy to use for non-geeks. Apple designs its products for 95% of the population. Apple was the first in mobile devices with the Newton, but Apple has decided that being first to market gets them no customers, because people don't know how to place the product. Apple has since decided to wait until a market is established, but has not become mainstream because of a lack of well designed products. Apple's competitors cannot manage what Apple does because of the way they run their corporations and their disdain for design. Why are Apple's products better? It is not the specs you can brag about but what problems the technology can solve for the average person.

5.1.4 Microsoft Business Tactics

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FUD

FUD stands for fear, uncertainty and doubt. Microsoft utilizes fear of change, to keep people from switching to competitors products. Microsoft has led people to believe that there are some intellectual property violations in open source software, to scare people into staying with Microsoft. There is no bases for these claims, but the mere insinuation has led people to be wary of Linux.

Most of the things critics say about Apple are unfounded, like: implying that Macs doesn't support Exchange Server, or can't get Microsoft Office at the same price as PCs, or that Macs are only good at graphics; or implying that iPhones need Flash Player (think about how the mouse over effects will work without a mouse) or that there is something more proprietary about Apple than there is about Microsoft in their media formats or development environments, or that people prefer to rent music rather than own it.

Vaporware

Vaporware is a tactic Microsoft uses to kill off competition, without having to actually come up with a competing technology. Microsoft announces products that it will introduce years ahead of time and then never actually produces the product and in the mean time people just think that Microsoft will destroy any competition and so never purchase the technology from the other company. This is all just because people remember the history between Microsoft and Apple wrong. Did you know that what became Vista was announced back in 1995 and many of those features still don't exist yet? Apple gets criticized for not giving anyone notice to what it will release, before it is ready to ship, but Microsoft announces things it never intends to deliver years in advance.

Microsoft has continued to announce new projects and then drop them in the middle, often times while leaving its partners “holding the bag”. A recent example is how Microsoft partnered with other companies, in the Plays for Sure campaign, to develop a proprietary alternative to Apple's DRM, so that people could buy from a variety of non-Apple MP3 players and they would all be compatible. Microsoft would license the software and then other companies would develop the hardware. Then Microsoft decided to sell its own incompatible hardware and software called Zune.

Which would you prefer: empty promises or real products?

Astroturfing

You can understand why people like Apple products or Open Source software. Apple makes such high quality premium products that open up people to a new uses for computers. Open Source is a type of philosophy that inspires people and brings out some faith in humanity not destroying itself. But who gets inspired about Microsoft products? We have found a startling connection between Microsoft giving away free laptops and bloggers who write articles praising Microsoft products. We also see tons of Microsoft ads on sites where

“professional” tech writers say negative things about Apple. Some of these tech writers say the purposely make fun of Apple products, to get more money from ads delivered to angry Mac users.

Embrace, Extend, and Extinguish

Microsoft doesn't like open standards. Open standards are specifications for technology that have been agreed to, by many companies and individuals, as a way to make sure people can share information with competing software. Almost every major company in the tech world now contributes to these open standards. Microsoft representatives are even on the boards of many of these organization, but then when Microsoft releases products based on these standards, people who actually try to share information with users of Microsoft software, they find they lose important information or formatting.There is basically a Microsoft way of doing everything and then there is a way everybody else does it.

Take web browsers for example: if you make a website that sticks to standards and it will work in every major web browser (that uses a different software to interpret the web page code) it very likely will not work in Internet Explorer. All major office suite vendors now support a standard office format called OpenDocument, and Microsoft claims this too, but there software does not work correctly.

Microsoft some times claims they don't understand what every other company has figured out how to do the same with different software, but that is hard to believe that Microsoft cannot afford to employ programmers who are competent.

Patents for Obvious Ideas

Another way Microsoft uses to compete, based on things other than making a good product, is to file patents on obvious ideas, so other people have to pay Microsoft to access their data, from competing companies software. A recent example of this tactic was that Microsoft sued a prominent GPS manufacturer, for using a file system that was so poorly designed that it was only used for compatibility with Microsoft products.

Basically there is nothing good about it, except that it is needed for compatibility with Microsoft software. The patent was on using 2 names for a file, one being 8 letters/numbers with a 3 letter extension and then one with the full file name, because of a limitation of previous Microsoft software. So this way to work around a design flaw/limitation self imposed by Microsoft is thought by the US Patent office as some kind of original and creative idea.

The problem is that the people who are judges and senators are so old that anything sounds new to them. You can fight it in court for many years and still lose as almost happened with the SCO vs IBM. The reason why IBM won was that SCO didn't own the intellectual property it claimed IBM used illegally. The legal basis for this case was ridiculous and could be easily proved since it was about open source software, but being legally correct doesn't always mean you win the case.

Not Invented Here Syndrome

Another thing that Microsoft feels the need to do is, after someone else is successful with a new technology like Flash, Microsoft feels they need to have another incompatible format, that does the same thing (like Silverlight). Netscape developed a browser, so Microsoft developed Internet Explorer. Apple developed Quicktime, so Microsoft developed Windows Media player. Apple developed the iPod, so Microsoft had to create the Zune. Google had developed a better search engine, so Microsoft has what is now named Bing.

5.1.5 Thinking Errors, Myth of Objectivity

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All Products are Equally Good Assumption

Some people are so obsessed with objectivity that they feel the need to treat every product or view equally, no matter what its merits are. We have some people thinking that Satanism is as legitimate as Christianity by the mere fact that it is a competitor. I remember in school that some faculty would not only listen to both sides of an argument, but would actually weigh each sides equally, regardless of the facts, proof for the facts, or reputation for telling the truth weighing in for one side or the other.

I see this in the tech world now. Journalists feel the need to say negative things about Apple or make them up, because people say negative things about Microsoft. Instead of investigating and weighing the facts and the history of the situation, they feel the need to treat all equally, regardless of the reality of the situation.

Writing without Reviewing the Products

Most journalists in the tech world don't bother to review products, but just base their reviews on what their advertisers tell them to say. This is sometimes called talking points. Many reviews are actually just a restatement of the companies press release.

Many of the people who say that Windows is as good as a Mac have never used a Mac in the last 5 years, even though the product has been redesigned from scratch. There is also those who compare Internet Explorer's safety record as the same as Firefox, because Microsoft claims it has better security, which is “proved” by a Microsoft funded lab.

Apples to Oranges Comparisons

Many tech journalists treat each feature Microsoft claims as being the same as an Apple feature. Like the backup feature in Windows, which requires a Windows server being compared as the same as Apple's consumer-oriented backup, called Time Machine which is totally automatic and doesn't require anything else. Then there is the recent Grand Central Dispatch which allows Apple developers to make use of the multiple processors and advanced graphics cards, without having to manage the technical details, but .Net developers claim the same feature, even though there's works on an application level and Apple's works on the OS level. Palm mixes up its ability to have several browser-based applications running in multiple web browser windows with Apple's ability to run multiple applications, but not allowing third party applications to do so, in order to improve battery life. There is also the assumption that Apple uses the same software as FreeBSD, because it is a certified UNIX, even though they have totally different kernels, development environments, programming languages, windowing environments, APIs, and interface. Many people equate the fact that developers are locked into Windows by having to develop their applications from scratch to work on other platforms with the idea that Apple uses the MP4 format for its iTunes music, that can be licensed to everyone, as a lock in, even though converting to different file format just requires the clicking of a couple buttons.

Its OK for Me, But Not for You

Some how tech journalists pick apart Apple for not giving their own development tools, for third party developers, before it was fully tested and then praising Palm for only allowing web browser based programming, for third party developers. Apple was berated for not having a dedicated keyboard for its iPhone like the Blackberry has, even though it makes the screen twice the size and is a much more efficient use of space and then Blackberry releases a product that works the same. Apple was told that it had too restrictive requirements for its App store, which require people to not violate intellectual property, keep developer profits high and consumer prices low, keep the long battery life, and keep the store safe for children and then Microsoft is praised for having even more restrictions, which killed off most their third party developers programs and put ads in all the apps, which don't benefit the consumers at all.

Technical Collection

5.2 PC-Specific Problems and Solutions

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5.2.1 Mac Mentality vs. PC Mentality

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The Computer as an Appliance

The reason why so many people like Mac OS X is because they see a computer as just another appliance like a microwave or a TV and should be just as simple to use. The Mac design philosophy is simple: if most users have the same problems understanding how to use a given piece of software, then it needs to be perfected, until average people are no longer confused. Macs are designed for the end user, while PCs are designed for managers and engineers. People do not buy Macs because they love Steve Jobs, are blind Mac loyalists, think that Apple is a charity, or think that Apple is cool. They use Apple products because they work better than the competition.

Managers and Engineers

The reason why the Mac gets little respect in large corporations is because they are run by managers and engineers who think that computers that are east to use, excel at graphics and multimedia, and are not as easy to modify with unsupported hacks are signs that a product is not very useful.

Software Resilience

Managers and engineers tend to not value good design or realize that security, stability, and ease of use are all important for resilient computing. If a computer is stable and secure that it loses these attributes by being easy to use, but ease of use is important for good security and stability because people are only going to make use of computer security features if they are easy to use and there is no point in a computer being stable but hard to use, so that you can still screw it up, if you don't know what you are doing.

Out of Touch Programmers

Managers and engineers also don't believe that graphic and multimedia design are serious endeavors and so don't appreciate that a computer that can handle graphics and multimedia well can do almost anything well, because graphics and multimedia are some of those most demanding of software applications. Managers and engineers also don't value the concepts of good design, because they are out of touch with the average users. Manager and engineers make products that they would like and don't realize that most users have very simple needs and haven't spent their entire lives learning how to fix software problems. Some advanced users also use Macs, because they believe that their time is valuable and don't feel the need to prove their abilities in computers, by using poorly designed software.

Paradoxical Phenomenon

An paradoxical phenomenon is happening in the software industry. As more and more people are interested in and are putting down serious cash, in a huge economic depression, for Apple products, the news that computer experts read is filled with criticisms of everything Apple does and complete admiration to any competitor to Apple, no matter how poorly designed it is. This is happening because Apple didn't always do things the way it does today. Before Steve Jobs came back, Apple products only appealed to 2% of the population and these people are not pleased with the new designs coming out of Apple, because Apple now designs their products for the other 95% of the population.

The Price of Mainstream Acceptance

One of the things Apple critics hate about Apple is that they keep tight control over what they develop and don't announce what they are doing until the product is ready to ship. This 2% of the population want to tinker with their computers and are upset, because Apple has made this harder to do. You cannot appeal to everyone and to make advanced users happy, Apple would have to alienate most of the their current market. Managers and engineers don't want to accept the fact that easy of use and quality control sometimes requires putting restrictions on how many unsupported hacks can be performed (on Apple hardware).

Apple Software Regulation Benefits Consumers

Managers and engineers want to do things with their Apple devices that would allow: malicious software, scams, and buggy software to thrive; as well as leave most users with: poor performance, less battery life, more costly software; and the small businesses that have made small fortunes in this Apple regulated ecosystem unable to continue business. For almost all users, this control Apple leverages does not interfere with even the most specialized and unusual niches for which there are plenty of software options. Apple realizes that things should be designed first and foremost for the average user.

5.2.2 Examples of Big Design Mistakes

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If you haven't used the latest version of Mac OS X, or haven't been following the tech world for the past 5 years, you likely don't know why Mac users are so attached to their computers. There are a number of very rational reasons why which include various poor engineering decisions that were made with PCs.

Backwards Compatibility

The biggest reason why there are so many problems with Windows is that Microsoft refuses to cut off compatibility ever, no matter what the advantages are in terms of stability, security, efficiency, speed or ease of use.

The first computers to really work well and the ones that still do use what is called UNIX for their operating system (Mac OS X 10.5 on Intel is a certified UNIX). This is in place of Windows. Using UNIX is an obvious choice which was only not used at first, because the hardware was too expensive. The computers that could run UNIX even in the 80s and 90s cost as much as a car does today.

DOS was never meant to handle more than just data entry and was never thought of as good enough to trust data to for anything important. The original PCs were very low powered and they could only run very limited software. They were also not designed to run more than one program at once or do any networking. Most of the world adopted computers way too early, before they were powerful enough to run reliably and be able to provide the use we get today (which we get now because of advances in computer hardware).

Most people who write software for Windows have done so because they never want to update their software again. For good or for bad, Apple has continued to make major hardware or software changes and cut off compatibility every 5 years. If you have ever used some of the really early Apple machines, some actually used DOS.

Big Business Attitudes

The reason why businesses hated Vista so much is because it is too much like the Mac. Large businesses do not want to do anything innovative or use anything new - they have no vision. The version of Linux that is most used in big businesses is 5 years old, which is an eternity in desktop software, but nothing in terms of how long businesses want to use the software, without bothering to update it. Most of our infrastructure was designed many decades ago and has never been upgraded. IBM still makes a tremendous profit in their mainframe business, to this day, just because of this.

The Mac is designed for the consumer, whereas PCs are designed for big corporations. Apple wants to empower the consumer with creative software, whereas businesses want to lock down computers, so they have only the bare minimum for someone to enter data. Big businesses, like the military, have a very low opinion of their workers. Instead of rewarding people with higher pay and investing in new technologies, they try to skate by on the bare minimum necessary and treat their employees like they are the enemy, that need to be contained and disciplined.

Big businesses are very cheap and never want to change anything or invest in anything, because they never have no confidence in their abilities to compete. They are afraid that what they sell is so easily put together that anyone else can do it just as easily as themselves. They don't want to compete on merit, but just on name recognition, advertising, and on making things incompatible, so people feel they have to buy their product.

A good example of this lack of vision is how Steve Jobs, before he returned to Apple and started the iPod was trying to sell his Objective C development tools. He was willing to sell it for next to nothing to the likes of IBM, Sun, HP, or anybody else who was willing to give them any money. They all declined this offer. So when Steve Jobs showed a demo of a simple visual effect, possible with this same technology, many years later, to Mac users, they were stunned. Today, everything Apple sells uses this same software to differentiate it from all their competitors and now Apple is worth more than IBM or HP and Dell combined.

Variety of Hardware

Choice is something that Windows users have (at least in terms of hardware). The fact that anyone can make a graphics card for Windows and that people like to buy whatever is cheapest, means that it is a nightmare to support usably, although easy to support on paper. Many of the problems that people blame on Windows are there because they are running it on sub standard hardware.

There are literally millions of possible combinations of hardware that is marked as compatible with Windows. Microsoft has no control over how good the software is and never has any input or ability to even see the blueprints for most of this hardware. Apple, on the other hand, probably only has several hundred combinations of hardware, even when including every model of computer they have ever made. Apple also standardizes as much as possible and only offers a few different models and options for their computers. You cannot get the same configurability with a Mac, but it sure is a lot more reliable and the big reason for that is not specific to Windows.

Linux has a similar problem. This situation with Linux is worse, because Linux changes so fast, Linux also does not often get the source code or the drivers for most of the hardware people have in their computers. Without this information, a lot of the work on Linux has to be reverse engineered and with much fewer people, many volunteers.

Linux Specific Problems

Linux has an unusual set of things holding this great software back, and very few are technical/engineering and most are political/cultural. When you compare Windows to Macs, you have a different interface and you have different applications, but when you compare different Linux distributions, you get almost identical interfaces and software. The things that are different are not apparent at first. The installation, configuration, and locations of the different component are all totally different, with no technical reason for the differences.

Linux is also designed to be command line driven as well as using a graphical interface for almost everything. So instead of having one application for burning CDs, you have one command line program that is what the software actually uses. Then you can use many different interfaces that provide usually only a fraction of the functionality of the underlying command line program.

Choice is taken to the extreme on every level and every aspect of Linux. There are 3 major versions, that have a roughly evenly split number of users, who are very committed to this method, for everything. This affects everything from installers to system configuration to interfaces and methods of programming. This is in addition to the different distributions and the same problem exists within a distribution as well.

Another thing that is taken to the extreme is the idea of efficiency. Many programs on Linux are split up into so many parts, so programmers can use each other's work and to keep people from having to ever duplicate the same parts. The result is that there is a very complex relationship of tens of thousands of different pieces of software that have to work together for Linux to work.

Another problem is two fold. Linux development and major releases happen very fast and the operating system is not separated from the applications. The result is you either get a very old set of applications or a very new and buggy operating system, if you want the latest applications.

One of the big reasons for switching to Linux is cost savings, but often this does not necessarily happen just by using Linux. If you buy a computer with Linux already installed, it will actually cost more than if you bought one with Windows, because you have to pay for Windows, even if you don't get it with a new PC. This is obviously illegal, but Microsoft pays off the government, so it gets away with it. Another thing is that support for Linux often costs more than support for Windows and usually only covers a certain number of problems, instead of a certain number of years.

And the really ironic things is that most these applications are also available for Windows and Macs. So the best solution for most people might be to use the open source software, but not on Linux. That way you stay with what you know and if you have a problem with particular application, you still have a wide variety of alternatives (that might cost varying degrees of money).

5.2.3 Virtual Machines (Virtualization)

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Virtual Machines are one of the most effective ways to manage a Linux or Windows installation. One of the big problems with Windows and Linux is how easy it is to get them in a state that doesn't work properly or makes using them very annoying to work with.

Windows Problems

One of the things that keeps Windows users from being able to make use of the wide variety of applications for their OS is that it is very hard to uninstall applications, without removing important parts of the OS. This problem comes from the fact that Windows uses a registry of all the programs and all your settings, but the registry is not human editable, so things like viruses and spyware can hide in them (because programmers have easy access to the registry) and it is hard to remove things in the registry, without causing major problems with Windows. The registry, combined with a lack of a manager to sort out what belongs to the application and what belongs to the OS, makes it virtually impossible to get rid of an application, without removing critical Windows files.

People are also afraid to install applications on Windows, because they can get viruses and spyware very easily, which are hard to remove, because of how they hide in the Windows registry. Another things that Windows users have to worry about is things like ads and nagware in applications that they get for free, so people are afraid to install free programs. Windows also falls apart over time and needs to be continually checked for viruses and spyware as well as the hard drive needs to be defragmented and the Windows Registry needs to be cleaned.

Many times the only way to fix Windows is to reinstall it, but you lose all your settings, all your data that isn't backed up and all your installed programs, email, bookmarks, etc. You can do complete backups of your hard drive including all the installed programs and OS, but that usually fails to work.

Linux Problems

One problem is having a Linux installation, as well as a Windows installation, on the same computer. In the past, people often would partition their hard drives and then have a menu, that would allow them to choose what OS they wanted, when they started the computer up. There were several problems with this setup. One was it was easy to overwrite your Windows or Linux partitions, which would destroy your installations. You also had to reboot the computer, to switch between Windows and Linux. Another problem was that you couldn't backup your installation. And then finally, you couldn't use certain disk utilities on Windows and Windows had to be installed first.

Another Linux problem was that people want to try it out, before committing to it fully. In the past, the Live CD was used for this purpose, where you would reboot your PC, with the Linux Live CD already in the hard drive, boot from the CD, and then you could run Linux off the CD. The big problem is that you couldn't save anything this way, except your files, on an external drive, like a USB flash drive.

Another problem with Linux is compatibility with your hardware. In the past, people would recommend buying a new computer with Linux pre-installed, or making your own, using only supported hardware. Now, with virtual machines, you don't have to worry about compatibility, if you run Linux on top of Windows.

Another problem with Linux and Windows is that web designers and software developers want to test for different versions of Linux and Windows. Without using separate partitions or without using separate machines, this is the only way to do this.

Virtual Solution

This is where the idea of virtualization comes in. A virtual machine is a program, that runs on top of your OS, like any other application, like Firefox, but instead of a website running inside, an OS is running inside. You have another OS, that runs in a separate window, which you can click on icons and use your mouse, to navigate the desktop, like any OS, installed directly on your hardware. The OS, including all the installed programs and all your settings resides in a file or a number of files.

To backup your OS, all you have to do is copy these files over to a USB Flash drive or external hard drive and this will save your entire OS installation. You can do this before any major change, and then to restore the previous version, copy over the files from backup. You can have as many different installations of an OS as you want and have hard drive space for.

There are a number of programs that allow you to do this. Some of the leading applications are VMware (they have a free version with some limitations), there is a Microsoft version for Windows only, and there is a free and open source one, called VirtualBox (developed by Sun). You can also run Windows and Linux on Mac OS X with VMware and Virtual Box.

As far as hardware is concerned, you need enough RAM for your proved “host OS”, your “guest OS”, any applications you want to run on either OS at the same time, and for the virtual machine emulator itself. You should be able to run most anything, that is compatible with the OS you are running, in the virtual machine and use any peripherals, that are compatible with the underlying OS. The processor speed that you get in the “guest OS” should be the same, as the full speed of your processor. And new Macs are the same in that regard, as they all now use Intel processors and have for over 3 years.

5.2.4 Wine “Windows Emulator” Solution

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The Purpose of Wine

Wine is an unusual solution to many of the problems of Windows, but it is not a complete solution. Most emulators actually run a version of the OS being emulated, on top of the emulation software, but Wine is a substitute for Windows. Wine allows Intel Macs and Linux users (as well as other UNIXes like FreeBSD and OpenSolaris) to run Windows applications, without using Windows. Wine has been around for 16 years and it is perfectly legal, but currently only works for about 50% of Windows-only applications.

Wine, CrossOver, and Codeweavers

Wine is free, open source software, but it makes it much easier to use, if you buy the CrossOver commercial software, for managing it and installing applications. Most of the main developers for Wine work for the Codeweavers company, which makes CrossOver as well and uses the sales of CrossOver to fund the development of Wine. So when you buy CrossOver, in addition to having a much easier to use solution, you also fund the development of the open source Wine software.

How Wine Works

Wine is a way to avoid many problems with Windows, but still be able to run some Windows-only applications. Since Wine does not rely on Windows, but is rather a re-implementation of the Windows APIs, there is virtually no risk to getting malware with Wine. With CrossOver, Wine programs run in separate Windows folders, called bottles, which emulate a certain version of Windows that is optimal for that specific app, without having any other programs interfere with it.

Other Wine Features

You can also make archives of Windows programs installed with CrossOver and then copy them over to a new OS or reinstall them to new versions of Wine, by just copying files. CrossOver offers a graphical interface, for installing popular applications and even allows downloading and installing arbitrary Windows applications, downloaded from websites or that come on CD-ROMs or DVD-ROMs. You still have to pay for the commercial applications to legally use them. CrossOver and Wine also work within Linux VMware virtual machines.

Supported Applications and Operating Systems

There are certain supported applications for CrossOver including Microsoft Office 97-2007, Internet Explorer 6 and 7, Windows Media Player, Lotus Notes 5 and 6, Quicken, and major Adobe Applications like Photoshop, Framemaker, Adobe Reader 5, Adobe Flash Player 9, Shockwave player, and Quicktime. There are also many other applications that work with CrossOver and Wine, but are tested and supported by volunteers, like myself.

Other Wine Compatibility

CrossOver only supports Intel Macs and Linux, but there are some smaller companies, that have similar products, that help with managing Wine, one of which is called Bordeaux. Bordeaux is supported on Intel Macs, Linux, BSD and Solaris. CrossOver also has a Games version that supports many Windows only games. There is a listing on the Codeweavers website, which tells which programs run under Wine and how well they run.

5.2.5 Google vs. Microsoft

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The main benefits of the Google approach are: a cost savings through relying on payment by targeted advertising, the ability to have access to your data everywhere without depending on a particular device, and the ability to have your data in open formats so that you control your own data.

Who is More Locked In?

It is ironic that people actually fear the growth of Google who have embraced open standards and the open web, but they don't fear Microsoft who has complete control over most of the world's data that resides in Microsoft only formats and resides on Microsoft controlled email and file servers. Which is easier: converting all your data from a secret format that cannot be reliably read by any competing vendor's software or switching from one website to another for web apps where your documents are in free, open, and internationally standardized formats that any software vendor has complete access to?

Who Really Cares About the End User?

People say they fear their privacy in the hands of Google, but Microsoft is the real one that doesn't respect users rights by: marking software for restricting people's access to information they have legal access to via Windows Genuine Advantage, losing all data on their servers for mobile phone users who cannot back up their data to their hard drives due to not bothering to make backups of their servers in the Sidekick Danger disaster, and by secretly installing software that has security holes in it on users who use a competing browser via the Microsoft Firefox plugin.

What Data Does Google Actually Collect?

What Google collects is not your social security number, your address, or even your name. Google collects anonymous information about what you like to buy, so they can provides advertisements that are actually for something you might like to buy. Don't you hate seeing the same ad over and over on TV for products and services that you have no interest in buying. People think it is so bad to have advertisements on the web, but they don't mind paying for TV that way, and people don't seem to be willing to pay the rates that would be needed to finance the creation of website content without the ads.

The Reality of End User Data Backup

People are afraid to trust the reliability of their data on a remote server, but people constantly lose data due to either losing their mobile device or having is stolen, due to software bugs, a fire or flood, hardware failure, or due to a virus or other malicious software. The reality is that data is lost all the time and most people do not have backups and it is more likely for cheap PCs to fail than the high quality server machines.

The Internet is not Private

The reality is that the Internet is a public forum and the only way to protect your information is to either encrypt it and trust every one who is given access to it, or to realize that all information put online will be a matter of public record. The Internet keeps records of everything that happens online, so don't ever use a computer for anything you don't want other people to know about. It makes sense to be very careful about financial and legal information, but if you are afraid of letting someone know your email address of your real name, then maybe you need to stop using the Internet to share information.

Technical Collection

5.3 Advantages of Microsoft Alternatives

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5.3.1 Good News for Potential Switchers

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Microsoft Moved Everything Around

Windows 7 and Microsoft Office 2007 have totally different interfaces, which will make non-power users have to learn how to do everything on Windows and Office from scratch. Since you will have to relearn everything you know how to do with Microsoft products from scratch, why not instead upgrade to Linux or Mac OS X. OpenOffice.org and Gnome, which are included with Ubuntu Linux, which is totally free and the best supported and most popular desktop Linux, are more similar to Windows XP and Microsoft Office 2003, then the latest Microsoft products. And don't worry about compatibility with this version of Windows: the most common viruses have been tested and run without a problem on Windows 7.

Apple and You: Graphics and Multimedia

For those who are looking to do more with photos, music, video, multimedia websites, and graphically rich documents, most die hard Windows fans will freely admit that the Mac does better at graphics and multimedia. Most iPod and iPhone users are happy with their purchases, so why not choose Apple for your new laptop or desktop?

Creative Mac Only Software

Apple provides an original graphics and multimedia suite for consumers, that comes free with every new Mac, that makes managing photos, music, movies and creating websites and original songs easy. Apple also offers an inexpensive consumer office suite and database, that excel at creating graphically rich documents, spreadsheets, and presentations.

Pay the Same for Less

Microsoft's sales pitch to Best Buy, to get them to sell PCs, instead of Macs (they currently sell both), is letting the Best Buy sales people know that if they can get people to buy a cheaper Windows-based computer, then they can sell you a more expensive service plan. Microsoft realizes that you have a set amount of money to spend and the Mac falls in that range, so instead of getting a better computer, for the same price, you can have instead an overpriced support plan. You may save several hundred dollars by buying a PC, but you will not save on a computer, with the same specs, from a quality manufacturer.

Microsoft Approach

When you call HP or Dell for technical support, they will tell you to re-install all your software from scratch, which will make you lose all settings, installed programs, and data you have not yet backed up. You will have to have on hand all the original disks, that came with your computer and all the authorization codes and have to re-authorize all your software or buy it all from scratch (you can only authorize most major software a set number of times, before you have to pay the entire price again to re-install it). Then they will send you to Microsoft, who will send you to your application developer and back and forth, until you give up. Microsoft will offer support for $200 per problem you have, but they cannot support the hardware or the applications you use.

Apple's Approach

Apple also offers a warranty for consumer Macs at about $150 that covers Apple support for your hardware, your operating system, and most of your software. The warranty lasts for 3 years and includes telephone support and onsite, parts, and labor on everything on your computer. And the best part is that you can buy it, up to a year later, after you purchase your Mac. Without even buying the warranty, your Mac hardware is covered by a complete 1 year onsite, parts, and labor warranty. Onsite means you can call up most companies that sells Macs and they will come over and pick up your Mac, from your house or office, and then come back and return it after it is fixed. Apple has the highest rated consumer support of any computer manufacturer.

Get Everything with Linux

If money is tight and you have more basic needs, most Linux software is free and easier to install and uninstall than on Windows. Installing Linux is like installing Windows, Microsoft Office, Adobe Creative Suite, Apple's iLife, and most other applications you need to get the job done at once. Have you ever had trouble getting software to recognize your installation code, and realized it was easier to steal then to install legally, except that you have morals. Linux provides a way around this, as you can legally install, distribute, and modify any aspect of your free programs.

Have Total Control and Choice with Linux

Are you picky and want to have your desktop a certain way that is hard to set up on Windows, then Linux is your dream come true. You can easily install and use any number of free, highly configurable interfaces for Linux, and then choose which one you want for that session, when you start your computer. And if you have any problems with Ubuntu, you can always use openSUSE, Mandriva, Fedora, and many others all for free.

Office and Internet Compatible

You can test open source software on Windows, before switching to Linux and you can run any version of Windows you want to in a virtual machine running on top of Linux or on Mac OS X. Microsoft Office is available for Mac OS X and is completely compatible with the Windows version. The latest version of Flash Player and Adobe Reader are available for Mac OS X and Linux as well. Mac OS X and Linux come with better web browsers and PDF viewers than Windows does.

Open Source Compatibility

Most websites that are legitimate work with Firefox and OpenOffice.org can easily open most Microsoft Office files. Both Firefox and OpenOffice.org are entirely compatible with Mac OS X and come with Linux. Free software helps users to create great graphics as well. Gimp provides most photo editing features of Photoshop Elements and the next version of Inkscape can do almost anything you need to create outstanding graphics. Gimp and Inkscape are easy to install and work on Mac OS X and Linux.

5.3.2 The Transition: Try Before You Commit

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Software Changes Fast

Computers change fast and 5 years later Mac OS X and Linux might be entirely different. It looks as if the trends in computers are leaning towards Mac mobile devices in the US and other 1st world countries and 3rd world countries will be dominated by Linux based devices, likely from Google. When people have a choice in a device in an emerging market, as opposed to desktop computers, where Microsoft products are used because of legacy compatibility, they tend to pick non-Microsoft devices.

Another shift is happening from most people using desktop applications to using web based applications. Internet Explorer has been steadily declining in market share for several years and shows no sign of slowing down. Many of the old Internet Explorer versions being used are by those who are using work computers or other computers, which they do not own and have no control over.

Future trends can not even be imagined yet.

Platform Independence

When considering switching from Windows to Linux or Mac OS X, don't just substitute your dependence on one for the other. Learn to be platform independent by: using open source and cross platform applications when possible, make use of web applications where possible, and keep your files in free and open file formats. As more and more things are being software controlled and Internet enabled, the smartest thing you can do is not invest too much in any one player. The most important thing you own on your computer is your information and you should not be locked into any vendor, so that you can make decisions, based on your needs and not on compatibility and the vendor's choice.

Open Source on Windows

In your transition to having a choice in who you buy your software from, realize that most open source software works on Windows as well. Instead of going cold turkey and facing the fear, depression, and anxiety in giving up something that works sort of, for something that works better, but that you don't know as much about, make a more gradual change.

And even better than than applications you own now, you do not need to commit to an installation to use this software. Using portable version of open source applications, you can see what the alternatives are without any financial cost, risk of creating other problems, or commitment of any kind.

When you do try Linux, run it in a virtual machine, so that you can still use Windows and don't have to worry about hardware compatibility. If you switch to a Mac, run Windows in a virtual machine or with Boot Camp and keep compatibility with all your Windows only applications, while trying out how the new Mac software works for you and replaces the functionality of your legacy applications.

Specific Open Source Applications

The first applications for most people to try would be: Firefox, OpenOffice.org, and Gimp. You can get all of these in portable application formats and they run equally well on Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux. They are all free and open source and contain no spyware or viruses.

Firefox

Many webmasters who don't have a budget to hire a professional programmer have a lot of trouble getting their website to work in Internet Explorer and if the do manage to, you often will get better performance with a full-featured web browser like Firefox. Google's new web applications will require you use a plugin that replaces the web site display of Internet Explorer for that of Google Chrome, or you can just use Firefox. Some websites will only work in Internet Explorer, but you can see if you use any of these websites, as many websites at least support Firefox, in addition to Internet Explorer.

OpenOffice.org

OpenOffice.org is a replacement for many simple and intermediate level use of various Microsoft Office features. Microsoft does not allow anyone to license its Word, Excel, and Powerpoint native formats, so OpenOffice.org cannot guarantee that every Microsoft Office file will open with all formatting. It would be good for everyone to get their documents converted into the OpenOffice.org default format, because it will be much easier to access that information in the future and will keep you from being totally dependent on Microsoft, for accessing your information. Most office suites now support the native format of OpenOffice.org, because it is an internationally standardized format.

Gimp

Gimp is a replacement for most photo editing, that you can do with Photoshop Elements. For most users, Gimp has far more functionality than you will need. Gimp will open and save to all the standard formats like: JPEG, TIFF, PNG, PDF, and the Photoshop native format. If you do not know what the term CMYK is, then this will likely do all the photo editing you will ever need. If you have more advanced needs like graphic art design, Inkscape will do almost anything you need to create great graphic designs. Inkscape is free, open source, and cross platform as well.

Web Applications

If you use Google, Yahoo, or Microsoft, for you email or can check your email from any computer, you are likely already using a web application. A web applications is just a standard web page, which can function as an interactive application, like an email client. You get to it by typing in a web address in a web browser and it requires nothing but a web browser and sometimes a common free plugin, like Flash Player.

As long as you have a web browser, you can run web applications, so that it doesn't matter if you use Windows, Mac OS X, or Linux. Many other types of applications like office suites and photo editing can be done in a web application as well. Adobe, Google, and Apple all have web applications like Adobe's Photoshop.com, Google's Gmail and Google Apps, and Apple's Mobile Me and a future version of iTunes.

Open File Formats

Instead of saving all your data in the default format in Microsoft Office and in Adobe Creative Suite, try moving to more open formats like HTML, RTF, and PNG for files you need to edit again and PDF for read only files. This will make switching to different software vendors easier and more importantly your data will be in your control and not in Microsoft's or Adobe's.

5.3.3 UNIX Means No Maintenance

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What is UNIX?

Mac OS X and Linux are related, in that they are both designed to be like UNIX. UNIX was the first operating system that really worked well and still is. Most of the well known open source software is based on UNIX technologies. UNIX is known for its security, stability, and easy networking. It works so well, because it was designed for more difficult situations, like: department of defense, hospitals, banking, basic infrastructure like electricity and sewage, and other things that need to work continually and where a software crash would cause a national security incident or a breakdown of society.

Why UNIX Is Better

Many of the things people who use Windows associate with using computers aren't necessary for UNIX. Windows is poorly designed, because it breaks down over time and requires continual maintenance. Although Windows has many more applications for it than Linux or Mac OS X, people are afraid to try them, because of the combination of what they might do to the Windows Registry or the viruses or spyware they may contain.

UNIX Security and Stability

UNIX security is not perfect, but there are no UNIX viruses. When a UNIX based operating system has a known security vulnerability, then a patch is released, so that any system with the update applied has no know security issues. Windows requires constant updates, but still is susceptible to millions of viruses, even with the latest updates. UNIX based operating systems do not require you to defragment them ever and there is no loss in performance, without performing that kind of maintenance. Defragging your hard drive on Windows is more than a just time consuming loss in productivity, because if power is lost during the process, you can very easily lose important data and critical system files and have to re-install Windows to fix the problem. When one application crashes, with UNIX, the operating system still runs, so that you only need to restart your computer, when performing major operating system updates.

UNIX Permissions

One of the reasons why viruses cannot spread automatically, from one computer to another, with UNIX, is because on UNIX programs and files are separated and their access to critical system files is limited. If you download a file from the Internet, on Windows, it can access any part of your computer, without asking you, but on UNIX it would ask you for your password first. Also, a file will not run as a program on UNIX, unless you specifically mark it to allow that.

Windows Registry

Windows has something unique called the Windows Registry, where all the settings to the operating system and applications are stored and programmers can put whatever they want in there very easily, but it is very hard to remove unwanted settings. If you edit it manually and put in one wrong character, you have to re-install Windows from scratch. Viruses and spyware can hid in the registry. UNIX operating systems have a place where they put settings, but application settings are separate from system settings and other applications, so if one gets damaged, you can just remove on file and it doesn't affect the entire operating system.

UNIX has Package Management

There is also no way to sort out what files belong to Windows or the applications, so you can be left with broken parts of an application or accidently remove critical system files, when you uninstall Windows applications. Since Windows releases happen so infrequently, many programs contain copies of critical system files that they install, even if they are older than the ones currently installed, so that you have to reinstall Windows from scratch, to fix these kinds of problems. On Linux, there is a very complex relationship of programs intertwined with critical operating system files, but Linux has a very sophisticated and reliable system to manage which files belong to which application. On Mac OS X, programs generally don't rely on anything, that doesn't come with the operating system. On the Mac, every piece of everything required for the program is contained in one folder, called an app bundle. This app bundle works as a file, so that when you double click on it, it launches the application. Getting ride of all its related files, to uninstall the application is as easy as dragging the app bundle to the trash and emptying it.

5.3.4 The Rationale for Open Source

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Why I use and support free software

I am a researcher and writer for consumer/citizen advocacy and a disabled veteran. I use the my website to create and deliver content to stimulate people to think. I have written 26 text books and authored 8 picture books to challenge what people think the Bible says and inspire people to think for themselves.

The reason why I use free software is similar to some of the reasons why people began to form languages, why people began to create art, and why people developed unified systems of thought. I use standardized formats to store my work so it will stand the test of time, be accessible to the most people possible, and to guarantee the integrity of my work. I use free software to put this content in a standardized format, because standardized and free define each other.

A common language is important for people and animals to communicate ideas to one another. How would we know what happened in the past if we didn't have language? How would we work together for common goals without a common type of communication? How would we express feelings to others if we didn't share similar types of non verbal communication?

When monks wanted to preserve the Bible they did it in a language that wasn't controlled by one person and they didn't rely on just one person to copy the text. They used a language that was spoken throughout all of Europe and they could use any tools they could think of to create the Bibles because the grammar for the language wasn't hidden and managed by a few people.

Art is a form of communication that is greater than the sum of its parts. The arrangement of commonly recognized components makes a powerful message if they are juxtaposed effectively. Words meaning very little when put in the right order can convey complex ideas. Lines, shapes, and colors mean little when standing alone but can motivate a person to action when combined in a certain order. Art is based on common symbols and can spread new ideas which are based on previous ideas which were spread through common symbols. Art multiplies the more it is understood by the greater number of artists and patrons. What if traditional Christmas carols were copyrighted or colors were patented, how would this impede self expression?

When developing a new way of thinking to discover truth, it is fundamental to be consistent. To ensure consistency language and other symbols must be used to mean the same things throughout the entirety of the work. Debate and philosophy are about defining words - primarily nouns, as compared to literature where the bulk of the information is conveyed through adjectives and adverbs. The only way to control the ideas that you want to communicate is to have it free from the control of those in power who are interested in the status quo and not in progress. Having it in a freely distributable format that the powers that be are not in absolute control over is the way to keep the ideas pure.

Why should people who base their work on the freely available discoveries and inventions of others be allowed to keep others from using their work freely? What if someone had patented addition or the wheel, how would we be able to afford an information revolution? Patenting software code and not sharing it with others are similar ideas.

Imagine what it would be like to build on your house without knowing where the electrical wiring was or not knowing what walls were structural. This is the world of Microsoft. The only choice for freedom is Free Software. Where the only standard is price, then free (as in quality) is free (as in freedom).

5.3.5 What Make Current Macs Unique

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What is Mac OS X?

The Mac OS that comes with every new Mac now as well as runs iPhones and iPod touches is based on a technology called NeXT that was designed by Steve Jobs after he was forced out of Apple. It is also the same technology that everything from iTunes, Apple's online services and most everything else that has differentiated Apple's software from its competitors is based on.

What is the Difference Between OS X and OS 9 and Earlier

The old Macs, before OS X (or 10) were designed very differently. It took many years to develop a compatibility layer, so that software developers didn't have to write everything from scratch. The problem with the old Macs software is that the software was outdated and Microsoft had been given a license to use most of the Apple patents and techniques, so that there was not a big enough difference between Windows and the Mac for many users to stay with the Macs. Why do something differently and deal with compatibility problems when the other product is just as good?

UNIX

One of the big new things that Mac OS X brought to the Mac is that it was based on UNIX (and Mac OS 10.5 Intel is now a certified UNIX) via the BSD branch which was the other main Open Source movement and collection of operating systems that are a kind of cousin of Linux. Linux was written from scratch but BSD was based on the old UNIX code, and they emerged from a lawsuit in the early 90s that gave them the rights to develop and give the code away in an Open Source license, because they found that the UNIX developers had copied more code from the BSD code writers than the other way around. What this UNIX foundation offers is modern computing capabilities including the ability to use many applications at once, easier networking, and a system that is more secure and less crash prone.

Cocoa

One of the other things that Mac OS X offers is much better tools for programmers. Apple has made available better libraries which make it much easier to make applications for Mac OS X only. You can develop much faster and make much better applications without much effort, if you make your program Mac only. And there are many Mac only applications because of this that aren't available for Windows at any price. And the cost of these Mac only applications is very little. This was a similar technology in some important ways to Java, but it was invented long before and was also cross-platform, but no one wanted to buy it from NeXT (except Apple). Now Apple is making a fortune off of using these NeXT tools that they had offered their competitors. It is hard to compete with a product that has a 20 year lead.

Mac OS 10 is Not Related to Mac OS 9 and Earlier

So if people have only used Mac OS 9 and earlier in the past, they have no idea what OS X is about. In addition, there were many new features that make the Mac more efficient and easier to use as well as speed optimizations in each of the point releases. The transition to Intel also gave a big speed improvement and allowed the use of Windows, Linux, FreeBSD, OpenSolaris at the same speed as on PCs. So unless someone has used the latest point release of Mac OS X and has an Intel Mac, then they really have no idea what using a modern Mac is like.

Mac OS 10.3 (Panther)

I recommend at least 10.3 mostly because it is much faster to work with. Not only does it run faster in terms of waiting time, but it feels faster because of animations, and you can get more work done in less time, because of useful additions to the interface. Expose is a unique way to keep track of all open windows and switch between them instantly - this in addition to OS X's rock solid stability lets you work for long periods of time with many applications open at once. The other three most useful additions that allow me to accomplish more in less time is the ability to put custom folders in the open, save, and Finder windows, the ability to assign colored coded labels to folders, and the ability to search the entire hard drive in a few seconds (up to 5 sec). Help and system information are also launched quickly, in a second or two.

Mac OS 10.4 (Tiger)

Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) adds many new features for artists and writers, including: major speed improvements for new iMacs and higher end desktop Macs for all applications, visual automation for repetitive tasks, search instantly even within files or file information for all file types and can be saved as a “smart” folder, an instantaneous application of always editable text, graphics and video effects that can be added to applications with only one line of code (see Imaginator), and your Mac can read the interface aloud to you and can be completely voice controlled.

Minor advancements include the ability to make PDF annotations within Preview, save documents created with TextEdit as a web page, and stealth mode for the built in firewall.

Mac OS 10.5 (Leopard)

Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard) comes with a backup program built in that requires no set up. Just plug in an external USB or Firewire hard drive and you are all set. Every version of every file is automatically backed up and can be restored through a point and click interface that totally integrates with the instant search.

You can browse through almost all files with a live preview before opening them. You also get a dictionary application; slick/simplified interface for viewing photos, songs, movies (Front Row); and you can combine and reorder PDF pages and resize photos or change resolution with Preview.

Mac OS 10.5 also lets you take snapshots of web pages to turn into live widgets. 10.4.11 and higher come with Safari 3 web browser which should render most any site fine unless they are designed for only Firefox and Internet Explorer specifically.

Mac OS 10.5 also comes with virtual desktops and the ability to run Windows when you reboot your Mac if you have an Intel Mac.

Mac OS 10.6 (Snow Leopard)

Mac OS X 10.6 (Snow Leopard) adds complete support for 64 bit and 32 bit apps side by side. Mac OS 10.6 also adds optimizations for multiple processor cores, using GPUs for general purpose computing, and compression of system files to save space. While most of these changes will not be of benefit until later on, there are some that will be noticed right away. There is a simplified version of Quicktime called Quicktime X that includes pro features for free, there is a new version of Safari which separates websites in different tabs as different processes, so one Flash applet doesn't crash Safari, and then there is the 64 bit Finder which is rewritten to allow better multithreading (of the Finder).

5.3.6 The Best or Worst Option

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When people think of an open source operating system, they usually think of Linux. But there is an older and some argue better system that is called FreeBSD. It is an open source UNIX clone as well.

Different Open Source License

FreeBSD is based on a version of UNIX developed by the University of Berkeley and is released under the BSD open source license, instead of the GPL open source license that Linux is distributed under. There are multiple BSD operating systems, but the most used and famous one is FreeBSD. The GPL requires any code distributed that is added to GPL licensed software has to have a free way to download the modified source code, but the BSD license allows any code distributed that is added tyo BSD licensed code to be distributed without providing free access to source code.

Advantages and Disadvantages Overview

Some of the advantages of FreeBSD over Linux is that it is often regarded as more stable, efficient, secure, and business friendly. The main downside of FreeBSD is the lack of support for commercial software. Even commercial software that is supported on Linux often isn't on FreeBSD. There is no Adobe Flash Player, Adobe Reader, AIR, Google Chrome, Picasa, Earth, Lotus Symphony, and other important commercial software that works and is supported on Linux either does not work or is not supported under FreeBSD. There are less commercial developers for FreeBSD, less users (especially desktop users), and less drivers so there is less computer hardware that works with FreeBSD.

Overcoming Disadvantages of FreeBSD

One of the ways to overcome the lack of drivers for FreeBSD is to run it in a virtual machine. One of the ways to overcome the lack of software support is to use FreeBSD for less complicates tasks. One of the ways to overcomes the lack of developers is a project called PC-BSD, which is based on self contained applications called PBIs for FreeBSD, which is similar to Mac application installation and support. This simplifies the installation and management of applications, compared to the Linux idea of tying together the applications and libraries, with the underlying operating system.

Technical Collection

Chapter 6

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General Tech Challenges

by Ben Huot

Technical Collection

6.1 Keeping Your Data Safe

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6.1.1 Intellectual Property and Copyright Law

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Many people think that companies like Apple or the record companies are too restrictive in the conditions upon which they allow use of their works. Many people think that if they buy an intellectual property product like software or music that they can do whatever they want with it. They think they can modify the software to use it in another way that it wasn't intended for. They think that all the company is trying to do is be power hungry and wants irrational control over their lives. They think that pirating software and music is a victim less crime.

Some of those who want to weaken copyright often are unfamiliar with the origins of copyright in America. Copyright started when the British had colonies in America and the printing press was becoming more common and people began to publish the writings of others without permission. This was not an issue before, because it was much harder to copy things and so this was an effective barrier to keep people from making unapproved copies. The term copyright comes from the right granted to copy intellectual property. As the Internet makes things easier to copy (you copy something every time you download something or upload something), it is natural that copyright laws would become more invasive.

Intellectual property, currently, in the United States, is very well protected as we have some very strong copyright laws. Patents are not the same as copyrights. Patents are there to protect people's implementation of different technologies. Both copyright law and patents originate in legal theory on the basis that they help encourage innovation and people to create new things. Most people do not understand copyright law until they actually make something that took a lot of time and effort and turned out really good. Then they want to get all the copyright protections they can.

The moral principles behind copyright law are simple and obvious, but what is protected if often not. The main moral basic of copyright law is this: you have to pay someone to use their work and/or follow the license they give it under, because it is only fair that people profit off their own works. Copyright law applies as soon as you create a creative work like a written work, software, visual art, etc. You do not have to file for a copyright for that legal protection. You cannot copyright a list or a short phrase.

Laws have unforeseen consequences and one of the unforeseen consequences of weakening copyright law is that the free community on the Internet, including people who use Creative Commons Licenses for their creations as well as create open source software, have their rights to offer those conditions protected with copyright law. If you don't like the restrictions that companies place on their creative works, the most effective and legal way of protest is not to steal or otherwise violate copyright laws, but rather create your own content and give it away in a Creative Commons License. This will be the way to make the media either allow people to use their works more freely or else they will no longer be able to sell them. This is one of the reasons why I give so much of what I create away for free.

6.1.2 Managing Information from the Internet

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Navigating to Moved Pages

Often times when you follow a link, you get an error message, instead of a web page, that you expected. Websites are just a collection of files and folders, with each slash marking a folder. There is a default file that opens, when you have a web page ending in a folder. So when you see an error page, you should go to the folder above and so on, until you find a web page. You do this by, for instance, if you go to my website and you are at http://benjamin-newton.com/help/tech-book/beta/ and you see an error message, delete everything after the slash after tech and then keep on doing so, until you see a normal web page. The reason why this happens is because just as you change the folders you arrange your files in, as you add files to your folders, on your hard drive, so the folder and files on a website change, as a webmasters add content to their websites, in order to keep a logical arrangement of their files.

Controlling Web Site Formatting

If you hate the website design of a website you use or it is too distracting you can use Firefox and choose view menu and then choose the page style menu item, and then the no page style option. You have more advanced options in Opera to simplify the page graphics and styles. Choose view menu, images menu item, and no images option; then choose view menu, style menu item, and the following options: user mode, accessibility layout, and disable positioning.

Temporary Folder

Use the desktop as a temporary folder. Save everything to the desktop, so that you can see everything you downloaded, before you find a permanent place to organize them, with the rest of your files.

Managing Bookmarks

Drag and drop the icon next to the web address of the website you want to book mark. This way you will not lose it, if your web browser crashes and you can follow the links with any web browser you have installed. You can organize your web address files into your folders. You can later use a web page editor to organizer tour favorite bookmarks and use it for your home page.

Archive Important Information

When you see a page that has information you want to save, save it to your hard drive, because most websites average 18 months. A lot of good information disappears permanently, probably because of how difficult it is to create a web site and how negative the feedback is. Keep the original files of the software you saved from the web and the installation codes emailed to you, so you can re-install, if there is a problem with your program installation, you get a new computer, or your hard drive or operating system upgrade goes bad.

How to Archive Data

To save a an entire web page, with all the associated file together, choose web archive, when saving a web page, or print and then save as PDF on Mac OS X or print to a PDF printer on Linux. PDFs are easier to manage because all the formatting, graphics, and content are in one file, and long documents are split into separate pages, and make printing them out easier. You can save files to the PDF format from your email messages too, if you want to access them later in a convenient format, so you don't have to read them again in you email program.

6.1.3 Computer Security Common Sense

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for Desktop Computers

A Mac Mini survived 38 hours on the Internet and 4,000 login attempts without being compromised even though it was widely publicized. Secure shell remote login and the web server ports were open. Neither one of these ports are open by default - they have to be manually and purposefully turned on. The only person that got through already had a local account on the machine.

Don't use Windows

* Microsoft has admitted publicly that its software is not designed to be secure or securable.

* The software is closed source so mistakes take a long time to be corrected.

* Security is not a feature that you add on - it is something that must be designed from the ground up.

Use User Accounts

* Make separate accounts for different users.

* Do not use the administrator's account except when necessary.

* These limit the extent that viruses and hackers can access your files.

Network Securely

* When you set up a network (usually you can find a way around doing that), read up on it and find out how to do it as securely as possible.

* Wireless networking is really easy to hack.

* People drive around town scanning for open networks and then use your account to hack into other computers.

* You are then responsible for what they have done, unless the authorities can trace it back to the hacker.

Use a Firewall

* All versions of UNIX come with firewalls. Mac OS X is the easiest to set up.

* It doesn't have to be complicated.

* Just set it to filter out all outsiders from accessing your system.

* You can use servers to share files like .Mac.

Use an Antivirus Program

* Update your Antivirus programs at least twice a month and scan files as you download them from e-mail and from the web.

* This is only for the benefit of Windows users.

Use a Spyware Scanner

* Many programs come with little programs attached to them that steal credit card and social security numbers and send them back to the programmer to steal your identity.

* A spyware scanner will remove these from your system.

* Note: this different than a virus and only necessary for Windows users.

Use Encryption

* Encrypt e-mails with sensitive information if you can't send them any other way.

* Encrypt any sensitive information on your hard drive.

* OS X 10.3 comes with this built in.

Do Not Use File Sharing Programs

* Most viruses are sent through file sharing programs.

* These are also filled with adult only material and stolen music and videos.

* You can buy music online through Apple's new store through iTunes for 1 dollar a song.

* Download software from the manufactures web site and you can be sure there are no viruses in them.

Don't Open Files with Unknown Extensions

* This mainly applies to e-mail.

* Viruses will come from people you know as viruses send themselves through your address book.

* Safe files include extensions with .pdf, .swf, .html, .rtf, and .txt for documents, .psd, .jpg, and .png for photos, etc. Do not open .exe or .zip files on Windows unless they come in originally packaged shrink wrapped software bought from reputable vendors.

* On Mac the major ones to be careful about are .sit, .dmg, .pkg, .bin, and .hqx, and .sea.

* .doc, .xls, and .ppt files also contain viruses often too. If you open these up with non-Microsoft programs, you shouldn't have to worry about viruses.

Make Regular Back-ups

* This is the most important step.

* Back up anything you don't want to permanently lose

* On UNIX systems, you can just back up your home directory.

* On Macs, this is where all your files are saved by default with Documents, Library, Movies, Music, Pictures, Public, and Sites folders. The name of the folder is your user name.

* There is a different one for each user, if you set one up for every person like you should.

* On new Macs, just insert a blank CD-R (Music and Data are the same format) and drag and drop your files onto the CD icon and then select Burn from the File menu under Finder. Tape backups like Zip drives usually fail.

* Mac OS 10.5 now automatically backs up every version of every file you create, once you plug in a USB hard drive into your Mac.

* Have backups off site and far away in case your house burns down or is robbed or there is a natural disaster.

* Make backups on different types of media like print, CD-ROM, external hard drive, and web backups.

Read Up on Security Problems

* Many times there are patches available to fix security problems (but sometimes they screw up your computer), so you have to read reviews of the updates before applying them.

* Don't just blindly update your main browser or e-mail or OS without checking first to see if there are bugs in the fixes.

Secure Delete Hard Drives Before Disposal of Computer

* The best way to protect yourself from identity theft is to securely delete all the files and wipe the hard drive clean of data as well as write over it several times with random data.

* On a Mac you can secure empty the trash and the other way is to reformat with the highest security setting

What is Your Data Worth?

Well I have had no viruses, spyware, or any other malware on my machine and I haven't done anything for security other than make regular backups. But of course I have a Mac and I have never used a file sharing program. I also don't have to worry about what I download from the Internet and I could use the included browser that comes with Mac OS 10.3 and higher and still not get any malware. I have also done a major OS upgrade from 10.2 - 10.3 and had no issues at all. I must have had to reformat and install Windows every few months when I had a PC.

You know that a anti-virus program is not a proactive security measure but just a clean up after the fact. You have to wait for the virus to be in the wild for a while first and be infecting machines - maybe yours - before they come up with the fix, then you need to download it and pay money for this capability and then scan everything, hoping of course it is not hidden by a root kit or some other common way to hide the virus from the anti-virus software assuming of course that the anti-virus software works flawlessly every time. Then when you find a virus you want to verify that all your software doesn't have viruses in it and reformat and reinstall from scratch because just deleting the virus you find may not be good enough because you could get reinfected if part of the virus wasn't found. Then you need to restore all your data from backups after you scan them for viruses and then verify every piece of data you have on the backups and make sure it is all there and nothing was modified. Basically if you care about your data, don't use Windows or MS Office.

Then of course you can run into problems how Windows corrupts software or how you can lose data when you run defragmenting software if there is a power outage - another thing not necessary on a Mac or any other form of UNIX.

6.1.4 Why Make Backups and How to Do Them?

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I first used a PC until my data became valuable enough to get a Mac, and now I have a Mac and Linux machine as the data accumulated is now of even more valuable.

* I always make backups copies of my data and I have offsite backups in different parts of the world.

* I have different types of backups: web backups, hard drive backups, optical disc backups, and print backups.

* I also keep all my data in open and common file formats which can be further modified with completely open source products.

* I even have redundant programs in case there is enough of a problem with any of my programs that they won't perform the needed task to my standards.

* I have switched to entirely different platforms every 2 years very easily because of this planning.

* I make backup copies of my files as soon as I create them and then I make other backups throughout the day.

* I have plans for Apple dying and my work will be able to continue on without having to use Windows.

* Because of these precautions, when my hard drive crashed on my Mac Mini after 6 months, I was able to continue my work on my Linux machine; it was a non-event.

* I only had to make it through Easter weekend; our Apple store in town had it repaired on Monday and I just turned it on Good Friday.

* I also backup all my commercial programs on disc along with their registration codes, so I didn't have any problems with restoring all my programs.

* I even keep back up copies of the latest free software and free updates to my commercial software. I have the specifications for the PDF and SWF file formats on optical disc in case I need to recreate viewers as I use these format extensively.

* I also use flat files, so there are no databases to corrupt and no backup programs to fail.

Technical Collection

6.2 General File Concepts

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6.2.1 Structured Document Formatting

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Advantages

* Allows the writer to write and the designer to design independently

* Allows for changes in content to be done after the designer is finished without having to redesign it

* Allows a change in one place to alter numerous documents with the same formatting

* Avoid inconsistent formatting

* Allows the same document to have multiple designs, like different ones for print, small devices, and personal computers

* Easier to convert between file formats

* Reduce file size

* Makes it easier for visually impaired people to read electronic documents

Examples

Always

* LaTeX

* XML

* SVG

Possible

* HTML

* XHTML

* PDF

* Flash

* Photoshop

* Open Document

* ConTeXt

* Text

Not Possible

* RTF

* Postscript

* DjVu

* JPG

* PNG

* TIFF

6.2.2 Drawing vs. Painting

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Vector drawing is a way of creating art on the computer. Drawings programs differ from painting programs. In drawing programs, all attributes of every object are always editable. In painting programs, once you put down a brush stroke, you can't cut it out very easily and cleanly. In painting programs, you can use similar techniques to what is done with paint on a canvas, but with drawing programs you have to understand more about how the computer works.

Vector Drawing

In vector drawing, the illustration has a certain structure to it like a skeleton and it has attributes that hang on it like flesh.

Outline of Shape

The first step is to create the structure or outline. I use three techniques, depending on the complexity of the shapes. For the most basic shapes, I use rectangles and ellipses which I join together in different patterns. For more complicated outlines, I draw freehand with my digital graphic pen and tablet. For the most complex patterns, I draw a draft outline with straight lines and then cut out the corners and attach pieces of ellipses in to make a delicately curved piece.

Attributes

After the outline is complete, then you can choose a fill - a solid color, gradient, or pattern and then a stroke - watercolor, pastel, oil, ink, etc. You can also choose a bevel or a soft edge. You don't have to have a stroke if you don't want to.

Sharing with Others

Then if you want to change any aspect of the drawing, you can at any time and it will still look clean and the change can be made easily. When you finish the drawing, in order to share it on the web or send it by e-mail, you have to save a copy of it as a bit map - most likely a PNG at 300 DPI for printing or JPEG 100% quality at 72 DPI for display on the screen. Make sure you add the appropriate extension to the filename.

6.2.3 File Formats

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One of the most important steps to take in order to share your completed work to as wide an audience as possible is to save in standardized and free formats. There are different formats for different types of files. Some are primarily for text and layout for printing while others are primarily moving formats for display on the screen, and there are a number that fall in between these two extremes. These formats are common on the Internet and can be viewed freely by anyone on most any computer with a variety of software. Remember to save your work first in the native format and then either export or save as in the free format after you have completed the work.

Text and Page Layout

The most widely used free formats for text and layout are HTML and PDF. HTML is primarily suited for display on a wide variety of different sized computer screens and PDF is optimized for printing and precise layout. Putting graphics into a HTML page works well for picture galleries designed for fast loading on the web or for logos, while embedding graphics in PDF files works better for complex layouts especially ones that have special sizes and are made to be printed out. For short articles filling one screen, HTML is the best format, while text taking up more than one page is easier to save, view, and print in PDF format.

Graphics and Interactive Media

There are two major free formats for still pictures. JPEG at 72 DPI and at 100% quality works best for viewing on the screen as it takes up less space and PNGs at 300 DPI are the smallest size that retain all the quality necessary for printing at high resolutions. The most widely used formats for interactive or moving content are Flash and Quicktime. Flash is useful for simple animations and for moving logos. Quicktime is good for precise layout on the screen and for combining MP3 and MIDI audio, Flash animations, text, and JPEG pictures. It also can be navigated interactively or can be used for motion pictures.

Technical Collection

6.3 Instructions for Specific Programs

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6.3.1 Chinese Watercolor

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Traditional Method

I used ink on rice paper at first to do my first Chinese Watercolor, a bamboo branch. First, you have to soak the brushes until they lose their shape - I did it for about an hour. Then, you have to clear off a desk and put felt underneath where the paper will go to shield the desk from the ink. Next, you grind the ink stick on the stone block very quickly for 3 minutes using the same end every time and the water overflows. Then you have to cut the rice paper - preferably at least 10 to practice on. Then you hold the brush vertically - the brown one - and draw a straight line with one stroke across the paper while letting the brush rest slightly at even intervals. It is very hard to get the thickness right as the ink either spreads out too much on the paper or not enough and it is also hard to get the ink dark enough but not too dark. Next, you grind the ink stick on the stone block very quickly for 3 minutes using the same end every time and the water overflows. Next you draw little branches by just dipping in a tiny bit of ink and sketching dear horn shaped branches with the same brush. The difference in size is about 10 to one. Next, you grind the ink stick on the stone block very quickly for 3 minutes using the same end every time and the water overflows. Then the hard part is barely touching the brush at first and then pressing down more firmly and gradually tapering your stroke in one motion. If you are good you will make it after starting from scratch only 10 times. You drawing will look like a blob. Then you have to dry all the ink on the stone and throw away 90% of your work.

By Computer

I found that it was easier painting on the computer with the free software program GIMP. It is available for Windows, Mac, and UNIX. It took me about a tenth the time to do it on the computer even with all the time to set the settings for the brushes as follows.

Use the Ink tool that looks like a pen with the following settings

* Opacity: 75 change for different elements

* Adjustment

* size: 20 change for different elements

* angle: 0

* Sensitivity

* size: 1.0

* tilt: 0.3

* speed: 0.7

* Type: round

The technique is the same except it is easier to control, you don't have to mess with getting the ink right, or cutting the paper and starting from scratch. The size I used was the default but I changed the resolution to 300 dpi, so the size quadrupled to about 1000 pixels squared. I drew it at 50% view. To undo, right click on the painting and choose “edit - undo” and save by right clicking and choosing “file- save”. The first time specify the file name - I chose bamboo.xcf - this saves it with the layers if you decide to work with those. When I was done I right clicked on the drawing and chose “filters-artistic-apply canvas” to get it to look like you drew it on paper. You might want to change the opacity for the branches to 50% and choose 75% for the stalk, so you can outline it at the joints at 100%. I cropped it at the end by clicking on the knife tool and selecting the area I wanted to keep and then clicking on the “crop” button. I then saved it as a bamboo.png for my portfolio. I then reduced it by right clicking on the drawing and choosing “image-scale image” and then putting in 72 dpi for the resolution and changing the horizontal value to 200 - in that order.

This is my first painting on the computer and one of only two things I have ever painted in my lifetime that I remember. I did this on a laptop with a touch point.

6.3.2 LaTeX

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LaTeX is a professional typesetting language like Postscript. It is a type of structured document format like the XHTML and Cascading Style Sheets combination where the content is separated from the layout, but it is specific to page layout and includes formatting and content in one file like HTML. This is especially useful in technical writing like scientific journals and technical manuals. It can output to the more easily displayed Portable Document Format (PDF). Like HTML, It can be coded with a text editor like TeXShop or laid out graphically in a What You Mean is What You Get (WYMIWYG) editor like LyX (both with native Mac versions) as with most web languages. It is an open source language so it can be used with low cost tools, it has longevity, and it works cross platform. It is also very stable as it has been around for over 20 years.

Document Structure

There are 3 major types of documents: Article, Book, and Report; which all have Title, Author, and Date headings. The structure that works with all three is Section, Subsection, and Subsubsection. There are three major types of lists: Description - which lists the items with a descriptor to the right of it, Enumerate - which numbers the list items, and Itemize - which puts bullets in front of each list item. There is also a simple automated system for footnotes and quotations.

Text Formatting

There is also an easy way to style arbitrary text in the familiar bold, medium, italic, plain text, small caps as well as relative font sizes reminiscent of HTML. LaTeX commands start out with a back slashes and make frequent use of curly brackets, so to make single spaces after line endings, you just enter 2 back slashes in a row at the end of each line. This works great for poetry.

Recommendations

I recommend using a specialized text editor that has LaTeX functions built into it, so you don't have to actually type the code freehand. TeXShop on the Mac uses the built in OS X service that spell checks on the fly which is nice too. So far LyX doesn't handle changes in formatting without throwing out errors. LaTeX is very good at mathematical formulas but doesn't display photos at a clear resolution. If you are inserting drawings, put them in either Encapsulized Postscript format or PDF. The TeX and Ghostscript system of required software is a couple hundred MBs, so you need a broadband connection to download it.

6.3.3 Book Authoring with OpenOffice.org

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Create Chapter Documents

Start out by creating a separate document for each chapter. Choose Text Document at welcome screen. Save as ODF Text Document (.odt). Make sure you specifically use the chapter LaTeX headings in your document (you can also use the part division), if you want to ever convert your document to the Daisy XML format.

Mark Headings

Mark each section heading with heading 1, subsection with heading 2, and so on. Choose Styles and Formatting from the Format menu. Choose Hierarchical from the bottom of the floating palette called Styles and Formatting. Click on the “little triangle” next to the Heading entry in the floating palette, so that that Heading 1 through Heading 10 show in list. Select the text for the heading and then double click on the Heading 1 or Heading 2 entry and so on from the floating palette for the heading and then subheading and so on.

Create a Master Document

Create a master document and link in the different chapter documents. First, make sure you save all the chapter documents in the same folder and then close all open documents. Then choose New from the File menu and select Master Document, then choose Save As from the File menu and select ODF Master Document (.odm). A floating palette will open up called Navigator. Hold your mouse over the icons on the top of the palette and click on the one with the tool tip called Insert and then choose File from the pop up menu and then browse to the first chapter file and click Open. Continue until you insert all the chapters. Then click on the name of the chapter from the list in the Navigator floating palette and hold your mouse over the icons on the top of the palette and click on the one with the tooltips Move Up and Move Down with all the chapters until they are in the correct order.

Create an Index

Create an index in the master document. Then hold your mouse over the icons on the top of the palette and click on the one with the tool tip called Insert and then choose Index from the pop up menu and then click on OK on the dialog that opens up called Insert Index/Table and then position it it at the top with the Move Up and Move Down icons as you did previously as described above.

Add Introduction and Title Page

Add an introduction and title page to the master document after inserting 2 text sections, one before and one after the Index you inserted previously. Do this by holding your mouse over the icons on the top of the Navigator palette and click on the one with the tool tip called Insert and then choose Text from the pop up menu and then using the Move Up and Move Down icons as before to put the introduction and title page in the correct order.

Create PDF

The choose Export as PDF from the File menu, make sure that All is marked for Range, Lossless Compression for Images, PDF/A-1 and Export Bookmarks for General options under the General tab. The click Export button at the bottom and then click on the Save button.

6.3.4 Text File Format Conversions

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Background

I started out with a HTML file and then converted it to many other formats. This was done as part of writing a book with LaTeX using the Lulu.com print on demand book printing service. All these conversions can be done most easily on Ubuntu Linux or Mac OS X.

Using Command Line Programs

Finding the Command Line on Linux

To run a command line program, you need to find a Terminal, Console, Konsole, or X-Term entry in your programs menu, if you are running KDE, GNOME, or XFCE desktop environments. Once you open the Console/Terminal, you will see either a solid black or solid white background upon which you will see the name of your login and the name of your computer (prompt).

Finding the Command Line on Mac OS X

go to your Applications folder and launch Terminal in the Utilities sub folder

How to Enter Commands

You type commands (program names) after the prompt. Most command are structured like this program_name -options filename. To get exact syntax for command line programs, enter man command or command - -help with command being replaced with the name of the command. Replace the word filename with the name of the file you wish to convert.

How to Copy and Paste

You can also copy and then paste commands from web pages or any other format that has selectable text. To so this, you highlight the command sequence and then middle click after the prompt and then click enter.

Getting the Programs Needed

How to Add Programs to Ubuntu via Synaptic

1. Login in to the First Account You Created during the Ubuntu Install

2. Connect to the Internet

3. Go to your Applications menu and choose Synaptic Package Manager menu item under System submenu

4. enter your password at the prompt (this is the same as your login password if you were the first user created during the Ubuntu install)

5. Click on the Search button on the toolbar and enter the Name of the Program you wish to install and then just click on the Search button in the Search dialog box that just opened up or just hit Enter or Return on your keyboard. You should enter everything in lowercase letters. (You can also enter words from the description or part of the program name if you don't remember the exact program name. Also, the command for the program is not always the same as the name of the program.)

6. Click on the Name of the Program/Package you wish to install, right click on the Name of the Program and click Mark for Installation from the popup menu.

7. Then click on the Apply button on the toolbar and then click Apply on the pop-up menu

8. Then click on Close from the pop-up menu and then choose File menu and the menu item Quit

You Need

* Kompozer

* gnuhtml2latex

* TeX Live

* Winefish

* latex2rtf

* tex4ht or SimpleTeX4ht

* OpenOffice.org 3.1

* odt2daisy

* Daisy Pipeline

* Ghostscript

* Adobe Reader

Conversions

Note

the word file in file.html, file.tex, file.rtf, file.pdf, file.ps should be replaced with the name of the file you choose.

Kompozer

create document file.html in Kompozer

gnuhtml2latex

convert from html to latex with gnuhtml2latex by entering gnuhtml2latex file.html

Winefish

clean up formatting with Winefish including taking out the * in headings, then choose external and then PDFLaTeX to generate PDF

latex2rtf

convert file.tex to RTF with latex2rtf by entering latex2rtf file.tex

tex4ht or SimpleTeX4ht

convert file.tex to ODT with tex4ht by entering oolatex file.tex

odt2daisy

download from http://odt2daisy.sourceforge.net/downloads/, open downloaded .zip file, open OpenOffice.org and select text document icon from splash menu, choose tools menu and then extension manager menu item, click on add button, browse to the folder with the same name as the zip files, click on the files ending in .oxt, click ok, then choose for all users, and then restart OpenOffice.org

Daisy Pipeline

download from http://daisymfc.sourceforge.net and install (only Mac and Windows version work)

if the latex2rtf command works, do the following in OpenOffice.org 3.1

open file.rtf document in OpenOffice.org 3.1 and save in Open Document Text format

change page margins to US Letter with 1 in margins by choosing format menu and page menu item

add headers of title and footers of page numbers by choosing insert menu and footer and header menu items and selecting all option, click on the header and footer then choose insert menu, then the fields menu item and the options you want to insert

choose outline numbering under tools and then choose for each level, the corresponding number of heading with a lowercase h under numbering drop down list from heading 1 to heading 6 and then click ok; insert table of contents (under insert - indexes and tables - indexes and tables)

select all text manually after the table of contents, choose tools menu, language menu item, and then choose the selection, paragraph and all text menu items and select English option for each menu item

then choose export as media wiki, PDF with PDF/A-1 option and include bookmarks option, Export as Daisy XML with only use alternate level markup and include css options checked and make sure language says en-US and click on export button, then choose save as Rich Text Format, then choose save as HTML

if the tex4ht command works, do the following in OpenOffice.org 3.1

open file.odt in OpenOffice.org

choose sections from the format menu, click on the remove button until there are no sections listed any longer and then click on ok

change page margins to US Letter with 1 in margins by choosing format menu and page menu item

Ghostscript

make sure you have the correct version (8.63 or higher), by entering gs -v

the text displayed next should be similar to the following:

GPL Ghostscript 8.63 (2008-08-01)

then, enter the following command:

gs -q -dCompatibilityLevel=1.4 -dSubsetFonts=false -dPDFSETTINGS=/prepress -dNOPAUSE -dBATCH -sDEVICE=pdfwrite -sOutputFile=final.pdf file.pdf -c '.setpdfwrite'

Adobe Reader

open the file final.pdf and then select Properties from the File menu, and under the Fonts tab should read something like the following for each font you used

a big red a followed by

Font Name (Embedded)

Type: Type 1

Encoding: Custom

The important parts to look for are the word Embedded exactly which will be next to the Font Name and Type 1 under the Type attribute

Daisy Pipeline

Launch Daisy Pipeline, choose file menu, new menu item, then pipeline job option. Then choose modify and improve, Daisy XML (DTBook), DTBook Fixer, next, choose input file (the one you exported that ends in .xml, and choose output file (different file name), and finally click on the finish button.

Choose file menu, new menu item, then pipeline job option. Then choose create and distribute, EPUB, EPUB Creator, next, choose input file (the fixed one you exported that ends in .xml, and choose output file (different file name, which will end in .epub), and finally click on the finish button.

Choose file menu, new menu item, then pipeline job option. Then choose create and distribute, XHTML, DTBook to XHTML, next, choose input file (the fixed one you exported that ends in .xml, and choose output file (different file name, which will end in .html), and finally click on the finish button.

Choose run all menu item from the run menu

6.3.5 Vector Graphics File Format Conversions

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Background

I started out with a PDF from Mac OS X and then converted to many other formats. All these conversions can be done most easily on Ubuntu Linux. I used Mac OS X again for Cenon.

Using Command Line Programs

Finding the Command Line

How to Enter Commands

How to Copy and Paste

Getting the Programs Needed

How to Add Programs to Ubuntu via Synaptic

1. Login in to the First Account You Created during the Ubuntu Install

2. Connect to the Internet

3. Go to your Applications menu and choose Synaptic Package Manager menu item under System submenu

4. enter your password at the prompt (this is the same as your login password if you were the first user created during the Ubuntu install)

6. Click on the Name of the Program/Package you wish to install, right click on the Name of the Program and click Mark for Installation from the popup menu.

7. Then click on the Apply button on the toolbar and then click Apply on the pop-up menu

8. Then click on Close from the pop-up menu and then choose File menu and the menu item Quit

You Need

* Ghostscript

* PStoEPS

* Scribus

* Inkscape

* uniconverter

* Cenon

pdf2ps

converts from pdf to ghostscript

pstoeps

* converts from postscript to eps

* for Adobe applications

Scribus

* import postscript version

* export svg version

* for web browser version

Inkscape

clean off text on svg

uniconv filename.svg filename.wmf

* convert from svg to wmf

* for most Windows applications

Cenon

* import postscript version

* export dxf version

* for CAD or Technical Illustration programs

Technical Collection

Chapter 7

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PC Challenges

by Ben Huot

Technical Collection

7.1 Microsoft Articles

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7.1.1 Why Not Microsoft Office?

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Introduction

I stopped using Word within a year because of it crashing so often. That is what interested me in coding (so I could fix the errors) until I found that there was free software available that had over 90 percent of the functionality. And if there was an error, at least I didn't have to pay hundreds of dollars to call Microsoft or for buying it in the first place. Then when OS X came out, I found that you could buy commercial software from small companies, whose software is much cheaper and their support is much better. A large company should be able to support their products much better and have the money to test it in more conditions for errors, yet they don't. I have a strong suspicion that the bigger the company, the bigger the scam. It is a similar problem to how the US can possibly lose a war when they are at least 20 years ahead of the other most advanced Army in the world (of the technology that isn't classified). You can have overwhelming firepower, but if you don't have the intelligence to focus it at the right place and time, you can be defeated by a much smaller force. I would buy products from Microsoft if they would certify that they hadn't coded anything on them. People aren't switching to Linux because of the licenses; they are doing it because Microsoft products don't work right. Microsoft's poor quality makes the whole industry look bad and holds back innovation. Why buy new software or a new computer when it doesn't provide any more real value and the support is still unaffordable?

Price

For $500 I could either do the following

* Open Microsoft Office files with all formatting or

* Buy a prosumer level 9 MP Sony camera with 20x optical zoom, CMOS censor, pro lens, and pro processor plus all the software I need including office suite and graphics Suite with 90% of the features of Microsoft and Adobe products

Security

I would open my computer up to the most common viruses. Every document I opened could contain a virus. I could lose all the information on my computer.

Quality

Word has 20,000 features, but does nothing well. I could get any number of word processors that would perform better for as little as $25 as well as the free one that came with my computer. Word also corrupts your important data, so you lose information. This software made my computer crash all the time. I got rid of it and hardly had any crashes.

Respect

Sending other people files in Microsoft formats says I have no respect for myself for my freedom and for the choices of others. Everybody should have to make the same mistake I did. Everybody else who wants to see your documents with all the formatting has to buy the same program because Microsoft uses its monopoly illegally by not sharing its specifications with others so they have a fair chance of competing.

Prisoners

Microsoft has millions of people's data held hostage in their hidden formats and can at any time demand anything from you for your information, sell it to anyone they want, give out your secrets, and leave you out cold when they decide to no longer support your version.

Examples

Microsoft, despite being on certain standards bodies officially, has done many things to hinder open standards. Hiding behind the technicality that Office Systems uses XML, they hide the fact that this will actually hinder the sharing of the data (as there is no formatting in the XML version as well as the ability to make custom structures and now that they are using DRM it is actually a crime to try to write filters for Office Systems) On the HTML standards front, Microsoft continues to add there own way of formatting in where there are already established methods thereby corrupting standards. On the streaming digital video front everyone agreed on the price of mp4 encoding, including Microsoft, but then Microsoft undercut the price for its exclusive format. These are just a few obvious recent examples.

7.1.2 Making PDFs on Windows for Free

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Introduction

PDFs are an open standardized file format that any program can be made to read or write without paying any money and it is controlled by a public standardizing organization that allows anyone to join. The PDF file format is vast, but it was originally designed and does best at making read only print optimized files. Many features were added to PDFs that allow structure, interactivity and multimedia to be added to PDF documents, but the thing that is hardest to add to the PDF format is the ability to edit already created PDFs that aren't well structured. No product can edit every PDF you find. If someone sends you a PDF and wants you to edit it, ask them to send it in the original format it was created in and use the program they did program to modify the file. The reason why PDFs are hard to edit is that you cannot make a document keep the same formatting and still be editable and PDFs were designed to freeze the design.

PDF Creator

Description

Make a PDF from any Windows program that can print from within the print dialog

License

Open Source = free in cost plus not dependent on any company. As long as a programmer has access to source code which is given away freely, the idea/software cannot be killed by Microsoft. Of course no spyware or viruses.

Compatibility

Windows 95 and higher

Website

http://www.pdfforge.org/products/pdfcreator

OpenOffice.org 3.0 with Sun PDF Import Extension

Description

Make a PDF from most moderately complex Microsoft Word, Excel, or Powerpoint documents with little need to reformat, and import and then edit some well structured PDFs

License

Compatibility

Windows 2000 SP 2 or higher for latest version

Website

http://www.openoffice.org/

http://extensions.services.openoffice.org/project/pdfimport

CutePDF Writer

Description

Create, Combine, Rearrange, and add Footers and Header from the print dialog in any Windows application that can print

License

Freeware. No spyware or viruses. Free for as long as the company stays in business.

Compatibility

Windows 98 or higher

Website

http://www.cutepdf.com/

Tomahawk PDF

Description

Advanced PDF creator. Can create PDFs from common file formats and even directly edit PDFs.

License

Commercial. You pay to use the software until the company goes out of business. No viruses or spyware.

Compatibility

Windows 95 and higher

Website

http://www.nativewinds.montana.com/software/tomahawk.html

Fox it PDF Creator

Description

Create lean PDFs quickly and efficiently from any Windows application that can print from the print dialog

License

Commercial. You pay to use the software until the company goes out of business. No viruses or spyware.

Compatibility

Windows 2000 and higher

Website

http://www.foxitsoftware.com/

Adobe Acrobat Professional, Standard, Elements

Description

Do anything you can imagine with any PDF and create PDFs from any format and more.

License

Commercial. You pay to use the software until the company goes out of business. No viruses or spyware.

Compatibility

Windows XP and higher

Website

http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat

Technical Collection

7.2 Choosing Linux

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7.2.1 Why I Don't Use Linux

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and Am Happy with a Mac

Introduction

My experience with PCs and Macs can be summed up in the following short story by Tolstoy: “Walk in the Light while there Still is Light”.

The story is about the early church in the Roman Empire. Two friends grew up studying together and one left to start a cooperative community. The other went on into government and business. They continue to meet by chance as they grow older every decade or so and the friend who went into business was convinced to go with his friend to the coop, but was talked out of it every time by a philosopher. Finally, as an old man, he runs away from the philosopher and joins his friend at the coop. He mourns that he waited his whole life to join the coop, but a fellow worker there says “Walk in the light while there still is light.” While he is still alive he makes the most of his remaining years.

That is the way I feel after seeing the light of the Mac. Remember - it is never too late to give up PCs and go to the Mac.

Why I Started with Linux

* I originally started with Linux because I wanted to get into programming to fix Microsoft Office so it would stop crashing and because I liked the stability and the way UNIX was designed.

* Then I found there were many programs already available that could substitute for and surpass Microsoft Office in terms of features I used and stability and they were mostly free.

* There were also things I could do with Linux for free which would cost thousands of dollars or more for comparable capabilities. These include databases, networking, and 3d modeling.

Why I Changed from Linux

* I found that I was primarily a writer and artist and that I preferred to create, rather than fix problems. This is what networking is mostly about - fixing problems.

* I discovered that databases were not the solution for my web site. I found that organizing my site well was better than having a search engine and now that I use one in one of my sections it doesn't require a database - just data. (The original computer was designed for an insurance company, but once they organized themselves enough to be able to enter the data, they realized they didn't need a computer.)

* 3d modeling has not to come down to the commodity market like desktop publishing and there are not open web standards that have universal usage like there are for documents or 2d pictures.

Why I Went Back to Windows

* I wasn't able to run my Windows Bible software in the WINE Windows emulation program. I wanted to learn how to use vector drawing programs and there were none that could do what you could do with Windows.

* I then found that I could run Linux programs on Windows, so I already felt I was supporting Open Source.

Why I Went to Mac OS X

* Apple did UNIX right.

* I was very impressed by the reviews of OS X and had a lot of fun working with my mom's eMac.

* Everything worked correctly without having to fix things.

* The graphics were phenomenal.

* There were programs available for everything I wanted to do - fully featured and they didn't cost that much.

* There was also technical support if I ran into minor glitches. No one made fun of me.

Before Switching Back to Linux, I am Waiting for

* More Commercial Technical Support - this free support that you get from mailing lists and newsgroups are mean spirited and rude. This very well may be the case in Windows support groups too. The difference is with Windows there is plenty of commercial support.

* More Graphics Design programs - these would likely be commercial as open source programmers don't seem to use graphic design programs or the ones they create are so hard to use that you have to think like an engineer to use them.

7.2.2 Why Desktop Linux Again?

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Reasons for Leaving Linux

My first reason for leaving Linux was the lack of commercial support. There are now a number of commercial options available for support from several experienced and reputable companies:

For High End systems

* Penguin Computing

* Sun Microsystems

For Standard Powered computers

Ubuntu

* simple and clear installation and configuration

* latest software

* vast software library

* easy upgrading to latest versions

* I recommend Comcast Cable Internet

My second reason for leaving Linux was lack of graphic design applications on the same level as intermediate level commercial programs. There are now graphic design application for all the major areas that I use for my creations that:

Match the commercial programs in terms of:

* capabilities

* quality results

* compatibility

Excel in the areas of:

* cost

* longevity

* development rate

Here are some examples:

Kompozer and Bluefish for web design

Text Processing

* Kompozer and OpenOffice.org for word processing

* Winefish and LaTeX for long documents/books

Graphic Design

* Digikam for downloading photos, organizing them from the digital camera

* Gimp for web graphics, photo editing, and effects

* Inkscape and Xara Xtreme for (scalable) vector drawing

Publishing

* gLabels Label Editor for variety of print publications

* gFTP for uploading to websites

* K3B for CD-ROM burning

Gedit or Kate for text file editing

Also useful as well for graphic designers as well as most users there are:

Internet

Firefox, Opera (commercial/free), and Konqueror for web browsing, with:

* Flash Player (commercial/free)

* Evince (comes with Gnome) for viewing PDFs, DjVu, and DVI

* RealPlayer or Helix Player for playing MP3s and Oggs (commercial/free)

* Java

Other Internet

* Archiver for creating and extracting files to/from archives (.zip, .tar.gz, or tar.bz2)

* Thunderbird for email

* Evolution for calendars

* Weather applet in Gnome or KDE taskbar/dock

Others

* Calculator

* Bibletime or Gnomesword for bible study

* HFS Plus, HFS utils, (and xHFS included) for moving files from the Mac platform

Crossover Office for Windows compatibility minus the malware for testing websites on Windows only programs

* Internet Explorer 7

* Adobe Acrobat Reader 5

* Foxit Reader

* Sumatra PDF reader

Main Reasons for Returning to Linux

Longevity of content while still keeping it in an editable format

This is the most important part. As an artist it is not just the cost of your tools that matters, but what is most important is that your creation produces the most inspiration and enjoyment. And part of having the most impact is that the creation lasts the longest and others can enjoy it in the future. It would be even better yet, if others could build on it and restore it to its original glory. On other platforms you may be able to save part of your creation into a content that will survive the test of time, but you will not be able to retain all the information and to add to it they will have to use the same tools you have. Most importantly when you use traditional tools, others have to pay, many likely more than they can afford, to access all of your creation. And finally the vendor that sold you your tools will likely go under some time, the bigger they are - the harder they fall, and then you will have lost part of your creation forever.

* I can produce more types of content than most others can for less than 20% of the cost of using traditional applications.

* Let me repeat: I save over 80% off of what graphic designers using traditional tools have to pay and I can do more.

* Most graphic designers spend $5,000 total on hardware and software combined.

* With the Mac and using products from independent vendors, I did even more for only $2,500 in total hardware and software costs.

* With Linux and open source applications, I spent $850 on hardware and software combined and I can do more than I could with my Mac.

* And I get more support for Linux than I did for my Mac at no extra charge.

* Neither of these figures include upgrades. The cost of major supported Linux upgrades, one click installation of 3rd party products is free. The cost of keeping all your traditional software up to date is at least several hundred dollars a year and is not necessarily supported at that.

Why I Prefer Linux over Mac OS X

Apple reasons:

* The price of upgrades even for just the consumer programs Apple makes is now up to almost $300 a year (OS X, iLife, and iWork).

* Apple seems to want to make a major transition in either hardware, software or both every 5 years, which make the old products obsolete a few years after that not just because of features but because of compatibility and changes in the fundamental design.

* Apple's major OS releases have been way to buggy to be worth what they cost when they are released.

Macintosh Developer reasons:

* Developers don't want to support more than 2 at the most versions of Mac OS X.

* Developers often take 6 months after the new system is released and preloaded onto Macintosh computers to make their products ready for the new system.

* To get support for new Mac OS X versions, it often requires a paid upgrade.

Linux reasons:

* Linux is ready for prime time.

* Programs are always available for free download or a few dollars on CD.

* Linux runs faster on the same hardware specifications, so even lower powered computers that can barely run OS X can perform the same tasks very fast with Linux.

* When you install Linux, you can install up to thousands of applications at once and they don't ever require any authorization codes.

* It is much easier to compile, install, and run X-Windows based applications (most graphical Open Source programs are) on Linux than on Mac OS X, and they also run much faster on Linux.

* If one distribution of Linux doesn't work, there are many other versions to choose from.

* And Linux doesn't have any viruses or spy ware either.

* Monitor is sold separate from machine on almost all models (except laptops), so you don't have to buy a new monitor with every PC upgrade.

What Linux Doesn't Do that the Mac does

* You can make video DVDs and arrange and record music on the Mac pretty easily and inexpensively. I have not found a way to do either of these on Linux even with commercial software.

* Some of the things that you can do with Photoshop Elements you can't with Gimp like layer styles.

* There are no graphical style sheet editors that are wizard and template driven, have live preview, and and check for support of styles on many different browsers instantly on Linux

* Linux does not have some of the things new to the latest version of OS X like the lightening fast non-destructive image effects and lightening fast spotlight searches.

* Things new to PCs that require new hardware like WiFi are not supported right away. Wireless still doesn't have the best support under Linux.

* There is much more support for Macs amongst Internet Service Providers than there is for Linux, although Linux will work with most those providers unless you have to use a special dialer. Usually you can keep a Mac on hand and then you can prove to them it doesn't work with it either and it is not your fault - it is their server that went down or someone cut one of the cables down the street. I have never had a problem that was traced back to my Mac or Linux. But if you want them to install or there is some sort of authorization required it is a good to keep a Mac on hand. And you can buy a Mac for just $600 too. You can now run Linux and Mac OS X on the same machine. If you have a problem with an Internet connection after an update, try rebooting first as that is the only thing I have had to do if my connection wasn't working after an update.

Linux Box Specifications

Computer

* Intel Celeron D 340 (2.93 GHz, 533 MHz bus, 256 KB cache)

* 512 MB RAM (DDR 333 MHz PC 2700)

* 80 GB hard drive (7200 RPM)

* 16x DVD+/-RW Dual Layer

* network adapter (10/100 MB/s)

* 3 button scroll mouse

* Linspire 5.0 (Linux) preloaded

* 3 years parts, labor, on site warranty

* 19" Acer LCD monitor with VGA hookups

* 1 GB SanDisk Micro Cruiser USB flash drive

I now run Linux on my iMac with Vmware Fusion instead

Technical Collection

7.3 Linux Applications

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7.3.1 Linspire Product Reviews

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Good Reviews

BibleTime

Neat Bible program. Has all the features of many of the highly rated commercial programs like Logos and Accordance but it is available (by different names/graphical interfaces) for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux. The one downside is that it doesn't contain copyrighted titles like the NIV, but fortunately most of the best works existed before copyright laws were in place or have been done by groups without big publishing houses financing them so they didn't copyright their work. Also the Linux version allows you to download the books without having to go to your browser (from within the program).

Cinepaint

This program was designed from Gimp code to be a video editor for the Movie Industry, but I haven't figured out how to use it that way, but now that they included brushes from Creative Mac, you can use it very much like Painter.

DebugMode Wink

This is not an open source program. It is freeware for anyone, but you cannot distribute it and there is no access to the source code, so if this company gets bought out or goes under all we will have is the binary, so we won't be able to compile for different platforms or future versions of Linux. Otherwise it is a great program. It is kind of like a $300 program for Linux called Viewlet Builder.

Digikam

I recommend Digikam for downloading from a digital camera and organizing photos - to get them out of Digikam, just select the ones you want to export and drag and drop them to another folder. You have to add a camera before it will allow you to import from it.

Flash 7 PlugIn

This Flash plug-in works great on any site I have used that needs Flash 7. I think people are running into sites that require Internet Explorer or Netscape to function and are hard coded in. If a developer is dumb enough to limit itself to only Windows/Internet Explorer users, then I would prefer not to use their websites. Check out my site which requires Flash 7 and works perfectly with this plug in.

GFTP

I wouldn't call it easy to set up, but it is fully featured and fairly straight forward to operate once you have configured it.

Good Weather

Great application for seeing an entire forecast on the desktop. Just the right size too. 3 downsides though - it is see through, so it is hard to read through dark wallpapers, it is unclear on how to get the code for the city - I think it is the zip code, and you have to right click and select move to get it to move.

HTMLDoc

I started using this product in 1999. The really unusual and cool thing about this product is in how it creates PDFs. You make an HTML page with heading 1, subheading 2, subsubheading 3 and it will create bookmarks in the side panel of the PDF file as well as a table of contents and title page. It also supports lists, tables, images, and links. If you want to link from one part of the document to another you can use name anchors and then link to them and they will work within the document. You can also link to pages not in document. I recommend using one long HTML page as that is the easiest way to do it. You can also save all your settings in a file, so you just open that and all your settings are saved for that project. This product is also available for Mac OS X and Windows. It uses the Fast and Light Toolkit for its interface so it is very memory efficient and fast.

Inkscape SVG Vector Illustrator

Great intermediate level vector drawing program. Not quite as many features as Illustrator or Freehand but for most uses more than enough features. Very high quality results. You can export to pure SVG to import into Scribus for conversion into a PDF. Also directly exports to PNG.

Jalbum

For creating photo galleries I recommend Jalbum which could handle hundreds of files at once and although it is a Java application it worked very fast. It had many beautiful and very customizable themes which displayed perfectly at varying resolutions. You can even choose another language other than your default one for the gallery with some templates. You would want to specify 100% quality jpeg compression too as it defaults to 75%.

Komics

A great little application and great selection of comics, but when I first loaded this up it loaded 33 instances of the Gimp -one for each comic. Once I set my image files especially gif to open with Kview by default it worked fine. You have to launch it and then right click on it in your system tray and I recommend just selecting one comic rather than double clicking on the icon and having it open all of them at once.

Nautilus

I use Nautilus CD creator to burn data CDs and DVD+Rs. You just open two windows - one with the source directory and the other the CD creator and then drag and drop and then choose burn disc. It really is that easy. If you don't want to reuse the same files for the next burn, uncheck that options when the dialog pops up.

Nvu

I am very impressed by what Linspire was able to do with Netscape Composer as it was very difficult to use as it would link everything in absolutely, so when you saw your web page online it looked fine from your computer, but not anyone else's. This NVU is a totally different beast. It can handle even very complex stylesheets correctly and you can do everything through graphical menus as well as edit the code by hand when you want to. The one downside is that its stylesheet editor is not easy to use, so I would design your stylesheets separately.

Opera

I not only use Opera for testing my website to check it with another browser, but because Opera renders the HTML more faithfully according to what the code actually says than the Mozilla-based browsers do. In other words, if you screw up your code, Firefox will usually figure out what you were trying to do, but not with Opera. This is how Opera helps me as a web designer to develop better code.

Quanta Plus

I am very pleased with the capabilities of this HTML editor. The downsides are that its inline preview looks very ugly and it doesn't have the right schema built in for WML for web enabled cell phones. Also its image map editor does not create all the code you need to get the image map to work through a graphical interface/dialog. You may just want to do imagemaps in Gimp. Also when you load Quanta Plus again it loads a separate instance of the same files so you can end up with two versions of the same file - it can be very confusing and a mess to clean up.

QtFpro Anti Virus

I am very happy with QtFpro after trying this one and ClamAV. I like it much better as you have all the options and thereby control you need. And it searched my whole hard drive in 11 minutes. It is also rated much better at finding and eliminating viruses then KlamAV. Remember it takes a number of very stupid decisions to get a Linux virus and they are not circulating in the wild either, but the reason to have anti virus software on Linux is to help out your Windows using friends who are vulnerable to virus attacks.

Spreadsheet Pro/Kspread

I don't use Spreadsheets very often and am not that demanding of them, but I was pleased at how easy it was to use. And I was able to arrange rows alphabetically, after entering them in out of order, under its sort command and I was able to export it with clean HTML markup.

Superkaramba Liquid Kalendar

Nice little widget - like dashboard on Mac OS X. Very convenient and useful.

Thunderbird

Great easy to use email client with the features most people use like HTML mail and junk mail controls from the makers of Firefox. Has an easy to use and attractive interface and is available for Linux, Windows, and Mac OS X.

Write Pro/Kword

I have had trouble with OpenOffice.org crashing and bringing down my desktop when just doing routine editing, so I tried Kword hesitantly as I had used it a number of years ago and then it couldn't open its own file formats. I was *very impressed* this time. Not only was it very stable, but I was able to use it as a regular word processor by choosing the text document template and it has a print to PDF function like in OS X and can be saved to numerous formats including Palm Doc format and WML for web enabled cell phones. You can also use it like a page layout editor too.

Ximian Evolution

Great product like Outlook without the crashes and malware. I use it for basic calendar functions only. If you don't like its email abilities, try Thunderbird.

Bad Reviews

Gnome Desktop Environment

Hosed my installation. Had to re-install. I think it is Debian specific.

Lphoto

I couldn't even export 80 photos to a gallery. It kept on crashing on me. The Flash template would never load my images. Flash Player works fine for me otherwise and I have the latest version.

Lsongs

Nice interface but the audio playback stinks. I played a brand new CD in it and it sounded like it was an old scratched vinyl CD. The CD played fine in Amarok and my Panasonic MP3/CD player. My sound card is fully supported by Linux as I got my computer pre-installed with Linspire. Go with Amarok - you will be much happier. I do like the Internet radio feature which ironically sounded perfect.

Passepartout

You have to create a separate XML file for each block of text you want to have in the document. You cannot enter text in the text boxes as with Scribus or even insert a plain text file into the frame. Also there is no way to create a PDF of your file within the program or export it in any standard format. The only way you can get it out of its own format for others to read is to print it out on paper or print to a Postscript File.

7.3.2 Installing Popular Freeware on Ubuntu

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Now you can get some of these programs either in Synaptic or via Add/Remove Programs, but to get the latest or a different version, do the following.

Flash Player

I found the best way to install the Flash Player from Adobe is to

1. Download the .tar.gz for Flash Player package from Adobe.com.

2. Set your file manager to view hidden files in order to be able to view the .mozilla directory (which is in the top level of your home folder).

3. Make a plugins directory inside the .mozilla directory.

4. Copy the flashplayer.xpt and libflashplayer.so files (inside the archive) to the new folder.

5. To see if you have installed it correctly, type in about:plugins into your address bar of Firefox and hit enter, you should see the Shockwave Flash listed with the file extension association .swf.

Adobe Reader

1. Download the .tar.gz file for Adobe Reader from Adobe.com .

2. Extract the files to the desktop.

3. Open the terminal from the accessories sub menu in the Ubuntu applications menu.

4. After you launch the terminal, type cd Desktop and then hit enter if that is where you extracted the files to.

5. Then type in cd AdobeReader and then hit enter again.

6. Then type in ./INSTALL and then hit enter.

7. Then just type in y if it is listed as an option in parenthesis for that particular question and if not, just hit enter. Proceed in this manner until it stops asking you questions.

8. When you see your user name printed out again, then you can close the terminal.

9. You can check and see if it is installed correctly by typing in about:plugins in the address bar of Firefox. If it says Adobe Reader and then has an association listed with .pdf , then you are set up correctly.

Real Player

1. Download the .bin file from the Real.com website to your Desktop directory.

2. Change the permissions on the .bin file to execute for your user.

3. Open the terminal from the accessories sub menu in the Ubuntu applications menu.

4. Then type in cd Desktop and then hit enter.

5. Then follow the prompts as with Adobe Reader. When it asks you where to put Real Player, I chose /usr/local/RealPlayer. On the rest, you either hit y for yes, or just hit enter, depending on the question. When you see your user name printed out again, then you can close the terminal.

6. You can check and see if it is installed correctly by typing in about:plugins in the address bar of Firefox. If it says Helix DNA plugin and then has an association listed with .rpm, then you are set up correctly.

Java

Java comes with Ubuntu by default as far as I can tell, but can also be downloaded via Synaptic - get the Java Common package.

7.3.3 Getting VMware Player Set Up on Ubuntu

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do not upgrade kernel even when prompted to

if you plan on doing so, do not install via the synaptic multiverse repository

* Install the linux headers, linux headers (insert kernel version here), and gcc via Synaptic

* download the .tar.gz file from the vmware.com website

* compile from source by running the installer under sudo

Installing Vmware Player (the easy way)

1. choose Synaptic Package Manger from the programs menu

2. choose repositories from the settings menu of Synaptic

3. make sure all the repositories with Ubuntu in the name are checked

4. scroll down the list and then click on the one labeled Ubuntu with attribute universe and binary, then click add and check the multiverse attribute and then click add

5. click the search button, type in vmware, and then hit search

6. right click on vmware-player and choose mark for installation

7. hit the apply button, hit another apply button, then hit the close button

Downloading Virtual Appliance

1. Go to www.vmware.com in your web browser

2. choose free virtualization from the products menu

3. click access the directory under virtual appliance

4. choose desktop user or advanced user from the combo box to the far right

5. click on the desired distribution and follow instructions

6. write down the user name and password especially the root password and then bookmark the website you downloaded it from

7. After downloading, double click to open up the zip archive, then click on extract

Running the Virtual Appliance

1. Choose Vmware Player from system submenu of main menu

2. browse to where you put the expanded archive, and select the .vmx file, and click the open button

3. from the ethernet button on the top, right click and choose NAT

4. to get the mouse to work in the virtual machine, click in desktop within desktop

5. to get the mouse to work in main OS, hold down the control button and hit alt button

Technical Collection

Chapter 8

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Apple Challenges

by Ben Huot

Technical Collection

8.1 Mac Articles

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8.1.1 Why Macs Cost More than Cheap PCs

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(They Include More Powerful Features)

Lowest End Mac which is equivalent to a mid-range PC now costs $599

In Stock and Functional at Base Price

There are Mac Mini machines in stock and available in the lowest cost model which you can receive at that price and are fully functional. Dell has only a couple computers in stock and available at the the prices they claim you can get one for. Good luck competing with all the thousands of other customers for those couple PCs. And they still keep on pushing you to add on features which before you reach what the Mac has you will be paying more money.

One Version of Industrial Strength OS

With bargain PCs you only get a crippled OS. Apple puts the same 64 bit OS that runs their servers for millions of users on their desktop computers. There are thousands of easy to use, advanced, and inexpensive applications available for the current version of Mac OS X, as well as many Mac only applications that cost hundreds less and do design work that isn't possible on a PC and are of cinema quality. You can run many applications at one time, without any crashes. There are no viruses or spyware circulating on the Internet (that will install without you deliberately doing so manually). Mac OS X is easy to fix and does not require extra work to make it secure or fully functional. You can also find any file by what words are in that file instantly.

Runs Windows Better than on a PC

Apple now uses Intel processors in all their consumer machines models, instead of PowerPC which will run a standard Windows XP Home or Pro or Vista on the same machine (the Mac), at the full speed of the machine, with no limitations and you can run them simultaneously, share files, and be able to run any software which can run on Windows and your Mac keeps its full warranty, even after installing Windows. You can run Windows at exactly the same speed as on the other few PCs, with as fast a processor as the Macs come with.

Built in Network Card for High Speed Internet and Networking

All Macs come with a network card for high speed Internet access and for networking with other computers in your home or office. Macs easily integrate into Windows networks and even auto-detect it while still being secure. Bargain PCs do not come with the capability to network, or do high speed Internet and the modems they have for slow Internet access are missing basic components and instead use software to perform basic functions, so your whole computer locks up, when you connect to the Internet. Mac OS X includes a heavy duty web browser, email client, calendaring, and address book that work in any application. Mac OS X also ships with Adobe Flash Player. There are actually more choices in web browsers for Mac OS X, than for any other OS.

Backups

You can backup your music and your photos to a CD-ROM with one click as well as make CD-ROMs of other data by drag and drop onto the disc and then choosing burn disc from the file menu. You can also backup data automatically with Mac OS 10.5. All you have to do is plug in a USB hard drive. You can get any version of any file ever created, through a point and click and instant search graphical interface, after the external hard drive is plugged in.

Multimedia

Macs come with a DVD player and DVD- ROM support, so you will be able to install programs that come on DVD-ROM and play DVDs on your Mac. Macs also come with decent microphone, speakers, and sound card as well as the leading programs to organize photos, movies, TV shows, music, audio books, podcasts, and Internet radio. Macs come with software that allow you to create your own music, movies, podcasts, blogs, and publish photos, movies, and songs to your website or to iPod, iPhone, and Apple TV with a few clicks.

Graphics Support

Mac OS X comes with PDF viewing and markup software, PDF creation from any application that can print, and can turn any EPS or Postscript file into a PDF by double clicking on it. You can compress PDFs with one click as well as make industry standard PDF/X-3s. Digital tablets work in any application. Mac OS X gives small developers the ability to create graphics that have cinema quality graphics.

Programmers Dream

OS X includes Java including the developer suite, the Xcode world class programming software for creating Mac and iPhone applications, and X-Windows for running Open Source programs that don't have a complete Mac version available. Mac OS X has optimized access for any Mac application for audio, graphics and video effects, 3d, animations, sql databases, instant search, instant incremental backup, and many more Mac only features that rival anything Adobe can come up with. Cocoa is what Java and .Net are a cheap rip off of. A developer who programmed in .Net and considered an expert spent 1/3 the time developing an application with Xcode, even though he had never used it before. Small developers can have the same potential market for their applications when they make Mac only software as they would making Windows only software. They could either have 50% of the Mac market or 2% of the PC market.

Technical Support

Apple support is rated higher than any PC maker and you can talk to Americans who speak without heavy accents, so you can understand what they are saying. This is something you can not do with even the so called superior PC makers. Support only costs $150 for consumer models for 3 years and they cover the hardware, software, and the OS, so there is no passing the buck. This support includes telephone support, on-site repair, parts, and labor warranty. You also have up to one year to pay for the warranty and all Macs ship with a 1 year warranty for free, that covers everything but telephone support. To talk to Microsoft for one incident, it costs $200 and they will blame your hardware manufacturer which will blame third party software which will blame Microsoft and the vicious cycle has just began. You get free shipping with Apple products over $100. Dell charges you $100 to ship its computers.

Statistics

* Macs have risen from 2% market share to 10% US in just a few years

* Apple makes more money on selling computers than iPods

* The Apple only browser Safari, is the third most common browser

* Home Users - 20% have Macs

* Internet Users - 10% have Macs

* Adobe Sales - 25% are for Macs and that is including Adobe Acrobat

* At many Ivy League schools, the students have more Macs than PCs

* New Apple Computer Purchases - 50% are former PC users and new to Macs

* Digital Artists and Graphic Designers - over 75% have Macs

* All iPhones and iPod Touches run a simplified version of Mac OS X

8.1.2 Basic Design Tools

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used in production, design, and publication of Benjamin-Newton network on my Mac

The following are the current tools I use to complete my designs - primarily web based. I use PDF, DjVu, JPEG, PNG, MP3, OGG, HTML, CSS, and Flash to publish my work on the web.

Software

* My text books were designed with TeXShop and LaTeX (pdftex)

* I designed my graphics illustrations books with Inkscape and Scribus.

* My Book of Lists was designed with HTMLdoc.

* My book covers were designed with Xara Xtreme or Inkscape and Pages.

* My handouts were done with Toon Boom Studio Express and Apple's Pages.

* For my website, I created my stylesheets with Stylemaster, most HTML pages with Komposer, and for uploading content, I use Filezilla.

* I create my graphics with many different programs, including: Toon Boom Studio Express, Painter, Art Text, Photoshop Elements, Carrara 3d Express

* I manage my photos and other graphics and create web galleries mostly with iPhoto and Jalbum.

* My Flash animations are done with with Toon Boom Studio Express or BannerZest Pro

* My music was designed with Garageband, iTunes, and Quicktime Pro.

* I use Quicktime Pro for video and audio format conversions.

* Bible verses quoted from MacSword

Hardware

* 2.4 Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo iMac with 4 GB of RAM and 250 GB hard drive and DVD burner $1400

* Sony Cybershot DSC-HX1 - $500

* 9 MP

* 20X Optical Zoom

* CMOS sensor

* USB 2.0</p>

* Olympus WS-300M USB digital voice recorder - $100

* Lacie D2 Hard Drive Extreme Triple Interface - $120

* 160 GB

* USB 2.0, Firewire 400, Firewire 800

* 7200 RPM

* 8 MB cache

* Brother HL-2040 USB monochrome laser printer - $120

Rationale

The major brands of software are harder to use and have many bugs. They require a much larger financial commitment all at once. You cannot buy just what you need. It is a one size fits all approach.

Paying more for an application does not make it better. While you can usually return computer hardware (tangible devices and components) with receipt within a month without problems or longer if there is a manufacturing deformity and it is recalled, with software (the stuff you download off the web or buy on a CD-ROM) it is very hard to return for any reason because the software company usually believes that you are asking for a refund to scam them while keeping the product on your computer.

8.1.3 How to Buy Mac Hardware

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Know What You're Buying it For

If you're buying for web design, you can get by with cheaper hardware, for instance. If you are only printing out in black and white or just text you can save money too. You will also often times need different products. Laser printers print out text sharper and have cheaper volume printing costs, but for photos and computer drawings, inkjets do much better.

Know How Much You are Willing to Pay for a Given Quality

If you only have $400 to spend on a digital camera, there is no point in finding out how good the ones are that cost more. If you need a 4 megapixel camera, don't buy one until you have enough money saved.

Mac OS X Compatibility

Make sure it says “built for OS X and universal”. OS 9 only compatible drivers are not going to work.

Good Name Brands

Buy a name brand that is good quality and does a good job of supporting Macs. Apple, Canon, Epson, LaCie, Lexmark, and Wacom are good examples.

Try it Out First

If your buying something that is on display, try it out first. I found drawings with colored gradients are the most strenuous on printers (my still life drawings are good examples) and digital cameras can almost always get good enough pictures for email or web, but not all print out so well.

Good Deals

Get good deals on hardware at Apples Hot Deals website (updated weekly). These are the leading resellers of Mac hardware and software (although buying from the manufacturer is not a bad idea too. Be sure to read up on the product specifications first and be careful about buying software as it is almost impossible to return.)

iLife integration

Try to get one that integrates with iLife (for digital cameras and portable audio players)

Technical Collection

8.2 Apple iPad Tablet

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8.2.1 Background Information

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General Apple iPad Information

What is an Apple iPad Tablet?

Basic Information about the iPad

Purchasing Advice and What to Wait For

Lack of Space

I would recommend buying an iPad, for most users, provided you are aware of several factors, that might make it best for you to wait until Summer 2012 or 2013, to buy the iPad. The biggest limiting factor of the iPad is that it is small on disk space. 16 GB is not that big, when it comes to storing audio and applications. When you throw in video, the lack of disk space becomes a major issue. The iPad disk space will likely double, at least once a year, for the foreseeable future. If you want to get an idea about how much space typical applications take up - all my applications together (most are listed in this directory) take up almost 8 GB (but that includes a tremendous amount of information that I can access without being connected to the Internet). The cost for the all the recommended apps in all categories is about $200 which averages about $2 an application.

Recommended Accessories

It seems now that you can get double the disk space, for $100 more - I recommend this, as well as buying the 2 year Applecare warranty, and a hard case. I have the dockable keyboard but rarely use it. The digital pen may work well for some, but I would wait to see what Apple recommends, in this department, as it might damage the screen. Also try drawing with your finger, because it is much easier than you most people think it is, as the sensor is very precise, and you can draw fine lines, with your finger.

Wait for More Software Support

The next issue is the lack of Flash Player for the iPad: by 2012-2013 most websites will not be using Flash or there will be a Flash Player for iPad - this will be a painful transition for many web masters and content providers, but it will be resolved in the next few years. Another thing that is lacking which matters to some people is the lack of Microsoft Office for the iPad. If Microsoft does not release a Microsoft Office for the iPad, then some other company will provide a solution - maybe IBM, Oracle, Google, or a small company. This issue will likely be resolved in a few years as well.

iPad Does Not Replace Your Computer

The final thing to realize is that the iPad is not designed to replace your computer. You may find yourself using your iPad more than your computer or feel that it replaces your iPod Touch, your dedicated e-book reader, your game console, your iPad, net book, and even your laptop, but you will need a Mac or Windows PC computer (desktop, laptop, or even net book), to back up and sync your files with your iPad. This may change in the next few years as well.

Best of iPad

Apps

* Low Price of Apps

* Easy Install of Apps

* All Apps Tested by Apple

* All Apps in One Place

* Selection of Apps

* Easy iTunes backup

Hardware

* Battery Life

* Speed, Responsiveness

* Ease of Use

* Reliability/Durability of Data Storage (Because of Flash Drive)

* Lightweight

* Perfect Size

* Low Price (Compared to Mac Laptops)

Other

* Technical Support

* Integration with other Apple products

* Warranty

Best Uses of iPads

* Playing Instruments

* Maps

* Legal and Medical References

* Bible Study

* Reading Magazines</p>

* Browsing in Website Apps

* Reading PDFs

* Playing Games

Worst Uses

* Touch Typing

* Text Editor (Immaturity of iPad Text Editors)

* Opening 100 MB plus PDFs (Low Amount of RAM)

* Playing Audio in Public (too big for headphones)

* Not Enough Space for Video

* Note Enough Space for Garageband like Apps

* Comic Books - Hard to Use Free Apps

* Buying Books - Not Enough Selection

Apple iPad Navigation Techniques

Basic Navigation

To zoom in, you either double click, or touch the iPad, with your thumb and finger together, and then spread out your finger and thumb. To zoom out, you start with your finger and thumb spread wide and then bring them together. To get the program options buttons, if they disappear, by double clicking. You rotate the screen, by rotating the iPad, and holding it up vertically.

Home Screen Navigation

To get back to the home screen, where all your apps are, click on the square white outline button, on the bottom or top of your iPad, if you are holding it up, in the portrait orientation. You have more home screens, depending on how many programs you have.

You can fit up to 20 apps per screen, but you only want to include a maximum of 16. This is because you navigate between the home screens, for more programs, by dragging your finger across the bottom of the tablet, below the program icons. You can move forward or backward, by dragging your finger back and forth, across the bottom empty space.

You can also move the app icons around the home screens, in iTunes, on your computer, under the Apps tab under your iPad section, or on the iPad directly, by clicking and holding on a program icon. If you accidentally click and hold on an icon, you can get back the icons back to working as before, by clicking on the home button.

Copying and Pasting Text

You copy and paste by first clicking in a text area and then clicking and holding in the text field, until a magnifying glass pops up. Then you should see an option bar that allows you to select, select all, or paste. After you choose select all, then you have the options pop up for cut, copy, and paste. Choose the copy option. To paste, go to the place where you want to paste and do the first part again, up to the point, where you see the options select, select all, and paste. Select the paste option.

Troubleshooting your iPad

You get to most the application settings, by clicking on your settings icon. If you have trouble with your iPad not working, one of the things you can do is reset your iPad. Realize you lose all your iPad settings this way, but not any programs or data. You do this, by holding down on your iPad home button and the sleep/wake button, at the same time, for at least 10 seconds, until the Apple logo appears.

If you have an app, that locks up your iPad, you can make it quit, by pressing the sleep/wake button, for a few seconds, until a red slider appears. Then press and hold the home button until the application quits. The if that doesn't work, then press and hold the sleep button until the red slider appears. Then drag the slider. Then press and hold the sleep/wake button, for at least 10 seconds, until the Apple logo appears.

If you cannot get your screen to rotate as you rotate the iPad, then make sure your screen orientation lock is not set on lock. That is controlled by the switch on the side of the iPad. The button below this switch controls the volume.

Advice for Using iTunes

Managing Apps and Media

Installing apps is easier than on a Mac. All the apps can be found on the iTunes store, which you can access on your Mac or PC with iTunes, or directly from your iPad. Installing an app is as easy as searching for what you want and then clicking on free or buy and confirm (you may enter your password, if you want it to prompt you, each time). You can delete the apps, by clicking on the app, you want to delete, from the Apps section in iTunes and choosing Edit and Delete from the iTunes menu. Then you just plug in your iPad and the Apps are copied over to your iPad. For updates to apps, go to the App section in iTunes and it should have a number next to it (corresponding to the number of application updates available) and then click on “get updates” or “check for updates,” if you want to check manually. There are 2 ways to ad media like books, audio, and video to your iPad. You can buy it from iTunes or buy it in a supported format (ePub and PDF for books; MP3, MP4, Apple lossless, AIFF for audio; MP4 for video) from a third party and then drag and drop it into the proper iTunes category.

Managing Disk Space

Now if you want to transfer more content than fits on the iPad, the iPad automatically prioritizes which data is most important. You can see how much space each type of media takes up, on your iPad, when you plug it in. To see this click on “Your Name” followed by the word “iPad” on the iTunes sidebar. Then click on the tab titled Summary. The blue color tell how much space audio takes up, video is purple, photos are yellow, apps are green, books are magenta, and other is orange. There are tabs for Info, which includes Mobile Me (Apple's online service you can purchase for an additional fee), address book (from Address Book on a Mac), calendar (iCal on a Mac), mail (Mail on a Mac), and web browser bookmarks (Safari on a Mac); Apps; Music; Movies; TV shows; Podcasts (free internet radio shows); iTunes U (free university lectures); Books (e-books); and Photos (from iPhoto on a Mac). You can choose what you want to put on your iPad by name, by category, by album, by collection, by date, by order, and by what has been played.

Backing Up iTunes Library

One of the great features that Apple's line of iOS products (iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, and any other product which syncs or is managed with iTunes) is that you have a complete backup copy of everything on your Apple device like apps, books, music, videos, and settings all in your iTunes Library. So you can easily back up your entire iPad installation, information, and data by just copying the folder titled iTunes in your Music folder of your home directory /Users/Your_Name/Music to another portable hard drive or USB Flash drive. The other way to backup your iTunes library is to choose File, Library, and then Back up to Disc from the iTunes menu. Then follow the instructions. Make sure you have a few DVD-ROMs available. To restore your iTunes Library in case of a hard drive crash or you lose or damage your iPad, you just insert the first disc into iTunes and select the option that you want to restore from backup. Then you just follow the instructions. The other way to restore your iTunes Library is to copy back your iTunes folder to your Music folder in your home directory.

Advice for the App Store

Features and Cost

One of the things you need to remember with the iPad applications on the iTunes App store is that applications generally don't include any features not mentioned in the application description page. Most iPad applications have been written from scratch not very long ago and are often not as mature as comparable desktop applications, although they cost much less. Generally the maximum price even for a very large and complex application is only $10. Most apps cost $5 or less. Prices may change from time to time and some technical apps cost much more. Always check the free apps first and be careful not to spend more than $5, unless you really understand what you are getting.

Help for Choosing Apps

I also recommend reading the reviews, before you buy an application. Remember though reviewers are brutally honest and expect a lot from apps that are almost free, so take what they say with a grain of salt. But they tend to be very specific about what is wrong, so it will help you decide which one to get. Also, when you search, make sure you choose the iPad specific ones, as the iPhone only apps are very small on the iPad and check to see that it works offline, as you will likely find yourself in situations where there are no wifi hotspots in range.

Gift Cards

You don't need a credit card, to buy software, for the iPad, from iTunes, or buy, from the iBook store, from your iPad. The iTunes gift cards, that come in denominations of $15, $25, and $50, can be used to purchase iPad apps and iBook books, in addition to music, audio books, and videos. You can buy these iTunes gift cards, at your local: Apple store, Mac store, grocery store, or most other stores that stock third party gift cards. You just click on “redeem”, in the upper right corner of the iTunes store, and enter the code, on the card, after you scratch of the silver covering, with a coin (like lottery cards). There is a problem with some of the gift cards - sometimes the code you need to enter is illegible. If this happens, call customer support and say iTunes. Unfortunately, the telephone system makes you say the product instead of picking a numbered option and it mixes up the word iPad with iPod, so when you get to a person you will need to be transferred to someone else. If you don't want to role the dice on whether or not the code will work, I would recommend just not using the cards. I am certainly never going to use them again.

Advice on Entering Sensitive Information

You should never enter credit card numbers, passwords, or any other information you don't want everyone else to see over a public wireless network (WiFi Hot Spot). I would recommend getting a wireless network, in your home, with password protection, to buy things on, like the Amazon.com Kindle bookstore. All the apps on the application store can be bought, from your computer, via iTunes, so you don't need a wireless network, for that part, but many of the applications like Amazon.com's Kindle require that you buy books, from within their application, so you would need a wireless network, at home, for that.

Other Applications and Add-ons

8.2.2 Reference Recommendations

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Recommended iPad Academic Applications

Recommended Viewer/Reader Applications

* Offline Pages - Free

* ReaddleDocs - $5

* Photos - included

* Zinio Magazine News - Free

Offline Pages allows you to download web pages from your iPad so you can view them offline. Entire web pages will work offline including stylesheets and Javascript interactivity.

ReaddleDocs can view several formats including PDF files. You can download PDF files on the Internet on the iPad or drag and drop the PDFs into the file sharing page that appears just below where you organize your apps when your iPad is plugged in to sync. You can also organize files into folders from within ReadleDocs on your iPad. ReaddleDocs also opens zip files as well.

Photos is where your photos end up after transferring from your computer to your iPad and is similar to Apple's iPhoto applications.

The Zinio Reader allows you to buy and view popular magazines and they already have a good selection and are growing fast. The graphics look great and they are easy to read. They support rotation and zooming. They are easy to navigate. You can buy per issue or buy a year subscription. They are about the sa