Re: [vox] PDFs

[Norm Matloff <matloff@cs.ucdavisMAPS.edu>]

One really good use of PDFs for us UNIX (i.e. non-Microsoft) people is
the ability to make PowerPoint-like slides.  PowerPoint-like "special
effects" capabilities are basically taken as a given for presentations
these days, and PDF allows you to do this.  See
http://heather.cs.ucdavis.edu/~matloff/prosper.html 

True, there is also Open Office.  However, personally I prefer to use
packages which allow me to use my own text editor (for me, it's vim).
This means I can use the same editor abbreviations, key mappings, macros
etc.  that I've built up over the years, in all the various software
applications that I use every day.  So I use mutt for e-mail instead of
a GUI; I just write HTML "by hand" instead of using a package (usually
not even Amaya); I use LaTeX (usually not even LyX) for word processing;
I use Prosper (a LaTeX package) for making  slides; and I just use vim's
programming aids (:make, syntax colorizing, etc.) and GDB/DDD for
writing software, rather than using an IDE.  I use vim in all of these,
and derive great benefit as a result.

To many of those who love GUI (which even I do, to some degree), this
approach may seem odd, but once you get used to it, you may not think
GUI is so important after all.  It is very annoying to me when I use
Amaya or LyX, for instance, not to be able to save typing by doing word
completion.

So, if you need formatted text for public display, I do recommend PDFs.

Norm

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