On Wednesday 05 September 2001 16:09, you wrote:
> John Levon writes:
>
> I've turned tens of normal students onto lyx instead
> of word (even unix-hating students) entirely as a result of the output.
>
> Yes, but ...
>
> I've never used ms-word, and haven't used any PC word-processing
> program since the first version of word-perfect. For 16 years I've
> worked strictly in Unix (currently sparc-solaris-2.8), using
> troff/groff, then LaTeX with xemacs/auctex, and now with LyX. As an
> historian and novelist, I've been a strong advocate of the structured
> approach to writing. Despite which, of late I've been considering a
> switch to (horrors!) a PC and ms-word. The reason is four-fold:
>
> 1. Although we continually say that LyX leaves the user free to
> concentrate on content, a review of a few months of the queries and
> replies on this list suggests how many simple problems require
> complicated, time-consuming solutions in LyX. Firing off a query,
> searching Herbert Voss' excellent pages of tips, and crafting
> complicated solutions to simple problems in LaTeX is not strong
> evidence in favor of the argument that LyX lets you concentrate on
> the content.
Ronald, this is a documentation problem easily solved. For instance, creating
a new environment. It's what -- 20 lines of code? Cut and paste and a little
modification. The problem is that the UNIX tradition is to create terse
documentation with no examples, and this invariably creates problems for
those of us with substratuspheric IQ's (me for instance). I already created a
little documentation to make this easier for those who follow. It's at
http://www.troubleshooters.com/linux/lyx/index.htm. Herbert's got a killer
doc site but it really needs a search facility for maximum usefulness.
It would be very easy to write a simple perl script to create a new
environment or text style, if the guy who knew perl and the guy who's an
expert on LyX and LaTeX could come together. If there are any LaTeX and LyX
experts in Central Florida who could meet me at a LUG meeting, I'll do the
Perl.
Last, before making the jump to MS Word, consider whether you really want to
ask Bill Gates for permission to access your data, year after year. Read this:
http://www.troubleshooters.com/tpromag/200104/200104.htm
As someone who's used Wordperfect and Word to write books and other paperdocs
for the last 12 years, I'm so glad to have LyX.
--
Steve Litt
Webmaster, Troubleshooters.Com
http://www.troubleshooters.com
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
(Legal Disclaimer) Follow these suggestions at your own risk.
