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Last month, we talked about office suites, media players, and connectivity applications. This month, we’ll conclude our basic suggestions on essential software to install on a newly deployed Linux system
I enjoy working with graphics on the computer, particularly since my main system, a Fujitsu Lifebook T4215, is pen enabled and allows me to draw on-screen, so I always install the vector-based drawing package Inkscape, also available on Windows and MacOS. The advantage of being able to learn one application, yet use it on different platforms, is a great one, so you don’t have to learn multiple applications as you move from one system to another. I personally tend to discard this advantage to some degree by installing multiple applications on Linux for a specific purpose, but I also tend to use one application a good deal more often than any others, in most cases. In addition to Inkscape, I always wind up with a couple of drawing packages installed by the office suites I use, so I also have LibreOffice Draw, and Krita in Calligra Office. Full Circle previously published a series on Inkscape that has been compiled into several Full Circle Special Editions, available for download here: https://fullcirclemagazine.org/inkscape-special-editions/.
Here’s the Inkscape interface:
Sometimes, it’s advantageous to draw graphics on a photo or to use a bitmap based drawing package. I always get Karbon with Calligra Office, and I also use the venerable software classic, the GIMP. The GIMP is a very capable photo editor, and is also used to help produce this column, as Full Circle requires embedded graphics to be in 800 pixel wide JPG format. I do screenshots for the column, which the system defaults to saving in PNG format, load them into the GIMP, scale them to 800 pixels wide, then export to JPG format. The process works well, unsurprisingly, considering the GIMP has been in development since 1995. It ought to be rock-solid by now, and so it is. The GIMP is also available on MacOS and Windows. On the next page, bottom left, is what the GIMP looks like in single-window mode, which I prefer.
I do consider some games on the system to be pretty essential, as it’s nice to take a break from any work, from time to time, and clear the cobwebs out of the ol’ noggin. In fact, I’m going to go play NJAM right now….
I’m back, did you miss me? We’ll look at games in more detail in an upcoming column, but I’ll just namedrop here that I always install the Pac-Man style game NJAM, the Burgertime clone Burgerspace, Mahjongg, and DOSBox to run old DOS games (of which I have a ridiculous number, most never actually played through to the end). I also have a number of terrific games from GOG.com, which we’ll discuss further in the upcoming ‘retrogaming’ column.
I also always put a version of MAME, the Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator, on every computer I own, because playing actual original Donkey Kong, Space Invaders, Joust, Mr. Do, Pole Position, and other 70’s-80’s vintage arcade classics, is one of the most essential uses of a computer, in my book. There are also multiple home consoles emulated on Linux, for those who can’t live without Super Mario or Sonic the Hedgehog. Again, we’ll discuss further in a later column.
I insist on installing Bible study software on all my computers, and can recommend BibleTime and Xiphos Bible Guide on the Linux platform. BibleTime uses the same modules as other Crosswire products like “The SWORD Project” (Windows). I happened to already have downloaded many free modules from Crosswire on Windows before ever setting this system up. Fortunately, the modules can be transferred from Windows to Linux and still work just fine. BibleTime can access a number of classic resources like commentaries, atlases and dictionaries, concordances, literary works, different translations of the Bible itself, and a large variety of other works. Bibletime:
The “Xiphos Bible Guide” also uses the Crosswire modules. On the Windows side of things, I have Bible Explorer, which uses WordSearch modules. I have not found anything on Linux yet that uses WordSearch. If anyone knows of such an application, please write at acer11kubuntu@gmail.com and I’ll mention it in a future column.
I like to install other educational or reference software on all my computers, and on Linux, that means Parley (a quiz/flashcard application), KRecipes (exactly what it sounds like – we’ll talk about it more in a later column), Kalzium for the periodic table of the elements (anyone else know Tom Lehrer’s “The Element Song” by heart?), GoldenDict as a dictionary program, KDE Marble and KGeography for geography reference, and Kig as a geometry program. Education and reference software is, to me, a great use of the computer that I feel has fallen somewhat by the wayside as the years have gone by, but Linux has some pretty good options in that respect. There are a lot of existing modules for Parley to quiz you on a wide variety of subjects including history, language, science, and others. After populating it with some of the available content, Parley looks like that shown below.
Another great use of the computer is for keeping track of financial information, and you have multiple options here, too. I am aware of GnuCash, Skrooge, and KMyMoney as personal finance managers. I don’t have a lot of specific input here, though, as my financial accounting is actually quite basic and straightforward (it’s that way when you’ve got little/no money, I guess). KMyMoney does seem to have a nice, simple interface that I do like. And it does import from Quicken or Microsoft Money, among others. My bank’s online component lets me export in Quicken format, so that makes coordination with KMyMoney really simple.
Another essential category is E-Book and graphics viewers. Many users will want to read PDF files on the computer, and Linux has a number of choices for that. I personally love having E-Books on my machine, especially on the Lifebook, as it can be converted to tablet/portrait mode for an excellent book reading experience. I also have a lot of my comic book collection scanned into electronic format (CBR and/or CBZ), for which I usually use Comix as a viewer. Okular is my personal choice for PDF reading, but there are many other PDF viewers available. My personal reading needs are pretty straightforward and Okular works fine (for that matter, Chrome is a perfectly usable PDF viewer). Okular opens a wide range of file formats, beyond just E-Books.
These applications, and similar alternatives that are available, should provide users with a very useful and fairly complete set of programs for most everyday computing needs.
Next time: System Settings, and customizing the Unity Desktop.
I invite feedback on easier/better ways to do things. Any such submissions in response to articles or content will be considered the property of Full Circle Magazine for publication purposes, without remuneration, unless the writer/commenter specifies otherwise. That said, commentary and feedback are heartily encouraged and appreciated, at acer11kubuntu@gmail.com.