[Scribus] Why do?

[BandiPat]

avox wrote:
> If they sold in the US, the company probably went out of business 20 years
> ago due to expensive lawsuits with buyers who accidently nailed their cats
> to the garage door... 
>
> ============
>   
Actually Andreas, they still make and sell these hammer drivers in about
any hardware store here!  People understand "gun" type devices pretty
easily don't forget.  :-)
> In my experience you shoot yourself in the foot if you try to do page layout
> from a wordprocessor perspective -- just as if you tried to create a column
> layout with a typewriter. Much better to start with an empty page, design
> a grid layout, then place frames into the grid.
>
> ============
>   
I do agree with this, although it can be done and has grown easier the
last few years with a word processor.  They are still different programs
and each should be used for the job intended.
>
> I think we all are in favour of ease-of-use. The ease-of-use I strive for is
> clear concepts, logical menus and easy access to common features.
> There's no doubt there's a lot of that in Scribus which can be improved.
>
> What I don't want to achieve is being similar to well-known programs so
> the users find their way around more easily. Some programs achieve
> column layout only by using several textframes? Tough, Scribus will keep its
> frame-based columns. Other programs have option XY in menu Y, not in
> properties palette or menu Z? Tough again. As long as it's more logical,
> Scribus will have its own ways.
> OTOH we will not hesitate to move options around if they are more logical
> to users that way -- feedback welcome!
>
> Oh, and BTW, I doubt ease-of-use was the key factor to M$'s success.
> Remember that joke: "How many MS engineers does it take to change a
> light bulb?" -- "None. Bill Gates declares darkness as industry standard."
>
> /Andreas
>   
==============
The one thing I think I might disagree with here is making this program
like other programs.  Sure, put those features in the program, but give
Scribus it's own identity, people will still use it and be happy to
learn it, simply because it's so much easier to use than those other
programs.  You make it as difficult to use as those others and they'll
not bother to change.  You gotta give the user a reason to change, they
won't do it willingly.  You make it the same or as difficult and Linux
takes another hit, because it's just for hobbyist users.

It would be so much simpler for the user, old or new, to be able to go
to the Insert menu heading and select Columns.  A window opens, ok, how
many and what gap?  Whamo!  They appear on the page like magic, 2 or 3
or 4 equal size columns (text frames) spaced correctly on the chosen
page size.  Now I can link them, adjust their size or remove one to my
liking!  What could be easier or more intuitive?  While users of Quark
or anything else are struggling to "draw" them on their page, I'm
already typing and finishing my page.

regards,
Pat

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