[scribus] running Scribus on eeePC

[Gregory Pittman]

On 08/12/2009 12:50 AM, Robert Marma wrote:
> Just like Patrick Ernst, I, too, have an Asus eeePC, and was wondering how well Scribus will run on it.  Can I safely install Scribus without any problems?  I would appreciate advice from Patrick or anyone out there.
> Thank you.
>    
Hi Robert,

First of all, please cut out the extraneous messages from your posts. 
It's also better to start a new email rather than use an old one and 
just change the Subject.

I think the issues with netbooks are generic, depending on the 
processor, the video chip, the RAM, and size of the screen.

I have a Dell with a 10 inch screen, N270 processor, 1GB RAM, Intel 915 
graphics chip and it works fine. The display area is 1024x576 pixels, so 
vertically it's a bit short. OTOH, when I have tried an external 
monitor, I could only get 800x600, rather uglier than what I have now.

It came with Ubuntu, but I have switched to Fedora 11, and can compile 
without problems. As others have alluded to, the distro can be an issue 
if you want to download a binary or compile. AFAIK, if you have Windows 
XP, the download from Sourceforge should work as expected.

One thing that is surprising is how small the screen font can be and 
still be reasonably comfortable to read -- I'm down to 6-7 points for some.

As far as the usability of Scribus on a small screen, it depends. If you 
have some experience with Scribus, you may be someone who can largely 
manage what you need to do precisely "by the numbers", ie, lining things 
up and specifying dimensions with the Properties palette. Things like 
snapping to grid/guides may also be helpful.
If you are someone who needs the whole image in front of him, you may 
feel uncomfortable with shrinking the zoom down so much. There is the 
option of a quick printout from a local printer when needed.

Greg