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I am not an artist, but now and then I have a need to create some illustrations for presentations. A couple of years ago I was searching around for packages for my Linux notebook and did not find much that was useful. The GIMP works fine for raster graphics, but not vector graphics. There was Dia, but that didn’t seem to work for me.

Now there are two great software packages for Linux: Inkscape and Xara. Installing both on my Ubuntu system was a snap:

$ sudo apt-get install inkscape
$ sudo apt-get install xaralx

Inkscape

Inkscape is really cool. I am a big fan of SVG, which Inkscape uses at its native file format. It has an intuitive interface and was easy to use. The connector features is a great way to connect shapes in a diagram like Visio. Inkscape works on Windows, Mac and Linux. And when you are ready to publish, simple export it as a bitmap (PNG).

An aside about SVG itself… SVG can be a great way to provide some dynamic elements to web applications, especially when used with JavaScript. Kevin Lindsey has some excellent resources at his site http://www.kevlindev.com/. The current problem with SVG is support for IE, since Adobe discontinued support for it, presumably as a result of its acquisition of Flex.

Xara

The story behind Xara is interesting. The FAQ states that one of the reasons for releasing this product open source, in addition to slashing their Windows product price, was a response to Microsoft’s entrance into the illustration software market with Expression.

The software is great. I was able to create some simple drawings very quickly. The free version is only available on Linux. A Mac version is on its way. The Windows version can be purchased for $79.

My Uneducated Choice

Both are great products. Inkscape has a vibrant community and looks to really develop in the future. Not being a graphic artist, it is hard to say which one is better. My impression is that Xara is a bit more mature. I will probably use it over Inkscape for now. It is just amazing to me to consider that only a few years ago one would have to spend hundreds of dollars for this kind of software - not to mention waiting for a CD to ship. Now with distributions like Ubuntu Linux, all it takes is a simple installation command and 2 minutes of waiting. Cool.

This article on Slashdot got me thinking about learning Assembler. It’s crazy. Why spend the time to learn a language with I will never use directly in my career?

It is very much like the time in 5th grade when I took my entire BMX bike apart just so I could put it back together. (and discovered it had three extra parts ). I would really like to know how a computer actually works beyond the high level languages I work with.

Maybe I am interested in the challenge simply “because it’s there”.

This how-to looks like a good start: http://www.linuxdocs.org/HOWTOs/Assembly-HOWTO.

I just finished installing WordPress on my website hosted at TextDrive. I am really impressed with how easy WordPress is to install and use. The installable themes are great.

I now have a blog. I hope it will be of use to some and occasionally interesting. Until it does become interesting, you can read some blogs that already are:

• http://tapestryjava.blogspot.com
• http://www.toolshed.com/blog
• http://www.raibledesigns.com

I find it humorous that Firefox things the word “blog” is misspelled. It suggests I change it to log, bog, slog, clog or flog. Ok, I’m game…. Welcome to by new bog.