tlug: Transitioning to Linux (was: Many Faces on Linux)

[John De Hoog <washi@example.com>]

Jonathan Byrne - 3Web <jq@example.com> wrote:

> Gaining developers, especially gaining Windows 95 developers who either come
> over to Linux or at least port their products, can help push Linux to larger
> market shares.  Ports from Windows 95 would be especially good, since the
> should be able to import the files of the Windows 95 versions, easing the
> transition for people who are migrating, or considering migrating, from 95 or
> NT Workstation to Linux.

An item that got fairly good coverage in today's technical news is
S.u.S.E.'s announcement of its Office Suite 99 -- which is basically
Applixware with some Office 97 filters (conversion routines). That's
another possible approach. (It's due out Oct. 15 or so.)

In my case, I make my living by providing Japanese-to-English
translations  to large corporations. The translations are provided as
files, and most of the clients ask for MS Word files. These documents
can be very long, more than 1,000 pages in some cases. I wonder how well
the S.u.S.E.-Applixware filters handle the conversion of a 1,000-page
Word document back and forth. Even if I were to use Applixware (or
Star Office, etc.) to produce the work, it would still have to be
provided as Word 97 files in order for me to get paid. Most documents
also contain a large number of technical drawings, which I have been
doing using Smartdraw, a Windows program. When I don't have time to do
them myself, I farm them out to an Australian firm. That company can
work in Windows or on a Mac, but does not do Linux (yet). Does Linux
have a comparable program for doing technical drawings easily? 

These are a few of the realities I'm faced with in making any transition
to Linux. I'll wager there's no easy solution at this point in time. Am
I right?

--
John De Hoog, Tokyo
dehoog@example.com
washi@example.com
http://washi.nu, updated Sept. 25

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