desktop open source

8/8/2019 Desktop Open Source

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Open-Source Softwareon the DesktopBy Jessamyn West

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L ibraries have been paying for software, upgrades,and support since the first PCs arrived in our read-ing rooms. And libraries have made do with tightbudgets since the first book was lent.The growth of quality open-source desktop applica-tions offers an especially valuable opportunity for librar-ies to improve service while spending less on softwareand support This chapter will look at some of the mostpopular and easy-to-use open-source software applicationsand discuss how they can be used in a library context.

either by patrons or by library staff.Please note that this is not a discussion of merely"free as in beer" software. Many Web browsers are nowavailable at no cost, and shareware tools for a variety ofapplications are easy to o btain. The focus here will be onlyon those tools that are free to use, examine, copy, andmodify. While you may not want to take advantage of theexamination and modification options of open-source soft-ware, their availability is part of what makes these toolsuseful for libraries and librarians. There are many open-source applications that do a wide range of things. Theones assembled here are generally easy to use or the bestin their particular class for doing a certain task. Pleasesee the resource list at the end of the chapter for moreOSS options and in-depth evaluations.

Also note that I personally installed every one ofthese products on both a Mac running the latest versionof OSX and a PC running Windows 2000 Server at thebeginning of 2007. The OSS environment changes rap-idly and sometimes unexpectedly: while I expect installa-tion and customization for most of these tools to only geteasier, it is possible that my experiences with using thesoftware may vary somewhat from your own experiences.All screenshots are mine, not promotional shots. The ap-plications are listed roughly in order of usefulness, with

tbe ones at the end really being more like blurbs. I'vetried to keep the jargon to a minimum while at the sametime realizing I'm w riting for information professionalswith some degree of computer experience. Any words youdon't understand are sure to be readily Coogleable, but Ihope there aren't many of them.

Firefox Web Browser: You MayAlrea dy Be Using Open SourceFirefox is one of the most popu lar and widely known O SStools. It has roughly 14 percent of the browser marketshare as of January 2007, second only to Microsoft'sInternet Explorer.' Firefox offers a lightweight browserthat operates the same across different operating systems.Firefox can be customized in many different ways, fromusing "themes" to adjust its look and feel to expanding itsfunctionality with a wide range of plugins and extensions(see figure 8). If you have PCs in your library, you can in-stall Firefox and use a theme to mimic both the look and

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eFigure 8:Firefox with an Internet Explorer style theme and buttons.


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the functionality of Intern et Explorer, which may ease the"new browser shock" for patrons and staff who are usedto using IE.

Firefox Web Browserwww.m02illa.comhttp://en.wikipedia.orgMJki/Firefox

Firefox has a few obvious major advantageous fea-tures and some less obvious ones. It comes with a searchbox built into the toolbar with major search engines al-ready listed. Users can also install or write plugins forsearch engines of their choice. Instead of navigating toYahoo or Google or a library home page and then usingthe search box, users can type their query directly into analways-available search box and have the results appearin a Web page. Many libraries have created their own cus-tom search plugins for searching their library catalogs orsome of the ir library datab ases (see figure 9). The MycroftProject is an online collection of these search plugins,and there is a searchable directory available at the site.It has over 10,000 available piugins, including searchesof dictionaries, popular Web sites such as eBay and tbeInternet Movie Database, and social software sites such asdel.icio.us and Flickr.^

The big thing that separates Firefox from otherbrowsers is an extension called Greasemonkey. When youhave installed Greasemonkey into your Firefox browser-a

very simple operation-you can run scripts that actuallyaffect how the browser displays the Web pages you visit Ascript may do something as simple as highlighting searchkeywords on a page if you reached it through a search en-gine, or as complex as making a Web site more legible oraccessible to people with disabilities. The scripts can actu-ally change the text on a page, removing ads, highlightingwords, or changing formatting. The Greasemonkey exten-sion is a sort of mini-program within Firefox that can beused to run scripts. There is a huge repository of thesescripts online. Most people who use Greasemonkey don'twrite their own scripts; they use one that someone elsehas written. Here are some example scripts that librarieshave written, to give you an idea of the types of things aGreasemonkey script can do: IMDB Search Library Catalogue from Name Page:When the Internet Movie Database displays a page

relating to a person (a "name" page) the script in-serts a search link into the Hamilton Public Library(Hamilton, O ntario, Canada), labeled "HPL ," for eachmovie listed on the page. San Francisco Library Lookup; Search the SanFrancisco Public Library Catalog from Amazon booklistings (see exampie in figure 10).

Sometimes scripts are written by users to fix "annoy-ances" in library Web sites . For example, LPLFixup allowsscript users to alter the view of tbe library's Web site todo such things as "remember your library card numberLansing Fublic Library Caulog and Patron

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Figure 9:Searching the Lansing Public Library Catalog from the Firefox toolbar.

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Figure 10:Two screenshots of anAmazon.com page for the bookFriendly Persuasiot). The second example is using theGreasemonkey San Francisco Library Lookup script.and PIN and fill in the login form" and "automaticallylog inwhen you are presented with a login form" on theLacrosse (Wise.) Public Library's Weh site. Note that al!of these scripts affect the page only when viewed on thecomputer the script is on and when thescript is enabled.So a Firefox browser with Greasemonkey installed couldhave a variety of scripts available to theuser, who couldturn them on andoffatwill.

If you don't see a script that works well for your li-brary, you might want to investigate LibX, which allows li-braries to build their own extensions and library-brandedtoolbars without installing Greasemonkey by using a tool-kit of prebuilt widgets. They support most major OPACsand allow users to do things like search from a right-clickcontextual menu, interact with Google Scholar with ap-propriate levels of permission, andaccess proprietary con-tent from off campus by using proxies.The most important thing about Firefox is what itdoesn't have: incompatibilities with any Web standards.While there are still some Web sites out there that aremade with FrontPage and do certain things only inInternet Explorer, Firefox is standards-compliant and cor-rectly renders Web pages. Safari users may be aware ofcertain JavaScript limitations with Safari, but Firefox forth e Mac does not have those problems. My favorite ver-sion of Firefox is the Portable Firefox application, whichcan be stored on a USB key drive bundled with a smalllauncher application so that you can have your own cus-tomized version of the Firefox browser, complete with

your passwords and bookmarks, touseanywhere on anyplatform that will accept a USB drive. Check the PortableApps home page listed in the Firefox Resources box formore information onportable versions of most of the ap-plications listed here.Lastly, Firefox canfixsome things that are less thanoptimal about theWeb experience. It can block popups,enable ordisable JavaScript or images onaparticular site,and change the default font sizes (see figure 11). You canset it to clear your cache andcookies at intervals that youdetermine, and the default settings are cautious, not "al-low everything." It also allows you to pick thehelper ap-plications of your choice foropening documents in other

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Figure 11:Firefox has simple ways to block popu p advert isements andaWow or block JavaScript on a site-by-site basis.

file formats and hasa built in spell checker forwhateveryou type into your browser.

Firefox ResourcesMycroft Search Pluginshttp://mycroft.mozdev.orgGreasemonkey Script Repositoryhttp://u5Grscripts.orgPortable Appshttp://portableapps.comiPL Fixuphttp://freecog.net/2006/lplfixupMake Firefox Look Like IEhttp://johnhaller,com/jh/mozilla/firefoxjnternet_explorerLibXwww.iibx.org

NeoOffice and OpenOffice.org:Microsoft Office withoutMicrosoft PricesOne of the most surprising pieces of software for peopleunfamiliar with open-source tools is the OpenOffice.org/NeoOffice combination. OpenOffice.org runs onWindows


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and Linux machines. It is also installable on OSX ma-chines, but with a slightly more complicated installprocess (see figure 12).

^NeoOfficehttp://neooffice.orghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NeoOfficeOpenOffice.orghttp://openoffice.orghttp ://en.wikipedia,org/wiki/OpenOffice.org

NeoOffice is a version of OpenOffice.org created spe-cifically for OSX computers (see figure 13). This chapterwas written using NeoOffice tools, including setting upspreadsheets, writing the document, and reading otherpeople's PowerPoint presentations for reference. The sur-prise here is that these tools mimic the functionality ofMicrosoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Access at a muchlower cost (see figure 14). They have many of the samekeyboard shortcuts-Ctrl-C or Command-C for copy-tool-bar buttons, and general functionality.

This is not to say that going back and forth betweenWord and NeoOffice, for example, is completely seamless.NeoOffice can open Word documents and save documentsin Word format (.doc). However, users must make an ex-tra step to make sure to save their document in Wordformat and not in OpenOffice.org's default .odt format. Ithas also been mentioned that OpenOffice.org cannot openolder Word for Macintosh (.mew) files. OpenOffice.org andNeoOffice are both single programs that operate as asuite of smaller programs and are similarly interoperablewith Excel, Access, and PowerPoint, in addition to havingdrawing and math formula tools available. Both sites have

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Figure 12:The OpenOffice.org Windows installation process is notdifficult.

support and information wikis available, which are helpfulfor answering most basic support questions. Using the na-tive Help feature built into the programs is actually quitesimple and requires no interaction with a talking dog orsmarmy paper clip. NeoOffice also comes with some otherbuilt-in tools such as a linked "bibliography builder" anda mail-merge wizard that is significantly simpler than theone built into Microsoft Word.

The second most popular application in the NeoOffice/OpenOffice.org suite is the Calc tool that is analogous toMicrosoft's Excel spreadsheet application.It works similarly to Excel and can import basic andstandard Excel spreadsheets with no difficulty. Thereare some incompatibilities with importing complicatedspreadsheets and charts, which may require a little bitof retooling to the imported version. You can save Calcdocuments in all the standard Excel formats as well asOpenOffice.org, NeoOffice, csv, and html formats among

others (see figures 15 and 16).The PowerPoint-like application is called Impressand functions similarly to PowerPoint. Users may noticea lack of built-in templates-which seems to be the largestdivergence from PowerPoint's stock features-but manytemplates are available on the Internet and could be pre-installed to any local version of the software. Users canalso take advantage of the Open Clip Art Library, 6,500public domain images that can be used in any of theOpenOffice.org/NeoOffice prod ucts. Impress has th e abil-ity to export slideshows as PDFs, ppt files, or Flash files,so that they can be played on any computer with Flash,

not requiring any Office tools.One of the considerations when looking at changingsoftware suites-such as making a move from MicrosoftOffice to OpenOffice.org-is evaluating what sort of train-ing will be required to use the new software (see theoffice suite comparisons in the Resources box on page

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Figure 13:NeoOffice has a familiar look and feel.

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.e of the most surprising pieces o f soFigure 14;NeoOffice is a set of office tools all together in oneapplication.

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source chat client for OSX, though Gaim will run on aMac using Apple's X II interface. In short, if you wanta seamless way to use IM on a Mac, use Adium. Bothclients are as easy to install a.s any commercial softwarepackage. However, they differ from the standalone clientsfor each serviceAIM , Yahoo! Messenger and W indowsLive Messengerin that they can log in to multiple ac-counts at once, so a user can have a shared buddy list ofusers on all the different supported platforms.

diumwww.adiumx.comhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AdiumGaimhttp://gaim.sourceforge.nethttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaimhttp://pidgin.im

These can be split up in separate groupings, but theydon't necessarily have to be split by platform. An icon

next to the IM handle shows what network the user is on(see figure 18). However, for most basic IM functionality,the network that the user is on doesn't matter. In thisway, a library can register a handle on the major IM net-works and let patrons contact the library on the platformof their choice. So instead of saying "Contact us on AIM,"the library can have one all-purpose handle and present amore platform-neutral contact option to their patrons.Other features easily available to users of these toolsinclude tabbed IM windows, making it easy to maintainmultiple chat sessions at once, and a variety of customiz-able themes that can make the software have the look andfeel that staff or patrons prefer, even if what you prefer isto make the software look like the proprietary client {seefigure 19). Adium has just recently released a 1.0 versionof its software, and the project's Web site includes a biog,a busy support forum, and videos guiding newer usersthrough the steps required to download, install, and use

the software.Gaim is also themeable and has support forums,screenshots, and bug trackers via the SourceForge Website. Both offer the same features as regular IM clients:the ability to use away messages to indicate your status;

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Figure 17:Gaim and Adium users can sign on to many different IMnetworks.

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neiwurks arid let me CO!us on AIM" the library can ha\option to their pations.Figure 19 :A very bare bones Adium theme.


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ability to send hyperlinks and files back and forth; a main-tainable buddy list; message encryption; alert noises, ifyou are already using an IM client from one of the majorservices, you will find the open-source alternatives mucheasier to use, ad- and clutter-free, and easier to customizefor your own purposes.Chat ResourcesComparison of Instant Messaging Clientshttp://en,wikipedia.orgAwiki/Comparison_of_instant_messaging_clients

Thunderbird: Block Phishing andSpam and Start Liking Your InboxAgainThunderbird is a local e-mail client-i.e., not a Web mailtool-that functions similarly to Microsoft Outlook, butwith more built-in security and optional extensions thatallow you to customize it. It runs on Windows, OSX, andUnix machines. It also can be used as a new sgroup reader.As with Firefox. a long list of themes can be used withThunderbird, including one that can make it look verysimilar to Outlook (see figure 20). Thunderbird supportsextensions, and there is a large developer community cre-ating them. Popular extensions include an integrated cal-endar tool, an ad blocker, a file download manager, anddictionaries in many languages.

Thunderbird Fil Edit View Co Message Tools Window HI|>Inbox forjeiM

underblrcwww.mozilla.com/en-US/thunderbirdhttp;//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mozilla_Thunderbird

Thunderbird is an e-mail program concerned with se-curity; it allows users to send their e-mail using SSL (se-cure sockets layer) protocols and offers support for mes-sage encryption, with a PGP extension being an optionaladd-on. Newer us ers will appreciate its phishing filter,which highlights and warns against messages that redi-rect users to nonobvious sites with "Thunderbird thinksthis message might be an e-mail scam" (see figure 21).Users can train the program to recognize junk mail andspam using its adaptive filters, which improve as moredata is added to them. Obviously this is not likely to bea tool to have on public-access computers, but for stafi^'who are used to interacting with Outlook, or especiallythe free limited-featured Outlook Express, this will be aconsiderable step up.

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Figure 20:Thunderbird's interface will look familiar to Outlook andEntourage users.Pn.acy

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Figure 21:Thunderbird wil l check your incoming e-mail for well-know nscams.Odds and EndsTitles YouMight Not Be Aware OfGIMP: The General Image ManipulationProgramIf your library has a Web site that staff work on. or ifyou have some version of Photoshop on your public-ac-cess computers, GIMP is a free and easy-to-use substitute.GIMP stands for GNU Image Manipulation Program andhas been in development since 1997.^ It's head and shoul-ders above the standard Windows system tools for editingand manipulating digital images (see figure 22). It alsohas more features than iPhoto and is more of an edit-ing tool than a photo management tool. GIMP is a littledifficult to install since it requires some extra files to beinstalled at the same time-Xl 1 for the Mac and the GTK+2 Runtime Environment for Windows. Both of these setsof files are free, and the GTK files are provided on theGIMP for Windows download page. GIMP does not runon pre-OSX M acs.


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GIMPhttp://gimp.orghttp ://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GIMP

Genera l Resources

VLC Video a nd DVD PlayerCan your patrons play DVDs on your library's computers?Do you need to watch DVDs on a library computer butfind Windows Media Player overwhelming or the AppleDVD Player just a bit too minimalistic? VLC is a multi-media player that will easily let users play most typesof media files with the notable exception of Real Mediastreams. It's small, easy to install and run, and works withall major operating systems (see figure 23).

VL Ch t tp ;//videola?rorg7?i^http://en,w(k!pedia.org/wiki/VLC_media_player

Try The m, They 're FreeWhile the sheer quantity of open-source software outthere can make shopping around for good software toolsseem a bit daunting, there are many solid and time-testedapplications available. Many of them resemble proprietarysoftware, which makes them easier to learn and interactwith. At the same time, these open-source tools are free,so the cost for trying them out is only the time it takesto download and install them. These tools also stay free,50 if you decide you like them, they're yours for the costof keeping them upgraded. Many libraries are shiftingto partial or total open-source solutions for their public-access and staff computers and are finding the initial timeand effort outlays to be well worth the lower cost of useand maintenance.

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Figure 22:GIMP'S toolbars and layer palette.

OSS in Librarieshttp://oss4lib.org and http://code4lib.orgOpen Source for Windowshttp://osswin.sourceforge.netOpen Source Alternativeshttp://osait.comOSS Directoryhttp;//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:Free_software

Figure 23:VLC is a simple DVD player v^fith many other multim ediafeatures.Notes

1. "Browser Market Share for February. 2007," on theHitslink Web site, http://marketshare.hitslink.com/report.aspx?qprid-0 (accessed Mar. 19. 2007).

2. "Mycroft," on the mozdev.org Web site, http://mycroft.mozdev.org (accessed Mar. 19, 2007).

3. "2007 Microsoft Office System Pricing," on the MicrosoftOffice Web site, http://office.micro soft.com/en -us/suites/FX101754511033.aspx (accessed Mar. 19. 2007).

4. Stacey Cowley, "IM Interoperability Stalled, AOL BattlesTrilllan," Feb. 22, 2002, on the PC World Web site; www.pcworld .com/article/id.86 024-p age, 1/articie.html (ac-cessed Mar. 19. 2007); "AOL Instant Messenger," on theAOL United Kingdome Web site, http ://inf o.ao l.co.u k/aim(accessed Mar. 19, 2007).

5. "GIMP," Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GIMP{accessed Mar. 19. 2007).

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