Tools for writing
If someone sends you some information electronically, e.g. a text that you requested or an agenda or a meeting protocol, would you be surprised if that information is sent to you as a Word document attached to an e-mail? It wouldn't surprise me.
So what is it about these tools that make them so good that so many people use them for so many things? The answer is simple. Nothing. These tools are not good. The reason can only be the huge quantity of installations. Or?
Are there no alternatives then?
If you're a scientist and need to write a publication, what do you do if you don't want your research data locked up in a proprietary file format? What do you do if you're tired of spending hours trying to produce a nice looking graph of your data in Excel just to find out that you'll have to spend the rest of the night trying in vain to import it into a Word document or a PowerPoint presentation. Sign up for a course on the Office Suite? I don't think so. There must be alternatives.
Computers have been around for a lot longer than the Office Suite, and they've been used by a lot of scientists, technical writers and... writers. What programs and tools did they use before?
I'll take a look at TeX the next few weeks (or months?) as it seems to be a great tool for writers who like to spend their time on writing and producing content instead of fighting with various word processing programs.
