At the urging of Frank Besler (besfred), I have compiled my list of regularly used Open Source Software (OSS). I’ve tried to break things down so both geeks and non-geeks can get a sense of what this stuff does. Each project name includes a link to the project or product. I encourage folks to check them out and explore the advantages of OSS.
NOTE: Ease of Use (EOU) Scale = 1.0 [Not Easy] … 5.0 [Very Easy]
| Personal Productivity | EOU | |
| Red Hat Linux 9.0: RH9 runs my web server and will probably run my home Linux Workstation. For those interested in jumping from Windows or Mac OS, this is the Lin ux distr to use. It is the simplest to install, use and update (for the non-technical). | 4.0 | |
| Mandrake Linux 9.2: After much cajoling by my Xaraya mates and the fact that Mandrake is the platform of choice @ work;Mandrake is now the OS I use throughout 95% of my workday. | 4.0 | |
| OpenOffice: Perhaps the first true OSS killer app. This project allows folks to completely release themselves from dependence on Microsoft's Office Suite. | 4.5 | |
| Mozilla (FireBird) Browser: So much faster than IE or Netscape; Tabbed browsing and incredibly crash resistant. Cutting edge, but simple. | 5.0 | |
| Mozilla (Thunderbird) Mail/News Client:Like it's browser brother, this mail/news client is elegant and simple. | 4.0 | |
| Evolution: Outlook users should start there for their mail/calendar client. The overhead is higher then Thunderbird, but it is easily the best PIM for the Linux environment until |
5.0 | |
| XMMS: A robust, powerful media player. I love XMMS. My only gripe is that installation and configuration is not terribly intuitive. | 3.0 | |
| GAIM: My universal Instant Messaging(IM) client. |
3.0 | |
| Kopete: Another Universal IM client . Visually, Kopete approaches Trillian's ease of use, but stability is a concern. | 2.5 | |
| LinCVS: Although I am fast becoming a command line CVS geek, I still find this graphic CVS client useful in my workday. | 4.5 | |
| 4.5 | ||
| KBear: Like LinCVS, KBear is a great graphic back up when I brain cramp on command-line SCP and FTP. | 4.5 | |
| Web Development | EOU | |
| PHP: The simplest web scripting language for non-CS majors to pickup. Simple and powerful. | 5.0 | |
| MySQL:See PHP. The same plusses but for a relational database. The only thing missing is transactions, which are coming. | 5.0 | |
| Apache:The best web server on the planet. IMS IIS is arcane,Apache is straightforward. | 5.0 | |
| Eclipse IDE: I use Zend(which is not OSS) at work. But the Eclipse IDE would be my choice were Zend not available. | 4.0 | |
| phpMyAdmin: The best browser-based database admin tool around. I punish this app everyday. | 5.0 | |
| MySQL Control Center: If you must have a desktop app (not phpMyAdmin) this is the one to have. | ||
| Bugzilla: The best bug tracker around . I wish it was written in PHP though. PERL makes it more difficult to visually integrate. | 4.0 | |
| Xaraya:OK, I am biased (I am on the team). That said, I think Xaraya is on course to be the best web app framework for the LAMP(hp) platform. | 4.0 | |
| Moveable Type: Hands down the best blogging software for the bleeding edge, DIY blogger as well as the beginner. Xaraya is learning lessons from these guys. | 4.0 | |
| phpDocumentor: A great tool that documents your code for you. A pain to set up, but it is worth it. | 3.0 | |
| phpXREF: See phpDocumentor. A similar tool with a slightly different approach. | 3.0 | |
| phpCollab: A great OSS remake (and extension) of Macromedia's SiteSpring. | 4.5 | |
| Gallery: Hands down, the best OSS image/media management tool for web developers. | 4.0 | |
| NetJuke: Got MP3's you want to share (legally of course)? NetJuke rocks for the home network. | 4.0 | |
| Desperately Seeking This OSS | EOU | |
| A GUI-based XML Editor: KXML editor is weak at this point. It is difficult to install and does not seem to do much. Oxygen XML shows promise, but is not OSS. | N/A | |
| Solid UIM Client: See complaints above(GAIM/Kopete). | N/A | |
| Decent Flowcharter: Dia just can't hang with Visio. | N/A | |
| PocketPC PDA Sync: Plenty for Palm OS, but not the Pocket PC (Windows) platform. | N/A | |
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