Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with software and opensource

Help me chart a course...

Zinger — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 08:46:23 -0800

What's a good, open source alternative to Visio? I'm looking to do some flowcharts, absolutely hate working with the draw tools in Word, and need something fairly simple, easy to use. Prefer not to use web based, don't like trusting data to third parties.

Where to find business advice for open source software

Anonymous — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 07:52:38 -0800

Where can I find professional advice on the business possibilities for an open source software project? Is there a good location to ask a very specific question and get an experts advice. Its for a large project, of which 75% is already completed. I've already asked for advice on it from a couple of forums I frequent with no response besides the usual "make it and find out". I need to get a better idea before I dedicate too much more time to it. I just recently discovered a site had developed a hosted version, which might negate my efforts so far.

I need to find somebody who knows the business aspect of these things as i only know software.

Seeking the wordpress of calendars

wo — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 18:56:51 -0800

Looking for an open source, web-based calendar app. Does there exist any decent open source software for calendaring with a web interface? Basically I am looking for the WordPress of calendar software. That is, I want software I can run on my own server. Functionally, Google Calendar would be perfect; I just don't want to give Google (or anyone else) personal information if I can avoid doing so. Thanks :)

Looking for a simple rating/ranking web app

lord_yo — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 01:20:57 -0800

Help me find a simple web app: Users are able to enter items, other users are able to rate those items, and the aggregated rating score is used to display the items as a ranked list. Like digg/pligg, but without the bells and whistles. The app should be open source and installable on any major server.

Splitting a PDF by bookmark

Ritchie — Thu, 28 May 2009 21:17:08 -0800

I'm looking for some inexpensive/free solution to splitting a PDF by bookmark (first level bookmark), and using the bookmark names for the filenames of the split PDF. I've done some research already and discovered 2 products that are almost good enough: PDF Split-Merge and PDF Split and Merge.

The only drawback to PDF Split-Merge is that it costs USD$20-30 per user, and I have about 12 users to roll it out to. (That may sound like nothing, but my IT department runs on a literal shoestring. The other day we each got given a roll of duct-tape so each of us can repair the disintegrating carpet in our respective cubicles.)

The only drawback to PDF Split and Merge (which is free and open-source), is that when it splits the PDF, it doesn't use the bookmark names as filenames. Instead you get generic filenames with an appended counter based on page number.

I've done some scripting, so I'm open to hearing about, for example, Perl modules that help with this. My searches on CPAN have led me to PDF::Core and PDF::Parse, which don't really seem to be built for this.

How to control printing expenses in an open computer lab?

beelzbubba — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 09:31:45 -0800

How can I limit printing quantities on a quasi-public networked printer? I run a small nonprofit computer center with 10 networked computers (8 XP, 2 OSX). I need to control ink & paper costs, but want people to be able to print free or low, low cost. When I was at Uni, we had a system where all users had to buy tokens at 5 cents a page. Is there an open source or low cost program that can help me do this? Even if my selling cost is zero, I want to track users and usage. My implementation skills are medium, but I have access to some great technical folks, so don't be afraid to suggest something complex if it will help us keep our center running. Most patrons are mindful, but we get the occasional conspiracy nutjob who feels the need to print a 200 page pdf on our system so that Alphaville can't track her. The computer area of the center is often unsupervised for adult users and I don't want to have to make judgment calls on what people can or can't print. I can afford to allow maybe up to 30-50 free pages per month per user. Right now everyone signs in using a generic account, but I can change the system to have unique registration--which of course will send my conspiricists to the public library where they charge $0.10/pg but retain anonymity.

Strange article about a programmer scheduling his life according to software recommendations.

®@ — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 09:34:19 -0800

Article about "efficiency" software that ended up taking over somebody's life? Very interesting read but I can't recall the keywords. A while ago I read an article about a man who created "reminder" software to help him with memory retention, but that eventually he started living his whole life according to what the software recommended. It may have been in Wired... I looked on their site but couldn't find it, haven't been able to turn up much other places online either.

Does this ring any bells?

A simple matter-manager for a small law firm

yeliabmit — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 10:19:29 -0800

Can anyone suggest a good, relatively simple open-source or low-cost file/client management program suitable for use by a small law firm? The software should be able to schedule/calendar, manage documents, track tasks/to-dos, and associate all of these things according to particular clients/matters. Something that syncs between machines is a definite plus, as is something that isn't a resource hog. We manage the accounting side separately, so that needn't be a component. I'm the newest addition to a small law firm that is woefully behind the curve technologically, and we are drowning in paper. Scheduling and file management would benefit tremendously from a computerized solution. Because we're a small firm, the big-ticket commercial software options just aren't realistic (and, frankly, from what I've seen of these programs, I would highly resent paying the high fees for their use). The lawyers here are unusually intimidated by computers and software, and so a solution that doesn't involve weeks of training seminars to use would be ideal.

Specifically, we manage our files according to client and matter. The software wouldn't have to track too much detail about the clients (although that would be nice), but we would like to be able to collect things like documents, scans, emails, calendar items, and tasks according to particular matters (perhaps by tagging them). I've read a few things about Evolution as a MS Outlook alternative, but I'm not sure that would be appropriate. Perhaps I'm wrong?

Any suggestions will be most gratefully appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Can non-programmers suggest open source apps?

tamagosan — Fri, 30 May 2008 15:44:27 -0800

I have an idea for a cool (though not very utilitarian) open source app, but I have zero programming experience beyond some very elementary applescript. Can I still suggest the program on a site like sourceforge.net and still have "ownership" of the project? Not for profit, but just to guide its development.

Opensource Wiki Software

spinko — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 03:43:48 -0800

Open source Wiki software! I'm looking to setup an open source wiki service very similar to wikipedia.org (but slightly different). However I know there is open source software available to download... ...

I'm looking for:

1) Totally open editing (if registered)
2) Report if abused content
3) Upload images for the wiki post
4) SEO friendly i.e. www.wikipedia.org/post_name

Php, SQL, etc

Very simple, I like the way wowwiki.com is run. I know they use opensource but I dont know which one.

Cheers if you can help.

I want to run my own web classified ads

furtive — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 16:10:49 -0800

Looking for free online classified ad software/web application similar to Craigslist, etc. that I can host myself. Ideally I'm looking for something ready made that works on a LAMP stack although I'm fine with python or ruby/rails too.

Simplicity is key, buy/sell/trade/give away with email confirmations. Photo uploads would be nice too. No shopping carts needed.

Finding a graphic designer for an open source project

lunchbox — Sun, 16 Mar 2008 17:02:24 -0800

Where can I find a graphic/web designer to volunteer some help for an open source project? I'm working on a medium-popular open-source software project, and think we need a look-and-feel overhaul (website template, logo, etc.). The software is phenomenal, but the visual design of the website and logo is a bit of a joke, and probably turns away potential users. I have no graphic design skills and suspect none of the other developers do either (though I will ask on the mailing list). Where can I recruit someone who might be able to contribute to an open-source project not as a programmer, but as a designer? (i.e. a volunteer, since we have little money.)

Strip Charting -- Open Source

ZenMasterThis — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 05:48:29 -0800

Where to find good, flexible open source strip chart software? I have a project which requires generating multi-line strip charts in real time on a WinXP box. Preferably with a good user interface for (re)configuring chart headers, scales, colors, line positions, etc.

I doubt I'll find exactly what I need out-of-the-box, so open source is essential.

Any suggestions?

Dreamhacker

ReiToei — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 04:30:51 -0800

I would like to write my own HTML/CSS editor. What would be the best way to go about it? (more inside) I've been a professional web developer for the last 8 years or so. I've used Dreamweaver all the way back since the very first beta came out way back when. Without a doubt, it's the best tool for the job (for me).

Saying that, I only ever use Dreamweaver to write code. I don't use any of the visual tools, or any of the built in javascript or back end helper code. I'd say I maybe use 15% of all it's features. It got quite bloated over the years, but it's that 15% that's keeping me from ditching in altogether and going with something like Komodo edit or one of the other open source tools like Bluefish or Aptana.

These features are:

1. The awesome tab completion and code hinting for HTML/CSS
2. Code coloring
3. Color pickers when defining colors on the fly
4. File picker when defining background image files on the fly
5. Code formatting/indentation

My question is, how hard would it be to write my own standalone editor that could do these things, or could I extend another existing software package (like Eclipse) to do it? I would like to make something that would be cross-platform and free.

Apologies for the long-winded post. I throw myself at your feet, hive mind!

this game needs help

parmanparman — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 08:33:01 -0800

Help me remember how to play A-Train! I downloaded FreeTrain, but don't remember how to play it.

Open Source Video

McLir — Sat, 05 Jan 2008 19:57:24 -0800

Who provides the best Open Source video editing? I have edited video in analog and digital (Final Cut Pro) and now I am searching for an open source editor that will do basic tasks.

The features I most want are basic linear editing plus the ability to do overlays.

The material I will tape will not be technically demanding. But it would be nice to have a good tool for some very basic stuff. (Looking to make some educational videos.) Thanks!

How to secure blog content

DerekTheGeek — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 10:03:03 -0800

Blogging platform that can secure/restrict content based on user role? Any suggestions? I want to start a blog for my family but I want to be able to restrict content based upon who is viewing the blog. Some content I would like available to everyone while other content I would like to restrict to family, friends, etc. I would like to have the ability to create roles for users so I can choose which roles should be allowed to view certain content.

I like WordPress quite a bit, however the content restriction plugins I have found are not fully compatible with the latest WordPress version (v2.3). If anyone knows of restriction plugins that do work with v2.3 please let me know.

I have also looked at Drupal, which I use for other CMS tasks, however it's blogging capabilities are limited in my opinion. It's an option but I would like to look at others.

I would prefer an open source solution that makes use of the Apache/MySQL/PHP stack. Thanks a bunch!

Code Coverage reporting with .NET 1.1 without NCover

blue_beetle — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 13:34:32 -0800

Suggestion for Code Coverage reporting with .NET 1.1, now that NCover has become commercial, and closed source?

Self-hosted LiveJournal replacement?

tommasz — Thu, 30 Aug 2007 07:27:05 -0800

Self-hosted LiveJournal replacement? I would like to have my own journal displayed on my own site and besides some usual requirements, I have one or two that seem to be difficult to satisfy. When I had my LiveJournal, I displayed it on my personal website via a javascript write() and some custom CSS so it looked like the rest of my site. I would like to do something similar, with the journal hosted on one site (that has MySQL and PHP) but displayed on another. I've looked at Journalness, but there's no obvious equivalent to what I was doing with LiveJournal. Obviously, I can simply open a new page instead of displaying the journal on a page, but I'd like to replicate the past behavior if I can.

My hosting site is Linux-based, with MySQL and PHP (I primarily use it for Wordpress) so open source solutions based on that would be the best fit.

Experience with micropledge.com?

arathorn — Wed, 15 Aug 2007 09:54:30 -0800

Anyone had success with the micropledge.com funding service? I'm curious to know if anyone has had success funding a project (or having a project funded) through micropledge.com.

A knot tied on my finger just isn't doing it for me.

IronLizard — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 10:47:19 -0800

I need a decent alarm clock for my PC. The ones I've found have either only played WAV files or lack any useful features. I'd prefer one that's open source, but freeware works too. Features I would like: Plays MP3's, has both a time of day alarm and a countdown timer. (I have winamp, but haven't found a plugin that works very well). Or maybe there's some other software that includes this functionality as part of a larger package?

Who owns open source code?

crypticgeek — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 08:43:22 -0800

Legalfilter: Who really owns an open source project? A friend mentioned to me that Apple had bought the CUPS source code. Which is rather interesting to me because it brings up the question of ownership. Clearly to sell the source code to Apple, some person or group of persons must own the source code and agree to the terms of the sale. So my question is, who owned all the code?

Obviously I assume many people other than the original author have submitted patches to the code. Do they relinquish their ownership of the code when they submit a patch? I know the sqlite project makes patch submitters agree to release their patches into the public domain. Do other projects make similar requests to their submitters to release their rights? If it's not done explicitly, can it be an assumed implicit release of rights? You'll have to forgive my ignorance here. I've never contributed to a project before so I'm not quite sure of the "standard practices", if this is one. I intend to develop my own open source project someday, so this would be good to know.

Xchat is another example that comes to mind here. I recently learned that the lead developer has for some time now charged for the windows binary while claiming it was still GPL'd with source available (except for the code that controls the 30 day expiration of the software). Did patch submitters give up their rights to their code (thereby allowing him to release and relicense in this manner), or is he flagrantly violating the law and the license of code he doesn't entirely own? He has said he has a standing offer to remove or rewrite any patches someone might have made if they ask him to, so that makes me believe he does not infact own all the code. If so, could then someone who wrote a patch sue him since he's making profit off their work?

Open source software for design company

spinko — Fri, 13 Apr 2007 03:50:28 -0800

Open source software for a professional web design company. Design filter.

I've been running my company for nearly 2 years now and is now concerned paying the premium for software for my staff.

I've already converted the office in to using OpenOffice which works brilliantly.

What Im looking for is opensource / paid software (reasonable cost) that is similar to:

1) Dreamweaver (doesnt matter if there are 2 separate sofware for CSS and xHTML)
2) Photoshop (I know Gimp is there any better?)
3) Flash
4) Quark Xpress

I cant live without Adobe Fireworks and is willing to pay for that. Its just when you look at the full package (all software) per staff its roughly £1500 / $3000.

Good free/cheap XML-and-XSL application?

AmbroseChapel — Thu, 16 Nov 2006 16:22:03 -0800

Good free/cheap XML-and-XSL application? Two things have happened which affect my workplace.

One, a lot more people will need to work with XML and specifically with XSL transformations.

Two, Altova stopped distributing a free "Home" version of their XMLSpy app.

XMLSpy has its annoyances, but no-one could say it lacks features, even in the "Home" edition. Now, even the cheapest paid edition of the software is quite expensive for casual/incidental users -- it costs as much as Office.

Can anyone recommend an XML-wrangling app that's either free or cheap, and, hopefully, would let users select a particular XSLT processor to do the transformations?

Platform: Windows XP/2000.

Looking to get the word out to users

ephemerae — Thu, 28 Sep 2006 00:29:37 -0800

I've just gotten an open source project off the ground and am wondering about respectable ways to get the word out. I've gone and designed a low-fat markup language and written a parser and a couple of tools for it. This language is designed to be an extremely concise yet very readable way of representing heirarchies of data, and I beleive it will be useful in a variety of situations described on the project home page, however I'm wary of trying to raise awareness because I don't want to come across as cheezy. Basically I want to initially just find a small number of other people who might be interested at poking at this idea and the initial source code I've written and refining it and making it really ready to be used out there in the world. I don't want to just go and digg the home page of it, or do a metafilter writeup of my own creation, it would lack integrity. Ideas?