OpenOffice – Living Outside The Box

In a previous post, I discussed the idea of avoiding closed software, and specifically, how to quit using products tied to the Cloud made by Google or Apple.

There’s also privacy and security concerns using third-party cloud vendors like Dropbox and Evernote.

One solution would be to rent your own NextCloud server, which would at least break you free of Google or Apple, but still ties you to a third-party cloud vendor.

The only way to be completely free of these companies (or any third-party company) and still have the convenience of Cloud connectivity is to run your own Cloud server. But once you have a cloud server set up, the rest is shockingly simple.

I’ve done this using ownCloud, and I’ll be covering how to do that in another article. It only cost me $75 for a refurbished Dell desktop tower, and some time and energy learning how to do it. The hardest part was configuring Apache’s SSL redirects through arcane and ancient nested text config files (which is fodder for yet another how-to article). Continue reading “Alternatives to Google”

So, you’ve decided to try your hand at writing something. More than a research paper that you have actually been managing through cheap research papers service anyway, – but something like fiction maybe. So, where do you start? Good question!

Writing, just like any other craft, goes easier and faster with proper tools. With that being said, there are as many ways to write as there are writers, and I can only give you information based on what I know and have used. If I’m writing a novel, or short story (i.e. something that requires plot) then I do my writing in two stages: Outlining, and the actual writing.

Outlining- Every good story needs organization. How can you organize? Characters, places, details, bits and clippings of inspiration, research notes, and the list goes on. Thankfully, there are some talented programmers who are also writers, and they’ve come up with some excellent solutions! Some of my favorites are:

Continue reading “Tools of the Trade”