Scribus 1.5 is becoming the best open source DTP program
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Conclusion
Scribus 1.5 represents a milestone in the development of this program. It now offers many more professional functions, which is good for the software. The support for tables is extremely helpful and means that the application catches up with other tools, such as Adobe InDesign.
The symbols that make it easier to update multiple pages of multiple copies simultaneously decrease work time significantly. The changes to the interface are not so noticeable in spite of the switch from Qt4 to Qt5. Buttons, and other elements may look different but the basic functions remain the same.
On the other hand, the developers have given much thought how to clean up the structure of the menus and build in additional functions to the interface. The newly designed dialogs and the installation of a print page make it easy to accomplish work. Particularly impressive is the attention to detail with which Scribus 1.5 had worked on various formats for content and templates. The software can now edit image and vector data with much greater mastery than could previous versions.
Because Scribus 1.5 understands files from other DTP programs, it has now become easier for designers to exchange files with colleagues. There are already plugins for the import of Adobe InDesign, Pagemaker, Quark Xpress, Apple iWorks Pages, Microsoft Publisher, and others. Currently, these are not yet in perfect condition.
Scribus 1.5 is appealing and makes the user want more; however, it is not quite ready for production use. As soon as the developers release version 1.6, the program will be able to establish itself in the field of DTP programs. Interesting gimmicks, such as the option for generating QR codes (Figure 6), also point to greater competitive strength for the open source program as compared to commercial offerings.
Figure 6: The function for generating QR codes is one of the interesting innovations. These graphics, which resemble chessboards, are now created directly in the DTP application.
Infos
- Le Tigre: http://www.le-tigre.net
- Scribus: http://www.scribus.net/downloads/unstable-branch/
- Scribus PPA: https://launchpad.net/~scribus/+archive/ppa
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