Skip to main content

"Version fatique"?





Glenn Harlan Reynolds (aka, Instapundit) over at Tech Central Station:



TCS: Tech - 'Version Fatigue'



I'm tired of learning how to do new things. Well, not really. But I've noticed that my tolerance for reading the manual and familiarizing myself with all the aspects of a new product or piece of software is much, much lower than it used to be.
I find I've adopted the same attitude. At the moment, it's caused me to jump off the upgrade cycle. I'm relatively happy with Windows 2000, M$ Office 2000, and Corel WordPerfect Office 2000. All the XP and 2002 versions can just...wait.



What I fail to understand is when a company adds a feature, maintains support for that feature, but won't let you use it anymore. For example, in previous versions of WordPerfect, I let the software number chapters in a manuscript. I could move an entire chapter to a different place, and the software would re-order all the numbers. (Neat little trick I learned from sci-fi writer Robert J. Sawyer, who was using Word Star for crying out loud, but that's another story.)



Since version 8 of WP, I can't figure out how to do that any more. Old file update without problem, and maintain the feature, but if I want to do this in a new file, I have to copy and paste the "old code" into the new document. So thank God for WP's "reveal codes" mode.



Then there's the manner in which WP imports Word documents. In Word, the margin you set for text and the margin you set for headers are different (and can lead to some interesting formatting). When you import a Word doc and convert it to a WP wpd file, it inserts this little bit of code that allows WP to mimic that feature. However, try as I might I cannot find how to just type that code and setting into WP from the get-go. Frustrating.



I suppose I can't stay off cycle forever, and I'm about to go through a new round of "version fatigue," as where I work is dumping Windows/Office 95 (eek, my feet suddenly got cold, is hell freezing?) and jumping to Windows/Office XP. Argh!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

John Wick: Chapter 4

No sense in playing coy, this is a great film. I’ve seen it twice and while I don’t quite love it in the way I love the first, original John Wick , it’s my #2. It’s a little overlong, has some wasted space and time, has one absolutely pointless and useless character, and generally ignores the realities of firefights, falling, getting shot, hit, etc. All that notwithstanding, it’s a great action flick, has a genuine emotional core, and is well worth your time if you’re into that sort of thing. Like I am. Summary: John Wick (Keanu Reeves), last seen saying he was fed up with the High Table, goes to war to obtain his freedom. Some of the most incredible action scenes ever filmed ensue, culminating in a very satisfactory finale and a devastating post-credit scene. The first Wick film was a surprise hit. It was a simple, straight-forward tale of vengeance told in a simple, straight-forward manner. Where it stood out was its devotion to human stunt work, on exploiting long camera shots that ...
Post a Comment
Read more

DVD: The Descent

While waiting for the fourth disk of season 4 of House to arrive, I watched The Descent . This movie has been out on DVD for a while, so why bring it up now? Because I think I might become a fan of its writer-director, Neil Marshall . His latest is Doomsday , recently released on DVD, and while it’s sort of a mess, it’s a mess in that oh-fun-what-the-heck-let’s-shoot-a-Bentley-through-a-bus sort of way. The Descent is a different sort of animal. Prepare for spoilers. Since this film has been out for a while, I’m going to feel free to reveal. The setup is simple: Six friends go spelunking, complications ensue. Basic complications involve Sarah and Juno. Sarah is an emotional wreck following the rather horrible and tragic deaths of her husband and daughter (this trip is seen as therapy , oh my). Juno is a reckless thrill-seeker who leads an unknowing Sarah and friends into a cave no one has – publicly, at least – ever explored. All goes horribly...
1 comment
Read more

Dune Part 2 (2024)

I have come not to praise Dune but to bury it. I am in a distinct minority. So be it. To explain why, there will be some minor spoilers ahead; sorry. The short version is #NotMyDune. Summary: Picking up where Dune Part 1 left off, we find the young Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) hanging out with the Fremen. Plots to overthrow rival houses and empires ensue. Go here to see what I thought about Dune Part 1 (2021) . Overall, I found it to be technically brilliant, but lacking a human heart, an exercise in frenetic slow motion. D2 is more of the same, though with far more action. Acting-wise, everyone is doing a fine, more than adequate job. Absolutely no one or nothing stands out. The way the characters are written (adapted, actually), their back and forths and interactions, are all weak and unengaging. I generally hate when they speak. I've read the novel a ridiculous number of times, and these films are prompting me to read it again. I understand that trying to translate the n...
1 comment
Read more