Re: LibreOffice to LyX
Virgil Arrington informed me regarding: Re: LibreOffice to LyX
on Tue, 5 Oct 2021 16:51:44 -0400
> On 10/5/2021 2:45 PM, Dr Eberhard Lisse wrote:
> > Virgil,
> >
> > I have shortened and reformatted slightly for ease of reference.
> >
> > Actually constant misunderimprovements are one of the mistakes one
> > often makes in presentations.
> >
> I suspect you're right, but I just can't leave things alone. I also
> think there's some virtue in variety. In fact, one of the things I
> like about LyX is that I can change the total look and feel of a
> presentation by simply changing a theme name. That is so much
> quicker than giving an LO Impress presentation a makeover.
>
> > The query
> >
> > https://www.google.com/search?q=lyx+text+color
> >
> > returns 126 results, the very FIRST of which
> >
> > https://tex.stackexchange.com/questions/33225/color-text-in-lyx
> >
> > explains this quite nicely.
>
> > As xcolor is loaded by LyX I just add something like
> >
> > \definecolor{MyBlue}{HTML}{40}
> > \definecolor{Firebrick4}{HTML}{8b1a1a}
> >
> > to my preamble
> >
> > [...]
> >
> Here, I think you're actually supporting my point in several
> respects. While I didn't find your specific StackExchange thread,
> what I did find said the same things. It first said to add
> \usepackage{xcolor} to the preamble, which I did, adding the
> [dvipsnames] option, which produced the error message I reported
> earlier. Even setting this aside, adding your color redefinitions to
> the preamble is only helpful if you know what the color codes
> "40" and "8b1a1a" actually mean. LibreOffice's method of pointing
> to a color in a palette on the toolbar is certainly easier and
> quicker than making all these preamble modifications.
>
> That said, I will concede that once these preamble changes are made
> in LyX, you're good to go on any future documents.
>
> >
> > It seems you have an aversion towards RTFM :-)-O, even though one
> > only needs to do this once.
>
> If you mean "Read the F* Manual," I have no such aversion. In fact, I
> enjoy printing out and reading online software documentation. But,
> you have to admit, LaTeX manuals are massive. The xcolor manual is
> some 115 pages long. My favorite LaTeX package, Microtype, comes with
> a ~250 page manual. Even the LyX manuals included in its Help are
> voluminous. There are simply not enough hours in the day to read all
> there is on LyX/LaTeX. This is why I typically do an online search;
> that way I can hone in the issue I need resolved.
>
> But, this only highlights my frustration. Part of me says I shouldn't
> *have* to do online searches to accomplish what LibreOffice lets me
> do with a few points and clicks. Thirty years ago, in the days of
> MS-DOS, I had an IT manager tell me that his test for quality
> software was that good software didn't need a manual. I'm not sure I
> agree with him, but I will repeat that, with LibreOffice, I can
> usually solve all quandaries within the program itself without
> needing to search for answers on the web. In fact, I can't remember
> the last time I needed to do any kind of search to solve a problem
> with LibreOffice. With LyX/LaTeX, it's common practice.
>
>
> >
> > And, in case someone is interested I attach the template I use if I
> > have to write something for our weekly Continuing Professional
> > Development/ Continuing Medical Education sessions.
> >
> Your template is both beautiful and an example of what one can do
> with a LaTeX education. I'm impressed. But, I was curious when you
> said you use a modified Metropolis theme. I've never seen Metropolis
> in any list of Beamer themes (see, e.g., Beamer Themes - Full List -
> LaTeX Beamer (latex-beamer.com)
>
Re: LibreOffice to LyX
Virgil,
I have shortened and reformatted slightly for ease of reference.
On 2021-10-05 15:24 , Virgil Arrington wrote:
[...]
Unlike our good Dr. E.L., I can't leave my slide designs alone.
[...]
Actually constant misunderimprovements are one of the mistakes one
often makes in presentations.
I tried to do the same thing in LyX.
[...]
After much searching online, I learned about the LaTeX \xcolor
package, which provides access to many, many more colors.
The query
https://www.google.com/search?q=lyx+text+color
returns 126 results, the very FIRST of which
https://tex.stackexchange.com/questions/33225/color-text-in-lyx
explains this quite nicely.
[...]
I then hit Ctrl-R to compile my slides and was met with a LaTeX error
of "Option clash for package xcolor." Say, what!?
As xcolor is loaded by LyX I just add something like
\definecolor{MyBlue}{HTML}{40}
\definecolor{Firebrick4}{HTML}{8b1a1a}
to my preamble
[...]
So, yes LyX/Beamer worked, but only after I spent many hours learning
about an xcolor package to get the shade I wanted and troubleshooting
errors. As you can imagine, I could tell many other stories with
similar processes and outcomes.
https://www.google.com/search?q=xcolor+site%3A.lyx.org
shows 51 hits (on *.lyx.org), and after 30 years with LaTeX (and 15
with lyx) looking for stuff has become second nature.
It seems you have an aversion towards RTFM :-)-O, even though one only
needs to do this once. I must say, even in (not so deep) Africa we have
Internet speed which allows me to look stuff up on the web as fast as in
the online help.
[...]
The difference -- for me at least -- is that, with LO, I can usually
track down errors and solve problems from within the program itself
without having to resort to extensive other documentation or online
StackExchange threads.
[...]
And, in case someone is interested I attach the template I use if I have
to write something for our weekly Continuing Professional Development/
Continuing Medical Education sessions.
In the preamble I include the multimedia package because sometimes I
like to play videos from within the PDF :-)-O, scrdate because I like
the \ISOToday (-MM-DD), as I wrote earlier I like a modified
metropolis theme, the NOTO fonts (need to be added late in the preamble,
never bothered to figure out why :-)-O), mess a bit around with the
formatting and font family, put a Draft/Date into the background and
make provision for handouts which are commented out.
I add
17pt, xcolor=svgnames,aspectratio=1610
to Document --> Document Class --> Custom: because I like it big, am
used to svgnames rather than dvipsnames and I in particular like the
aspect ration change to that I get more real estate on the screen.
greetings, el
cpdtemplate.pdf
Description: Adobe PDF document
#LyX 2.3 created this file. For more info see http://www.lyx.org/
\lyxformat 544
\begin_document
\begin_header
\save_transient_properties true
\origin unavailable
\textclass beamer
\begin_preamble
\usepackage{multimedia}
%
% General
%
\usepackage{scrdate}
% very dark blue
%
\definecolor{MyBlue}{HTML}{40}
\definecolor{MyRed}{HTML}{8b1a1a}
%
% Metropolis
%
\useoutertheme[%
progressbar=foot,
numbering=none
]{metropolis}
\useinnertheme[%
sectionpage=progressbar
]{metropolis}
\usecolortheme{metropolis-highcontrast}
\usefonttheme[%
titleformat title=smallcaps,
titleformat subtitle=smallcaps,
titleformat section=smallcaps,
titleformat frame=smallcaps,
]{metropolis}
\makeatletter
\setlength{\metropolis@titleseparator@linewidth}{1pt}
\setlength{\metropolis@progressonsectionpage@linewidth}{1pt}
\setlength{\metropolis@progressinheadfoot@linewidth}{2pt}
\makeatother
%
% chnage font, after last metropolis entry
%
\usepackage[medium]{noto}
% Theme colors are derived from these two elements
\setbeamercolor{background canvas}{bg=}
\setbeamercolor{alerted text}{fg=MyRed}
\setbeamercolor{progress bar}{fg=MyRed}
\setbeamercolor{frametitle}{bg=MyBlue, fg=white}
\setbeamercolor{title separator}{fg=MyBlue, bg=white}
\setbeamercolor{title}{fg=MyBlue, bg=white}
\setbeamercolor{subtitle}{fg=MyBlue, bg=white}
\setbeamercolor{institute}{fg=MyBlue, bg=white}
\setbeamercolor{author}{fg=MyBlue, bg=white}
\setbeamercolor{date}{fg=MyBlue, bg=white}
\setbeamersize{text margin left=0.5cm}
\setbeamersize{text margin right=0.5cm}
\setbeamerfont{section title}{family=\rmfamily}
\setbeamerfont{subsection title}{family=\rmfamily}
\setbeamerfont{frametitle}{family=\rmfamily}
\setbeamerfont{title}{family=\rmfamily}
\setbeamerfont*{description item}{series=\bfseries,family=\sffamily}
\setbeamertemplate{section in toc}[sections numbered]
\usepackage[anythingbreaks]{breakurl}
\Urlmuskip=0mu plus 1mu
\usepackage{background}
\backgroundsetup{%
color=gray,
contents={Draft, \ISOToday},
opacity=0.3,
placement=center,
angle=25,
scale=2
}
RE: LibreOffice to LyX
On October 4, Charlie wrote:
> However, if I read this correctly Beamer is fine, even good.
> However, your problem stated above, seems to be that you have to
> do a lot of searching, reading and learning to get it to do
> more than what is standard and easy?
> Isn't that what you have to do if you want any system or program to
> work the way you want? Isn't that what FOSS is all about?
Yes and no.
Yes, any system requires searching, reading and learning to get it to do more
than what is standard and easy.
No, not all systems are alike in this regard. It's all about degrees, and in my
experience, LibreOffice makes learning new things much easier than LyX/LaTeX.
Generally speaking, every LO function can be found by exploring its extensive
menus and/or toolbars. Like a multiple choice test, the right answer is
somewhere on the page, and such exploration is generally how I learn new things
in LO. I just search the menu structure until I find what I need. But, because
LaTeX is such an extensive system with so many different ways of doing things,
it would be next to impossible for LyX to contain a graphical menu option for
every LaTeX function. To be sure, it is much better than it was ten years ago,
but there are still many, many functions for which LyX itself provides no
guidance. Let me give a recent real life example. This example will reveal as
much about my obsessive tendencies as it does about the two systems.
Unlike our good Dr. E.L., I can't leave my slide designs alone. I am constantly
changing them to make them better and to give my audiences (college students
and church congregants) something fresh to look at. One way I do this is by
highlighting important words with various colors. I like my headings to appear
in a deep blue color. It's classy and gives enough color without glaring on the
screen. In HTML, I would code my CSS with "color:Navy;" to get the shade I want.
In LibreOffice, I can obtain this shade by highlighting my text and then
clicking on the text color icon in my text formatting toolbar. That gives me a
drop down selection of several color palettes. I select the HTML palette and
click on "Navy" to get the dark blue that I want. It takes about five seconds
from start to finish; in fact, it takes much longer to describe in writing than
to actually do.
I tried to do the same thing in LyX. I selected my text and clicked on the text
formatting icon on the toolbar. Clicking on "color" gave me a drop down list of
19 different colors. The only shade of blue available is much too bright for my
tastes. I obviously needed to gain access to a larger palette of shades of
blue. Nothing in this area of LyX's graphical interface gave me any clue as to
how to do that, so to the Internet I went.
After much searching online, I learned about the LaTeX \xcolor package, which
provides access to many, many more colors. Just what I needed. I also learned
about the [dvipsnames] option, which allows the user to use common color names
rather than having to type in cryptic color codes. Following the suggestions I
found online, I dutifully typed in "\usepackage[dvipsnames]{xcolor}" into my
preamble. I could then use LaTeX code to color my words with
\textcolor{Blue}{colored text} (The uppercase "B" produces a deeper shade than
the standard "blue"). I then hit Ctrl-R to compile my slides and was met with a
LaTeX error of "Option clash for package xcolor." Say, what!?
I checked my preamble searching for typos. Nope, everything was perfect. So, I
kept searching the Internet and learned that the xcolor package is apparently
already included in Beamer (which is a good thing), but without the
[dvipsnames] option (which is a bad thing.) By including
"\usepackage[dvipsnames]{xcolor}" in my preamble, I was redundantly calling the
same package, but with an inconsistent option.
Back to the Internet. After more searching, I learned to *not* put the xcolor
package in the preamble, but to instead include the "dvipsnames" option in the
\documentclass declaration. With this, I could finally color my text the deeper
blue that I wanted. Unlike the case with LibreOffice, it took much more time to
do than to describe in this email. Fortunately, I am semi-retired and have the
time to devote to LaTeX education.
So, yes LyX/Beamer worked, but only after I spent many hours learning about an
xcolor package to get the shade I wanted and troubleshooting errors. As you can
imagine, I could tell many other stories with similar processes and outcomes.
Now, to be fair to LyX, with LO, I have often spent hours chasing down why
editing a master slide only affects 2/3s of my slides, requiring me to manually
reformat the other slides. The difference -- for me at least -- is that, with
LO, I can usually track down errors and solve problems from within the program
itself without having to resort to extensive other documentation or online
StackExchange threads.
Virgil
--
lyx-users
