A Toolbox Full of Wonders

Software Resources For The Modern Writer

or

The Future Is Here And Wants You To Download It

Updated: 04/16/06

Your computer kicks ass. Even if you're reading this on a machine so old that your friends' jaws drop when you tell them it's on-line, your computer can do things that, fifty years ago, were the stuff of science fiction. And we're not necessarily talking plausible science fiction, either. Pie in the sky kinda stuff. (Footnote -- Pie) Things that would have elicited a "Yeah, whatever" from anybody reading it.

On some level, you know this. You have piles of electronic manuscripts that you can edit easily and put to hardcopy on a whim. Your word processor makes sure that only the sneakiest spelling errors have any chance of getting past you, preventing the ugliest typos from even getting a sniff of freedom. You can submit stories to some markets without spending a dime on paper or postage, after perusing their archives to see if your story might fit in.

Your computer is the single most versatile writing tool you will ever own. (Footnote -- Versatile) In fact, it's more like a toolbox unto itself; what it can provide is more a reflection on its owner than itself.

So that brings us to the point of this article: are there any tools you're missing? Are there any nifty little (or big) programs you've overlooked that you'd find extremely useful?

Almost certainly.

I'm going to try point you towards some of the wonderful things out there that have, until now, escaped your notice. I'm also going to point out some ways to protect your precious toolbox from the less-than-wonderful realities of life on the internet. Will any of this make you a better writer? Probably not, no more than a good drill will make you a carpenter. But even so, what carpenter wouldn't want to be using the best tools they could lay hands on?

I'm following these principles:

1. You know how to use your computer, but aren't necessarily in love with it.

   (Hide) I'll assume you know the basics and can install new programs on your machine and such. But I'm also assuming that you're not a "power user;" (Footnote -- Am So!) you don't make your living knowing the nuts and bolts of computing, and might have some gaps in your knowledge outside of day-to-day usage.

2. Commercial software is okay, free software is better, open-source software is best.

   (Hide) I can go on at great length about why open-source software is such a lovely thing. If you actually want me to, click here. Otherwise, just take my word for it; open-source rules, and I'll be encouraging you to use it whenever I can.
   

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   Why Pete Adores Open-Source

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   What is open-source software? Start by thinking of your car; imagine that the hood is locked shut, and that the only people legally allowed to unlock and open it are the legally-designated (Footnote -- Who's Designated?) repair folks. You can drive around to your heart's content, but if you want to take a look under the hood -- maybe you want to repair something, maybe you're curious to see what's going on, maybe you have an idea for a mechanical tweak that would make it run even better -- you're not allowed.

   That's standard commercial software. Use it all you like, but the inner workings are off-limits. For most folks, this is fine; if something breaks in my car, I'm definitely not qualified to fix it! But for more advanced users, this can feel like a straitjacket. Some people want to know how it works; furthermore, they think they could make it work better.

   This is the mindset behind open-source software. The hood is unlocked; you're free to take a look at the guts and poke around as much as you like.

   A lot of open-source software is produced by people who just want to make a better gadget for themselves. (Footnote -- What Geeks Want) They're not looking to sell something; they want to have a piece of software that does what they want without any potentially unpleasant "surprises."

   "That's very nice," you might say, "but why do I care? I'm quite content with my hood locked, thanks." Well, open-source software often has some significant advantages. Namely:

   • Open-source software is frequently more secure.

     Sometimes, programs have bugs that allow some jackass to break into your computer and cause problems. It happens. But security flaws tend to beless of a problem in open-source software. The sheer number of eyeballs on the project means bugs of any sort are less likely to survive. Also, if a commercial company spots a security flaw, they'll often do the wrong thing and try and hide it and hope nobody notices until they can devote some resources to fixing it. If a security bug shows up in an open-source project, however, you can expect a hue and cry to go up amongst the developers. (Footnote -- Charge!) That bug is going to get squashed in a hurry.

   • Open-source software is usually more reliable.

     Again, remember who the developers are; who would want to use a program that's crash-happy? Who would want their name attached with one?

   • Open-source software often cares more about standards.

     Remember the early days of the web? Remember how some web pages only worked with some browsers, and didn't work well (or at all!) with others? (Footnote -- Incompatibility Sucks) Remember how friggin' annoying that nonsense was? Networked computing -- which includes the Internet -- depends on standards. For email or the web or any other number of nifty applications to work, your computer needs to trust that my computer will behave in a certain way when talking to it -- and vice-versa. However, sometimes some jackass (Footnote -- Who Could That Be?) gets the idea that the best way to increase market share is by creating a version of the "standard" that only works with their software, thereby screwing everybody who's playing by the rules. You will almost never see open-source software playing those hateful games; the designers aren't gunning for a multi-million-dollar monopoly, they just want something that works.

   • Open-source software is usually free.

     And not "my boss will never notice if these MS Office CDs come home with me for a day" free, either. Really free. Download and install on as many computers as you like. No activation keys to fudge, no restrictive license agreements to fight. Free.

   I'm an open-source advocate; I like the philosophy, I like how it works in practice. Wherever it's practical, that's where I'm going to be steering you.

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   But, it isn't always possible. Sometimes, the open-source solution is so geek-intensive and user-unfriendly I can't recommend it it for a general audience. Or, maybe the open-source version needs more work and isn't ready for prime time yet.
   
   In those conditions, I'll steer you towards free solutions first; I assume that you don't want to burn any more money on your computer than you absolutely have to. And if there isn't a free solution available, I'll shoot for something that doesn't have an obnoxious price tag.

3. Legal, legal, legal!

   (Hide) I advocate keeping a "clean" computer. I will not be handing out any secret handshakes for scoring copies of software that fell off the back of the truck. I will not give any tips for fooling an application into spending five years thinking it's still within the thirty-day free trial. I advocate legally-obtained software, used in accordance with the license. With companies like Microsoft barking about "getting tough" on software piracy, give them as little reason to screw with you as humanly possible.

4. This article is based on my own experience. Most of my experience is based on Windows. You do the math.

   (Hide) You will notice a strong pro-Windows bias (Footnote -- No, Really!) in this article. But even if you're not a Windows person, I still hope you'll be able to use some of it. A lot of the programs I recommend here are available in Linux, too. And they might even be available for the Mac; after all, Mac OS X and Linux are kissin' cousins these days. If you're not a Windows user, I'd be curious to know if you found anything in this article helpful; please drop me a line (Footnote -- Pete's Email) and let me know.

Enough high-tech navel-gazing. Let's get on with it.

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Getting Started: Protecting Yourself

This part doesn't pertain to "writers" so much as "ever single person who owns a computer and uses it on the internet."

However, it seems that you're one of those people. Which means you need to take security very seriously; your computer is under attack.

The internet is a pretty lively place these days, and by "lively" I mean "dangerous." While most of your fellow users are peaceful, law-abiding citizens, there are enough vandals and thieves -- in other words, crackers (Footnote -- No, Not Hackers) -- out there to cause some real problems. According to a recent article, a Windows computer hooked to the internet should expect an attack within minutes of being turned-on.

And if that computer isn't secured adequately, the attack will be successful. Meaning somebody else has hijacked your computer and will be able to do whatever they like with it; swipe any information you enter (like, say, your credit card number), use it to attack other computers, whatever they damn well please.

Be paranoid; they really are out to get you.

However, you don't have to just sit there and take it. There are five fundamental steps for keeping your computer secure; skip any of them at your peril.

• First, use a hardware firewall, if you can, rather than just plug your computer directly into the internet.

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  Hardware Firewall

  This is the first line of defense for your home computer network -- even if that "network" consists of only one computer. If you're using a broadband connection (DSL, Cable Modem, etc.), you definitely need one of these. If you're just using a dial-up connection, however, you can probably get by without one.

  A hardware firewall will help conceal your presence on the internet (Footnote -- Can't Find Me!) and will provide one more hoop for intruders to jump through before getting at your computer; if you're lucky, they won't be able to jump through it. It's not complete protection, but it's a good place to start.

  As you'd expect, a hardware firewall is a box that you'll plug your computer into -- and, unfortunately, I don't know where you can get one for free. Sorry. However, you can get good ones (Footnote -- Pete Digs Linksys) cheap. A Linksys EtherFast Cable/DSL router, for instance, makes a perfectly good hardware firewall, can be bought new for $40, and can be had for even less than that used. Plus, as an added bonus, you can plug multiple computers into the same broadband connection. (Footnote -- Multiple Computers) Wire your computer(s) to the router, plug the router into the DSL/Cable modem, and voila, (Footnote -- Voila!) rudimentary protection.

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• Second, always use a software firewall on any machine with access to the internet, even if it's going through a hardware firewall. And if you're using Windows XP, don't trust the firewall that came with it; it's better than nothing, but you want to upgrade.

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  Software Firewall

  A hardware firewall is a box you plug your computer into; this is a program you run on your computer. A hardware firewall is the first line of defense for your entire home network; a software firewall is the first line of defense for your individual machine.

  I failed to turn up any open-source firewalls for Windows that looked user-friendly enough to recommend, but you still don't have to shell-out any money. I use the Sygate Personal Firewall (requirements). (Footnote -- Sygate Requirements) It's gotten good reviews and my experience with it has been positive. While Sygate doesn't advertise this loudly, it's free for personal use. Check it out.

  ZoneAlarm used to have a good reputation, but it's one I do not recommend. It seems to have gone downhill in recent years, and my wife had a very negative experience with it. (Footnote -- ZoneAlarm Whining) Pass.

  Finally, as for Windows XP's built-in firewall . . . well, I said it above. It's an improvement over running nothing at all, but not by much. Use it until you install a real firewall, then turn the bloody thing off; it's notorious for having large, exploitable holes.

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• Third, install a good anti-virus program and keep it up to date; if you have an anti-virus program but let your update subscription lapse a few years ago . . . well, it's better than nothing. Barely.

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  Anti-Virus

  You know what a computer virus is, and your computer probably came with some sort of anti-virus software pre-installed. So you don't need to worry about it, right?

  Wrong. Anti-virus software is effective only as long as you keep it updated. If your anti-viral software isn't up-to-date, it's not going to do anything to protect you from that virus your mother-in-law just sent you the warning e-mail about. (Or just sent you.)

  And for most products, keeping your software up-to-date means springing for a subscription. (That software that came with your computer probably included a subscription for the first month or two. The First Hit is Always Free.)

  I don't spend much money on software, but for anti-virus, I'll make an exception. I'm using Norton (requirements), (Footnote -- Norton Requirements) and it's done the job just fine. For this option, expect to pay about $50 for the initial cost of the software and the $20/year afterwards keeping it up-to-date.

  However, for writers on a budget, AVG Anti-Virus (requirements) (Footnote -- AVG Requirements) is free for the individual home user. I can't speak from experience, but it seems to be fairly well-regarded, and it's definitely better than nothing. Ditto for AntiVir (requirements). (Footnote -- AntiVir Requirements)

  Whatever you use, sure you schedule a complete system scan at regular intervals, like once every week or so. Also, set it to inspect email (both incoming and outgoing).

  If you do pick up a new anti-virus program, you may as well uninstall whatever old anti-virus software you have hanging around. Whatever meager protection it once offered is provided by the up-to-date program you're now using.

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• Fourth, install one or more anti-spyware programs and let them nail the stuff that sneaks by your anti-virus software.

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  Spyware Detector

  Spyware lives in a grey region between viruses and legitimate software; it isn't specifically designed to trash your computer, and you kinda sorta intentionally installed it. Just the same, you don't want it. If you'd like a detailed description of why it sucks, I've written one. Otherwise, trust me: it can steal your credit card number, bring your computer to a grinding halt, and screw-up your day in general. You want software that will both detect it and dispose of it.

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  Why Spyware Sucks

  As the name implies, most spyware is designed to 1) watch you and 2) report what it sees to somebody else. This isn't necessarily as bad as it sounds; under the broadest criteria, certain cookies your browser picks up can be classified as spyware. All they're doing is keeping track of the web-browsing habits of a random web user. (Footnote -- I'm not random!) As privacy violations go, small potatoes.

  More worrisome are spyware programs running on your machine. Some are relatively benign; keeping tabs on what web sites you visit (Footnote -- You Just Said That!) and using that information to figure out which ads to send you way. (Footnote -- Ads?)

  It gets worse.

  What, precisely, is the spyware program watching? If it's something running on your machine, not merely a cookie, it will monitor whatever the programmer told it to monitor. Your personal email? If it was told to, yup. Your fiction manuscripts? If it wants, sure. Your credit card number? If it sees it and it wants it, it has it.

  Some will even actively interfere with other programs; you might find your browser getting hijacked and sent to the pages the spyware program wants you to see. There are even a few infamous programs designed to screw dial-up users; instead of dialing your ISP, they'd force your modem to dial some nice expensive toll number.

  It's possible -- very easily possible -- to wind up with so many of the bloody things that your computer becomes unstable. When you have 100 pieces of spyware competing for processor time from the moment you boot, you can expect bad performance and lots of crashes.

  How do you get these lovelies? Some offer some handy "service" to get you download and install them of your own free will; classic examples are Comet Cursor or Bonzi Buddy or Gator, all of them despised by IT departments across the world. Others are less forthcoming; sometimes, they'll be bundled with some other piece (Footnote -- Like Kazaa) of software Trojan-horse style. (Footnote -- Greeks With EULAs) Still others will display distinctly virus-like behavior, exploiting security holes in programs like Internet Explorer to interpret you clicking on an ad as permission to install themselves and do whatever the hell they feel like doing.

  But wait, I hear you saying; I installed an up-to-date anti-virus program, just like you said! Aren't I protected from this stuff, too?

  Nope.

  Remember, you kinda sorta gave your permission to install these things. No matter how destructive or scammy they ultimately turn out to be. The anti-virus companies are reluctant (Footnote -- Less Reluctance) to remove programs you intentionally installed on your machine, even if you were probably duped into it. Like I said, it's a grey area.

  Anti-virus programs aren't good enough. You need these programs.

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  Lavasoft's Ad-Aware:

  If your computer runs Windows (any flavor), it needs Ad-Aware by Lavasoft (requirements). (Footnote -- Ad-Aware Requirements) If it doesn't have it, consider this a problem you need to correct. Go download it. I'll still be here when you get back.

  Ad-Aware (free for personal use) carries a sterling reputation for both reliability and user-friendliness. It's not as pro-active as most anti-virus software; it's not going to catch potentially malicious programs the moment they try to install themselves. You'll need to remember (Footnote -- Remember To Run) to run it every now and then for it to have any effect. Just the same, have it do a complete system scan as soon as you're done downloading it. Chances are it'll just come back with a few cookies, but you never know what's under the rock until you lift it.

  Spybot Search & Destroy:

  Ad-Aware isn't perfect; it will occasionally miss some things you'd prefer it to delete. This is where Spybot Search & Destroy (requirements) (Footnote -- Spybot Requirements) comes in; if you have any faith at all in your computer geek chops, this is one worth adding to your collection of security tools. Not only will it do the same hunter-killer thing Ad-Aware does, it has an "immunize" feature worth using to keep some of the nasties from getting on your machine in the first place.

  However, you need to read the tutorial. While Ad-Aware will occasionally miss something, you can generally take its word that the stuff it wants to get rid of is stuff you're better off without. Not so with Spybot S&D; it's been known to get a little over-aggressive, and might want to fry something you need. When it comes back with a list of stuff it's itching to nuke, you need to give that list a good looking-over before unleashing this dog upon it. If you prefer your computing experience to be as low-thought as possible, you're probably better off without this utility.

  But, if a little computer-related decision making doesn't scare you, Spybot S&D makes an excellent companion for Ad-Aware. Grab 'em both, and let them play Batman & Robin together.

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• Finally, keep your operating system up to date! Windows XP will inform you (Footnote -- Download Me!) when updates are available for download; earlier versions of Windows require you check manually.

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  Update Your Operating System

  If you're using a version of Windows older than XP, (Footnote -- As Opposed To Newer?) you'll need to check to see if you need any updates. Luckily, Microsoft makes it easy to keep your version of Windows up-to-date. Fire up Internet Explorer, (Footnote -- Yes, That IE) go to the Microsoft Windows Update Site, and start following instructions. Install anything labeled "critical". The rest you can probably ignore -- unless, of course, you have to have the Turkish menus and dialogs for Internet Explorer.

  If you're using XP, click on that little globe thingy when it appears in the collection of hieroglyphs next to the clock (probably in the lower-right corner of your screen). If you've turned off the Automatic Updates, select "Automatic Updates" from the Control Panel and turn them back on. Look, I'm as suspicious of Microsoft as anybody, but some of the holes they patch in XP are downright nasty. You need these updates. Really, you do.

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Right, you're all protected from the Forces of Darkness. Enough fear and loathing; let's get to the cool stuff.

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Word Processor

Nutshell:

If you're happy with your current word processor, then love the one you're with, baby. However, if you're dissatisfied or looking to make a switch, then OpenOffice.org is a fabulous free, open-source option.

Details:

Of course, there are some handy word-processor tricks that you might not be aware of. Version management, for example.

If you have a word processor, you have a spreadsheet. And if you have a spreadsheet, you have a great submission tracking tool. Are you using it?

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Web Browser

Nutshell:

Microsoft's overwhelmingly popular Internet Explorer is a piece of junk, obsolete and dangerous. Sometimes it's a necessary evil, but it's a wretched primary browser.

Of the available alternatives, Opera is probably the best. However, Mozilla and Firefox have also earned strong followings and are both solid choices.

Details:

Regardless of which browser you choose, there are a few things you can do to make switching to it easier.

Whatever browser you choose, keep it up to date! By their very nature, browsers are a security vulnerability; IE just happens to be the absolute worst example of the breed. Make sure you check back in with your browser's homepage every month or so to download the latest released version and keep yourself safe.

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Email Client

Nutshell:

If you use your web browser to handle all your emailing needs, then you really don't need one of these; carry on.

If you're using an email client to compose messages and that downloads and stores all your messages on your machine's hard drive, then you have some choices. Microsoft flagbearers Outlook and Outlook Express are notoriously insecure, but seem to have cleaned up their act in recent years.

If your browser comes with an email client, I recommend trying that first. However, if it doesn't have one or you hate the one it comes with, give Firefox's cousin Thunderbird a look, or maybe try the free version of Eudora.

Details:

However, it's always worth remembering that while switching browsers is easy, switching email clients kinda freakin' hurts. Still, it can be done, and hopefully done without too much trouble.

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Operating System

Nutshell:

This is big; the operating system is the foundation, the glue holding everything together, the uber-program that tells your computer how to be a computer.

Stand pat, unless you're a Mac user with something older than OS X. If your computer can handle an upgrade to OS X, I hear it's a really good idea; and if it can't, it may be time to get a new computer.

Windows users of any stripe who are feeling saucy might consider switching over to Linux, but it's not something to be done lightly; you'd definitely want to read the "Details" first.

Details:

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Image Processing

Okay, strictly speaking, this isn't necessarily a tool for writers. There's nothing about creating and submitting a manuscript that requires you to play around with JPEG images. But you do have a creative streak, and you might do some desktop publishing or website design on the side. Being able to make and manipulate images might come in handy. And hey, you never know when self-promotion will require you to print out some fliers with your smilin' face on them.

The big kid on the block is, of course, Adobe Photoshop. And there's nothing offered (Footnote -- Well . . .) by the open-source community that can compete with it head-to-head; it's the 800-pound Gorilla, and nobody's getting it to vacate the living room any time soon.

Trouble is, they know they're the big kid on the block. Adobe Photoshop is priced as though your career depends on you getting a copy of it; a big-ol' $600 as of this writing. If your career doesn't depend on it, there's there's gotta be something else you can use, (Footnote -- Other Than . . .) right?

Right.

The GIMP

Meet the GNU (Footnote -- What's GNU?) Image Manipulation Program, aka "The GIMP" (requirements). (Footnote -- GIMP Requirements) This is a full-featured graphics program with lots of bells and whistles, good for retouching photos, editing other peoples' images, or creating your own. It has a bit of a learning curve; the interface takes some getting used to. However, it's open-source, it's free, and it can do lots of things. If you need a graphics program, try this one.

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Astronomy Simulator

Celestia

Celestia (requirements) (Footnote -- Celestia Requirements) is a real-time space simulation that lets you cruise the solar system -- hell, the universe -- to your heart's content. Are you a hard SF writer curious to know how far 14 Herculis is from 18 Scorpii? Need to know the positions of the planets on August 18, 2259? Curious to see the extraordinary profusion of moons (Footnote -- "Moons.") orbiting Jupiter?

Download this program. Play. Explore. Find out.

What's more, the data that defines the universe as represented by Celestia is quite hackable. Meaning that, if you're so inspired, you can create a working model of your own universe, (Footnote -- Do It Yourself) to play with at your leisure. Meaning that folks have already created stuff for other peoples' universes. Meaning that if you want to travel around a universe that contains Bajor and Vulcan, or one with Tatooine and Coruscant, they're just a download away.

It's open-source, completely free, and great fun.

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Earth Viewer

NASA's World Wind

Explore your world. World Wind (requirements) (Footnote -- World Wind Requirements) gives you satellite images (Footnote -- Spying?) of the entire world, USGS images of the United States, and a whole bunch of other little nifties that you'll have lots of fun exploring.

It doesn't work perfectly; the satellite imagery in particular has some problems. Since the complete dataset is 20 Terabytes, (Footnote -- What's That?) the program is set up to download what you're trying to see on an as-needed basis. Well, it had a big spike in popularity after Slashdot linked to it, and guess what? The server is having a hard time coping with the demand. So, it may well be that the cool Landsat 7 images won't be available to you.

But everything else will work. Especially the USGS images; I can find every house I've ever lived in.

And guess what? It's open-source! If your computer and internet connection are both advanced enough to tame this beast, download and enjoy.

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Honorable Mentions

I've encountered a few other programs that look like they might have something to offer, but that I haven't taken the time to truly learn. Users with more to say about them are invited to drop me a line.

ProFantasy Software

A group of programs built for gaming, but the applications for a world-building specfic author fairly beat you over the head. They're not free, but the prices look reasonable, especially if you get some of the bundle packs. Of all the entries here in the HM section, this is the one I most want to see closer. (Read More)

The Literary Machine

This looks interesting; if only I could figure out what it actually does. Without spending $28 on documentation, I mean. (Read More)

MojoWorld

World-building in the most literal sense possible -- create and explore your very own planets. A pity you have to devote so much time and money, though. (Read More)

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Parting Thoughts

I'm sure I've missed something.

In this article, I tried to cover what I felt were the essentials for any computer user (operating system, security), the essentials for a writer (word processor, spreadsheet, web browser, email client) and a couple of not-so-essentials that I thought writers might find handy.

But I'm sure there are literally dozens of other programs that would be either very useful or lots of fun -- or both -- for the average writer.

I just don't know what they are. So, you tell me.

Do you have something on your computer you think I should know about, be it a nifty toy, critical resource, or anything in between? Then drop me a line at "pete at blairhippo dot com". I'm certainly willing to turn this article into a living document, to be changed as more cool stuff finds its way in front of my eyes.

After all, whose toolbox couldn't use a few more wonders in it?

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