10 Linux Applications You Must Not Miss!

Here is a speedy guide for recent Linux converts and even for those who have been using it.  

An operating system is of less significance, without the right kind of applications to run on it. Here is a speedy guide for recent Linux converts and even for those who have been using it, for a quick checklist. With writer Matt Hartley’s list of must-have Linux applications, we spoke to other Linux enthusiasts to compile a list of applications, without which they feel incomplete. Check them out...  

LibreOffice suite: Linux users are more familiar with OpenOffice, since it was there much before LibreOffice came into the picture. But for those who have used both, very well know that LibreOffice is the preferred option. It offers a dependable office suite to its users, with its brilliant to use, Writer and Calc. Writer is not only stable but also provides control over word processing documents. Calc is smooth for spreadsheet functions.

VLC player: VLC is a preferred media player choice for all platforms. Irrespective of the codecs installed in your distribution, it will also play DVDs, that too without the need of any extra configuration. It saves a lot of your time, since you know that it will run practically any media file.

Envince PDF viewer: Envince is a PDF viewer that is smooth and stable. It is much better than Adobe Reader for Linux. Moreover, it comes preinstalled with many Linux distributions.

Pratice Self Control: It is normal to feel distracted when you are working on a computer. It allows you to block few websites for a limited duration of time. The best part about it is that once you have blocked few sites using it, it is extremely difficult to undo the action, thereby, making you stick to your work.

Kazam for screen capturing: Many will admit that a host of applications that are commonly used on Linux for screen capturing are incompetent. Some offer poor results, others record a grainy or an overcompressed video. So to make your video capturing seamless on Linux, try out Kazam. It works with almost all Linux audio connections and even allows the video to be saved as WebM or MP4.

Filezilla for FTP access: The new Linux distributions offers a number of ways to access FTP server. However, there is nothing as smooth as Filezilla. It allows you to setup the login details for every server that you want to connect to and also supports SSH FTP. You can also store and sort your server configurations within separate folders.

Skype: With the popularity and spread of Skype, it becomes the preferred choice for Linux users. Hartley feels that with Microsoft rekindling support for the VoIP client, he has found that Skype remains his goto VoIP/video call software of choice. Not only does the latest release of Skype provide excellent PulseAudio support with zero tweaking, the video calls made with the client are sent and received flawlessly.

GIMP: GIMP is a handy tool for just about anything you want to do with images. You can use this tool to clean your pictures, resize, crop or add effects. Many who use GIMP actually confess that GIMP is so easy to use that it can put Photoshop to shame. You can even add all missing functionalities by using a script or an add-on. Moreover, it is constantly updated with improvements.

FreeFileSync: It is very important to have your files in sync, especially if you are working on a number of things at a time. This makes the it very important to have your machines in sync, where FreeFileSync can help you. Hartley admits, “Not only does it provide me with a rapid, reliable method of keeping my files in sync from directory to directory, it does so based on the rules and conditions I lay out for it. FreeFileSync even supports advanced functionality such as support for symlinks, conflict detection and a means of comparing files so I can ensure nothing is overwritten incorrectly.”

Invulgotrackers: Time is money! Gnome users can track their time with invulgotracker. Not only is it the right tool for tracking your time spent on a given project, it also generates reports whenever required. It is not really apt for those who work on a large number of projects at a time, but it does offer a lot of flexibility. 

Source : efytimes.com