Learn Open Things: TeX and Co vs Adobe and Co

   User copyeditor has an interesting post about getting into [1]TeX from
   the viewpoint of a publishing professional initially working with Adobe
   products, but caught by the "vicious update circle". You really should
   read it, and I do hope it will be continued!

   The post reminded my of my former use of TeX, LaTeX and Co. I wrote my
   diploma thesis in pure TeX, and my doctoral thesis in LaTeX, and both I
   would do and use again. In my current job, formatting is less
   important, and I have to focus on content for reasons of time
   restraints. Therefore I switched to Markdown for documentation and
   note-taking, also for my personal affairs. However, the important thing
   in my opinion is to only use and learn formats and tools that are open
   (in access and use).

   Is it reasonable to learn something that is actually owned by somebody
   else? You'd invest your time into their product or service, therefore
   linking a part of your most precious asset (your limited life-time) to
   it, actually increasing _their_ value instead of your own. Rather learn
   things which are indepentent of a vendor or service, so that your time
   invested is worth something without dependency on any commercial
   interest -- more freedom and satisfaction!

   That's why I never wanted to learn the innards of Windows or any other
   proprietary operating system. Why I never learned in detail the use of
   a certain design program for integrated circuits and kind of the
   industry standard, for which my lab has an expensive multi-seat
   license. Instead, I learned KIC, an old and (compared to L-Edit)
   laughably small and simple design program, for my former job in
   designing and producing quantum cascade lasers. Why I prefer TeX,
   LaTeX, GIMP, Xfig, and the like to the "sexy" and powerful "industry
   standards" in image and text processing. And why I'm happy I can make
   use of Gopher, instead of learning my university's horribly expensive
   and demanding content management system!

   .:.

References

   1. gopher://sdf.org/0/users/copyeditor/TeX/intro.tex