OmniGraffle Vs

[Deepak Bala]

I am just amazed at the support that the Omnigraffle drawling tool gives a user. Unfortunately it is supported only in Mac. Do you know of any tool in windows that would rival this giant ? In case you have no idea what I am talking about

http://www.omnigroup.com/applications/omnigraffle/

It looks like concept draw 7 comes close but I wonder if it can even rival omnigraffle

http://www.conceptdraw.com/en/products/cd5/main.php

I have not used omnigraffle but the images look stunning. Thus I cannot comment on its ease of use. Concept draw seems ok as far as ease of use and graphical abilities are concerned.

Have a look at this for example (taken from the front controller journal written by bear)



Concept draw also seems to feature some common picture templates like a server / desktop etc. Pretty cool.

Concept draw comes in at 300$

Omnigraffle is priced at 150$ for professional edition and 80$ for standard

Do you have any other tools in mind ?
[ October 05, 2007: Message edited by: John Meyers ]

[Jesper de Jong]

Microsoft Visio maybe?

[Bear Bibeault]

Visio is the closest that I know about on Windows. Doesn't hold a candle to OmniGraffle though (which is very easy to use).

Is there not an Apple store near you?
[ October 05, 2007: Message edited by: Bear Bibeault ]

[Arvind Mahendra]

have you tried WizFlow and EDraw?

[Deepak Bala]

Wizflow seems to support flowcharts alone and EDraw seems to be worth a look.

I have to give visio another shot. The diagrams are usually not visually appealing ( at least in office 2000) and it is a nightmare to work with.

Sometime I wonder what switching to a Mac would be like

[Bear Bibeault]

Originally posted by John Meyers:
Sometime I wonder what switching to a Mac would be like

Easier than you think. Just ask the many JavaRanch staffers and members who have made the switch.
[ October 06, 2007: Message edited by: Bear Bibeault ]

[Arvind Mahendra]

[Edit: post suggesting people perform actions in violation of licensing agreements removed]
[ October 10, 2007: Message edited by: Bear Bibeault ]

[Deepak Bala]

Why don't you just install the Mac OS on your PC

I dont think the OS is simply downloadable. is it ?

Easier than you think. Just ask the many JavaRanch staffers and members who have made the switch.

I know some have made the switch recently. My mind is also half aware of the benefits of linux. So here are the hurdles I have

1. No way to install my modem on another OS. Perhaps I should get a router

2. Replacement for Word. Open office sucks I am told

3. Workshop for linux/Mac

4. Tomcat for linux/Mac

5. Net beans installation if possible

6. Mozilla firefox

7. Other miscellaneous crap

Perhaps I should give it a go sometime atleast with linux. Not sure how I can get a Mac OS. So how do I get a Mac ? Purchase a Mac computer or can I download a free distribution version or something like that ?
[ October 06, 2007: Message edited by: John Meyers ]

[Bear Bibeault]

Originally posted by John Meyers:
I know some have made the switch recently. My mind is also half aware of the benefits of linux. So here are the hurdles I have

1. No way to install my modem on another OS. Perhaps I should get a router

Modems and routers are completely different things, so I'm not sure what your issue is here. Most Macs come with a modem; those that don't can use a USB modem. Net connectivty is easy.

2. Replacement for Word.

Word is available for Macs either as part of Office or standalone.

3. Workshop for linux/Mac

Don;t know what Workshop is.

4. Tomcat for linux/Mac

Runs just fine.

5. Net beans installation if possible

Runs just fine.

6. Mozilla firefox

Runs just fine.

7. Other miscellaneous crap

Probably less than you think.

The old myth about "there's no software for the Mac" is pure tripe. Either the same titles are availabe (such as with Word) or better titles are available (OmniGraffle vs. Visio). I've yet to not be able to find a program that will do something that I need.

So how do I get a Mac ?

Can't be answered without knowing where you are and what's available to you. You can buy direct from Apple, or fror Amazon, or from MacMall or any other number of outlets. You can even get great deals on used systems on ebay.

Purchase a Mac computer or can I download a free distribution version or something like that ?

Not sure what you mean by this. The only way to get a Mac is to buy one.
[ October 06, 2007: Message edited by: Bear Bibeault ]

[marc weber]

Originally posted by Bear Bibeault:
...Word is available for Macs either as part of Office or standalone...

In fact, a new version of MS Office for Mac is expected in January. See Mac Office 2008. It all works fine on a Mac. Much better than on Windows, actually.

[marc weber]

Originally posted by John Meyers:
...Sometime I wonder what switching to a Mac would be like

I wondered that for years. Like you, I had a long list of "would I still be able to _______," and "how will I _____?" After I finally switched, my only questions were why did I wait so long, and what was I worried about in the first place?

As Bear pointed out, that old fear of not being able to run things on a Mac is just ridiculous. For everything I was running on a Windows machine, I've found the same or better available for Mac.

At work, I'm still forced to use a Windows machine. I can't tell you how often I sit there thinking, "If this were a Mac, I would be done by now."

[Deepak Bala]

Modems and routers are completely different things, so I'm not sure what your issue is here

I am aware of that. My internet connection works on RASPPPOE protocol. I have to install some drivers and such in windows that let my modem connect to the internet using this protocol. Either I do this or ask my ISP to provide me a router which automatically connects me to the internet each time. The router configuration is more flexible and does not require any special installation. Either way I know its possible to switch to a Mac and still use internet well

Don;t know what Workshop is.

I was referring to weblogic workshop. Cool IDE to work with my weblogic server. Turns out I can tweak it here and there to install it

You can buy direct from Apple, or fror Amazon, or from MacMall or any other number of outlets

ahhh understood. I have never used or tried to buy a Mac before so I was unsure about the licensing details or how to buy it. I can contact some local vendors here about this one.

"If this were a Mac, I would be done by now."

Hmmm... might give it a go sometime soon

[Jesper de Jong]

I know there are a lot of Java developers with Macs - when I go to a conference then more often than not people are walking around with their MacBook Pro's.

Macs look cool etc., but in my opinion they are not the best platform for Java development. You're stuck with Apple's implementation of Java, there is no Java from Sun for the Mac, and Java 6 for the Mac isn't even released yet (as far as I know there's a beta version and Apple will only release it for the coming new version of OS X). So if you want the latest in Java, then a Mac is not the most practical choice.

[Bear Bibeault]

Originally posted by Jesper Young:
So if you want the latest in Java, then a Mac is not the most practical choice.

True, if you need the latest and greatest, but I've known few organizations that bet the farm on a new Java version util it's been proven out. I've never had a situation where I've had to wait for a rock-solid version of Java on the Mac -- it's always been available long before it's actually needed.

For the handful of people who need to be on the bleeding edge, there is usually a wait that may not be acceptable. But for the rest of us, the Mac has proven to be a wonderful platform for Java development.
[ October 10, 2007: Message edited by: Bear Bibeault ]

[marc weber]

Originally posted by Bear Bibeault:
...but I've known few organizations that bet the farm on a new Java version util it's been proven out...

I work for a huge financial services company. The rumor is that we might move to Java 5.0 in 2008. But this won't affect me much, because most of the Java I write is for Lotus Notes 6.5, which still uses Java 1.3.1.

[Deepak Bala]

Originally posted by marc weber:

I work for a huge financial services company. The rumor is that we might move to Java 5.0 in 2008. But this won't affect me much, because most of the Java I write is for Lotus Notes 6.5, which still uses Java 1.3.1.

We are moving to java 5 as well. Right now we use 1.3.1. I agree that no one moves to a new java version real quick.

You write code that works with notes ? Java agents for notes ? Not worked with them at all. Just guessing

[marc weber]

Originally posted by John Meyers:
...Java agents for notes ? ...

Yes, Notes agents written in Java. This allows things like access to the system clipboard, which I can't get using LotusScript.