FOSSPicks
Git Cola
In the same way that we're all perhaps looking for an ideal Python IDE (see above), we're all waiting for a good Git GUI that can make sense of all of those weird options that keep being added. Git is brilliant and wonderful and not too difficult to understand at a high level. However, as soon as you scratch the surface, there are just so many options and ways of accomplishing the same task. A GUI should help resolve these problems by offering a canonical process for all of the most common tasks, as well as a way to visualize exactly what's happening in your own branches, as well as the branches they track on some distant online repository. Git Cola gets close, although, if you're a beginner, it won't help you learn Git. This is because its default view assumes you already know what you're doing and most likely are accessing a project with a comprehensive set of Git history.
The main view on the left is for showing "diffs," the textual differences between one version of a file and the next. You choose files in various stages of development from the Branches pane, as well as the status pane that shows the paths for those files. A file browser lets you view all the files in the project, along with their status and their last commit message; our favorite view is the DAG visualiser. This looks a little like the visualizer in GitHub, only the timeline for a file is vertical rather than horizontal. It shows how the file diverges and remerges throughout its lifecycle in the project, and consequently, how the entire project grows and changes over time. This could offer some valuable insights to more established projects, helping projects understand how to use various developers to the best of their capabilities.
Project Website
Scientific office suite
Stencila
While the wider world argues about open access to a research paper written invariably about taxpayer-funded research, there's a smaller revolution happening in software. Stencila is an office suite designed specifically for writing the results of reproducible research. Its primary user interface is just like any other office suite, where you create a document and start typing. It includes all the features you'd expect, such as excellent text support and better than average citation support. But in Stencila, these features are augmented by the "execution engine," an embedded reactive programming model that feels a lot like a spreadsheet. It enables you to enter data and process that data within your research document, but when that data changes, so too does the output generated in the remainder of the document. You can even mix code from various programming languages used to process the data within your documents to show how results are processed. This is exactly what you'd expect with an academic paper, but the way this is now interactive and verifiable feels brilliant. It lets you or your peers look through the code for how a plot has been generated, for instance, rather than trusting the authors' word.
The programming languages most commonly used are R, Python, JavaScript, SQL, and Stencila's own Mini. You can share custom functions, data validation, and custom types. Code is often written in snippets, with data loaded via XML – the entire document is typically a series of XML files, and you can convert from Excel spreadsheets, Jupyter notebooks, Markdown, Word documents, and LaTeX. Many of these converters are "lossless," which means you can save your work back out again in the same format and send it to colleagues working with those different software tools. When you're ready to publish, Stencila supports Journal Article Tag Suite (JATS), commonly used by publishers to provide finer output control.
Project Website
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
TUXEDO Computers Unveils Linux Laptop Featuring AMD Ryzen CPU
This latest release is the first laptop to include the new CPU from Ryzen and Linux preinstalled.
-
XZ Gets the All-Clear
The back door xz vulnerability has been officially reverted for Fedora 40 and versions 38 and 39 were never affected.
-
Canonical Collaborates with Qualcomm on New Venture
This new joint effort is geared toward bringing Ubuntu and Ubuntu Core to Qualcomm-powered devices.
-
Kodi 21.0 Open-Source Entertainment Hub Released
After a year of development, the award-winning Kodi cross-platform, media center software is now available with many new additions and improvements.
-
Linux Usage Increases in Two Key Areas
If market share is your thing, you'll be happy to know that Linux is on the rise in two areas that, if they keep climbing, could have serious meaning for Linux's future.
-
Vulnerability Discovered in xz Libraries
An urgent alert for Fedora 40 has been posted and users should pay attention.
-
Canonical Bumps LTS Support to 12 years
If you're worried that your Ubuntu LTS release won't be supported long enough to last, Canonical has a surprise for you in the form of 12 years of security coverage.
-
Fedora 40 Beta Released Soon
With the official release of Fedora 40 coming in April, it's almost time to download the beta and see what's new.
-
New Pentesting Distribution to Compete with Kali Linux
SnoopGod is now available for your testing needs
-
Juno Computers Launches Another Linux Laptop
If you're looking for a powerhouse laptop that runs Ubuntu, the Juno Computers Neptune 17 v6 should be on your radar.