Windows Update and Its Discontents

A few things why I never trust Windows to update itself. My PC has frozen several times because of the Windows Update....

1. After updating, you may get errors that some applications and software no longer work or work incorrectly. 
2. It consumes huge amount of CPU and Ram while updating, secretly. So when I type a document, browse the internet and/or watch a video, it freezes. 
3. If you use some cracked software, the update would remove it and make it a trial ( that is for MS products only I guess). 

At least those are my experiences, and I choose to disable its automatic update and check it once in a while. If I need to update any software, I go to that software directly. 

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A Simple LaTeX Editor Comparison

To begin with, I am not an expert in LaTeX. I have just begun using it to write some books. And here, I am not writing about what is Latex or how to use it. I assume you have some knowledge of it already and maybe trekking to find a good editor that may ease your work in LaTex.

I have just finished one book with tears. Currently I am writing several other books. And a good LaTex editor helps you in a great deal. Here, I just want to share my experience after using 3 editors: TexWork, TexMaker and TexStudio. 

 TexWork

This one came automatically when I installed MikTex. It is the basic form of latex editor. Thus, It does not help you much. 

• Very least Shortcuts are provided. You may have only Italic and Bold Shortcut, to sum up. 
• Very least Autocompletion: you have to type \begin{document} blabla on your own. 
• It is difficult to compile files as well.

TexMaker

It is after I got many errors and I feel it takes me much time to write something like \begin \end etc. I think there must be some better editors. So I tried TexMaker. It helped a lot!!! 

• Shortcuts are abundant:  Ctr+Shift+M which replaces $$ and many more. 
• Autocompletions are great: when you type \beg, it would offer the candidates like \begin{.} and then you type in the {} , say do, it will completes \begin{document} with \end{document} for you at the end. 
• Compile and Build etc works like charm.

TexStudio

This one has all the TexMaker has to offer except that it offers in a more convenient way such as more toolbars and shortcuts.

Hope it is of useful to you, and save you some times and efforts.

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Amazon Voyage: A Review

I was hesitant to buy this newest kindle so-called Amazon Voyage, but eventually I did last week. So I write this review to help those who are considering to buy it or not and for those who are curious about everything...

Price: $200 is expensive, compared to other tablets you can find in the market including iPad. Why expensive? Let's look deeper at its specs. Its hardware is also weaker than others. 

Internet: With its pretty much black and white screen, you cannot expect much quality in browser. If you have to connect to Wi-Fi via the browser, it is even worse. It does not have even basic set up like the Internet Explorer in PC at the beginning of time! 

Kindle: its default reading app, Kindle, is normal. I have a better candidate: Moon Reader. I even bought it to use in my Android devices. Basically all functions are in the same app, i.e. its Kindle app. 

Transferring books: Because it is not iBook of Apple, it is quite easy to transfer your books. You can plug your device and treat it as a USB. Drag and drop all files you want. Or you can send files from your email address you used to set up Amazon account to the email address (@kindle.com) of your Amazon account if you have.

My final words: if you want a mixed functions like iPad, of course iPad stands out. If you want a device to help you read, iPad is not for that. It cannot help you read long. But Voyage can help you. For me, $150 would be its reasonable price.

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