TECH TIPS - Do's and Dont's

If you code a little, you know how handy an Integrated Development Environment (IE) can be. Java, C, Python, they all become a lot more accessible when the IDE software is checking the syntax for you, compiling in the background, or importing the libraries you need. On the other hand, if you are on Linux, you might also know how handy Vim can be when it comes to text editing. So naturally, you would like to get all the features of an IDE from Vim. In fact, there are quite a few ways to do so. One could think of c.vim which attempts to transform Vim into a C oriented IDE, or Eclim which merges Vim into Eclipse. However, I would like to propose you a more generalist approach using only plugins. You do not want to bloat your editor with too many panels or features. Instead, the plugin approach lets you choose what you put into your Vim. As a bonus, the result will not be language-specific, allowing you to code in anything. So here is my top 10 list of plugins w...

A new stable release of the free and open-source Audio Editor and Recorder, Audacity 2.1.0 , was announced a few days ago. The new release brings Real-Time Preview feature and lots of improvements and bug fixes. Here’s the release highlights: For a long time, we have wanted Real-Time Preview for effects. It seemed nearly unachievable without major restructuring. But with Audacity 2.1.0, we have it in LADSPA, VST, and Audio Unit (OS X) effects! Thanks to Leland Lucius for these great new capabilities! Much improved Noise Reduction effect replaces Noise Removal. Thanks to new contributor Paul Licameli! Lots of other improvements to effects, also thanks to Leland, including: VST: FXB preset banks, hosting multiple plugins All effects can now be used in Chains, and can be sorted on name, publisher, or class. Most Nyquist effects now have Preview button. Redesigned Meter Toolbars show a lot more information in smaller area. Thanks, Leland Lucius and James Crook! Spectral S...

1. How to convert from tex to PDF To PDF from tex select PDFLatex from Quick Build, (the default option will take a long time or hang during building process) 2. Bibtex problem – Question mark instead of number for reference To update you bibtex citations, select BibTex from Quick Build and compile, then select PDFLatex and compile twice to update the citation numbers in the PDF. Rebuilding it a few times replace the .aux and .bbl files that were made when you used before. Common citation mistake , putting spaces between comma seprated bibtex keys: \cite{zhao2003face,samal1992automatic,yang2002detecting} Don’t put spaces before the keys! 3. How to center cell contents of a LaTeX table whose columns have fixed widths? Use \usepackage{array} in the preamble them this: 1 \begin{tabular}{| >{\centering\arraybackslash}p{.5cm} | >{\centering\arraybackslash}p{8cm} |} note that “m” for fixed with column is provided by the...