After recovering from my first Linux disaster, I promise I'll post more on that in the next couple days. I wiped Windows from my system and did a minimal install of Fedora 18 KDE. So long Windows ! After the install, I played around a bit to see exactly what was pre-installed in my computer, removed the packages I had no use for, and found a couple interesting surprises. My favorite one is KColorChooser.
One of the things I love about Linux is all the great software available for graphic design, and web design. KColorChooser is another great example of some of the great software available for designers. This is a really simple program that allows you to select colors from either the color pallete, or anywhere on the screen. Now that I've been doing a lot of web design I've wanted to look for a program just like this. This is the perfect program to use when you're developing your color schemes on web pages, and graphics.
When you load the program a small color pallete opens and you can just mouse click on the color selection. KColorChooser then shows you the rgb values along with the html hex values. Now, one of the really cool features of this program is you're not limited to the color pallete. Let's say you download a really cool wallpaper and love a particular shade of blue found in the image. KColorChooser will allow you to select the color from anywhere on the screen. So, just click the color dropper icon your cursor will transform into crosshairs and click on the part of screen with the color you want and KColorChooser will give you all the color values you need. The same thing if you're surfing the web and come across a cool color scheme on a website, or web graphic. Open KColorChooser , click the color dropper, click on the part of the website that has the color you want, and voila, KColorChooser gives you all the info you need to use that color in your next design project. The program loads quick, uses minimal system resources and really couldn't be any more convenient !
Finding this in the graphics section of my application launcher really was a pleasant surprise. I've wanted one of these color choosers on my computer for a while now, but just haven't gotten around to it out of sheer laziness. Thanks KDE !
One more KDE program worthy of mention, is KCharSelect. It's a simple character map that comes with most KDE installs. When you need a character map, just open your terminal, type kcharselect, and the image map will load on your screen. Very simple to use, and comes in handy when working with different fonts, dingbats, and webdings.
Even if your not using a KDE desktop, these programs are available for most Linux distros. If you don't have these programs do a quick search of your repositories and see if they're available for install. Both programs save you time, are easy to use, and use very limited system resources. I give both these programs five penguins and a thumbs up !
