From The Chief Editor's Desk...

You might have noticed over the past couple of months that the file size of the magazine’s PDF has shrunk a bit. This was intentional. And, that ability to “shrink” the size of the PDF for download from the magazine site is a direct result of some new abilities of Scribus.

“We” use Scribus to create the magazine PDF every month. The newest version of Scribus now (finally!) allows the use of WebP graphics. So, when Meemaw and I create the PDF every month, we have been converting as many of the article images to WebP graphic files. For what it’s worth, the ad images are still an eclectic mix of JPG and PNG files.

If you’re not familiar with WebP graphics, I’ll refer you to this article I wrote in the April 2022 issue of The PCLinuxOS Magazine. All of your major web browsers can now display and use WebP graphics. That means that your web pages can use larger graphics that have smaller file sizes, which means that your web pages load faster. Torsten Schommer, who has taken over the role of laying out the magazine’s HTML edition, has also switched to using WebP graphics, whenever and wherever possible (with the exception of the ads).

The file size savings have been astonishing and surprising. We/I always knew that the graphic files were one of the things that contributed to the final size of the PDF generated by Scribus … in a huge way. Some of the WebP graphic files literally are less than half the size of the comparable JPG and PNG files that we used to use. That. Is. Significant.

To be perfectly honest, I was hoping to only shave off one or two MB off of the file size of the final PDF created by Scribus. I *never* expected to see the file size savings that we experienced. For example, for the full size issue in April to come in at 4.2 MB completely caught me off guard.

Over the past 15 years or so of laying out the magazine, I’ve gotten pretty good at estimating the size of the PDF before it has been laid out. But those estimates were based on the “old” Scribus, coupled with the “tricks” we used to try to keep the final size of the PDF as small as possible for download. All of those estimates are now “out the window,” as the new Scribus (with its ability to use WebP graphics) has consistently produced far smaller PDF files than we’ve ever been able to produce.

By my estimation (and I’m usually pretty close), the April 2024 issue of The PCLinuxOS *should* have been between 8.5 MB and 9.0 MB in file size … using the “old” Scribus. I was EXTREMELY surprised when the final file size of the April PDF came out at 4.2 MB. I was so shocked that I compiled it again, with the exact same results. My surprise turned to elation when I opened up the PDF, and everything was there and functioning as perfectly well as it ever had. Getting the file size of the final PDF down to 4.2 MB was **completely** unexpected, albeit welcomed.

To be perfectly honest, I’m not entirely happy with the changes that the Scribus developers made in the “new” Scribus. Many seem arbitrary, as if they changed things around “just because they can.” And 14+ years of doing it one way are suddenly “upset” because of those seemingly whimsical changes. We’ve adapted to those changes, begrudgingly. We have no choice but to adapt. But with the most recent iteration of Scribus, I can almost overlook those niggles, trading them for the remarkably and significantly smaller file sizes.

The file size of the final PDF is very important to me. I’ve noticed over the years that the more we exceed 10 MB in file size for the final PDF, we have fewer downloads of that PDF. Certainly, this magazine is a great vehicle for communicating with and informing PCLinuxOS users. But I also know that “other people” other than PCLinuxOS users also read the magazine. In that capacity, this magazine also helps “spread the word” about PCLinuxOS. So, the more we can constrain the file size, the more downloads we have, and the more we help spread the word about PCLinuxOS.

We hope that you find the smaller PDF file sizes of The PCLinuxOS Magazine a welcome change. I know we like them … a lot!

This month’s cover is based on popular characters from Frank L. Baum’s “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” (its original title). But, in a twist, the characters are all penguins, paying homage to Tux, the Linux mascot. Why Baum? Because he was born on May 15, 1856. This year is the 159th anniversary of his birth. The cover image was created with the Bing AI image creation engine. From left to right in the cover image is the Tin Man, the Scarecrow, Dorothy Gale, the Cowardly Lion, and the Wizard of Oz.

“The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” was first published in 1900, to critical acclaim. The book was the best-selling children's book for two years after its initial publication. Before his death in 1919 from a stroke, Baum wrote a total of 13 novels based on his Oz characters. The last two books of the 13 novels were published after his untimely death at age 62. You can read more about Baum’s life here.

Until next month, I bid you peace, happiness, serenity, prosperity, and continued good health!