Converting pdf to eps

Although pdf is better than eps format, some journals still insist the figure files in eps format. There are many possible option to convert the pdf files to eps files, although none of them is perfect.

Using Adobe Reader

Open the pdf file with adobe reader.

Print it to ps file. Make sure that the box "Choose paper source by paper size" is unchecked. 

Use the command ps2eps filename.ps to convert the ps file to eps file.

Open the eps file in a text editor and modify the BoundingBox parameters. The bounding box can be obtained by
gs -dNOPAUSE -dBATCH -q -sDEVICE=bbox

Using command line:

acroread -toPostScript input.pdf

ps2eps -f -l -B -s b0 -F input.ps
or

ps2eps -f -B -s b0 -F input.ps

Using pdftops

pdftops -eps filename.pdf
will convert it to eps file. One can also use ps2eps to generate the bounding-box.

One liner - awk, gawk

Print specific columns
awk '{ print $5, $1, $2 }' fileName

Print specific columns separated by : delimeter
awk -F':' '{ print $5, $1, $2 }' fileName

Count number of words in a line
$awk '{print NF}' fileName


Maximum in first column of a file

$awk '$1 > max { max=$1;}; END { print max }' fileName 


Minimum in third column of a file
$awk 'NR==1 { min=$3 } $3 < min { min=$3;}; END { print min }' fileName


Combining columns of two files
$cat file1
one two three
one two three
one two three


$cat file2
four five six
four five six
four five six


$pr -m -t -s\ file1 file2 | gawk '{print $4,$5,$6,$1}'
four five six
four five six one
four five six one


Break a line into multiple lines
$cat fileName
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12


$awk -F' ' '{for(i=1;i<=NF;i++){printf("%s%s",$i,i%3?" ":"\n")}}' fileName
1 2 3
4 5 6
7 8 9
10 11 12

Insert newline after every 2 lines
$cat fileName
FR 24
AA 33
EE 34
EE 46
BE 30
AA 31
DE 90
AL 10

$awk '!( NR % 3 ) {$0 = $0"\n"} 1' fileName
FR 24
AA 33

EE 34
EE 46

BE 30
AA 31

DE 90
AL 10



Inkscape Tips

Make arrow head’s color match that of its body

In Inkscape path/arrow starts are black by default. If you change the color of the body of the arrow, the head will remain black. The solution consists of using a plugin. To do so, select: 
Effects->Modify Path->Color Markers to Match Stroke.

Change default application when opening files in ubuntu

As always, after reading a certain post on the Ubuntu Forums, the answer was so easy and obvious. To change the default application for opening files of a specific type, do the following:

1. Right-click on a file of the type you wish to set a default application to open it with
2. Select Properties
3. Select the Open With tab
4. Select the application you want associated with that file-type
5. Click OK

English Usage

A very good website for Common Errors in English Usage.


First / Firstly
This is from Lynch's Guide to Grammar and Style:
'The jury is still out on whether to use first or firstly, second or secondly, etc. Traditional usage had firstly, secondly, but this is too inconsistent for modern taste. Most guides prefer just plain old first, second, and so forth, without the -ly ending.'

Affect and Effect
The majority of the time we use affect with an a as a verb and effect with an e as a noun.

Affect means "to influence" as in, "The arrows affected Ardvark," or "The rain affected Amy's hairdo". Effect has a lot of subtle meanings, but to me the meaning "a result" seems to be at the core of all the definitions. For example, "The effect was eye-popping," or "The rain had no effect on Amy's hairdo".

Bought / Brought
Bought relates to buying something. Brought relates to bringing something. For example, I bought a bottle of wine which had been brought over from France.

Toward / Towards
Both of them are correct. As the word acts as a preposition, not a noun, adding the “s” doesn’t make it plural. The only distinction between the two is that “toward” is used more often in American English, while “towards” is used more often in British English.

Quotation Marks, Commas and Periods

Universal American usage places commas and periods inside the quotation marks, regardless of logic.
e.g., "Diane," she said, "put the book down and go outside for a little while."


This rule applies even when the unit enclosed at the end of the sentence is just a single word rather than an actual quotation:

e.g., To get to the next page, just press the little button marked "Enter."

However, British are inclined to place commas and periods logically rather than conventionally, depending on whether the punctuation belongs to the quotation or to the sentence that contains the quotation.
e.g,

Have you read the assigned short story, "Flowering Judas"?
No, but I did finally get around to reading last week's assignment,  "Where Are They Now?"




Correct Forms

• "I hope this helps" or "I hope this will help" instead of I hope this help.


• Most of the time when one says “I could care less”, he/she mean to say “I could not care less”.