LyX - What is LyX?
LyX is a free and open source graphical user interface document processor based on the LaTeX typesetting system. It combines the power of TeX with the simplicity of a graphical user interface to produce scientific articles, books and other documents in a significantly easier way than with traditional word processors.
Its graphical appearance is similar to that of most word processors, but it beats them by providing rich functionality and extensive support for different types of documents such as Word, RTF, OpenDocument, HTML and PDF, along with wide export and import options. It provides basic editing features, as well as advanced functions such as creating indexes, lists, labels and bibliographies.
Moreover, it allows you to create number and cross-reference equations and figures, insert mathematical symbols, enumerate text and more. It also offers an outline to organize your documents and a spelling check feature to ensure accuracy.
The application can be downloaded for free under an open-source GPL license on Windows. It can be used by anyone for any purpose, including commercial research and academic purposes.
It is also available for Linux and Mac OS X as well. Its source code can be inspected and modified.
Its main advantages are its support for TeX / LaTeX which makes it easy to write formulae, and its ability to process scientific articles and books. Moreover, it has lots of other features, such as the ability to track changes, create indexes, lists and labels, table of contents and bibliographies among others.