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EccoPro: Why has nobody developed a clone so far?
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Posted by Stephen Zeoli
Aug 28, 2007 at 07:08 PM
I suspect if we were to poll everyone on this forum, we’d get a lot of different answers as to what constitutes the Holy Grail of outliners. My definition is based on functionality. For me the Holy Grail would be software that allowed me to manage the entire process of writing anything from start to finish—finish being the export to Word to put the fancy formatting touches on the manuscript. To do this, it would require the following functions:
1. Nimble outlining capability… preferably in a single pane.
2. Full-featured word processor so that actual composition would not be hindered by sluggish editing controls.
3. Easy capture of content from other sources.
4. Sophisticated data categorization to organize, and slicing and dicing of my information.
5. Powerful search to locate information quickly.
What is not included in my idea of the Holy Grail of outliners is contact or calendar management.
Two currently developed pieces of software come somewhat close to meeting my definition of the HG: ndexCards (is this the HG you’re talking about, Stephen?) and IdeaMason. That neither of these programs thrills me is due to their clumsy interfaces. I like IdeaMason—own a license for it—but I find it clunky and slow, probably due to its use of the .NET Framework technology.
Which just goes to show that it isn’t just what’s under the hood that matters, it is also how the steering wheel feels in your hands and whether or not you can reach the pedals with you feet!
Steve Z.
Posted by Ubaldo
Aug 28, 2007 at 08:30 PM
Stephen R. Diamond wrote:
>There is to my knowledge only a single Holy Grail pim available today, but I
>would be surprised if a single reader could guess my referent. It has attracted less
>much less attention, probably because of the glacial pace of development. Maybe I’ll
>let someone guess.
Maybe: Achieve Planner? :-)
Posted by Hugh Pile
Aug 28, 2007 at 09:06 PM
HGs: NoteMap (or possibly Brainstorm) under Windows, and Tinderbox (or OmniOutliner Pro or Opal) on the Mac.
(That is, the HGs of outliners as outliners, as opposed to HGs of outliners as components of task planners, data managers, project managers, mind maps, drafting or other tools where discussion if all are taken together is in danger of comparing apples with oranges.)
Development of Notemap sure is glacial, if not frozen solid.
Posted by sracer
Aug 28, 2007 at 11:10 PM
Stephen Zeoli wrote:
>I suspect if we were to poll everyone on this forum, we’d get a lot of different answers
>as to what constitutes the Holy Grail of outliners. My definition is based on
>functionality. For me the Holy Grail would be software that allowed me to manage the
>entire process of writing anything from start to finish—finish being the export to
>Word to put the fancy formatting touches on the manuscript. To do this, it would
>require the following functions:
>
>1. Nimble outlining capability… preferably
>in a single pane.
>2. Full-featured word processor so that actual composition would
>not be hindered by sluggish editing controls.
>3. Easy capture of content from other
>sources.
>4. Sophisticated data categorization to organize, and slicing and dicing
>of my information.
>5. Powerful search to locate information quickly.
>
>What is not
>included in my idea of the Holy Grail of outliners is contact or calendar
>management.
My definition of the HG of outliners is nearly identical to yours:
1. Simply be an outliner (w/word processing engine)...single pane, no contact management, no calendaring.
2. Intuitively create/recognize outline structure based on context (think indentation).
3. Ability to “fold” (“hide”/“collapse”) context subtrees.
4. Ability to easily move/demote/promote subtrees.
5. Support “tagging/titles” of outline entries and optionally hide/display those tags.
The idea here is that an outline is the “skeleton” of a document and that once the meat is on the bones, the skeleton is still there, but no longer visible.
Posted by Ken
Aug 29, 2007 at 12:06 AM
sracer wrote:
>
>My definition
>of the HG of outliners is nearly identical to yours:
>
>1. Simply be an outliner (w/word
>processing engine)...single pane, no contact management, no calendaring.
>2.
>Intuitively create/recognize outline structure based on context (think
>indentation).
>3. Ability to “fold” (“hide”/“collapse”) context subtrees.
>4.
>Ability to easily move/demote/promote subtrees.
>5. Support “tagging/titles” of
>outline entries and optionally hide/display those tags.
>
>The idea here is that an
>outline is the “skeleton” of a document and that once the meat is on the bones, the
>skeleton is still there, but no longer visible.
This sounds a bit like MyInfo.