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Re: Why ADM is a good idea with poor implementation?
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Note: This message is from the outliners.com archive kindly provided by Dave Winer.
Outliners.com Message ID: 5262
Posted by srdiamond15
2006-02-15 15:56:14
<If you want to look at what ADM has accomplished: ADM 3 was like a completely new product cf ADM 2 because of the introduction of metadata capabilities; while enhancing the metadata capabilities, ADM 4 will be almost as much of a leap forward because of ways of viewing pages and, most notably, Skype features, and srong tabbed browser features. I know of few other programs that, for two successive versions, make the massive changes that ADM has.>
I think version 2 was superior to version 3. Although I have a license for both, I know of no place I can dowload a copy of version 2. Version 2 was better because it was relatively stable (at least as compared to version 3) and thankfully lacks the mass of undigestable features in version 3.
I think it no coincidence that both of us were former Mac users. This made us 1) vulnerable to hype, such as Jobs feeds Mac users constantly; 2) unknowledgeable regarding the development history of Windows programs, which knowledge I think would really help in evaluating a program. Other forum members with a first hand knowledge of GrandView have a jump on us. Don’t you ever wonder why with the experienced users of outliners on this forum, all of these great new features don’t really, really excite anyone but you? Instead the attitude ranges from moderately favorable to totally deprecating.
But I have to say, your message reads as though you haven’t read a word I posted. I criticize ADM for bragging about massive feature increments accompanied by bugs that make the program unusable. This is followed not by cleaning up the bugs, but introducing still more features. Then you - procees to brag about all the new features! That’s fine, except you really seem to expect that it might impress me.
ADM 2 was at least usable. ADM 3 is unusable. Does the developer currently offer updates that clean up the bugs? NO, he will offer a new version with new bugs. Perhaps the old ones are resolved . My guess is maybe 50% of them are. But even these improvements are not available to ADM 3 users, even those with the privilege of visiting the “public” forum. To get another unusable version with the old bugs cleaned up will cost money for any ADM 3 user who wants to continue with the product.
The features implemented are those with the most glitter at the least cost to the developer. When I was in the developer group, I said that for an outlining program to be built on a foundation which includes no undo function in the tree is a major blunder. Did the developer argue with me? NO. He *emphatically* AGREED. He said it couldn’t be changed, but was a high priority, because he agreed it was terribly important. Is it added? Are there any plans to add it? My prediction: Multiple undo in the tree will NEVER be added to ADM. But how can this be, when the developer states that its omission was a “major blunder.”
The ADM development group is like a circus where everyone oohs and ahs about the great new features and the rapid pace of development. It is like a club of ADHD sufferers with stimulus hunger. It doesn’t matter that the new features actually work. Just so long as the intent is there and there’s a new toy to play with.
Stephen R. Diamond