Re: ndxCards v. 1.92 Re: Lessons from the World of Clip Mana

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Note: This message is from the outliners.com archive kindly provided by Dave Winer.

Outliners.com Message ID: 2719

Posted by srdiamond15
2005-02-12 19:07:51

I think ndxCards is a trailblazer whereas ADM is design-defective because of what I have come to see as the Fundamental Problem in merging database and outlining functions: building the functions of a database into a one-pane outliner. Although I agree with Steve’s truism that if it works for you, that’s all that counts (for you), in evaluating a product one is bound to consider what seems to be a virtual consensus among users of outliners. For outlining strictly defined and for outlining as part of writing, the single pane is optimal. All the great outliners have been one-pane: More 3 and InfoDepot on the Mac; GrandView on Windows.

The leading Mac outliner, OmniOutline has gone to a single pane as its default for this reason. OmniOutliner proclaims inline text loudly as the main advance of the current version over its two-pane predecessor. I think Steve’s argument is really a knock-down argument, even if he doesn’t think so. In outlining you are concerned with two things: hierarchy and order. You cannot properly attend to order in textual matter in a two-pane entity.

What are the two-pane benfits? Why should anyone prefer two panes? I’m not sure they should. Maybe the two-pane format merely interferes _less_ in a database, and it seems easier to implement. Alex might be able to comment on whether that speculation about ease of implemention is correct.

But the one benefit that I perceive to two panes is that it isolates a piece of writing from the rest, to allow focus on just that item. It allows, in effect, a kind of hoist on a piece text. What ndxCards elegant use of the card metaphor allows is that the user can isolate his work in a card OR he can see it and work on it in the flow of his overall outline.

This merger of outlining and database was only really apparent in the latest version of ndxCards. In place from the start was a strong infrastructure, including a one click way of backing up ALL the data.

Stephen R. Diamond
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ndxCards is a good solid program, but not a trail blazer in combining outlining and data management. So far ADM seems to be the program that is managing to develop both capabilities without making significant sacrifices of one or the other.

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