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InfoQube Requests
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Posted by Daly de Gagne
Feb 17, 2010 at 05:11 PM
Pierre, I continue to work with InfoQube. Though its spread sheet features are beyond me (as is the manual, at this point) I do like the way I can set up columns and write content.
I wonder, if it would be possible to develop for IQ, the following:
* A topic specific comment pane (similar to UltraRecall’s) that is separate from the text pane, so it could be used for notes related to what is being written in the text pane?
* Ability to open one or more text panes in stand-alone windows to facilitate quoting from different sources, or writing with an eye on a previous draft, or the source material?
* Standard font measures instead of 1,2,3,4,5,6 - ie. in points?
* Ability to write paragraphs beneath a topic in the tree, without having to use subtopics? This would make InfoQube more functional as a single pane outliner. There are times I’d rather add paragraphed notes beneath topics rather than in the text pane, to make it easier to pull them together later.
* Create an InfoQube for Dummies for people like me who know nothing from nothing when it comes to spread sheets or data bases, yet see the clear benefits of what they can do *now* with InfoQube, as well as what they might do in the future?
I think the genius of IQ is that it can be used as an information manager, a data base manager, and (especially if some of the things I’ve suggested are possible) a finest kind of writing environment.
Many thanks.
Posted by Pierre Paul Landry
Feb 17, 2010 at 10:24 PM
Daly de Gagne wrote:
>I wonder, if it would be possible to develop for IQ, the following:
>* A topic specific comment pane (similar to UltraRecall’s) that is separate from the text pane, so it could be used for notes related to what is being written in the text pane?
It could certainly be added. Could putting the “Notes” field not be used. You can put it on the grid, say just right of the “Item” column and enter text there. You can also use the Properties pane to enter info in “Notes”. Alternatively, notes can be sub-items. You can lock the HTML pane to make sure that it does not synchronize with the grid as you enter sub-item notes
>* Ability to open one or more text panes in stand-alone windows to facilitate quoting from different sources, or writing with an eye on a previous draft, or the source material?
If you use MS Word, or better still, use free Blocknote (http://blocknote.net/) as a rich-text editor, you can have as many as you wish. It is of course planned to have more than one rich-text editing pane.
* Standard font measures instead of 1,2,3,4,5,6 - ie. in points?
MS Word supports editing in points. The build-in editor does not, but this is part of the planned improvements
* Ability to write paragraphs beneath a topic in the tree, without having to use subtopics? This would make InfoQube more functional as a single pane outliner. There are times I’d rather add paragraphed notes beneath topics rather than in the text pane, to make it easier to pull them together later.
This is not possible, however, you can use Ctrl-Enter to insert newlines in the item to simulate it. The way IQ was designed is to enter the information as sub-items. Then use the HTML export to combine all this into a single document.
* Create an InfoQube for Dummies for people like me who know nothing from nothing when it comes to spread sheets or data bases, yet see the clear benefits of what they can do *now* with InfoQube, as well as what they might do in the future?
There are a few web pages that aim at this, namely:
- your first steps: http://www.sqlnotes.net/drupal5/index.php?q=node/860
- getting started with items, grids and fields: http://www.sqlnotes.net/drupal5/index.php?q=node/861
- Introducing the Calendar: http://www.sqlnotes.net/drupal5/index.php?q=node/1215
- step by step “How to’s”: http://www.sqlnotes.net/drupal5/index.php?q=node/59
>I think the genius of IQ is that it can be used as an information manager, a data base manager, and (especially if some of the things I’ve suggested are possible) a finest kind of writing environment.
Agreed !
Posted by Daly de Gagne
Feb 18, 2010 at 08:55 PM
Pierre, many thanks.
You’ve given me some info on how to use what is already in IQ to do what I’m hoping to do.
I’ll give it a try.
Does Blocknote enable IQ to have more than window open, or is it a separate program - not sure of what you were meaning when you suggested it.
Thanks.
Daly
Pierre Paul Landry wrote:
>Daly de Gagne wrote:
>>I wonder, if it would be possible to develop for IQ, the
>following:
>>* A topic specific comment pane (similar to UltraRecall’s) that is
>separate from the text pane, so it could be used for notes related to what is being
>written in the text pane?
>
>It could certainly be added. Could putting the “Notes”
>field not be used. You can put it on the grid, say just right of the “Item” column and
>enter text there. You can also use the Properties pane to enter info in “Notes”.
>Alternatively, notes can be sub-items. You can lock the HTML pane to make sure that it
>does not synchronize with the grid as you enter sub-item notes
>
>
>>* Ability to open
>one or more text panes in stand-alone windows to facilitate quoting from different
>sources, or writing with an eye on a previous draft, or the source material?
>
>If you
>use MS Word, or better still, use free Blocknote (http://blocknote.net/) as a
>rich-text editor, you can have as many as you wish. It is of course planned to have more
>than one rich-text editing pane.
>
>
>* Standard font measures instead of 1,2,3,4,5,6
>- ie. in points?
>
>MS Word supports editing in points. The build-in editor does not,
>but this is part of the planned improvements
>
>
>* Ability to write paragraphs beneath
>a topic in the tree, without having to use subtopics? This would make InfoQube more
>functional as a single pane outliner. There are times I’d rather add paragraphed
>notes beneath topics rather than in the text pane, to make it easier to pull them
>together later.
>
>This is not possible, however, you can use Ctrl-Enter to insert
>newlines in the item to simulate it. The way IQ was designed is to enter the information
>as sub-items. Then use the HTML export to combine all this into a single document.
>
>
>*
>Create an InfoQube for Dummies for people like me who know nothing from nothing when it
>comes to spread sheets or data bases, yet see the clear benefits of what they can do
>*now* with InfoQube, as well as what they might do in the future?
>
>There are a few web
>pages that aim at this, namely:
>- your first steps:
>http://www.sqlnotes.net/drupal5/index.php?q=node/860
>- getting started with
>items, grids and fields:
>http://www.sqlnotes.net/drupal5/index.php?q=node/861
>- Introducing the
>Calendar: http://www.sqlnotes.net/drupal5/index.php?q=node/1215
>- step by
>step “How to’s”: http://www.sqlnotes.net/drupal5/index.php?q=node/59
>
>
>>I
>think the genius of IQ is that it can be used as an information manager, a data base
>manager, and (especially if some of the things I’ve suggested are possible) a finest
>kind of writing environment.
>
>Agreed !
>
>
Posted by Pierre Paul Landry
Feb 18, 2010 at 11:06 PM
Daly de Gagne wrote:
>Does Blocknote enable IQ to have more than window open, or is it a separate program
Hi Daly,
Blocknote is a separate program (free HTML and MHT editor) which allows you to have more than 1 window open. It is integrated with IQ in the following way:
- In tools>>Options>>General>>Other, enter the path to the blocknote editor in “Other MHT editor”
- When viewing an item rich-text content, you can click on a toolbar icon to edit using an external editor.
- You can repeat for as many items as you wish, to view different versions or different sections of a larger document
- When you save the file, IQ will re-index the content
If working with a large document, one way is as follows:
1- In a grid, create the document outline
2- For each outline item, enter / import the content in the HTML pane or in Blocknote
3- To view / export the whole document (with expand/collapse buttons to show/hide sections and to show/hide content), select the document and do an HTML export (settings mode)
Sample HTML export can be found here: http://public.sqlnotes.net/download/infoqube/samples/htmlexport/manual.htm
Posted by CRC
Feb 19, 2010 at 04:23 PM
Pierre:
I, too, have a request. Perhaps this is answered in the WIKI or documentation but I haven’t been able to find it.
One of the things most valuable to me in organizing data in both ECCO and the old Lotus Agenda was the ability to be able to place a set of folders in a view and have items “automatically” appear under those folders. For example a set of folders “High”, “Medium” and “Low”. In one view these appear as checkboxes in a column (or in a “folder” popup in a column). In another as a “header” under which items appear when checked.
I think this can be done in InfoQube by using the multiple parent concept. What I would like is a capability where I “associate” a yes/no field with an item. Perhaps they have the same name. Then, when another item has that field with a “yes”, that item would automatically become a child of the associated item. When you check “yes” the item becomes a child, when you check “no” that child/parent link is removed.
An additional capability would be to have a text field with a set of values for a popup list. Values of the popup would be associated with an item. When one of the entries in the list is selected, the item becomes a child of the item associated with the entry. If a different entry is selected then the previous parent/child relation is severed and a new one created. You can see how well that would work with the high, medium, low scenario.
This is even more powerful than ECCO/Agenda in that these, call them “collector parents”, could be placed anywhere in a view hierarchy and the children would apper below them - appearing and disappearing as the fields are changed.
Again, there may already be a way of doing this, but if not, please consider this approach.
Thank you.
Charles