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best outliner you use? (2018)
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Posted by tightbeam
Apr 18, 2018 at 11:12 AM
I echo these comments. Most everything about InfoQube is “non-essential” to me, and it seem a bit unfriendly to newcomers who - again like me - just want a simple single-pane outliner without all the bells and whistles. If there were some way to open InfoQube in a stripped-down, single-outliner mode, with all the other stuff hidden, I’d gladly use it.
Posted by cicerosc
Apr 18, 2018 at 12:29 PM
I am very concerned about seeming overly critical about Infoqube because it is clear that Pierre has poured a lot of his life into it, and if he achieved his goals for himself then it is not for me to state that “my” goals are different from his.
It appears to me that Pierre sees Infoqube as one massive database within which to pour all his data and then manipulate it in as many ways as possible.
That is a very different goal than those of us who simply want a capable single-pane outliner with an advanced subset of Ecco-like features.
To me, the great unaccomplished potential of Infoqube in my outlining world is what MyInfo and Rightnote and similar programs lack - Both (1) A RICH TEXT single-pane outline (for example, on the left of the screen) combined with (2) a RICH TEXT long-form “word processor” type pane (for example on the right). Ecco always had rich-text single pane outlining, but it never had a viable long-form rich-text “notes” field, despite the efforts the EccoExt programmers, and other addons (MagicView?) to accomplish that. I see this combination as my “holy grail” of being able to write detailed rich-text outlines while combining each “node” in the outline with supporting text, graphics, links, spreadsheets, etc - all the data that support the point made in the particular outline mode. Yes I can do that to some extent on MyInfo, Rightnote, and the other dual-pane outliners, but their “outline” is nothing more than a primitive ASCII “task list” format that barely deserves the name of outline, (And in fairness, they call themselves “information managers” so their outlines are not really outlines at all, just hierarchical lists.
I personally can live with non-standard idiosyncrasies like calling the main working field a “GRID” rather than a “workspace” or some other user-friendly term (Does “grid” have a better ring in Canada, or is it a subliminal reference to “this is an SQL database and don’t you dare try to make it into a word processor!” ;-) )
But what I personally am able to live with is one thing, vs factors that limit the program’s usability to a much larger user base, which is a factor that rings a “caution” bell before investing too much time in a particular program.
Against all apparent odds Pierre has marched forward for **years** in building this program, and he deserves tremendous credit. And it is absolutely no demerit to Pierre if his everything-database concept is not our goal as outliners. But I note also that Pierre has constantly participated in this forum, and the Ecco forums, over the years, so it’s also clear that outlining is of value to him.
That’s why it’s so frustrating—the basic tools are there in Infoqube, and if they could just be refined and brought to the surface he’d have a real contender. He’s probably already got the most CAPABLE outliner on the market - what he doesn’t have is the most USABLE outliner.
That’s why I’ve invested time in these comments and think that it would be helpful for others to do the same.
Posted by Pierre Paul Landry
Apr 18, 2018 at 01:00 PM
cicerosc wrote:
> I am very concerned about seeming overly critical about Infoqube because it is clear that Pierre has poured a lot of his life into it, and if he achieved his goals for himself then it is not for me to state that “my” goals are different from his.
Hi cicerosc,
No need to worry. “All” user experience is important to me, so your comments are welcomed. Significant improvements in the next version, as shown here:
http://www.sqlnotes.net/drupal5/index.php?q=node/4176#comment-19745
HTH !
Pierre Paul Landry
IQ Designer
Posted by cpb
Apr 22, 2018 at 03:26 PM
org-mode.
Hate Emacs, but org-mode has been too useful, especially tables (spreadsheet) and embedded columnview (convert all same-level item properties into a spreadsheet).
Effective for quoting & invoicing, when combined with a suitable pdf exporter. I use a custom python exporter to get clean monospace output.
Also OK for maintaining websites/documentation, but again with a custom python exporter.
Its weak as a database though; can’t quickly link to an item property to display its value, EG:
can’t type something like [joe:address] to display the value of address in joe’s properties.
The calendar (agenda) is frustrating, though I hear many people love it.
So not a complete replacement for Brilliant Database, but faster for common tasks and works well with Linux.
Posted by marlowe
Apr 22, 2018 at 07:51 PM
When on Windows, I use Treepad.