just a note to let people know what’s going on - i’ve been messing around a lot with the (partially complete) database of features. i’d like to eventually use it to manage this project, in terms of setting goals and associated features, prioritizing what to work on, etc. trac is too simple for what i’d like to do, though maybe the interactivity would make it worthwhile to use. i’m still researching different sites that provide trac hosting.
i got rather involved in data modeling for the project management, which distracted me from just getting all that data entered. sometimes it’s hard to stop though - so many ideas to get down.
and i decided to stay focused on neomem, and treat abby as a bit of a prototype for a future console view to be added to neomem. ideally independent enough that you could just use the console as a separate app if that’s all you wanted. the gui will also need some help though, in terms of making data entry faster and easier. too often neomem just becomes a flat text file with huge amounts of text that needs to get moved elsewhere.
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October 11th, 2005 at 3:14 pm
Kevin
Does this mean you will keep the file format as plain text? Isn’t your idea more suited to a database backend?
Kevin
October 12th, 2005 at 1:50 am
jf
I’m glad you decided to push forward with Neomem before going on with another project.
In another post you mentioned the mismatch between objects and relational database. I’m curious as to what could not be done with a relational database ?
I think there would be a lot of advantages in using a database backend (relational, or object oriented). Think of the ton of info, docs, contacts, pictures, notes, transcripts, etc. that might be involved in a research project… it grows fast. Using a backend would let you focus on the interface, which is what is unique and important in Neomem.
The very first feature to add though is export. Like many who have mentioned it before, I can’t start putting stuff into Neomem if I can’t be sure I’ll be able to get it out later on. Then some form of CSV input for a class.
cheers
October 12th, 2005 at 2:04 pm
Kevin
Another quick comment… what are your plans for text editing? I saw you have a number of things planned in the list, but what about tables and hyperlinks within paragraphs? Currently you’re using M$ RichEdit, but this has big problems with these types of things. Any ideas?
Kevin
October 12th, 2005 at 3:46 pm
bburns
kevin - not sure what you meant on the first comment - neomem currently stores things in a binary file format, which i’d like to get away from, towards text…
jf - mainly i was referring to the mismatch of programming with objects, then trying to store them in a relational database. it’s doable though, and ideally neomem would let you choose the backend you want to store your data in (single file, multiple files, or database). my favorite at this point is using multiple text files, since it is the most transparent, and would give other programs access to your data also (eg google desktop search).
kevin - yeah there’s a feature request for tables i’ve since added to the db. i suppose what would be required would be buying a decent text editing control, assuming nothing free exists (scintilla is nice but doesn’t appear to support tables either).
October 12th, 2005 at 8:43 pm
Kevin
My first comment was actually a badly worded paraphrase of jf’s comment on databases. I think it’s an excellent idea to use neomem as a frontend for all kinds of back ends… makes the GUI design very important though!
Kevin
PS - Keynote (www.tranglos.com) was going to use TRichView as the richedit component… very powerful from the looks of it.
October 18th, 2005 at 5:48 am
bburns
thanks kevin, trichview does look interesting, especially the table support. i’ll be evaluating the different options available soon.
and yeah, the gui design is important, but i’ve finally come up with one i think will work (details soon…)
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