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Messages - Dormouse [ switch to compact view ]

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1551
Finished Programs / Re: JustToDoIt - Fast ToDo lister
« on: December 21, 2008, 04:55 AM »
Would also be cool if there were options for the CompletedTasks:-
  • them all to have a time/date stamp when completed
  • for them to be struck through when completed (makes it more obvious that it is the completed list being looked at, but possibly less easy to read)

1552
Finished Programs / Re: JustToDoIt - Fast ToDo lister
« on: December 20, 2008, 08:58 PM »
Also seems to me that putting items straight into the text file (either writing or cutting/pasting - especially from a clipboard manager) is the fastest way of doing this in bulk.
This is a major improvement over the tedious large boxes that need completion in most todo apps.

1553
Finished Programs / Re: JustToDoIt - Fast ToDo lister
« on: December 20, 2008, 07:32 PM »
I'm thinking about how to show multiple lists too or some way of being able to seperate multiple projects. Maybe it could recognise <project>: task formatted tasks and generate tabs or a menu of some kind, keeping the speedy input/overviews.

project a: example task
project b: some other task

this could result in a tasklist per project.

Isn't this what we have, more or less. Multiple instances give multiple lists.

Simplicity is good, portability is good.
Showing more than one list at a time would also be good (ie potential for multiple panes); also potential to set background color for each list (so I know immediately which list is which).

I find multiple lists easier than setting projects.
Phone calls to make;
things I've just thought I must do in a minute;
letters to write;
etc
Anything complex and I would use a much more complex program, but I don't want a much more complex program for very simple things I expect to do very soon.

This can also be used as a simple checkbox template; one instance per task; at end, save completed tasks under the task name.

Also a very quick way of making a test list into a checkbox list.

1554
Cranioscopical's occurrence seems the same as mine: calling ie when trying to update from Linkman. At least it suggest that the issue was not for my system alone.

1555
That's very strange then. It is many years since I had ie as a default browser and the only time it can ever appear so on any of my machines is when Windows is first installed. I know it has never been the case here since other progs always launch the default browser (Opera). Well, I'm glad Linkman usually installs the same default as the machine, but slightly perturbed at why it wasn't the case with me (this is the point at which I become slightly paranoid about what might have been secretly changing settings in the background).

Thanks for all the info.  :up:

1556
Living Room / Re: Please help me build my new computer, DC!
« on: December 18, 2008, 07:09 PM »
I think two 24" is too much, but I'm not sure.  I don't know what brand is good. 

Why do you think 2 x 24" is too much? Usefulness will depend on how you have them set up, where you sit etc, but I'm not sure too much screen space is possible.

Brand. Always worth checking reviews, but in my experience very cheap, well reviewed models turn out to be very good (so long as the guarantee is equivalent to other brands anyway - I've never tried a monitor with less than 3 year cover). My latest was a DigiMate - very cheap but does exactly what I need and I'm very pleased with the quality. I would only buy models that have good user reviews though (assuming that the site you buy from has reliable reviews) - with cheap models it is easy to get poorly manufactured monitors with awful quality control. But for normal use, I still see no reason to pay more.

Not true for specialist uses though. For instance, if you are a keen photographer who will be wanting to calibrate your monitor so that you can see exactly what will be printed, you will have to select very carefully and expect to pay a much higher price; photographer friendly models are reducing in numbers too.

1557
If you mean "Help | Updates" in Linkman's main menu then it launches the browser that is specified in the Linkman settings as your default browser (Tools | Settings | Launch URLs).
-Outertech Support (December 18, 2008, 05:26 PM)

I do and I have changed it now , but surely it should use the default browser in the absence of instructions to do the contrary?

1558
Interesting.

I clicked on the search for updates and up sprung internet explorer (definitely NOT my default browser) looking for the update. I took advantage of it to install the security patch, but I definitely do not like it launching ie.

1559
General Software Discussion / Re: Is it finally time to abandon IE?
« on: December 17, 2008, 10:39 AM »
To stay protected, it pays to be informed about risks as they occur, and to have options.

I use Opera, and FF, and increasingly Iron/Chrome and occasionally ie. I see few advantages to using ie, so I avoid it, partly for the benefits of the other browsers but also for the reduced risks of not using the  most prevalent programs. If I see a risk with one, I switch to using the others until it is sorted.

I use the same approach for most types of programs, though still use XP more than Linux.

1560
i for example still remember that 258512 was my phone number when i was a kid.

So can I!  :-\ :-\

OK, lets see how common that is
No, I had a different number

1561
a developer has to fund themselves in some way ... When the sales tail off, either because the market matures, or like now, people rein in their spending then we have to expect people to change their models.

The problem is the idea that a change of model will solve the income shortage. The best model for a product is the best model for that product whatever the state of the economy. There are things that can be done to bring income forwards, but moving to a different model will not improve things unless the wrong model was used in the first place. The danger of making an abrupt and major change is that it will affect the perception of customers and future customers in a way that can't be undone.

As you say, a lifetime model only really works if there will always be a supply of new customers. It can make people more likely to buy (sometimes much more likely) and can be a useful differentiator from competitors. So it is not necessarily a bad model for many products. And many people lose their license details and still upgrade their hardware from time to time - can be tempted to buy a new license. Usage of a program is often short or medium term (say between 2 and 6 years) - so there may not be a huge loss compared to an Upgrade cycle model (and on upgrade models, many people have another look at the competition every time they are asked to fork out again).

Annual licenses generally play poorly in the consumer market except for AVs - and then only because people are scared into it. I would be surprised if many products can increase their long-term income by moving to this model, wherever they start from.

1562
Very strange that Silverstein arrives here to draw attention to this thread more than two years after the most recent post. If he/she didn't want the site promoted, then why post in this forgotten thread at all?

1563
I agree completely with Carol that this announcement of an imminent loss of the lifetime license is an attempt at a good marketing ploy. Some realisation that the annual license may not be as remunerative as they would like, but they want to get as much cash now as they can without getting a reputation for sales and discounts.

1564
There is SUPERAntiSpyware Lifetime Subscription. I've got a licensed copy. Check it. It can't detect any spyware, though nor can it prevent the system being infected. Thrown it out and installed Spyware Doctor. Peace, now.
I use Kaspersky atm. 3 year license; cheap deal; very effective; uninstalled Spyware Doctor some time ago. I reconsider the prog I use everytime I get to the end of my license. There are some progs I have a lifetime license for that I don't currently use (so the lifetime sale was good marketing); others that produce regular upgrades where I also don't use - and don't buy upgrades.

What developers should be considering is what sort of product and market they have and what type of license is likely to be most effective for them.

In practice, I think many of them just think "I'm not getting as much money as I think I should be getting, so I'll change the license to bring more money in". This strategy is quite capable of reducing their income rather than increasing it.

We are now in a recession. Most developers will just have to accept that incomes are likely to reduce until things pick up again.

TreeDBnotes did a similar thing to FruityLoops.

1565
Lifetime licenses may provide more income than annual subscriptions. New users tend to need more support than old ones, so most cost is attached to new users. Old users are a good marketing tool and there are many people who will buy a lifetime license who would think twice or thrice about paying for upgrades let alone annual subscriptions. Lifetime licenses depend on a marketing model where there will always be a lot of new users buying the program; annual licenses rely on committed users who have decided they need that product and always up-to-date.

I have to say that there are very,very few programs (current number = nil) where I would consider paying an annual subscription.

Upgrades from time-to-time I will consider, but I don't expect the cycle to be more frequent than every 3 or 4 years and I do expect to see a clear benefit from the new version.

1566
Of course, there's a whole range of PagePlus versions available - from SE (free) which won't export PDFs to 9 (which will) and 10, 11 to X3 which is the most recent. 9 is fairly cheap (under £10). All Serif software seems well recommended by its users for functionality and value, but I don't use it myself and so don't know the best value way in. The do use free older versions as a marketing technique and do appear to give discounts on newer versions to people who are upgrading.

1567
General Software Discussion / Re: Is XP really that good?
« on: November 29, 2008, 06:43 PM »
Users mess around alot, and linux is more fragile than windows. Users will figure out how to run everything as root, and then they'll go wreck their system.
...
*mumbles something about having to manually edit configuration files as soon as you want to do anything out of the ordinary... like getting a multiple monitor setup working*

Actually most users don't do anything of the sort. They keep the system as it is (because they don't have enough interest to do anything different) and occasionally update (more often if automatic updates are switched on) and install new programs. They run everything on default settings and scream 'help' if something stops working. And they can't comprehend why anyone would want two monitors.

In this context, Linux is certainly good enough - and so is XP.
But the ones I know find it far easier to use the repository system than to search the net for Windows software.

1568
General Software Discussion / Re: Is XP really that good?
« on: November 29, 2008, 09:38 AM »
For your normal user, there is little reason not to run Windows.
No activation. Linux runs effectively on less powerful computers.

More apps
True. But how much difference do the extra apps make to most users?

faster or just as fast (KDE and Gnome are just as fat and bloated as Windows counterparts)
Well, Windows has never run as fast on any system I've put them on. And Vista is infinitely slower than XP. If KDE and Gnome are just as bloated, then Windows must be inherently much slower.

for most people, Windows will come for free
No again. Microsoft take their cut from every legitimate version of Windows installed. If people aren't paying directly, it comes in higher prices for the computer. And watch for the bill when the mobo needs changing.

easier to use
My non-techie kids find Linux easier. Refuse to go back to Windows. When there's a prog only available on Windows, they want dual boot or Windows in a VM - anything but disturbing their Linux.
They find the whole repository system easier than anything for Windows - and it is only really possible for free software.
It's only familiarity that makes most people think it's easier.

1569
I'm trying.
-AgendaRediviva (November 28, 2008, 03:43 PM)
But only for Mac ?

1570
Chandler .... is proceeding 
;D ;D ;D


1571
General Software Discussion / Re: Is XP really that good?
« on: November 28, 2008, 03:59 PM »
with the current setup, I have rarely seen my total free RAM as reported by Task Manager fall below 1GB free

I very rarely have that much memory free.
You just don't have enough applications Darwin   ;D

1572
General Software Discussion / Re: Calendar
« on: November 28, 2008, 10:29 AM »
I have to say that Outlook is probably the application I most detest and yet have to use every day. Mostly because it doesn't have the functionality I want or because doing what I want takes longer than it should.

It does mean that it might have features I have never found since my investigations into it are always under duress.

With respect to the calendar period "zoom", ie from minutes to years, the Calendar in Microsoft Outlook does have this kind of feature.

I'm not aware that it has a year view. I know you can get an ActiveX control to give a year view, but that is still only one year.

And putting tasks into the Calendar seems to require completion of the d....d form. What I want to do is to drag things on and drag the times to get them precisely. And to be able to do that with color categories, especially useful for a year view. And to have multiple calendars like Holidays (eg mine and family's).

Your user spec sounds like a great idea for an app, tho!   Thinking laterally - have you considered the various task managers around?   Again, have a look at Outlook's Tasks.

I have had a look at a huge number of task managers (& have quite a lot installed) and PIMs (ditto) and they are all limited in one way or another. And surely Outlook's tasks must be one of the most limited features of Outlook. Not even any hierarchy.

Another thing about Outlook is you can customise it considerably, creating your own forms etc, but this would mean you were effectively creating an add-on to Outlook

I didn't know about this. But then getting away from forms completely is one of the main objects.

so users don't need Outlook installed.

And that would be very good, though hard to achieve since the one thing it is useful as is as the most pervasive way of moving data from one prog to another.

Thanks for the opportunity to let off a little more steam over Outlook. :)

1573
Back at the time we had a 50% discount I assume. I think I'd be tempted with that, but not otherwise since I do have some level of control over it the system tray already.

Note correction made to improve clarity. Approx 6 hours after original. I would not like a 30 minute cut off for edits.

1574
Yes, but the deal I was talking about was the discount for the lifetime license. Again advertised as just for today.

1575
The page leads me to believe that the deal is only for today, but you know how those things go.
You're quite right. It's still there on the 27th. Doesn't make it any less useful though.

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