Author Topic: Good news for any InfoSelect users (Read 43,501 times)

SKesselman · « **on:** September 21, 2009, 03:15 AM »

If you use InfoSelect/Tornado Notes, you may be aware that there's an InfoSelect Yahoo group. It's run by users, not by Miclog.

In the past, the developers haven't participated in this forum and have remained somewhat untouchable over the years.

Well, today, the developer of InfoSelect, Jim Lewis, got on the forum and posted a message saying to look forward to the next version, it's coming soon. He also said that Miclog would now be participating in the InfoSelect group. He says that many important changes / updates have been made in IS. If you use IS, you know how badly these changes are needed.

I've been using IS for about 5 years, I think it's one of the best programs I've ever used. This is really exciting news for me and hopefully for any other user of IS who comes across this post.

cranioscopical · « **Reply #1 on:** September 21, 2009, 12:11 PM »

Thanks for that piece of select info!
I'll take a look.

Curt · « **Reply #2 on:** September 21, 2009, 03:40 PM »

I am stunned at/by/on/over/with (?) their asking prices, Sarah

Quote from: Micro Logic

Info Select 2007:
$250 once, or
$50 per year.
Upgrade: $100

Version "2010" better be out-of-this-world fantastic awesome good! Argh, silly me! At this price I won't be using it anyway, so what does it matter to me how incredible expensive it may seem.

SKesselman · « **Reply #3 on:** September 21, 2009, 03:42 PM »

Quote from: cranioscopical on September 21, 2009, 12:11 PM

Thanks for that piece of select info!

I was hoping you'd see this.

Although there's nothing on their web site yet revealing upcoming changes, Jim's post has drawn a lot of attention to the group members.

Now both of my favorite all-in-one PIMs (Do-Organizer & IS) have me waiting for their revamped versions.

SKesselman · « **Reply #4 on:** September 21, 2009, 03:53 PM »

Quote from: Curt on September 21, 2009, 03:40 PM

I am stunned at/by/on/over/with (?) their asking prices, Sarah

Quote from: Micro Logic
Info Select 2007:
$250 once, or
$50 per year.
Upgrade: $100

Version "2010" better be out-of-this-world fantastic awesome good! Argh, silly me! At this price I won't be using it anyway, so what does it matter to me how incredible expensive it may seem.

I know. See my annual fee in red. I can't afford to buy it.
The only thing about this that bothers me is that I could have bought it by now with all the rent I've paid (grrr...).
Had they set it up like a mortgage, I'd own it now.

But I'm still fascinated by InfoSelect.

I can't wait to see the changes!!

40hz · « **Reply #5 on:** September 22, 2009, 02:12 AM »

Minor quibble: What's with that ~~ulgy~~ archaic GUI? It looks like it hasn't been updated since Windows 95 hit the racks.

At $250, an attractive interface should be a given.

SKesselman · « **Reply #6 on:** September 22, 2009, 05:02 AM »

Quote from: 40hz on September 22, 2009, 02:12 AM

Minor quibble: What's with that ~~ulgy~~ archaic GUI? It looks like it hasn't been updated since Windows 95 hit the racks.

At $250, an attractive interface should be a given.

I don't know. It's one of the things they're working on now. The GUI used to really bother me, too.

It's a trade off, really. The GUI is less than appealing, but the viewing options are indispensable:

For example, I can color code my topics, work with a black background

, and display my data in any way that suits me. This makes working with my information much faster & easier than with any other program.

There's also lot more freedom when setting up the menus and toolbars than in most other programs of that kind. You can see only what menu items / icons / commands you want to see, in any order you want to see them, so that's a plus. It feels more natural to work with. For example, I would have never set up Outlook's UI the way it is. It's someone else's idea of an efficient interface & I have to learn it, whether it makes sense to me or not. As a result, it takes me forever to get anything accomplished in Outlook.

I'm not sure if there's any connection here, but back in the old days on Windows 98, before things started sliding and fading and glowing with silky looking gradient toolbars and such, computing seemed to be a lot faster. It's hard to explain, there just always seems to be some kind of ever-so-slight delay with the prettier programs. Everything seems to take a half a second longer - entering text, saving work, making selections in drop-down menus & buttons, everything. InfoSelect is really, really fast, so after a while, the aesthetics became less important to me.

I'm sure it will look better soon, though

.

40hz · « **Reply #7 on:** September 22, 2009, 05:28 AM »

Quote from: SKesselman on September 22, 2009, 05:02 AM

I'm not sure if there's any connection here, but back in the old days on Windows 98, before things started sliding and fading and glowing with silky looking gradient toolbars and such, computing seemed to be a lot faster. It's hard to explain, there just always seems to be some kind of ever-so-slight delay with the prettier programs. Everything seems to take a half a second longer - entering text, saving work, making selections in drop-down menus & buttons, everything. InfoSelect is really, really fast, so after a while, the aesthetics became less important to me.

I'm sure it will look better soon, though .

You make an excellent point. The more eye-candy you have, the greater the demand on system resources. And the trend does seem to be to make up for it with faster and more expensive graphics hardware.

Personally, I'm partial to "flat" icons and simple well coordinated color schemes so I see what you're saying. But you could avoid a lot of that and still have an attractive interface.

I think the following greyscale skin looks nice without being "blingy", but maybe it's just me!

[attach]

SKesselman · « **Reply #8 on:** September 22, 2009, 06:00 AM »

Quote from: 40hz on September 22, 2009, 05:28 AM

I think the following greyscale skin looks nice without being "blingy", but maybe it's just me!
(see attachment in previous post)

OK, OK...I suppose an interface like that wouldn't be asking too much.

(As a side note, on the forum, a beta tester said they've added a ribbon similar to the one in Word, and the old-timers are already crying about it, as always, calling InfoSelect ''bloated". Trust me, GUI means *nothing* to these guys

.)

Khalid_FA · « **Reply #9 on:** September 22, 2009, 06:37 PM »

Hello there , I just ran in to this forum and thought would register just to make this comment since I moved to Mac 3 years ago , and still trying to settle for an InfoSel equivalent !! I loved Infosel and still do, I have been using it since 1999 and used MemoryMate in the mid and late eighties , (still have the original 5 1/4 inch disks of MM!)
I proselytized every chance I got about it . When I headed a major IT dept in 2004 , with 50 satellite offices , I wrote to Info Sel to come to an arrangement to develop a version with RTL support so it is usable for Arabic. They told me that it would cost me $120,000 plus buying a licence for each user !!!!!! This was really a great disappointment, even a major international IT consultant laughed at their proposal : pay all the development cost and not even get a reasonable number of free user licences. I have kept checking any new release of InfoSel , as they apparently worked in a two years upgraded interval as far as I can tell , but this upgrade is delayed I guess since they were waiting to get a new version with Windows 7 . A great software but poor customer and business relations ! So thats my InfoSel experience. As far as the Mac the best close contender is DevonThinkPro Office and Eagle filer . But they are not all in one as InfoSel is , but then you can't compare a Windows to Os X .

SKesselman · « **Reply #10 on:** September 22, 2009, 07:16 PM »

Quote from: Khalid_FA on September 22, 2009, 06:37 PM

Hello there , I just ran in to this forum and thought would register just to make this comment since I moved to Mac 3 years ago , and still trying to settle for an InfoSel equivalent !!

Hi Khalid, and welcome. Sounds like you take an interest in software, so stick around, you may really enjoy this forum.

Quote from: Khalid_FA on September 22, 2009, 06:37 PM

...When I headed a major IT dept in 2004 , with 50 satellite offices , I wrote to Info Sel to come to an arrangement to develop a version with RTL support so it is usable for Arabic. They told me that it would cost me $120,000 plus buying a licence for each user !!!!!!

That doesn't surprise me; miclog has not been known for good customer relations or corporate sales. Or affordable pricing.
I'm not sure if the latter will change, but as I said earlier, they really seem to be getting more involved with their users.
They're responding to requests, as well as posts containing the needless, often harsh, bitching and complaining that has quietly plagued that forum for years.
The first moderating post from Jim Lewis appeared this morning.

pointing out the new forum rules.
So, why not go there and ask them if there are any plans for IS running on systems other than windows? At least you'll get a direct answer from miclog.

Quote from: Khalid_FA on September 22, 2009, 06:37 PM

...So thats my InfoSel experience. As far as the Mac the best close contender is DevonThinkPro Office and Eagle filer . But they are not all in one as InfoSel is, but then you can't compare a Windows to Os X .

I noticed on the IS forum that a few people have switched operating systems, and really miss InfoSelect.
You're right, it really is in a class by itself.
Keep an eye out for an osx version; who knows what improvements they're working on now, or what their future plans are.

rjbull · « **Reply #11 on:** September 22, 2009, 08:09 PM »

Quote from: Khalid_FA on September 22, 2009, 06:37 PM

I loved Infosel and still do, I have been using it since 1999 and used MemoryMate in the mid and late eighties

I used both MM and IS for DOS; bought IS after MM, but went back to MM for most things because it was so clean and simple.

Quote

As far as the Mac the best close contender is DevonThinkPro Office and Eagle filer . But they are not all in one as InfoSel is , but then you can't compare a Windows to Os X .

Is it possible to run IS on a Mac via an emulator?

IainB · « **Reply #12 on:** September 23, 2009, 11:59 AM »

@SKesselman:
Thanks for your post on this.
My InfoSelect notes record the fact that I bought my first licence (for IS V5.00.14) on 23rd Sep. 1998.
This discussion forum forray is an interesting change from Jim Lewis (the developer). I wonder what triggered it?

(Now, if only you had given some good news about Lotus Agenda too! Over all the years since I started using it in 1990 or so, I have still been unable to find anything to adequately replace Agenda.)

SKesselman · « **Reply #13 on:** September 23, 2009, 05:51 PM »

Quote from: IainB on September 23, 2009, 11:59 AM

(Now, if only you had given some good news about Lotus Agenda too! Over all the years since I started using it in 1990 or so, I have still been unable to find anything to adequately replace Agenda.)

Do you still use Agenda? I used to work at IBM, where I learned that and Lotus Notes.
I too would have loved to have given some good news regarding either one of these programs. I never see anything written about Agenda, anywhere.
Lotus Notes was just the best; I doubt I'll ever find another email client that allows for expanding and collapsing sections.
That was my favorite email feature ever; so I understand about Agenda

.

IainB · « **Reply #14 on:** September 24, 2009, 04:33 AM »

@SKesselman:
Hi sue,
No, I do not really "use" Lotus Agenda any more, though I occasionally open it up (runs under DOS) to copy some of the data it contains. I eventually became what you might call a "power user" of Agenda. Between Lotus Agenda and Ashton-Tate's Framework IV, I had most of my PIM (Personal Information Management) needs met.

Yes, Lotus Notes was very good. No relation to Agenda though. I tried to get the New Zealand distributorship rights for Lotus Notes when Lotus planned to release it as shrink-wrapped software after it had been been kept in Lotus' control for several years whilst they developed it and that consultancy (one of the "Big 4", I forget the name) used it and effectively acted as ß tester.

There are some points around the Internet referring to Lotus Agenda. For example, check out "Agenda Rediviva" at:
http://web.mac.com/agenda.rediviva/Info_Site/Agenda_Rediviva.html
- that is supposed to be an attempt to revive/rewrite it, but for the Mac platform, I think. It seems to have made no progress though. (Redolent of the Chandler project?)

I did post an "IDEA" for new Agenda-like software on the DC forum a while back, but no takers. I suspect that more modern generations would not have a clue what it is, and therefore would not want to dig down and develop it, and older one-time assembler programmers like me - who knew Agenda well, but also know our limitations - haven't started to try and develop it, even though we might like to.
I am playing with InfoQube (was SQLNotes) at present, to see what that offers.

IainB · « **Reply #15 on:** September 24, 2009, 10:27 PM »

@SKesselman:
This is a follow-up to your original post, after I have taken a look through some of the discussion in the Yahoo! InfoSelect User Group. I'm a bit embarrassed to confess that I had not known of that user group before, though I have been an IS (InfoSelect) user since 1998.

What I have learned from your post is that IS was apparently developed from a DOS application called Tornado Notes, and that there is this user discussion forum which shows there seem to be many IS users out there who, like me, think it is a grand piece of software, but are unsure as to whether the new licencing fee structures for IS v9 - and presumably for v10 - makes IS really worthwhile.

Anyway, I have subscribed to the IS discussion forum (as I have done with the Donation Coder forum) in my Google reader, and will follow the forum with interest. However, I remain skeptical. Just as "two swallows do not a summer make", the IS developer's (Jim D.Lewis) recent appearance on the discussion forum after years of apparent neglect could be just a flash in the pan. Like I said above, "I wonder what triggered it?"

Enquiring minds need to know.

SKesselman · « **Reply #16 on:** September 25, 2009, 07:40 AM »

Quote from: IainB on September 24, 2009, 10:27 PM

@SKesselman:

...Anyway, I have subscribed to the IS discussion forum (as I have done with the Donation Coder forum) in my Google reader, and will follow the forum with interest. However, I remain skeptical. Just as "two swallows do not a summer make", the IS developer's (Jim D.Lewis) recent appearance on the discussion forum after years of apparent neglect could be just a flash in the pan. Like I said above, "I wonder what triggered it?"...

Well, now that you're in the group, why not just ask Jim Lewis what prompted him to come back?

Now is the time to ask anything you want.

He's answering many inquiries. From the latest posts, I assume that this is no picnic for him.
He's getting a lot of criticism, yet he's still asking people to articulate their wants and needs for InfoSelect.
Personally, I don't feel that this is probably just a flash in the pan; he has no history of showing up then leaving.
He didn't start that group, so I can't see penalizing him for not directly participating in it.
He just wasn't involved (or didn't make it known he was involved) with his user community, and now he is.
I'm glad he's there now, on the forum - glad for him, his program and for the IS users.

The forum is for now, amusing at best. Hopefully, that will change. We'll see.

IainB · « **Reply #17 on:** September 25, 2009, 11:52 AM »

Yes, I suppose I should...so I shall!

SKesselman · « **Reply #18 on:** September 26, 2009, 01:08 AM »

Quote from: SKesselman on September 25, 2009, 07:40 AM

The forum is for now, amusing at best. Hopefully, that will change. We'll see.

OK, we've seen. Bad things over there. I'm so rattled!!! It's frustrating when everything someone writes is just slightly wrong and they won't listen.
I think I just had an argument with someone who likes to argue. I'm starting to wonder if they're teasing me and not really serious about their posts, just trying to get my goat.

It took over an hour to reply to him (correcting him, he didn't read my post but responded to it anyway) and I just ended up deleting the whole thing.
Grrrrr! It's rare, but still...I hate when that happens!

I am testing the new version and submitting reports to miclog but I think I'm quitting today.
I hate having software that has a forum you can't participate in because it's so negative.

If it were like that on DC, I'd have no where to go

so thanks DCers, I really enjoy reading the different kinds of informative posts here.
Even the youngest members here are soooo much more appropriate, and so much more intelligent than that.

IainB · « **Reply #19 on:** September 27, 2009, 06:16 AM »

Hmm. What odd goings-on on that Yahoo! Info Select User Group!
After Sarah's prompting, I made an enquiring post about "Why is Jim Lewis now paying attention to the group" (or words to that effect), and it seems to have been deleted after I (successfully) posted it. It wasn't a negative post either - I am a strong fan of InfoSelect. Meanwhile, Jim Lewis seems to have been assigned moderator/owner status of the group.

SKesselman · « **Reply #20 on:** September 27, 2009, 09:30 AM »

Quote from: IainB on September 27, 2009, 06:16 AM

Hmm. What odd goings-on on that Yahoo! Info Select User Group!

Very odd; I'm out of the game. It's too weird.

Quote from: IainB on September 27, 2009, 06:16 AM

After Sarah's prompting, I made an enquiring post about "Why is Jim Lewis now paying attention to the group" (or words to that effect), and it seems to have been deleted after I (successfully) posted it. It wasn't a negative post either...

I see (or rather, don't see) your removed post. I can't believe they deleted that!
Why don't they just say that it's not up for discussion? Very strange.
Perhaps you should have posted it in the form of a defensive and paranoid inquiry; it would have certainly fit in, and at least you would have probably received an actual response.

It's gotten out of hand over there, IMO.
I'm just going to briefly scan the posts as they hit my inbox, only so I don't miss any worthwhile notices.
When I have time, I'll make filters so I don't get any posts unless they're from miclog and a couple of other users.
It's too bad, that forum used to be very interesting

and I really enjoyed helping other users, when I could.

IainB · « **Reply #21 on:** September 27, 2009, 02:46 PM »

Follow-up: Oops. I think it was (my) user error. I had not been a proper member of the Yahoo! InfoSelect User Group, it seems. Now I am a member for sure and have made the post again. I saw it come up on the discussion board.

Looking at some of the posts there, I suspect that one of the reasons Jim Lewis of Miclog fame has taken over as owner/mediator might be to control the slagging off (bad-mouthing) of the IS product and Miclog. $:-\$

I hope it doesn't go all 1984 though.

colorpath · « **Reply #22 on:** September 28, 2009, 01:51 AM »

I bought IS5 for $99 & now the upgrades are far more expensive than that. Stay away from InfoSelect - it's unconscionably expensive! There's so many great reasonably priced alternatives out there. OneNote for one is fantastic and costs less than $100.

SKesselman · « **Reply #23 on:** September 28, 2009, 03:24 AM »

Quote from: colorpath on September 28, 2009, 01:51 AM

Stay away from InfoSelect -

colorpath,
I started this thread to neither praise nor bash InfoSelect as a program. The opinions you see here about the program are more like side notes. Really, I just wanted to tell the (2 or 3) other users here (and anyone who comes across the thread) about the recent, unexpected communication between the developer and his users. After many years of silence, this was big news for InfoSelect and Tornado Notes users. You can read about it on the Y! InfoSelect user group.

I understand that there are people with some negative, often spirited opinions about InfoSelect, but that's not what this thread is about.
There is another Y! group you can join if you'd like to express any negative opinions about InfoSelect. This group was created just for this purpose, so by all means, feel free to check it out.

Thanks.

40hz · « **Reply #24 on:** September 28, 2009, 01:18 PM »

Sarah, I'm rapidly becoming a big fan of yours.