From: Martin Joseph (martyNT_at_barknaturalpet.com)
Date: Sun Apr 25 2004 - 11:47:03 PDT
On Apr 25, 2004, at 9:48 AM, David Ensteness wrote:
> You are not comparing your own notes. If you use a database file
> system, you do not want a spatial interface because a database is not
> spacial.
I have to disagree with this. Everything in this world is spacial.
Data is put SOMEWHERE and dammit that is where it should be when you go
looking for it.
> You want a level of abstraction so that database attributes
> can be edited from anything that can access the file so that users have
> universal tools. That is why Column view is a big philosophical leap
> forward, the old Finder was mostly spatial, that was terrific, computer
> interface was based on the office/desktop metaphor. Except as computers
> continue to evolve that metaphor makes less sense.
Not at all. People want the impression of a consistent (ie spacial)
presentation of data. If I set my utilities folder to show me icons
and I put one in a particular place, dammit when I open that window
again it should show me icons and it should be where I left it.
Different people prefer different work flows, but this should work.
This has NOTHING to do with where the data actually resides.
This is broken on OSX. There is no argument. It doesn't work the way
it's supposed to.
> Less users have
> worked in the office without computers on which that metaphor was based
> so much of the familiarity it brought has been lost. Eventually
> computers will need an interface that is native to how they really work
> and not native to a model few have used in the real world for ten to
> fifteen years. As this happens the interface should become less spatial
> because computers are not spatial. This should also allow a greater
> number of interface points for any given piece of data.
I disagree. Clearly the interface must change. it's actually
completely stupid that we have to "look" for our data in as primitive a
way as we do. The computer should really handle this for us. It knows
when the document/item was made, it knows what made it and what is in
it too (find by content). This should allow me to tell the computer
open the letter to Visa i wrote last year...
-- This is the NewtonTalk list - http://www.newtontalk.net/ for all inquiries Official Newton FAQ: http://www.chuma.org/newton/faq/ WikiWikiNewt for all kinds of articles: http://tools.unna.org/wikiwikinewt/
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.5 : Sun Apr 25 2004 - 12:30:02 PDT