Re: [NTLK] Newton & knowledge management

> Gary,
> Very interesting!!! I'm not a programer, so....
> Does this software keep the data in it's native format (input in txt
> and it keeps it in txt)

Yes and no. The file format is text, but tagged with my own special codes.
My intent was to allow anyone to recover from catastrophic failure with a
simple text editor and a little patience.

> Is your intent to have a Mac platform?

Originally iKnow took advantage of tcl/tk's cross-platform capabilities. As
the program evolved I kept running into little incompatibilities. At one
point I was developing on Windows and set up links with DDE, only to
discover that there was nothing comparible for the Mac. When the project
began to home in on the FOSS model I decided to target Linux and FreeBSD,
but I still hope to do Windows and Mac versions.

As for text formatting, iKnow operates mostly like original HTML. The
markup tages are based on function. Headings, foreign text, emphasised
text, and fixed pitch text. There is a special URL tag that will call up
your favorite web browser. I have not even begun thinking about converting
Newton formatting to iKnow.

> Do you sync you 2100 now, to what platform?

Waiting for my serial dongle to arrive. Then I get to explore the wonderful
world of syncing and downloading. I am following your thread closely! This
is probably premature, but I hope to remain focused on my FreeBSD box.

Gary Dunn
Honolulu
MP110, MP2100

p.s. example of my text format for anyone interested. This item is from my
collection titled "Newton," filed under "Hardware.Screen," subject "How to
replace." The data that defines it's location in the tree is in a separate
file, one for the entire collection. This item has an internal link to
another item, 1160608715. These long numbers are really file names, but the
user never sees them. The link will be displayed as "Install sequence,
procedure" but even if the wording of the title changes, the link will
work. Each time a link is followed any changes to the title are carried
back. This eliminates the dead link problem associated with HTML. This item
is tagged with two keywords, MP2100 and screen. This allows me to chain
together pages stored in different areas. The useage of dot tags goes back
to early Unix text markup methods, such as the MM macros.

The text in the body in this example is extremely brief:

> 3. How difficult is it to replace the screen on the 2100?

(see link)

Here is the raw file:

%more 1160608766
TITLE
How to replace
NODE
7
WEIGHT
5
LINKS
{{Newton {Install sequence, procedure}} New12211160607040 1160608715}
KWDS
27 26
> 3. How difficult is it to replace the screen on the 2100?
.P
.P
(see link)
.P

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