On Saturday, October 23, 1999, Leif Gregory wrote:
DSI>> THE BAT! already does most of the e-mail job, any chance to have
DSI>> newsgroup read/send.
DSI>> Think of it, all in one is better to switch between many software
DSI>> and Outlook/Communicator integrates both mail and news.
> This is where I think you will find the most disagreement. The
> majority of the list members ... Felt very strongly against
> incorporating other functions like news reading, and even HTML into TB.
I think that the list members as a whole are probably not very
representative of the general user community and those who post even
less so. People who participate on mailing lists about software tend to
be more computer-oriented than most people.
People who express a desire for integrated functionality are routinely
hooted down on mailing lists and newsgroups, so that I suspect that even
among those who might be participating, they might not be inclined to
express their views.
> Yes Outlook and Communicator package all that stuff together, but they
> are both bloated pigs of software that don't do their jobs very well.
> A certain phrase comes to mind when thinking about these two software
> packages. "Jack of all trades, master of none."
> I would much rather use separate pieces of software that are "masters"
> than one kludged together bloated pig that can do a little bit of
> everything.
The other side of this argument is that the vast majority of users use,
will use, and probably need only a fraction of the capability of a
program. They don't need nor care about their software being master of
anything. They also don't think or care about "bloat".
> For instance, here is my software use: (15 programs)
That's 15 programs with 15 different interfaces to learn and remember,
often for tasks that are not performed that frequently. The commonality
of interfaces and basic functions has benefits that can't be totally
dismissed out of hand. In an office environment, this means less
training costs, less support costs. I believe it was the desire for this
intergration in a corporate setting that primarily motivated MS and
Netscape to add and expand the news reader capabilities of their
mailers. For home users, it's been my experience that many, maybe most,
prefer integrated applications, because they don't want to have to deal
with learning and maintaining many different applications. Plus there is
the cost. When I got tired of NS crashing on me all the time and patched
together my own suite of internet applications, it ended up costing me a
couple hundred dollars total.
> I'm sure my list will differ in areas from others (everybody has their
> favorites), but my point is that I don't want a piece of software that
> can only do a half job. I realize that for a great number of
> Internet/computer users, this may not be the case, because they don't
> push the envelope.
Exactly. It is a niche market that appreciates and wants these small,
fast, highly specialized products. I don't know how RIT Labs envisions
the market for TB, but they seem to wish it to be used by businesses. If
so, then a companion news reader might be a good idea, even if it does
not have all the power of Agent or Gravity. I wouldn't use it myself,
but I see where it would add to TB's competitiveness in a larger market.
--
Paula Ford
The Bat! 1.35 (reg)
Windows 95 4.0 Build 950
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