Hello Allister! On Monday, July 12, 2004, 12:34 AM, you wrote:
MB>> In defense of RitLabs: the improvements that are being made in The MB>> Bat! are coming along so rapidly that any Help file would soon be MB>> obsolete. I consider that I am running an obsolete version, and I have MB>> the latest Full Release. AJ> Too rapidly then. Documentation is part of a product. Oh, I wish!! I was desperate and frustrated to the point of real anger during my first week or two using an evaluation copy of The Bat! (v. 1.61). AJ> ... Let's face it, how many newcomers would stick with it if this AJ> list suddenly disappeared? For that matter, how many longer term AJ> users would stick with it? I'm among the longer-term users who might stick with it. But I would probably roll back to v. 2.00.6. The folders lose my message list focus and my View settings choices every time I change folder-view, in v. 2.11.02. Been doing it about a week now--most annoying when there are a lot of mails on several lists. And I haven't learned to use the Virtual Folder function. However, I've read that this bug is now fixed in the latest betas. I got The Bat! for its safety. Retired, with plenty of time, and somewhat paranoid, I look at each message separately on the Dispatcher and decide there whether to delete or download. It's the chief thing TB! does for me which no other mail client does so well. Additionally, the easy quote function is something that's become a delight to me. And all the friendships with fellow-users on these lists. MB>> But I encourage you to stay with us. The Bat! is very likely the MB>> best e-mail program available today. AJ> All the more reason to tell people how to use it so they can *see* AJ> how good it is. I am willing to bet that a large proportion of AJ> users would use far more features if they knew they existed and/or AJ> how to use them. This is so true. I would have set up Virtual Folders if it didn't look so complicated and fraught with peril. It took me a long time to learn how to make templates and filters. Even now I'm dependent on c&p from others who helped me with my original AB templates. And I follow the model I got from Marck in creating a new filter. AJ> If people aren't using these wonderful features then they're a waste of AJ> the programmers' time. Yes. That's why I replied to the original post here. I wanted Jimmie to have the advantages that are truly possible with The Bat!, just as it stands today. MB>> Everyone is here to help you! AJ> Yes, and the ambulance is waiting at the bottom of the cliff. LOL What practical help could we offer the Programmers if they were to put a useable Help file on their list of priorities? I think, for one, a system of prioritization in the Help file. Perhaps a simple, Where Is It? category for wading through menus and short-cuts to a feature that TB! has in common with other e-mail clients. As a total newbie, I didn't even realize that I should poke about among drop-down menus and submenus. I went straight to the Help file, and Aaaaargh! :) It's not intuitive to look for settings under Account/Properties, for instance. Or wasn't for me. And so on. How would you, for instance, Allister, organize the Help file, if you were given the job? I'm not talking about programming code. Just what would make sense, as to Content and Index? Well--I'm putting this on tbot. Are you subscribed there? Hope you are. :) -- Best regards, Mary :Mary: The Bat! 2.11.02 on Windows XP 5.1 2600 Service Pack 1 ________________________________________________ Current version is 2.11.02 | 'Using TBUDL' information: http://www.silverstones.com/thebat/TBUDLInfo.html
