| Foxtrot Attaché 1.0b1 Feedback [message #77] |
Fri, 13 July 2012 21:16  |
D Levy
Messages: 15
Registered: July 2012
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Junior Member |
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Hello
It has taken me a while to try out the Attaché product, but I have now
installed the 1.0b1 and given it a spin. I loaded it on an iPhone 4S
running the latest version of iOS 5. I have tried three indices, the
largest about 500MB, the smallest about 190MB.
1. The installation was unproblematic in all regards.
2. How do we get subsequent versions for installation (i.e. future beta
releases)?
3. If you load an index without stored contents, searches work, but
clicking on a file results in an exception. After that exception, if you
search on an index *with* stored contents, clicking on a file brings no
found text. You have to quit the app and restart it. So the exception is
breaking something.
Obviously you want a more graceful way to deal with indices that don't have
stored contents.
4. I think the current primary UI is rather weak. Can I suggest the
following:
swipe right to set the search parameters (as in move your finger from left
to right)
swipe left to return to the "main" search screen
-
swipe left to set the display parameters
swipe right to return to the main screen
This feels more like Spotlight on the iPhone. Also, it would give you a
less cluttered screen to add more categorisation features.
5. I would like a larger font as an option for the file info shown in the
main search screen. Perhaps the same size as the title, but not bold.
6. The graphics along the bottom of the "gear" screen are lame except for
the fox tail. You've got to find something else.
7. The #1 additional categorisation I would like is a date range control,
perhaps a pick list with 1 week, 1 month, 1 year, etc.
8. The main document viewing screen looks good. I would suggest a
standard-looking share button that allowed one to print the text, email the
text, copy *all* the text, send the text to another app.
9. It would be good to add support for TextExpander Touch so that one could
use shortcuts in the search box.
10. You should give some report, perhaps in the About screen, about the
installed indices. Perhaps give the size and the time of last update as a
minimum. This will help you to know how much space it is taking up as well
as whether it is stale.
11. I presume you will find an automated way to update the indices.
Perhaps Dropbox or iCloud support would facilitate this. Without this
there is too much risk of the data going stale.
12. I am interested in how you will develop the UI over time. Here are a
couple of suggestions:
a. Multiple search terms: you could slide down a search palette where
several search terms and search types (e.g. metadata vs. filename) could be
entered, adding them as you go. After the search was complete, slide it
out of the way. See Calvetica for something that slides up most of the
way, and down for more careful entry.
b. Sorting: you could add a set of sorting elements down the right hand
side, that one could slide one's hand along to move quickly. What I mean
is something similar to the Contacts, when you can speed move by letter by
dragging one's finger along the right side. You could do something similar
when sorted by name; you could put dates down the side when sorted by date,
etc.
13. The search speed is blindingly fast and is absolutely true to the
FoxTrot brand. So very well done there.
14. I wonder what you're thinking of charging for this feature set. Please
bear in mind that it is much harder to charge for upgrades on the App Store
for various real and psychological reasons. For that reason, you may want
to make sure that the 1.0 feature set is really good, rather than just 1.0.
Right now, this feels like just a 1.0, not a deluxe or fat 1.0.
At any rate, that is my feedback for now.
Good luck, I'm looking forward to this app.
David.
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