[Adium-devl] Fwd: [Adium-feedback] [Fwd: [SFNL] Scot's Newsletter HTML - Apr. 2007]

[Evan Schoenberg]

Peter and I have replied to Scot with questions about each of his  
negative comments, FYI... we'll let you know if anything interesting  
comes of the discussion. Anyways, just wanted to forward on some press.

-Evan

Begin forwarded message:

> From: Neil <neil at horizontheory.com>
> Date: April 10, 2007 2:33:12 PM EDT
> To: feedback at adiumx.com
> Subject: [Adium-feedback] [Fwd: [SFNL] Scot's Newsletter HTML -  
> Apr. 2007]
>
> Hey guys,
>
> I'm not actually an Adium user (since I'm not a Mac user, though  
> I'm thinking about making the switch...), but your product was  
> features in Scot's Newsletter, so I thought you might be interested  
> to see it.  I snipped out most of the newsletter for your  
> convenience, but I'm sure Scot would love it if you looked at the  
> rest of his stuff.
>
> Cheers,
> -Neil.
>
> -------- Original Message --------
> Subject:	[SFNL] Scot's Newsletter HTML - Apr. 2007
> Date:	Tue, 10 Apr 2007 08:39:39 -0400
> From:	Scot's Newsletter <scot at scotsnewsletter.com>
> Reply-To:	scot at scotsnewsletter.com
> To:	Neil <neil at horizontheory.com>
>
> Adium Does Powerful IM
> I finally got around to testing the Adium instant messaging  
> program. It's far more flexible and configurable than iChat. It  
> supports multiple networks and accounts, has built-in message  
> history (which I love), and presents multiple conversations in a  
> single window with a tab for each person. Try this instant  
> messaging program for 15 minutes and you probably won't go back. I  
> haven't.
>
> That doesn't mean it's perfect. Adium needs presentation  
> refinement. For example, I actually like the iChat bubbles, and the  
> way iChat color codes messages works better than Adium's weaker  
> color coding. With Adium, I can't read the messages of one of my  
> friends because he uses a custom background color in his client.  
> Apple's iChat handles this just fine; Adium offers me black  
> characters on a black background and — you guessed it — you can't  
> see the words at all. Another visual peccadillo is found in the  
> colors and icons beside buddy names, which indicate things like  
> whether buddies are offline, online, idle, or in the process of  
> writing to you. The icons just aren't intuitive. I've learned them  
> by rote after watching the context. Adium's visual presentation  
> needs work. In that regard, it looks like a prerelease product.
>
> Another frustration with Adium concerns configuring notifications.  
> The big problem is that there's no Off option on the configuration  
> drop-down for each specific notification (such as buddy comes onto  
> the network, buddy leaves the network, etc.). Instead of turning  
> off a notification, you're forced to create and save a custom  
> version of the entire set of notifications and then delete  
> individual notifications. That's kludgey. Adium supports the Growl  
> central notification service, but I didn't have much better luck  
> with that tool and Adium. The developers should just supply the  
> controls that are clearly needed. I also found Adium's default  
> sounds to be anything but understated — and understated is what  
> people want in an office environment, especially if you have lots  
> of buddies coming and going. Notifications are annoying enough as  
> it is; configuring them should be easy. In Adium, it's not.
>
> Adium also doesn't handle a changing monitor environment very well.  
> I use the same MacBook Pro 17 at home on my lap and at work with an  
> external monitor. I always power down between work and home. Adium  
> is the only application I use that sometimes gets stuck with its  
> program window off the screen when I go back to the smaller screen.  
> It somehow misses the signal from OS X: "Hey, the window is  
> smaller, move in." I run my IM program window on the right side of  
> the screen, which is probably the most vulnerable location for this  
> problem. But you have to plan for that when you develop software.
>
> Finally, if you're into iChat's video functionality, Adium doesn't  
> support that. Personally, I don't miss that at all.
>
> So, I know, I've offered one paragraph of praise, and four, mostly  
> long, paragraphs of criticism. But look at the criticisms: They're  
> all about eye candy and minor stuff. Nothing at all that keeps me  
> from using Adium constantly. The benefits far outweigh the fit-and- 
> finish details. Adium is a winner.
>
>

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