RollCall Directory

I had a quick look at the application Rollcall Directory by Midnight Magic Software. The application helps the user to print his address cards in various ways. It is not a MicroContent Client as such, but more an add-on to AddressBook. And that is were it gets interesting.

AddressBook stores its Items somewhere in a standard in a standard format. Apple has created API's, which allow other applications to access this database as well. And that is what RollCall Directory does. This API is based on Objective-C and is called a Framework. I see it as an extension to my checklist for the point under MacOSX: a good MicroContent client offers an API as well.

info.xhead

This application by xhead software helps a user to manage username, passwords, license keys, etc. I am not sure what I should call this type of MicroContent. It is however related to ideas like single logon services, universal identities and thus warrants a closer look.

Some observations:

• Multiple Structures - the user can create his own MicroContent Structures. a simple interface is available for this. This structure can be imported an exported in a proprietary format as well;
• Lock - it is possible to lock the entire database;
• Metadata - one can view the metadata of an item, such as the creation and modification dates;
• Backup - the user can create a backup of the database and revert to it;

Supported MicroContent Type(s): Blogs •
Rating: 26 out of 87 points (checklist 1.3) • Developer: xhead software • Version: 1.2 •

Checklist:

• MicroContent (3/10) - to what degree does the client support MicroContent Items?
  
  • Structure - YES, the View-pane clearly shows the different fields of an Item;
  • Multiplicity - YES, the Client comes standard with several structures. And the user can even add his own structures;
  • Flexibility - NO, however he can add new structures;
  • MicroWeb - NO, however URL’s are recognised;
  • Merged - NO;
  • Pick-list Fields - NO;
  • Title - YES;
  • Description - NO, it all depends on the structure;
  • Tags - NO;
  • Rating - NO;
  
  
• Interface (2/10) - does the client have the characteristic layout?
  
  • View-pane - YES;
  • View-pane styles - NO;
  • View-pane Window - NO;
  • Items-pane - YES;
  • Items-pane Views - NO, standard is a widescreen layout;
  • Items-pane Sorting - NO, although one can sort on various dates;
  • Items-pane Fields - NO, only the title is available;
  • Lists-pane - YES;
  • Browser-pane - NO;
  • Pane layout change - NO, standard is a widescreen layout;
  
  
• Item functions (5/9) - functions for managing individual Items.
  
  • View - YES, in the View-pane;
  • Create - YES;
  • Edit - YES;
  • Mark - NO;
  • Search - NO;
  • Persistence - NO;
  • Access Control - YES;
  • Delete - YES;
  • Download - NO;
  
  
• List functions (6/16) - they are called categories.
  
  • Local - YES;
  • Connected - NO;
  • Shared - NO;
  • Remote - NO;
  • Handpicked - NO;
  • Smart - YES, there are only predefined Smart List, based on the Structure of an Item. The user must first select a List and can the create an Item in that List;
  • Recommendations - NO;
  • List Metadata - NO;
  • Directories - NO;
  • Add - YES, but that implies creating a new structure;
  • Edit - YES, that implies changing the structure;
  • Show - NO;
  • Backup/revert - YES;
  • Refresh - NO;
  • Remove - NO;
  • Delete - YES, but that implies deleting all Items as well;
  
  
• Groups (0/9) does the Client support Groups?
  
  • Unlimited Depth - NO;
  • Local - NO;
  • Connected - NO;
  • Shared - NO;
  • Remote - NO;
  • Directories - NO;
  • Add - NO;
  • Edit - NO;
  • Delete - NO;
  
  
• Import (2/6) - does the Client allow for importing Items?
  
  • Classic - YES, in comma-delimited format;
  • Standard - NO;
  • Proprietary - YES, for MicroContent Type Structures;
  • Application - NO;
  • Bookmarklet - NO;
  • Drag&drop - NO;
  
  
• Export (6/13) - does the client allow for exporting Items?
  
  • Classic - YES, comma-delimited format;
  • Standard - NO;
  • Proprietary - YES, for exporting a MicroContent Type Structure;
  • HTML - NO;
  • Print - YES;
  • Feed - NO;
  • Local - YES;
  • Connected - YES, one can export to the iPod;
  • Shared - NO;
  • Remote: .Mac - YES, the database can be exported;
  • Remote: FTP - NO;
  • Remote: RPC - NO;
  • Drag&drop - NO;
  • Application - NO;
  
  
• MacOSX (2/14) - is the client a good MacOSX application?
  
  • Look&Feel - YES;
  • Menu - YES;
  • Toolbar - NO;
  • Alt-click - NO;
  • Ctrl-click - NO;
  • Drag&drop - NO;
  • Services - NO;
  • Dock - NO;
  • Spotlight - NO;
  • Dashboard - NO;
  • AppleScript - NO;
  • Framework - NO;
  • Menu-bar Item - NO;
  • Plug-ins - NO;
  
  
  
  

SlipBox

This Client, SlipBox, allows the user to manage his notes in various forms. The central feature of is the keywords. The application analyses the keywords and tries to find related items in this way. These relations are called scents. I do not know whether it is useful. One needs a large set of data to determine that.

I noted some things:

• Document based - this application is document-based. This means that a user can open documents. Most other MicroContent Clients work on complete Libraries and do not have corresponding documents. This implies that a document for this client corresponds to a List. I do not see this as a fundamental MicroContent issue, but just an implementation difference;
• Tag cloud - the most interesting thing is the tag cloud that this client supports. The Client shows the relation between tags as have been deduced from multiple Items. And this also allows to search for Items that are related in the tag cloud. This is a very interesting feature and I can imagine that it would be useful in other MicroContent Clients as well;

Supported MicroContent Type(s): Blogs •
Rating: 29 out of 87 points (checklist 1.3) • Developer: Markus Guhe • Version: 0.6 •

Checklist:

• MicroContent (4/10) - to what degree does the client support MicroContent Items?
  
  • Structure - YES, the structure consists of Description, Keywords, Source and Type fields.;
  • Multiplicity - NO;
  • Flexibility - NO;
  • MicroWeb - NO;
  • Merged - NO;
  • Pick-list Fields - YES, the Type field is an open pick-list;
  • Title - NO, I think I would miss this;
  • Description - YES, supports RTF;
  • Tags - YES, called Keywords
  • Rating - NO;
  
  
• Interface (4/10) - does the client have the characteristic layout?
  
  • View-pane - YES, click on the Slip tab;
  • View-pane styles - NO;
  • View-pane Window - YES;
  • Items-pane - YES, this is called the Box and is accessible through the Box tab;
  • Items-pane Views - NO, it is just a table with Slip id and keywords;
  • Items-pane Sorting - YES;
  • Items-pane Fields - NO;
  • Lists-pane - NO;
  • Browser-pane - NO, although the keyword drawer is a bit related;
  • Pane layout change - NO;
  
  
• Item functions (5/9) - functions for managing individual Items.
  
  • View - YES;
  • Create - YES;
  • Edit - YES;
  • Mark - NO;
  • Search - YES;
  • Persistence - NO;
  • Access Control - NO;
  • Delete - YES;
  • Download - NO;
  
  
• List functions (7/16)
  
  • Local - YES;
  • Connected - NO;
  • Shared - NO;
  • Remote - NO;
  • Handpicked - YES;
  • Smart - NO;
  • Recommendations - YES, these are the Scent Lists;
  • List Metadata - NO;
  • Directories - NO;
  • Add - YES, a user can create an new file, i.e. a box;
  • Edit - NO;
  • Show - NO;
  • Backup/revert - YES, revert to saved;
  • Refresh - NO;
  • Remove - YES;
  • Delete - YES;
  
  
• Groups (0/8) does the Client support Groups?
  
  • Unlimited Depth - NO;
  • Local - NO;
  • Connected - NO;
  • Shared - NO;
  • Remote - NO;
  • Directories - NO;
  • Add - NO;
  • Edit - NO;
  • Delete - NO;
  
  
• Import (1/6) - does the Client allow for importing Items?
  
  • Classic - NO;
  • Standard - YES, plain text or RTF files;
  • Proprietary - NO;
  • Application - NO;
  • Bookmarklet - NO;
  • Drag&drop - NO;
  
  
• Export (4/13) - does the client allow for exporting Items?
  
  • Classic - NO;
  • Standard - YES, Slips can be exported to a RTF file;
  • Proprietary - NO;
  • HTML - NO;
  • Print - YES;
  • Feed - NO;
  • Local - YES;
  • Connected - NO;
  • Shared - NO;
  • Remote: .Mac - NO;
  • Remote: FTP - NO;
  • Remote: RPC - NO;
  • Drag&drop - NO;
  • Application - YES, one can export to BibDesk and GraphViz;
  
  
• MacOSX (4/14) - is the client a good MacOSX application?
  
  • Look&Feel - YES;
  • Menu - YES, although it could use some straightening;
  • Toolbar - YES;
  • Alt-click - NO;
  • Ctrl-click - NO;
  • Drag&drop - NO;
  • Services - YES: create a new Slip from selected text;
  • Dock - NO;
  • Spotlight - NO;
  • Dashboard - NO;
  • AppleScript - NO;
  • Framework - NO;
  • Menu-bar Item - NO;
  • Plug-ins - NO;
  
  
  
  

Google Earth

Some notes:

• Geographic View - naturally this Client is the example of a Geographic View Items-pane. This pane puts the Items as dots on a geographic longitude and latitude grid including a height. The most spectacular is of coarse the backdrop which is based on satellite imagery with an astounding resolution. There are controls which allows the user to change the zoom, the camera view-point and the location;
• Lines - the Client also supports lists of Items, which are connected with a line. I am not whether this should called another MicroContent Type;
• Geographic Images - one can also show other images of earth, which can be superposed on the Geographic Items-pane. I guess this is a special MicroContent Type, which includes a geographic location and a scale;
• Predefined Directory - the Client comes with a predefined directory of places. These Lists and Groups are defined as options. By checking the check-box the Places are downloaded (I assume). The content of these Predefine Lists are defined by Google Earth or the Google Earth community;
• Search - the search functions behaves a bit different. One can go to a location based on the geographic co-ordinates. This will change the view in the Items-pane. One can also search for businesses in a category around a location. And one can search for driving directions. This will show a list of points, where one has to change directions. And these points are connected by a line presented in the Items-pane;

Supported MicroContent Type(s): Locations •
Rating: 38 out of 87 points (version 1.3) • Developer: Google • Version: 3.1.0617.0 •

Checklist:

• MicroContent (4/10) - to what degree does the client support MicroContent Items?
  
  • Structure - YES, the Items consist of a geographic longitude and latitude and height above sea level. The description contains html-code;
  • Multiplicity - NO;
  • Flexibility - NO;
  • MicroWeb - YES, one can associate an icon with each Item;
  • Merged - NO:
  • Pick-list Fields - NO;
  • Title - YES;
  • Description - YES;
  • Tags - NO;
  • Rating - NO;
  
  
• Interface (4/10) - does the client have the characteristic layout?
  
  • View-pane - NO;
  • View-pane styles - NO;
  • View-pane Window - YES, by clicking on an Item in the Items-pane a pop-up will appear which presents the Item. This is the title plus the rendered description;
  • Items-pane - YES, this pane shows the Items against a backdrop of satellite photos. This implies that the Items are shown on a geographic grid based on the geographic information contained in each Item;
  • Items-pane Views - YES, the Items are also shown in a folder view
  • Items-pane Sorting - NO;
  • Items-pane Fields - can one set the mapping between columns and fields of the Items-pane?
  • Lists-pane - YES, this pane is a combined groups, lists, items folder structure;
  • Browser-pane - NO;
  • Pane layout change - NO;
  
  
• Item functions (5/9) - functions for managing individual Items.
  
  • View - YES, by clicking on the Item in the Geographic Items or Lists-pane;
  • Create - YES;
  • Edit - YES;
  • Mark - YES, one can mark which Items should be shown on the Geographic Items-pane;
  • Search - NO;
  • Persistence - NO;
  • Access Control - NO;
  • Delete - YES, but it depends on which Item;
  • Download - NO, any associated icon will be downloaded;
  
  
• List functions (12/16)
  
  • Local - YES;
  • Connected - NO;
  • Shared - NO;
  • Remote - YES; these Lists can be updated automatically, which creates a dynamic view of moving Items;
  • Handpicked - YES, there are also many predefined Handpicked Lists;
  • Smart - are there Smart Lists?
  • Recommendations - NO;
  • List Metadata - YES, but only for Remote Lists;
  • Directories - YES, there is a search feature, which will find appropriate Items. And I am not sure whether the Layers are just Directories;
  • Add - YES;
  • Edit - YES, the title and a description a.o.?
  • Show - YES, the user can create Tours;
  • Backup/revert - YES, the user can revert to the saved version;
  • Refresh - YES, the user can set the refresh parameters for Remote Lists;
  • Remove - YES;
  • Delete - YES;
  
  
• Groups (6/8) these are called folders.
  
  • Unlimited Depth - YES;
  • Local - YES;
  • Connected - NO;
  • Shared - NO;
  • Remote - YES;
  • Directories - NO;
  • Add - YES;
  • Edit - YES;
  • Delete - YES;
  
  
• Import (2/6) - does the Client allow for importing Items?
  
  • Classic - NO;
  • Standard - NO;
  • Proprietary - YES, these are KML and KMZ files. I assume that these are proprietary;
  • Application - NO;
  • Bookmarklet - NO;
  • Drag&drop - YES;
  
  
• Export (3/13) - does the client allow for exporting Items?
  
  • Classic - NO;
  • Standard - NO;
  • Proprietary - YES;
  • HTML - NO;
  • Print - YES;
  • Feed - NO;
  • Local - NO, although one can find a trick;
  • Connected - NO;
  • Shared - NO;
  • Remote: .Mac - NO;
  • Remote: FTP - NO;
  • Remote: RPC - NO;
  • Drag&drop - NO;
  • Application - YES, one can export via Mail and the Google Earth Community;
  
  
• MacOSX (2/14) - is the client a good MacOSX application?
  
  • Look&Feel - NO;
  • Menu - NO;
  • Toolbar - NO;
  • Alt-click - NO;
  • Ctrl-click - YES;
  • Drag&drop - YES, for adding places to folders;
  • Services - NO;
  • Dock - NO, one can only drop KML and KMZ files on the icon;
  • Spotlight - NO;
  • Dashboard - NO;
  • AppleScript - NO, although it is registered as dictionary;
  • Framework - NO;
  • Menubar Item - NO;
  • Plugins - NO;
  
  
  
  

Cocoalicious

I checked Cocoalicious 1.0b40, the client for managing bookmarks on del.icio.us against checklist version 1.3. This Client gets 30 of the 87 points;

A note:

• Integrated Browser - the integrated browser is a neat feature. It is handy to get a quick look at the bookmarked page;

Supported MicroContent Type(s): Bookmarks •
Rating: 30 of the 87 points (checklist 1.3). • Developer: Sci-Fi Hi-Fi • Version: 1.3 •

Checklist:

&

• MicroContent (6/10) - to what degree does the client support MicroContent Items?
  
  • Structure - YES, based on the structure defined by delicious, i.e. URL, description, extended and tags;
  • Multiplicity - NO;
  • Flexibility - NO;
  • MicroWeb - NO;
  • Merged - NO;
  • Pick-list Fields - YES, one can have assistance when creating tags;
  • Title - YES, called the description;
  • Description - YES, called extended;
  • Tags - YES;
  • Rating - YES, it works as a rating, but is implemented as a tag;
  
  
• Interface (4/10) - does the client have the characteristic layout?
  
  • View-pane - NO;
  • View-pane styles - NO, tabular view is standard;
  • View-pane Window - YES, with a button one see all the info on the bookmark;
  • Items-pane - YES;
  • Items-pane Views - NO, tabular view is standard;
  • Items-pane Sorting - YES;
  • Items-pane Fields - NO;
  • Lists-pane - YES;
  • Browser-pane - NO;
  • Pane layout change - NO;
  
  
• Item functions (5/9) - functions for managing individual Items.
  
  • View - YES, in a sheet;
  • Create - YES;
  • Edit - YES;
  • Mark - NO;
  • Search - YES, although one can not restrict the search to a single field;
  • Persistence - NO;
  • Access Control - NO;
  • Delete - YES;
  • Download - NO;
  
  
• List functions (3/15)
  
  • Local - NO;
  • Connected - NO;
  • Shared - NO;
  • Remote - YES;
  • Handpicked - NO;
  • Smart - YES, all list are Smart Lists based on all available tags?
  • Recommendations - NO;
  • List Metadata - NO;
  • Directories - NO;
  • Add - NO, although a new smart lists gets created when the user creates a new tag;
  • Edit - NO;
  • Show - NO;
  • Backup/revert - NO;
  • Refresh - YES, but only for the entire library;
  • Remove - NO;
  • Delete - NO;
  
  
• Groups (8) does the Client support Groups?
  
  • Unlimited Depth - NO;
  • Local - NO;
  • Connected - NO;
  • Shared - NO;
  • Remote - NO;
  • Directories - NO;
  • Add - NO;
  • Edit - NO;
  • Delete - NO;
  
  
• Import (2/6) - does the Client allow for importing Items?
  
  • Classic - NO;
  • Standard - NO;
  • Proprietary - NO;
  • Application - YES, a Menu-item for importing from Safari is available;
  • Bookmarklet - YES;
  • Drag&drop - NO;
  
  
• Export (13) - does the client allow for exporting Items?
  
  • Classic - NO;
  • Standard - NO;
  • Proprietary - YES, as a Weblink Location File;
  • HTML - NO;
  • Print - YES;
  • Feed - NO;
  • Local - YES
  • Connected - NO;
  • Shared - NO;
  • Remote: .Mac - NO;
  • Remote: FTP - NO;
  • Remote: RPC - YES, any new or edited Item is uploaded to Del.icio.us;
  • Drag&drop - YES;
  • Application - NO;
  
  
• MacOSX (6/14) - is the client a good MacOSX application?
  
  • Look&Feel - YES, in Metal;
  • Menu - YES;
  • Toolbar - NO, there are buttons, but it is not the standard toolbar;
  • Alt-click - NO;
  • Ctrl-click - NO;
  • Drag&drop - YES, for exporting an Item;
  • Services - YES, to post a URL;
  • Dock - YES, it offers two functions;
  • Spotlight - NO;;/li>
  • Dashboard - NO;
  • AppleScript - YES;
  • Framework - NO;
  • Men-bar Item - NO;
  • Plug-ins - NO;
  
  

Client Checklist

This is Checklist Version 1.4. In this version I added characteristics on Duplicate Control, Statistics and Language.

A MicroContent Client allows a user to manage MicroContent Items. These Items might be music tracks, images, recipes, blogs, etc. These Items seem to be very different in nature. However MicroContent Clients do share characteristics in interface layout, function, etc. I have gathered the most common characteristics in this list of 90 points.

The checklist in several categories. Each category is divided into a set of characteristics. Each characteristic is defined by a question. For an extended explication of each Check, see my MicroContent Client article.

This checklist can be used by application developers to check the completeness of their application. I use this checklist in order to get a better grasp of MicroContent and MicroContent Clients. I use this list as the basis for a rating system. Thus each subcategory will scores 1 point. In total a Client can get 90 points. By the way, the checklist is geared towards clients running MacOSX, but I assume that it can be readily translated to other platforms. I tried to separate the MacOSX part from the generic characteristics.

• MicroContent (10) - to what degree does the client support MicroContent Items?
  • Structure - does an Item contain structure, i.e. multiple fields?
  • Multiplicity - are multiple structures supported?
  • Flexibility - can the user extend the structure?
  • MicroWeb - can links be made to other (external) Items?
  • Merged - does an item consist of user and externally supplied information?
  • Pick-list Fields - does an Item have pick-list Fields?
  • Title - does a MicroContent Item have a title?
  • Description - does a MicroContent Item contain a description?
  • Tags - does a MicroContent Item contain tags?
  • Rating - are ratings supported?
• Interface (10) - does the client have the characteristic layout?
• View-pane - is there a View-pane?
• View-pane styles - are multiple styles and/or templates for the View-pane supported?
• View-pane Window - can one see an Item in a separate (full screen) window?
• Items-pane - is there an Items-pane?
• Items-pane Views - does the Items-pane support multiple views (tabular, thumbs, calendar)?
• Items-pane Sorting - does the Items-pane support sorting on specific fields?
• Items-pane Fields - can one set the mapping between columns and fields of the Items-pane?
• Lists-pane - is there a Lists-pane?
• Browser-pane - is there a Browser-pane?
• Pane layout change - can the interface be set in multiple pane layouts?
• Item functions (10) - functions for managing individual Items.
  • View - can the item be viewed?
  • Create - can one create a new Item?
  • Edit - can a user edit fields of an Item
  • Mark - Can an Item be marked?
  • Search - Is there structured search?
  • Persistence - can one set the persistence of an Item?
  • Access Control - can the user set the access level for an Item?
  • Duplicate Control - can the user prevent or locate duplicate Items?
  • Delete - can an Item be deleted?
  • Download - can one specify the downloading (enclosures) of an Item?
• List functions (17)
  • Local - are there Lists where the Items are stored locally?
  • Connected - are there Lists where the Items are stored on connected Devices?
  • Shared - are there shared Lists where the Items are stored on the local network?
  • Remote - are there Remote Lists, where the Items are found on Internet?
  • Handpicked - are there Handpicked Lists?
  • Smart - are there Smart Lists?
  • Recommendations - are there Lists whose Items depend on logic defined by the Client?
  • List Metadata - is their metadata for each List?
  • Statistics - does the client offers some sort of statistics for a List?
  • Directories - Are there Item directories?
  • Add - can the user add a List?
  • Edit - can the user edit a List?
  • Show - can the show the Items on the List in a continuous format?
  • Backup/revert - can the user backup the library and revert to the backup?
  • Refresh - can a user refresh a Remote List?
  • Remove - can a user delete an Item from the List?
  • Delete - can the user delete a List?
• Groups (8) does the Client support Groups?
  • Unlimited Depth - Can the user create a folder like structure with more than one folder?
  • Local - are local Groups supported?
  • Connected - are connected Groups supported?
  • Shared - are shared Groups supported?
  • Remote - are Remote Groups supported?
  • Directories - are Directories supported?
  • Add - can the user add a Group?
  • Edit - can a user edit a Group?
  • Delete - can a user delete a Group?
• Import (6) - does the Client allow for importing Items?
  • Classic - can one import from tab-delimited or csv files?
  • Standard - does the client support standards for importing?
  • Proprietary - is there a proprietary format for importing?
  • Application - can one import from other applications that contain the same MicroContent type?
  • Bookmarklet - does the Client come with a bookmarklet?
  • Drag&drop - is drag&drop importing supported?
• Export (14) - does the client allow for exporting Items?
  • Classic - can one export to tab-delimited or csv files?
  • Standard - can one export to a standard (if available) file format?
  • Proprietary - is there a proprietary format for exporting?
  • HTML - can one export to HTML files?
  • Print - can one print an Item?
  • Feed - can one publish in a feed-format?
  • Local - can one export locally?
  • Connected - can one export to connected devices such as the iPod?
  • Shared - can one publish the library on the local network?
  • Remote: .Mac - can one publish to .Mac?
  • Remote: FTP - can one publish to FTP-sites?
  • Remote: RPC - can one publish through a RPC interface?
  • Drag&drop - is drag&drop local exporting supported?
  • Application - can one call other applications from the Client?
• MacOSX (15) - is the client a good MacOSX application?
  • Look&Feel - does the application has a standard (Cocoa-like) look&feel?
  • Menu - does the application support the standard Menu?
  • Toolbar - does the client support a Toolbar?
  • Alt-click - does the client support the various clicks in the interface?
  • Ctrl-click - does the client support ctrl-click for context sensitive menu's?
  • Drag&drop - does the client support drag&drop in the interface?
  • Services - does the client offer a function in the Services menu?
  • Dock - does the client support application specific (non-standard) dock functions?
  • Spotlight - does the client support Spotlight searching?
  • Dashboard - does the client have an accompanying widget?
  • AppleScript - does the client support AppleScript?
  • Framework - does the client have a corresponding Objective-C Framework?
  • Menu-bar - does the client have a persistent menu-bar item?
  • Plug-ins - Is it possible to extend the Client through plug-ins?
  • Language - does the client come in more than one language?

AddressBook

I checked AddressBook 4.0.3 made by Apple.

Some comments:

• Me Card - the user can define a Card as Me. This sets the Card as his personal information. This is used elsewhere (where?) in the system;
• MicroWeb - I miss the MicroWeb structure in this Client. One should be able to add multiple cards to a card. This would be an alternative to the Related Names field;
• Alternate Clients - in order to manage the Cards in the Library well one sometimes has to revert to other applications. For instance one has to use iTunes to export and synchronise with iPods. Or one can use the iSync application for this. It would be neat if this would be possible with AddressBook as well.
• Pane mix-up - there is a concept mixup between Remote List and Handpicked Lists. When a user selects the Group Directories in the Lists-pane, the corresponding Lists are Shown in the Items-pane and the corresponding Items are listed in the View-pane;
• Send Email - the user can select a group and then create a new Mail message to all group members;
• Send card - the user can then export the Card as a vCard and add it as an attachment;
• Map Address - with a card selected this will invoke a webpage with a map and the address is marked by a star. It even works for France;
• SpotLight Name - this invokes a Spotlight search with the name as argument;
• New Group form Selection - creates a new Group with the selected Items as content;
• Backup/revert - allows to backup the Card Library as a file and eventually revert to the backup;
• Send Updates - sends an update of the personal Card to a selected Group;
• Duplicate/Merge - the Client can search for duplicate Cards and merge them;

Supported MicroContent Type(s): Contacts •
Rating: 55 out of 90 points (checklist 1.4) • Developer: Apple • Version: 4.0.3 •

Checklist:

• MicroContent (6/10) - to what degree does the client support MicroContent Items?
  
  • Structure - YES, the MicroContent Item is called a Card. The card consists of multiple fields. A field can have substructure, thus an address consists of a street, a postal code, city and country;
  • Multiplicity - YES, a Directory Items uses a different more simple structure;
  • Flexibility - YES, a user can add an unlimited (I think) number of phone numbers, friend names, addresses, email addresses etc. The user can however not create his own fields;
  • MicroWeb - YES, one can add images of persons;
  • Merged - NO;
  • Pick-list Fields - YES, but only for the labels of a field;
  • Title - YES, this is either the first/last name of the company name. The field is called Name;
  • Description - NO, although one can add Notes;
  • Tags - NO;
  • Rating - NO;
  
  
• Interface (7/10) - does the client have the characteristic layout?
  
  • View-pane - YES;
  • View-pane styles - YES, one can define a template for a Card. The template indicates which Fields are shown by default;
  • View-pane Window - YES, accessible trough Apple-I;
  • Items-pane - YES, in the middle of the window;
  • Items-pane Views - NO, it is a simple list (single column) with the titles of the cards;
  • Items-pane Fields - NO;
  • Items-pane Sorting - YES, one can sort by last or first name;
  • Lists-pane - YES, on the left of the window;
  • Browser-pane - NO;
  • Pane layout change - YES, the basic layout is a widescreen view. It can be set to View-pane only as well;
  
  
• Item functions (6/10) - functions for managing individual Items.
  
  • View - YES, in the View-pane
  • Create - YES;
  • Edit - YES, with inline editing. Remote List Items can not be edited;
  • Mark - YES, one can define a Card as Company or Person;
  • Search - NO;
  • Persistence - NO, not relevant;
  • Access Control - NO;
  • Duplicate Control - YES;
  • Delete - YES, but not in the Remote List (Directory);
  • Download - NO, not relevant;
  
  
• List functions (12/17)
  
  • Local Lists - YES, these are called Lists;
  • Connected Lists - NO;
  • Shared Lists - YES, one can communicate with Bluetooth enable devices. But I am not able to test this;
  • Remote Lists - YES, these are called Directories and are based on LDAP services;
  • Handpicked Lists - YES, the user can add Items to Groups by drag&drop;
  • Smart Lists - YES. There is a predefined Smart List called Last Import. And the Directories Group contains a List All, which indicates all Remote Lists;
  • Recommendations - NO;
  • List Metadata - NO, just the title of the List;
  • Statistics - YES, for a selected List the total number of Cards are shown;
  • Directories - YES, in the preferences pane a list of Remote Lists is given (or did I do that?). The user has to check the Remote Lists, he wants to be included in the Directories Group;
  • Add List - YES, the user can create a hand-picked local list and add a Remote List in the Preferences Panel;
  • Edit - YES;
  • Show - NO, not relevant;
  • Backup/revert - YES;
  • Refresh - NO, there is a preference to auto-refresh the Remote List;
  • Delete - YES, but only for Handpicked Lists;
  
  
• Groups (2/9) does the Client support Groups?
  
  • Unlimited Depth - NO;
  • Local Groups - YES, all Remote Lists are put into the Group Directories;
  • Connected Groups - NO;
  • Shared Groups - NO;
  • Remote Groups - YES, a user can subscribe to a list on .Mac. I did not test this. I assume that these are Groups;
  • Directories - NO;
  • Add - NO;
  • Edit - NO;
  • Delete - NO;
  
  
• Import (4/6) - does the Client allow for importing Items?
  
  • Classic - YES, the user can import text files. I am not sure about the required formatting;
  • Standards - YES, vCard and LDIF formatted files;
  • Proprietary - NO;
  • Applications - YES, one can create a new Card from within Mail;
  • Bookmarklet - NO;
  • Drag&drop - YES, for vCard files;
  
  
• Export (6/13) - does the client allow for exporting Items?
  
  • Classic - NO;
  • Standard - YES, to vCard files. This also supports group vCards;
  • Proprietary - NO;
  • HTML - NO;
  • Print - YES;
  • Feed - NO;
  • Local - YES, to local files;
  • Connected - NO;
  • Shared - NO, not with this Client;
  • .Mac Publish - YES, but only for .Mac members;
  • FTP Publish - NO;
  • RPC Publish - NO;
  • Drag&drop - YES, as vCard files;
  • Application - YES, one can send to Email and Spotlight;
  
  
• MacOSX (12/15) - is the client a good MacOSX application?
  
  • Look&Feel - YES, in metallic;
  • Menu - YES;
  • Toolbar - NO, it has some buttons, but it is not the standard toolbar;
  • Alt-click - YES;
  • Ctrl-click - YES;
  • Drag&drop - YES, for adding Items to Handpicked Local Lists;
  • Services - NO;
  • Dock - YES, it acts as import sink;
  • Spotlight - YES;
  • Dashboard - YES;
  • AppleScript - YES;
  • Framework - YES;
  • Menu-bar Item - NO;
  • Plug-ins - YES, mainly for showing maps of addresses;
  • Language - YES, some 14 languages;
  
  
  
  

NetNewsWire

I noted the following things:

• Refresh - for remote Lists one has to define when new Items should be fetched;
• Integrated Browser - NNW has an integrated browser;
• OPML - the Client can import and export (selected) Groups as OPML-files; These are in fact Directories as they do not contain the Items themselves;
• View pane style - the user can set the style of the View-pane from a long list of available styles;
• Activity - there are various functions to monitor the activity of downloading, error logs, feeds without activity and bandwidth stats;
• Syncing - the Client supports syncing with .Mac, a FTP server of BlogLines. I am not sure how this works yet, but it seems a very important function;

Supported MicroContent Type(s): Blogs •
Rating: 46 out of 90 points (checklist 1.4). • Developer: Ranchero • Version: 2.1b17 •

Checklist:

&t

• MicroContent (7/10) - to what degree does the client support MicroContent Items?
  
  • Structure - YES, standard blog structure with support for attachments. Not all information in the structure is readily available;
  • Multiplicity - YES. I assume that the various RSS and Atom feeds contain different fields;
  • Flexibility - NO, not relevant here;
  • MicroWeb - YES, a blog Item might contain links to other web-pages and to attachments;
  • Pick-list fields - NO;
  • Merged - NO, not relevant;
  • Title - YES, called the Headline;
  • Description - YES, called the Description;
  • Tags - YES, the Subject field;
  • Rating - YES, I am tempted to call the Flag a rating, although it also has consequences for the persistence;
  
  
• Interface (7/10) - does the client have the characteristic layout?
  
  • View-pane - YES, on the lower right part of the window (traditional view);
  • Items-pane Styles - YES, a large collection of styles is available;
  • Items-pane Window - NO;
  • Items-pane - YES, on the top right part of the window (traditional view);
  • Items-pane Views - NO, only a tabular format is available;
  • Items-pane Sorting - YES, using a standard MacOSX approach;
  • Items-pane Fields - YES, under the Menu-item View, the user can set the columns shown;
  • Lists-pane - YES, on the left side of the window (traditional view);
  • Browser-pane - NO;
  • Pane layout change
  
  
• Item functions (4/10) - which functions for managing individual Items are supported?
  
  • View - YES, although not all field information is readily available;
  • Create - NO, one had to use the accompanying app: MarsEdit. There is a function Post to Weblog, to create a new post in MarsEdit with the description of the selected Item in NNW;
  • Edit - NO;
  • Mark - YES, the Client checks whether a user has seen an Item;
  • Search - NO, although one can use a Smartlist for this;
  • Access Control - NO;
  • Duplicate Control - NO;
  • Delete - NO;
  • Persistence - YES, this can be set per feed or per item with the flag;
  • Downloading - YES, one can specify whether an enclosure must be downloaded or not;
  
  
• List functions (9/17)
  
  • Local Lists - NO;
  • Connected Lists - NO;
  • Shared Lists - NO;
  • Remote Lists - YES, these are either RSS or Atom feeds. They are called Subscriptions. It is also possible to define Smart Remote Lists;
  • Handpicked Lists - NO, the contents of each List is set by the author of the List;
  • Smart Lists - YES, all fields seem to be able for such smart lists;
  • Recommendation Lists - NO;
  • List Metadata - YES, this is the information on the feed;
  • Statistics - YES, the Client shows the number of unread Items in a List;
  • Directory - YES, in a drawer;
  • Add - YES;
  • Edit - YES;
  • Remove - NO;
  • Show - NO, not relevant for this MicroContent type;
  • Backup/revert - NO;
  • Refresh - YES;
  • Delete - YES;
  
  
• Group functions (5/9) - does the Client support groups?
  
  • Unlimited Depth - NO, it has just single depth;
  • Local Groups - YES;
  • Connected Groups - NO;
  • Shared Groups - NO;
  • Remote Groups - NO;
  • Handpicked Groups - NO;
  • Smart Groups - NO;
  • Recommendation Lists - NO;
  • Directory - YES, there is a shared directory and a pre-defined directory in the drawer;
  • Add - YES;
  • Edit - YES, the name can be edited. Through d&d one can remove a List;
  • Delete - YES;
  
  
• Import (3/6) - does the client allow for importing Items?
  
  • Classic - NO, not relevant for this MicroContent Type;
  • Standards - YES, one can open a local RSS-file;
  • Proprietary - NO;
  • Applications - YES, a feed can be autodetected in a browser and then be opened in NNW;
  • Bookmarklet - NO;
  • Drag&drop - YES, one can drag&drop RSS-URL’s onto a List;
  
  
• Export (4/14) - does the client allow for exporting Items?
  
  • Classic - NO;
  • Standard - NO;
  • Proprietary - NO;
  • HTML - NO;
  • Print - YES;
  • Feeds - NO;
  • Local - NO, however a directory can be exported as OPML-file;
  • Connected - NO;
  • Shared - NO;
  • Remote: .Mac - NO;
  • Remote: FTP - NO;
  • Remote: RPC - YES, the application can post Items to Delicious;
  • Drag&drop - YES, this will export the Permalink of the Item;
  • Application - YES, to blog editors such as MarsEdit. Enclosures can be added to iTunes. Items can also be mailed;
  
  
• MacOSX (9/15) - is the client a good MacOSX application?
  
  • Look&Feel - YES;
  • Menu - YES;
  • Toolbar - YES;
  • Alt-click - YES, for the Add subscription / add smartlist;
  • Ctrl-click - YES;
  • Drag&drop - YES, for filling the groups;
  • Services - YES, for adding a new subscription URL;
  • Dock - YES;
  • Spotlight - NO;
  • Dashboard - NO;
  • AppleScript - YES;
  • Framework - NO;
  • Menu bar - NO, although there is a third party version;
  • Plug-ins - YES, for adding style sheets for the View-pane;
  • Language - NO, just english;