Re-centralised

I was going to write a big round up of the all different tools available for NaNoWrimo but I quickly realised that it would take more time than I had free. I chose to instead do a roundup of just the software I am going to be using this year, and go over how I came to chose them.

Customary background:

Last year I used TiddlyWiki on a USB drive exclusively. It followed me around and I was able to plug it in and instantly start working – on any computer I found myself at. This was useful as I wrote most of my novel at work. Overall, I would say that I used 6 different computers – some with internet access some without – to complete it.

I still have it, and thanks to the brilliance of Tiddly, everything still makes sense. I started writing the second part to the series in it this summer – using the original Wiki as the basis. All of the character outlines, text, and locations were all in there – in a nice tidy search-able format. It was an absolute joy to use.

Whats different this year:

I am not going to be writing it at work, nor do I intend to use multiple computers. I might use a different computer (my laptop) sparingly so I would like a work-flow that is adaptable. Using Tiddly was great but my biggest complaint was the entering of text. It is still a non linear wiki – its’ not designed with the idea of typing out 5000 words in to a Tiddler (and have it make sense / be readable / wordprocessor style). It’s not a deal breaker – its just that since my requirements have changed a bit this year I wanted to take the opportunity to check out my options.

The biggest trend has been the “distraction free” editors. Things like DarkRoom & Q10. I could have edited Tiddlys CSS and ran full screen in Firefox and gotten a similar results but I thought I would switch it up a bit. Experiment.

This year:

This year I am not going to use TiddlyWiki to write my novel in – even though I think it is the absolute best way to write a novel from a 2 or 3 line thesis statement. This year I am going to use a combination of Q10 & Fossil.

Why I think this is ‘the way’ for me:

I will be using at most 2 computers and I need it to not be in the cloud. I want to utilize a distraction-free editor and still leverage the ease of a 1-file solution. I also want version control.

Fossil stores all the data in a single SQLite file. It runs on any platform so I can use it on any computer I have. I can easily back it up across my own computer and FTP it off site (in case of data loss) and since its a version control system, I have a record of every alteration to every chapter, and can easily export a copy of the most recent chapters, etc.

Not only can I still write in Wiki Markup for a future import but Fossil has a built in wiki so if I need it, so its always right there waiting.

I can import pictures and other meda into the “project” and they stay in the single file.

It also gives me a good reason to use & learn Fossil which will come in handy once it comes time to start writing more code.

Q10 has some amazing features for writers. Character counters, page counter, timer, running word count, easy-on-the-eyes colour scheme, etc. Do check it out for yourself!

It also provides a wonderful interface – essentially none. It is really distraction free. Digsby sometimes pops up on me, but otherwise it’s light enough weight to run on my computer, while doing exactly what it says on the tin.

Some people may not like the typing sound effects but when I get on a roll it becomes almost hypnotic.

The added bonus is that it writes plain text files so I can still write with Wiki Syntax.

Oh, and did I mention their both free?

Other Runners up:

Google Documents. Why not?

Not working in the cloud. If I was working on multiple computers, that all had internet access, and were fast enough to use Google Dox it could be a contender. No fear about data loss (cloud) and plenty of flexibility.

ccTiddly. Why not?

The better scaled brother to Tiddly gets a pass this time. I don’t have my project server up so I lack a good place to run it at the moment. Also, like I stated above I want to try an interface other then Tiddy’s this year.

yWriter. Why Not?

Amazingly powerful and flexible piece of software. I really want to poke at it more – its so detailed – but for Nano I am locking for a big canvas – something I can catch a lot of words on and worry about later. I think yWriter really shines when it comes time to edit – as its all broken down right in the software. If i remember correctly, you can even import text files. Last year I imported my novel into yWriter to fiddle with. Check this software out.

Wordpress. Why not?

Interface. Feels too much like data entry. Even for my posts on LK.com, I write them in Q10 or Notepad++ first…

PyRoom. Why not?

Not as feature filled and polished as Q10. I use PyRoom on my Linux laptop, but my desktop is windows, and Q10 simply rocks (yes I have PyRoom on my windows machine too – see my post about it).

MS Word / Open Office. Why not?

To plain. I spend a lot of time in these applications as is (at work) so I wanted something that’s visually different. Still powerful word processors, and a viable option nonetheless.

Paper composition book. Why not?

To much work to transcribe. Sore hand.

Thoughts:

When it comes to NaNo or even strict-outline-less writing, I have yet to find anything that works as well for me as Q10 or TiddlyWiki. This is for my own style and creative process. Tiddly gives you the tools to build an entire world from scratch, on the fly. Q10 just gets out of the way and lets you type (and keeps you from checking your Facebook/Gmail/IM/Twitter every 5 minutes).

I’m excited to use Fossil for this project too. It gives me some fun side projects. One of them is skinning Fossil, which I currently have done enough to be workable for Nano. The other is to code a helper app to act as an easy mode button for commits and what not. It’s not something that’s essential – just something I feel like doing.

Overall, it comes down to what works best for you for the way you work.

Expect a follow-up post where I dig a bit deeper into the exact work flow I am using, and maybe if I find time, a proper post/screencast/presentation about the power of TiddlyWiki.

I was digging through my email today, and I stumbled across this “gem” from last year. I thought I had lost it in the shuffle so imagine my delight when I saw it in my inbox.

On with it.

I was playing with ways to implement a sub system to the counter-intuitive CRM I was using at the time, and one of the contenders was a bespoke desktop quasi-app with a SQLite backend. The primary design goal was to be able to flag & organise bits of information in the datastream. Due to the technical limitations that were imposed on us by corporate IT, we could not run a server, so any app had to be small and relatively self contained.

Bit of background on the process I was using.

I was the interface between the app, and the datastream/database was a .pst with 30,000 emails, with 100’s being added daily. I would first sort emails based on an algorithm I devised, then (due to limitations imposed by the architecture) I would take the result and (starting with the data that was classified as “very significant”) manually process it.

If it was indeed a significant peice of information, it was flagged as such, and I then created a record/thread in my app. I assigned it an id, imported the necessary meta data, whom the information came from, pre-defined keywords, etc.. and moved onto the next bit of data.

Which brings me to: Jim Rowe Psychic Hotline

Looks pretty ridiculous, right? (and yes, I have a terrible tendency to fill my alphas with obscenities.)

Look’s ridiculous, and ghetto, but it worked (for a while). The main problem was that, in the same way we couldn’t run a server and out network was locked down, bringing external applications into the office was something that could get you fired (and from an IT standpoint, it makes sense. Don’t misinterpret this post as a kvetch against strong-arm IT – but more a how radical limitations promote creativity). That mostly ruled out coding things from home, so you work with the standard XP tools.

In our case: Batch.

Yes, the Jim Rowe Psychic Hotline is just a dozen different batch files acting as the front-end: writing, parsing, and manipulating a SQlite database.

A lot of our remote support work was done with batch files so using them in bizarre ways was natural. I also learned a few more batch tricks in the process.

It was a pain trying to do with out a VCS. I wrote a little batch file that would .cab everything up at the end of the day, then I would email myself that cab, and that was my snapshot. The project was made extra complicated by how I had to pipe data around. Into files, out of files, delimited from files, piped to batches writing to files getting piped to other batches writing files. I found that batch was not designed to easily work with user input & sql statements.

But like I said above – it met my needs. Sure it was spartan as hell and looked ghetto but I was able to track & recall important data. It made me more efficient, more organized, and overall increased my knowledge by condensing all of the valuable information being given to use from the SMEs.

The biggest pitfall was the interface. The amount of time I would have had to put into coding in batch (see note below) would have been better spent somewhere else. After the first few versions, I started to get into diminished returns. I was so busy at home that I couldn’t work on it there & my work had let some people go. I lost the extra time I had gained through added efficiency (I was using this time to work on “JRPH”).

Around this time I happened on a solution by the brilliant guys at Osmosoft – TiddlyWiki , which I will talk about later (and at length). TiddlyWiki was the perfect tool @ the perfect time, and alas The Jim Rowe Psychic Hotline was abandoned.

While I don’t think its appropriate to compare JRPH aginst TW (TiddlyWiki is genius. Bottom line. JRPH is shit. I’m just contrasting the two to point out a few aspects of JRPH) I’m going to do it anyways.

The key aspects that were lacking in the LRPH, compared to TW were:

Interface - JRPH was a beast to use, and required intimate knowledge of the underlying framework. TW’s interface is so intuitive its ridiculous.

Expanded Search Functions - JRPH used minimal SQL, leaving the user to craft strings on the fly – TW’s search worked as expected, in addition to a having a strong keyword system.

Organization & Flexability – JRPH lacked TW’s radical ad-hoc flexibility. JRPH was a strict database, not a wiki.

Clutter - TW could run in an active desktop window – JRPH could not leading JRPH to ass to my overwhelming amount of open windows. Windows + D dropped to right to TW, no mater where you were, 1 keypress and you were right on the metal.

There were a few bright spots though. When you have a slow computer running way too many things and your trying to search through a giant TW – things would grind to a halt. JRPH was always brisk.

JRPH was ripe to convert into a dynamic web app based on its foundation – A ghetto MCV batch front end & a SQLite database. (note: I did actually import it into my home SQL server, and played around with php crud with it, as a proof-of-concept, and it worked fine). The idea was that I would use the desktop front end to start the tagging. When I was ready to expand I would convert the .pst into SQL (which I did, more on that later) and then it would be a matter of flushing out a few details and viola – ready for my team.

This actually got to be a bit of a problem when we maxed out TW. Fortunately the TW community is brilliant and beyond clever, and we were able to easily import our desktop-bound TW into ccTiddly with minimal headaches – all while retaining the things that make TW amazing.

Overall, while JRPH was a piece of shit it was an amazing learning experience. Desktop based front-ends to databases are alive and well in the business environment – and still fill a niche. It’s just that their not done with batch, and for good reason.

I don’t think we’ve seen the end of Jim Rowe or his Psychic Hotline.

(note: after this I made sure UnixUtils were on every Windows Computer I had. Dos lacks so many of the little apps I take for granted when using linux.)

(note: I realised about 7 months after I wrote the “JRPH” that I might have been able to use WSH (providing it wasn’t disabled as part of my GPO) and had alot more power/flexibility)

(above shitty picture is of Jim, drunk, wearing a silly crown)

A footnote on Jim Rowe.

Jim was the shit. Out of all the big-time guys & SMEs we delt with, Jim was by far the most talented & congenial. He knew what he was doing, and had a sense of humor about it. I saved his quotes when I would come across them. In a culture where being proper and professional was without question, Jim injected life. Often reflecting humorously in his notes about how absurd everything really was, which was true, everything going on was absurd. Of everyone corporate, he was the one I wanted to have a beer with before our contract was finished.

Jim stopped me from becoming a BOFH by his example.