Advanced SearchUser Name Gib Henry
Member Since 2003-01-01
Total number of Feedback Posts: 16
Total number of comments: 8
Last 10 Feedback Posts by Gib Henry [ Search for All ]
Thinking Home 2.0b18 (Mac OS X)
Once burned, twice cautious....
I was abandoned by Thinking Home over 4 years ago when I could not get v1.17 to work reliably under Classic, and support disappeared (v1.1.7 is dated April 25, 2004, NOT December 10, 2005, as shown on VersionTracker). In the interim, there has been nothing heard from the developer; I have never even been notified that an update was in beta testing, although my e-mail and postal addresses and home and work phone numbers have not changed. So while I'm cautiously pleased to see an update, I'm also very hesitant to purchase. I hope I'm being overly cautious, but I definitely do not recommend a purchase at this point based on history.
Meanwhile, at first glance, the software recognized my ActiveHome Pro but so far hasn't allowed me to create a schedule for it...which is the only reason I would ever consider purchasing the software. Keeping a Mac running to operate a device schedule is way overkill!
On the other side of the coin, it's nice to see that TH2 can import schedules from its ancient ancestor (as well as from Indigo and CP290 Director X). But if they really want future business, they should import schedules from that crappy ActiveHome Pro Windoze software I had to use under Parallels Desktop. It's incredibly kludgy, full of adware (and possibly spyware), and the schedules it uploaded to my device don't come anywhere close to the schedules I created! [alert admin]
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Monday, March 17 2008 @ 06:46 AM PDT
Firefox 2.0.0.8 (Mac OS X)
2.0.0.7 auto-updated to .8 but failed to re-launch. Trashed it, downloaded .8 from VT, failed to launch (no console or system log entries). Rebooted into DiskWarrior (no significant problems reported) and repaired permissions (no problems). Re-downloaded .8 and still won't launch. Not having any launch problems with any other software. [alert admin]
Thursday, October 25 2007 @ 11:48 AM PDT
Parallels Desktop 3.0 Build 5120.0 (Mac OS X)
I'm wondering if those who say Parallels Desktop is buggy have other system problems. I installed Bootcamp on a new iMac, then installed PD to use that partitiion, and have never had even a hint of trouble. But what's truly amazing is that when I connected my Windows Mobile 5 PDA/phone device by USB, PD/Windows recognized it, Windows told me to download ActiveSync, and when I did, the device synced with the "PC"! This is truly unexpected, especially given the remarks about weak hardware (especially weak USB) support. Overall, it appears really polished to me. [alert admin]
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Saturday, September 01 2007 @ 09:22 AM PDT
VueScan 8.4.19 (Mac OS X)
Even if there were something wrong with or lacking in a given version of VueScan, Hamrick would have it fixed or added in a jiffy. He is relentless in hunting bugs, adding features, and fine-tuning his baby; just go back and look at an early v7 to see how far he's taken it. It just simply works really well! [alert admin]
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Monday, April 23 2007 @ 08:39 AM PDT
X-Lite 3.0 build 38964 (Mac OS X)
I think the original was a port of a Unix app; in any case, the current version is much more nearly a Mac application. However, it says "multiple proxies," yet it appears to support only one service--I'd like to use it with my office VoIP server as well as my regular VoIP carrier, but after adding the first server, the Add button is dimmed, so it's impossible to add a second service. [alert admin]
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Thursday, March 22 2007 @ 10:11 AM PDT
Reunion 9.01 (Mac OS X)
I found Reunion 8 to be an excellent program--easy to use yet powerful and sophisticated under the hood and very long on features--but v9 surpasses it in elegance and resolves the few minor quirks and non-standard behaviors that bothered me somewhat in in v8. The responses to squash the bugs that are inevitable in a major rewrite like this were rapid and effective, and support response was quick and substantive, showing a true dedication to the quality of the software. V9 appears to inherit the rock-solid stability of its predecessor. [alert admin]
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Friday, March 16 2007 @ 04:47 AM PDT
Helix Server 6.0 (Mac OS X)
Simple, but deceptively sophisticated distributed data application 
In 1987, I opened my own business, and Helix was its keystone because it allowed me to quickly create a database, then continuously modify and enhance it to meet the business' growing needs, and have 5 employees all using the same data at the same time (access to various kinds of data is withheld or given to each user according to his or her needs). I'm no programmer, but Helix's method works for me because I can quickly drag icons into place and see how they interact. While simple to use, it's capable of very impressive and sophisticated results. It can export and import data via simple text files including CSV files. I am able to spend 3 months a year in my second home on another continent only because I can connect to my Helix database in the U.S. via TCP/IP and prepare, send, and review invoices, write checks (okay, someone physically in the office has to print them), and do other "work" intercontinentally. Add VoIP, and it's almost as if I'm in the office. With Helix, data literally drives my business: Paychecks drive withholding tax payments (yes, it will do payroll), which in turn drive withholding tax checks; when an invoice is paid, the invoice line items create net payment checks to the providers represented by those line items. I've had objective observers (accountants and lawyers) tell me it's the most amazing thing they've ever seen. If I ever chose to sell the application, I could wrap it up with Helix Runtime Engine so that the customer could not get inside the "programming," anymore than one can get inside Microsoft Word. Currently, the development component and client software still require Classic (though the OS X versions are in preparation); however, the Server and utilities to check integrity are all OS X- and Rosetta- (OS X on Intel) compatible. While documentation is currently a weak point (it's quite detailed and fairly complete, but a little out of date), support is excellent. [alert admin]
Friday, February 03 2006 @ 02:31 PM PST
X-Lite 2.0 (Mac OS X)
The interface is at best ugly, confusing, un-Mac-like and counter-intuitive. Nonetheless, once you figure it out, it works great. It DOES save log-in information and phonebook info, you just have to figure it out. Read the manual on the publisher's website (it's Unix, not a Mac application, so you DO have to read the manual!). [alert admin]
Tuesday, August 09 2005 @ 12:19 PM PDT
NeoOffice/J 1.1rc (Mac OS X)
World-class, compatible office suite
NeoOfficeJ (the Mac Aqua version of OpenOffice) can read and write Microsoft Office formats (Word, Excel, PowerPoint), as well as a number of other formats, both proprietary and open. The Mac implementation and support deserve 5 stars. The lower ratings apply more to the underlying OpenOffice code and its interface, support, and documentation. The underlying software is open-source and cross-platform, to which the Mac developers have added the Mac look-and-feel. Its native file format is ZIPped XML, which (when unZIPped) is a human-readable, cross-platform, open, plain-text-based format. That is important because it means your documents can't be held hostage by a developer; you will forever be able to access your documents, even if NeoOfficeJ were to disappear. This version has proved to be a solid, stable workhorse, allowing world-class compatibility without the need to install security-risk, closed-format, proprietary software, and the developers are incredibly responsive to fixing bugs. It's also easy to install. The only downsides are that the underlying cross-platform OpenOffice code does not implement a consistent, intuitive interface like the Macintosh Human Interface Guidelines; and there's a lack of good introductory documentation. Windows users may accept that, but though the NeoOfficeJ developers have done a tremendous job of Mac-ifying it, Mac users will still have to invest a little extra effort to get the most out of it--effort that's worth it, though! [alert admin]
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Saturday, April 02 2005 @ 09:14 PM PST
VersionTracker Pro 3.0.3 (Mac OS X)
...which now makes me retract my previous "not ready for prime time" review. As a result of that review, the developer contacted me to beta-test the fixes, which have now been rolled into 3.0.3. It's now definitely ready for prime time! This is really useful software with good design and good implementation. [alert admin]
Thursday, February 19 2004 @ 09:43 AM PST
Last 10 Comments by Gib Henry [ Search for All ]
OpenOffice does require X11, but NeoOffice does not. NeoOffice IS OpenOffice, but runs native on PPC and Intel machines. A link to the updater is here on Version Tracker, but you'll need to download the main version first. It is a virtually complete substitute for Micro$loth Office. Cheers, -- Gib Henry
Original feedback item : Read More
Saturday, March 15 2008 @ 10:56 AM PDT
I created a temporary e-mail alias, then after receiving the download instructions, I set it to <error>. I figured I'd give THEM some feedback! I also wrote the webmaster (for what it's worth) and inquired as to whether management had any idea how short-sighted it is to FORCE users to get yet more spam.
Original feedback item : Read More
Saturday, November 24 2007 @ 08:27 AM PST
Your Experience Not Representative
Sorry you're having the problem. I'm not disputing your experience, but I do assert that it isn't representative. We have 4 non-tech users in our office who have been using NeoOffice for over 3 years now, and none of them has had such problems with it. In addition, a review of the NeoOffice forums suggests that your experience is not wide-spread. All of which suggests that in your case, there may…
Original feedback item : Read More(1 words)
Saturday, June 09 2007 @ 05:31 AM PDT
Yeah, it's rough, having to wait nearly a whole week for the next great version! ;-) VueScan gives a whole new meaning to the old phrase "attention to detail"! Cheers, -- Gib
Original feedback item : Read More
Monday, April 23 2007 @ 08:28 AM PDT
I have "XLite and XPro User Guide.pdf" dated 3 Mar 2006. Contact me at gib at-sign realpeople period com if you want a copy. Cheers, -- Gib Henry
Original feedback item : Read More
Thursday, March 22 2007 @ 10:03 AM PDT
- The major irritating problems are that it does not save log-in information. Although the interface provides an option for saving log-in information, it doesn't work. Also, there is a built-in phonebook for saving numbers, but again, it doesn't save anything.
- It's also…
Original feedback item : Read More(1 words)
Tuesday, August 09 2005 @ 12:12 PM PDT
I've gone down to 1:2300, as close as it gets, without crashing on my 17" aluminum running 10.3.7. I don't have much problem with Route 66 crashing; I just have a lot of problems with its counter-intuitive interface, conflicting/confused version numbering, and confused and unresponsive tech support. As a Street Atlas USA v4 and v6 beta tester and now orphan, I underwhelmed and disappointed with this software. But it's not as though…
Original feedback item : Read More(1 words)
Friday, December 24 2004 @ 03:20 PM PST
Version 2.0.3 did cause this Panther problem, but the current 2.1b5 eliminates the problem for me. I determined this while experiencing the Panther dock-crash problem by quitting the 2.0.3 process, relaunching the dock, and it worked. I then updated to 2.1b5 and the dock continues to work. I'm hoping it also resolves a frequent X11 crash problem.
Original feedback item : Read More
Wednesday, November 05 2003 @ 11:03 AM PST
