Article Idea:
Review of "The Tinderbox Way"
suggested by Jorge Arango on 2007/09/12
Information architects are constantly on the lookout for tools to help them do their job better. Many of those that use Macs will probably have come across Tinderbox, a multifaceted outliner that enables the creation of arbitrary metadata structures, and which spits out HTML (among other formats). In many ways it is an ideal IA tool, but its complexity and steep learning curve make it intimidating.
Mark Bernstein, Tinderbox’s designer, has written a book — _The Tinderbox Way_ — that aims to expose the app’s true potential to a wider audience by explaining its core design principles. My copy arrived today, and I think B&A readers would be interested in a review on two levels: 1) for the exposure to a potentially useful IA tool, and 2) for the insights it offers into the design of a complex app. (I don’t know of many other cases of a book written by an application’s designer that explains the principles that led to the design.)
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6 people said yes. | 0 people said no.
Ben Tremblay
0 Reputation points
Posted 2007/11/07 @ 20:32PM with
I haven’t experienced Tinderbox (Next good contract I’ll buy a Mac, promise!) but outliners are, IMNSHO, the hidden jewel. I can’t recall the name of the 80s Mac product, but Brøderbund’s “ThinkingCap” for the C=64 … I’d pay cash money for an app that restored me that functionality.
It’s a whole way of thinking … from experience I know that … and danged if I can every explain the workflow to someone who hasn’t been there … the Tao of effective outlining, or something.
Please!
Noah Iliinsky
1 Reputation points
Posted 2007/11/13 @ 11:53AM with
Perhaps as another article, I’d also love a good comparative review of Tinderbox vs other popular outliner tools, Word, OmniOutliner, etc.
Jorge Arango
397 Reputation points
Posted 2007/11/13 @ 15:21PM with
Thanks for your feedback. I’d rather focus the story on reviewing the book—I’m drawn by the fact that it’s a document of design decisions by the author of the app itself.
There are other places online where you can find a wealth of info on outliners. Ted Goransen has written a series of reviews of Mac outliners over at ATPM: http://www.atpm.com/Back/atpo.shtml
One of these articles focuses on Tinderbox as it compares to other outliners: http://www.atpm.com/10.10/atpo.shtml