OK, so I've had time to download and install it. After a rough start (the docs do not match reality) on my ubuntu 12.04 system, I'm left disappointed. While adding a user with + might seem intuitive (and it is, AFTER you've located it in the docs), it feels like it's hidden from view. You have to know where it is in order to find the tiny little + sign wayyyyyyyyy over on the far right side. But, I got past that, created myself and logged in as a plain user.
From there, my disappointment began. My expectations were that it would scan my hard drive looking for documents, email, (and ideally, bookmark/favorites files). With great excitement I waited for it to begin scanning... Then I went searching for the button to kick off the process. (The "scanner" button didn't do it. Ooops, I wasn't thinking about that kind of scanner, my bad.) Alas unless I missed something (and I really really hope I did), it appears to expect me to feed it documents one by one. I have hundreds, perhaps thousands of documents. I was under the impression this is a document management system - and that computers were supposed to automate dull, boring and repetitive tasks. So, please tell me I missed something. If not, then consider this a new feature request. Surely it couldn't be that hard to kick off a "find" and index the result.
I also noticed something else... thunderbird allows me to create multiple email accounts (as does my ISP). So I have 10 email accounts, all accessed from a single pane. It doesn't look like openKM will handle that. Consider that another feature request.
And so, without these features it looks like I'll probably be waiting quite a while for the functionality I need.
Feature suggestion - have a system that starts out with "beginner mode" and progressively reverts to your original design. For example, make that + sign overly large. Gigantic. And, after maybe 10 uses, slowly start shrinking it to normal size. So on use 11, it's one font size smaller for example. On use 12 - or perhaps 20, it shrinks another font size, etc. This lets the user grow accustomed to where the important features are located. I've noticed that in most software, BIG ICONS typically seem more "friendly" and easier to use. Tiny icons are like tiny legal print - the make your head hurt and nobody reads it. The icons on the (user) dashboard are right sized. The icons on the (user) desktop are way too tiny. And toss in some tip pop-ups. If I manage to make it to the users screen on the admin login and there are no other users... a pop-up that says "Click on the PLUS SIGN to create a new user" would be a handy little feature to have. Help guide my experience in learning to use the software.
But hey, really nice GUI otherwise.
And so ends a new user's thoughts & impressions. I hope you find them useful and in the spirit in which they're intended - constructive criticism.
From there, my disappointment began. My expectations were that it would scan my hard drive looking for documents, email, (and ideally, bookmark/favorites files). With great excitement I waited for it to begin scanning... Then I went searching for the button to kick off the process. (The "scanner" button didn't do it. Ooops, I wasn't thinking about that kind of scanner, my bad.) Alas unless I missed something (and I really really hope I did), it appears to expect me to feed it documents one by one. I have hundreds, perhaps thousands of documents. I was under the impression this is a document management system - and that computers were supposed to automate dull, boring and repetitive tasks. So, please tell me I missed something. If not, then consider this a new feature request. Surely it couldn't be that hard to kick off a "find" and index the result.
I also noticed something else... thunderbird allows me to create multiple email accounts (as does my ISP). So I have 10 email accounts, all accessed from a single pane. It doesn't look like openKM will handle that. Consider that another feature request.
And so, without these features it looks like I'll probably be waiting quite a while for the functionality I need.
Feature suggestion - have a system that starts out with "beginner mode" and progressively reverts to your original design. For example, make that + sign overly large. Gigantic. And, after maybe 10 uses, slowly start shrinking it to normal size. So on use 11, it's one font size smaller for example. On use 12 - or perhaps 20, it shrinks another font size, etc. This lets the user grow accustomed to where the important features are located. I've noticed that in most software, BIG ICONS typically seem more "friendly" and easier to use. Tiny icons are like tiny legal print - the make your head hurt and nobody reads it. The icons on the (user) dashboard are right sized. The icons on the (user) desktop are way too tiny. And toss in some tip pop-ups. If I manage to make it to the users screen on the admin login and there are no other users... a pop-up that says "Click on the PLUS SIGN to create a new user" would be a handy little feature to have. Help guide my experience in learning to use the software.
But hey, really nice GUI otherwise.
And so ends a new user's thoughts & impressions. I hope you find them useful and in the spirit in which they're intended - constructive criticism.