InfoQube IM - Community

Submitted by CodeTRUCKER on 2009/08/24 00:13

Hi,

I am making my third, but determined attempt at utilizing (dare I say, "master") IQ. I need some help and I beg your indulgence for this community's forbearing assistance.

My health has dictated that I begin to consider the preparation of my memoirs I believe that InfoQube has the potential to craft what I am after in this endeavor. The assistance I desire is...

to simply open a note pad and record my thoughts at a whim...
to cross-link various items in the notes as required...

These two things will serve me presently and will allow some utility with the program while my perceptions of IQ attempt to gel.

Thank you in advance,

Calvin

Comments

[quote=CodeTRUCKER]

to simply open a note pad and record my thoughts at a whim...

[/quote]

Greetings Calvin

I would recommend you start with "File - New - New Blank IQBase". Choose a name for it. It'll open with the cursor on Item 2, in the "Item" field.

Start typing your thought. When you have a full paragraph, press Enter twice to undertake a second item. Type another paragraph. Now widen the "Item" field by dragging the edge of the column header with your mouse, so you have two nice-looking paragraphs at a width as you'd like to read them.

Now Exit the program with "File - Exit". Start it up again, and see that it returns immediately to the document you were working on. If it doesn't, find and open the document (just this once) under the File menu. Under "Tools - Options - Modes" make sure the two options "Open last file on program startup" and "Open last view on Startup" are checked.

For the most spontaneous thought capture, create a few blank Items by pressing Enter several times in the Item field, and leave the program running. Then perhaps return to the Forum to describe your experience, and someone will answer focused questions and introduce some new capabilities.

Good Luck

Jerome

Thanks for the guidance, Jerome! I will get back to you if I have specific questions to your help.

Fair winds,

Calvin

Hi Calvin,

another (complementary) suggestion would be to open New File > New IQBase (with sample data)

and have a look at the different grids with sample items in them (shortcuts to open the grids are shown going down the left-hand side of the window).

Also, I have attached a file which is more or less the same as the new file with sample data, but with the items removed (all text removed but the 'structure' of the database remains) and the 'Welcome' grid removed. (the reason I do this is that's it's easier than having to explain to you how to do all this at the moment. Also your database file needs an inbox grid which the 'empty' new file does not currently have. Pierre can rectify that when he comes back from his holliers next week).

I'm not sure are you familiar with the terminology used in IQ -

You could compare the grids to pages in an Excel file (but dont take the metaphor much further!)

Open grids are shown as tabs à la Firefox or tabbed file manager.

A grid is a 'view' - it's like a filter really showing items with certain values or properties.

(That's possibly too much info already !?)

Your 'Item' is your note or whatever you want it to be really - has a unique ID and you can add any amount of info to it but we'll get to that later.

Items in the grid can be arranged in outline format - again nothing especially different here.

Jerome has explained how to make a new item. Control+Enter will create new sub-item. [When writing in a cell, Shift+Enter will give you a new line. You can format within a cell - it works as html code - I hardly use it much, but it's very easy to format a full item line - select item by clicking on the leftmost column and Ctrl+B etc. If you need proper formatting best to work in the HTML pane]

Each item has unique related HTML pane content, so you can create an item, again, as Jerome says, you can write your note in the Item's 'Item' field/cell in the grid, or write your note in the HTML pane. Depending on how much you want to write (& how - paragraph formatting, tables, etc, in HTML pane) you might eventually decide to use one or the other, or both for different purposes.

Now, to add a new note:

Open your database (preferably the one I've attached - if you've started using a different one, let us know what you've used & we can take it from there).

Once your database is open, you can add notes to the inbox grid using the universal hotkey Win+N, you can clip stuff from FF or save mails from Thunderbird

You really need to read the introductory pages of the manual

Start here: -- link to nonexistent node ID 860 -- and go through the following couple of pages (link for following page at the bottom of the main body of text)

And I would recommend looking through the new file with sample data as you read those pages.

Documentation is being constantly updated but so is IQ so if you confused about anything best post in the forum (rather than on the manual page itself - but that is also possible)

Here's the full manual (link on the left there) www.sqlnotes.net/drupal5/index.php

good luck!

Tom

(tomos)

[edit] edits in [square brackets] and some tidying up

Hi Tom,

Wow you and Jerome make me feel thirty years younger... like I was in college. <lol>

Seriously, that is quite a prep list of class! Thanks for taking the time to post such a thorough list. Since it is quite a bit I doubt I will be very active here until I work through, but I will be sure to seek help if I get stuck.

Truly, working with IQ is like going back to my computer programming school days. I remember being so discouraged because I just could not get the concepts. Three-quarters of the way through the course everyone else was on program #8 (out of 10) while I was still struggling with #3! Dismal.

I was fortunate enough to have backing for school expenses and had nothing else to do, so I kept pressing on reading, re-readind and re-re-reading the lessons, THEN one night, literally at 3:AM while I was hammering away at the program print-outs (bug lists) something "Clicked!" Man, I finished 3, 4, 5 by the weekend and #8 - #10 a full week-and -a-half before the end of the term and did well enough to be exempt from the final. I ended up 3rd in the class behind two superguru-type students. Now I am facing this all over agian with InfoQube. Ouch!

Hmmm.... I wonder if, maybe, the reason I chicked out of SQLNotes/InfoQube since 2007 was because it reminded me of what I went through in the '80s? Well, if it is I am going to expect the same "Click" moment hee too!

I'll get back with a"progress report" in a few days. By the way, the first project I was trying to create with IQ was a journal of my struggle with IQ in which grid consisted of...

My InfoQube Journey
DATE	COMMENTS	LEVEL
8/23/2009	Today I attempt my third foray into the unkown and icy waters of InfoQube. - Successfully created this grid and created the "LEVEL" (of my understanding) data type.	1
8/24/2009	- Successfully created more items. - Successfully utilized the HTML, was going to advance my "LEVEL" to 2, but since I "lost" my data, I am back to 1. :(	1

Thanks again, "Professor."

Fair winds,

Calvin

[quote=CodeTRUCKER]...

My InfoQube Journey
DATE	COMMENTS	LEVEL
8/23/2009	Today I attempt my third foray into the unkown and icy waters of InfoQube. - Successfully created this grid and created the "LEVEL" (of my understanding) data type.	1
8/24/2009	- Successfully created more items. - Successfully utilized the HTML, was going to advance my "LEVEL" to 2, but since I "lost" my data, I am back to 1. :(	1

[/quote]

Calvin, I suggest you have View>Properties ( 3. View Menu on while you learn; that was one of the things that helped IQ "click" for me.

When you do something in the database, take a look over at the properties pane, and get an idea of what you've done.

Excellent!

Thanks for the tip! Just looking at your mock-up I saw something I had not noticed.

Can you tell me how I could set up a cross-link to "LEVEL" in the first row cell with the "LEVEL" in the second row cell (as an example)? Granted these two cells are adjacent, but I am hoping that there is a [[wiki]] type syntax, etc. that would create hyperlinks between words in remote locations. I hope the usefulness is obvious?

Fair winds,

Calvin

[quote=CodeTRUCKER]Can you tell me how I could set up a cross-link to "LEVEL" in the first row cell with the "LEVEL" in the second row cell (as an example)? Granted these two cells are adjacent, but I am hoping that there is a [[wiki]] type syntax, etc. that would create hyperlinks between words in remote locations. I hope the usefulness is obvious?[/quote]

Again probably good to check out the manual page - 4. Links - that for linking in the grid. Linking in HTML pane is here -- link to nonexistent node ID 641 --

You can link all the text in an item cell via it's context menu to any of the following:-

another item

a file

a URL

a Grid

a Field

a wikitag (see Wikitags - these are different from what you are looking for - more like tags - good though!)

If you want to link individual words in Item field/cell you will have to do it manually using format explained in 4. Links

I dont use linking in the HTML pane myself so maybe best to read it up and ask for help then - looks more straight-forward than in the grid though

[quote=Tom]

Again probably good to check out the manual page - 4. Links - that for linking in the grid. Linking in HTML pane is here -- link to nonexistent node ID 641 --

You can link all the text in an item cell via it's context menu to any of the following:-

another item

a file

a URL

a Grid

a Field

a wikitag (see Wikitags - these are different from what you are looking for - more like tags - good though!)

If you want to link individual words in Item field/cell you will have to do it manually using format explained in 4. Links

I dont use linking in the HTML pane myself so maybe best to read it up and ask for help then - looks more straight-forward than in the grid though

[/quote]

Tom, I did read your "Linking" Manual entry and left the following since it was so spot on!

Bravo!
I'm still digesting this, but you have provided the information that will allow me to fulfill my primary interest in IQ, which is "free-form linking!" Given that I have also successfully been able to capture a number of thoughts to text and capture some web pages too, this has certainly become a most productive day! Thanks to all so much!

Wow! What's next, I wonder?

Fair winds,

Calvin

... however, after posting the above reply, I discovered I was in the "Manual" section and attempted to delete my comment. I'm puzzled because I don't have a clue how I got into the Manual? I thought I was replying to a post you made on the general forum. Please feel free to delete the remnants of my reply. I apologize if I have caused any inconvenience and I will certainly try to be more aware of where I am in the future, but like I said above, the manual entry was superb!

Fair winds,

Calvin

> Tom, I did read your "Linking" Manual entry and left the following since it was so spot on!

Great that that helped!

The manual is actually a wiki - that page was written by Pierre and added to by others - including me - for some reason a lot of the pages show me as the author(!) but the majority of the manual pages are written by Keith or Pierre

Actually that page is made from an IQ grid - "Links" - interesting to see it in grid as an outline (again, in the new file with sample content included) - the manual here is probably more up-to-date though.

It is possible to post in the manual pages as well but best to stick to the forum for queries as you have done :-)

[quote=Tom]

...

It is possible to post in the manual pages as well but best to stick to the forum for queries as you have done :-)

[/quote]

So I didn't enter the "Twilight Zone?"

Ok, I give up? How did I get into the "Manual" pages? Is the "Manual" just other threads on the forum, but labeled as "Manual?" Maybe I should go get some sleep.

~~Fair winds~~ Nighty-Night,

Calvin

Manual -> links on top-left side of page

Calvin

have a look here - www.sqlnotes.net/drupal5/index.php

the general consensus seems to be that a beginner should start with the file with the sample content - so if you're not actually using it do make sure to have a good look at it (btw you can have more than one instance of IQ open)