Well, I have written up as much as I could. It is hard to describe, but anyone who has tried out any of Zoe, Six Degrees, or Emila will know instantly what I talking about. They are all free, so those who are interested can download and try them out. I have provided links above. Nonetheless, I will try to describe it here.

Most apps that search email search for matches against user-provided text strings, or some email headers or some combo thereof. The search is initiated by the user. There is nothing serendipitous.

The above apps are different. Let me try to describe it. You click on a date in a calendar, and all the emails for that date show up. You click on an email, and the text of that email shows up with all the html links, all the email lists, attachments, and people mentioned in that email neatly categorized on the side. Click on any one of them and related info shows up. It is like wandering through a maze... every turn brings up a new view.

Here is one analogy... Netflix vs. Blockbuster. Without starting a religous war here, this is why I like BB over Netflix. With Netflix I have to know what I am looking for. I can search on genres and keywords and the app responds with films that match that. With BB I don't have to know anything. I simply wander the aisles and come across new films. The only controlling factor is the BB employee who placed them in the particular aisles. Its like comparing an online catalog with a library. They serve different functions. One can simply wander in a library and be delighted by different things that turn up with every turn one takes.

In reply to Re: Re: A Perl-app for twingling by punkish
in thread A Perl-app for twingling by punkish

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