Post by Nick Werner-MatavkaPost by Rick CPost by Nick Werner-MatavkaPost by Jens K. LoeweSo all there is - as of now - are adjustments to make HERMES (well,
Eudora 7.1) behave more nicely on Windows 10? Or have I missed the big
Wow in the hg logs yet?
Well, no. And yes. Eudora 7.1 is mature software, which essentially means that there's no need or desire for big UI changes that'll blow the user's socks off as soon as he opens up the new version.
No, but there are plenty of nuisance bugs which I am hoping you can address once you get the major aspects updated.
Oh, we certainly will, have no doubt about that---but getting it to link and run takes priority, of course. No sense building a wall if your mortar's not up to snuff.
Post by Rick CPost by Nick Werner-MatavkaFrom the back end, though, there is an enormous amount of work to be done. We're changing out HTML renderers, for example; the result of this change isn't very visible unless you're reading a lot of rich-text mail, but it was an absolute bear to fix, and long past due. Unicode should be ready soon as well. Again, there's no 'Wow!' factor there from the user's standpoint, but it is something we absolutely need to do in this hyper-connected, international world. Keep in mind that the last Hg entry was a month ago and we're still measurably advancing since that time.
This will be a WOW factor for me. I get some emails where the text is tiny, but the images are large. Using the zoom doesn't really help because the text gets spread over a page two or three times the size of my computer screen. If I display the email in a browser it looks normal. I also have trouble with the text size in some mailing lists where the boiler plate text looks ok, but the content text is rather small. I can make this larger with zoom, but the two texts don't seem to enlarge the same.
In that case, absolutely, prepare to be wowed. If you're not au fait with HTML renderers... Eudora 7.1 uses the same core that powers Microsoft Internet Explorer 6. *waits for laughter to subside* Not joking. So, if we get it to communicate with Chromium instead, you'll see that it works better all around.
Yes, at some point I was informed about using IE for rendering HTML. What I've never understood was if that was something made a part of the Eudora code from way back then (which would explain a lot) or if it used whatever links are provided through the version of Windows being run under.
Post by Nick Werner-MatavkaPost by Rick CPost by Nick Werner-MatavkaAlso, we're essentially forced to use a build environment from 2005. We can fix this but it'll take time. HERMES Mail 8 (i.e. the next version after 7.1) will still be on MSVC++ 2005, but the fundraising notice is for the version after that. We're trying to make the Eudora codebase fully modern and a rival to Thunderbird, Postbox, what have you. This was impossible with one person. With three people it's still difficult because of the passage of time.
I think you are saying you want the internal code and tools to be more interesting to developers than what you are using now?
Well, not exactly. In fact, not at all. Computer languages change over time, like human ones do---I think an analogy might serve you well, it's like trying to teach Shakespeare to a modern ninth grader. Not to make it interesting, but to make it comprehensible!
Essentially, the 2005-vintage code will not be understood by a 2018-era compiler (the program, not the programmer). It throws something like 1,980 syntax errors (the equivalent of a missing comma or a word it doesn't understand). So we will need to fix every single one of those... but my point is, that can wait for the next version because we really need to focus on release first and update later.
I have been a programmer myself so I understand the basics. When you say the language has changed, I'm not aware of substantial changes that would cause syntax errors (not that I am particularly informed). In fact, that is one of the major aspects of using a high level language is being able to port the code through space (different hardware) and time.
But if the code throws errors, how can you compile it usefully? Are you saying it throws warnings rather than errors? I remember back in the day people often didn't worry about compiler warnings because they didn't understand what they were really saying. Once I got into using VHDL I discovered just how important warnings can be.
Post by Nick Werner-MatavkaPost by Rick CPost by Nick Werner-MatavkaBut if you're asking if we've spent the last year and a half doing nothing but jacking off, well, that couldn't be further from the truth.
No, please, don't think that is what people believe. I've noticed your development announcements often have a bit of a defensive tone to them. Please don't think anyone is criticizing. I'm just so happy that work is being done. No one is complaining about the pace. Heck, the installation issues are very important. There's no point at all in trying to update an application that won't install correctly for many users. Before we can worry with the UI or new features we need to have the thing working correctly.
I don't think that's what people (aside from a particularly noisy minority) believe. If you've caught me being defensive, it's because I have been targeted by a few people (meirman, George C. Durman, etc.) in public and in private. Some have even made it personal ("I took a look at your facebook photos and you are the weirdest looking person I've ever seen", or even "I just plain don't like you"). This wouldn't be good for anyone's mental health, but especially not one who's hit Pause on a promising career in Corporate Law to work on software instead... and especially not one who's had the worst kind of difficulty attracting developers.
I apologize for those who use the Internet as a barrier to throw insults over. You certainly don't deserve that sort of treatment. You are doing a pretty amazing thing. While many of us like, no love Eudora, few are in a position to be able to even help with what you do.
I saw your tie video. Nice accent.
Post by Nick Werner-MatavkaWe all make sacrifices. This was mine. I'll gladly take criticism... but please keep it directed at our efforts rather than my face or my personality!
There is room for suggestions perhaps, but no criticism is justified.
Excuse me while I look up Durham.
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Rick C.
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