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{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2021}}
{{Infobox software {{Infobox software
| name = ECCO Pro | name = ECCO Pro
| screenshot = ] | screenshot = ecco0017.JPG
| caption = View of very basic outline with graphics. Notepad view in ECCO Pro. | caption = View of very basic outline with graphics. Notepad view in ECCO Pro.
| developer = ], ] | developer = ], Arabesque Software, Ecco UserGroup Members
| latest release version = 4.01 | latest release version = 4.544
| latest release date = {{Start date and age|df=yes|2010|06|11}}
|
| operating system = ] | operating system = ]
| genre = ] / ] | genre = ] / ]
}} }}
'''Ecco Pro''' is <!-- "IS" - SEE ECHO PRO USERS' GROUP IN EXT LINKS --> a ] software based on an ], and supporting folders similar to spreadsheet columns that allow filtering and sorting of information based upon user defined criteria.<ref name="guardian1">{{cite news
|url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2007/jul/26/comment.guardianweeklytechnologysection
|title=Bad ideas spread like wildfire, so why didn't a good one catch on?
|date=26 July 2007
|last=Brown
|first=Andrew
|newspaper=The Guardian
}}</ref>


The ] was originally produced by Arabesque Software in 1993,<ref name="pc_magazine_1993-09-14"/> then purchased by ], and discontinued in 1997.<ref name="pc_magazine_1998-04-07"/><ref name="JCAF">
'''Ecco Pro''' is an outliner, calendar, database, archive, and phone book, with fields (including dates) linkable to each parent or child item. Items can be instantly filtered (in multiple simultaneous views) by field but still displayed in their outline context.
{{cite journal

|last= Bean
As a ] the program includes a phone book, calendar and 'notepad' sections filtered by field associations. Add-on software (MagicView) extends the program to include a RTF/HTML/PDF/DJVU/graphics pane, which acts as a second outliner pane or as an optional field assignment of any item. All items or subitems can appear in any section, depending upon the item's field assignments. Originally produced by ], Inc., was purchased by ], Inc., abandoned, then released free at official user group<ref>http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/ecco_pro/files/%2A%2AEcco%20Pro%20v.%204.01%2A%2A/</ref> along with both ]<ref>http://more.eccomagic.com</ref>, free update extensions, and 'eccotools'.
|first= LuAnn
|last2 = Barlow
|first2 = Judith
|last3 = Hott
|first3 = David
|date=June 2003
|title= PIMs: Is It Time to Give Up Your Day Planner
|journal= Journal of Corporate Accounting & Finance
|volume=14
|issue=5
|pages=41–47
|publisher= Wiley
|doi =10.1002/jcaf.10182
}}</ref><!-- this is not supported by the reference Nuujinn Since then members of the Yahoo Group “ecco_pro” handle development of the software.<ref name="guardian1"/> -->


== Overview == == Overview ==


The product offers three primary types of views — phone book views, calendar views, and notepad views. Central to the program's design is an ] structure and the ability to easily manipulate ] regardless of which view it was entered. Multiple notepad, calendar, and phonebook views can be opened, and each item seen in each view can be a collapsible outline, with each line assignable to folders/categories which can themselves be their own views, text field, pulldown menu, calendar date (including repeating date), or phonebook entry. The product offers three primary types of views – phone book views, calendar views, and notepad views. Central to the program's design is an ] structure and the ability to easily manipulate ] regardless of in which view it was entered.{{Citation needed|date=September 2010}} Multiple notepad, calendar, and phonebook views can be opened, and each item seen in each view can be a collapsible outline, with each line assignable to folders/categories which can themselves be their own views, text field, pulldown menu, calendar date (including repeating date), or phonebook entry.{{Citation needed|date=September 2010}}


== Product functionality == == Product functionality ==
<!-- Deleted image removed: ] -->
<!-- Deleted image removed: ] -->
ECCO Professional was introduced by Arabesque Software in 1993, as a ] (PIM) with a database backend.<ref name="pc_1993-06-29">
{{cite news
|publisher=PC Magazine
|date=29 June 1993
|title=Arabesque brings outlining to personal information managers
|first=Brad
|last=Grimes
}}</ref> This version supports calendar and contact data, as well as to-do lists, and allows integration with other software via import and export capability, ] (DDE), ] (OLE).<ref name="pc_1993-06-29"/> A feature called "Shooter" puts a cut and paste tool at the top of the screen facilitating copy of data to and from ECCO.<ref name="pc_1993-06-29_2">
{{cite news
|publisher=PC Magazine
|date=29 June 1993
|title=ECCO Professional
|first=Gregg
|last=Keizer
}}</ref> The user interface is based on a "universal outliner" and folders, which allow the user to build a variety of views organizing related information of mixed types.<ref name="pc_1994-05-17"/> Data is stored as discrete objects, and can be dragged as dynamic links to multiple folders creating cross references.<ref name="pc_1994-05-17">
{{cite news
|publisher=PC Magazine
|date=17 May 1994
|title=P is for personal.
|first=Hillary
|last=Rettig
}}</ref><ref name="pc_1993-09-4">
{{cite news
|publisher=PC Magazine
|date=29 June 1993
|title=ECCO: your life as an outline.
|first=Gregg
|last=Keizer
}}</ref> Ecco version 1.x supports shared folders and outlines for network access to data,<ref name="pc_1993-06-29"/> but does not support windows workgroups.<ref name="pc_1994-05-17"/> Ram based, the program was considered fast and relatively easy on laptop batteries,<ref name="pc_1993-06-29"/> but a heavy consumer of system resources.<ref name="pc_1994-05-17"/>


ECCO version 2.0, released in 1994, added support for workgroups, including group scheduling via email systems compliant with ] or ] protocols, and ], and sharing of contacts, calendars, and outlines, as well as file synchronization and reconciliation via ] connections or email.<ref name="pc_1994-06-14">
]
{{cite news
ECCO's structure is known to seem at first to be complex, but most users write that once mastered EccoPro affords considerable power and flexibility that no other program has yet been able to duplicate for them.<ref>http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ecco_pro/</ref> One explanation for ECCO's devoted following<ref>http://www.wordyard.com/2007/09/04/ecco-pro/</ref> is that the active views are also the report views. Information is entered in "items," (text blocks up to 32 ], or a Windows ] object (such as a .bmp file, ] document, ] document, etc.) that can be arranged hierarchically, as an outline.
|publisher=PC Magazine
|date=14 June 1994
|title=ECCO 2.0 gains group scheduling and data-sharing.
|first=Gregg
|last=Keizer
}}</ref><ref name="pc_1995-08-01">
{{cite news
|publisher=PC Magazine
|date=1 August 1995
|title=Ecco Professional 2.0: can it manage contacts?
|first=Gregg
|last=Keizer
}}</ref> In 1995 PC Magazine praised ECCO as a ] tool for scheduling and task management and noted its ability to handle free form data, but considered version 2.0 a "poor choice as a contact manager" which requires customization to match features of contemporary products, and lacks structured and complex search queries, good reporting, logging and correspondence functions.<ref name="pc_1995-08-01"/>


ECCO version 3.0 was released in the summer of 1995 with an updated user interface based on a ring binder.<ref name="pc_1995-09-12">
Each item can be linked to one or more "folders" (by manual assignment, basic text matching, or with a free 'addon extension' by complex regular expression, relational lookup, computational, and ], ], ], ], or ] programmatic assignments) which function as a ] in a ].
{{cite news
|publisher=PC Magazine
|date=12 September 1995
|title=Ecco Professional 3.0: the Internet information organizer
|first=Gregg
|last=Keizer
}}</ref> Other additions include an Internet launch tool equipped with an address book containing links to over 2,000 sites.<ref name="pc_1995-09-12"/> Internet support for the Shooter tool allows the user to push a ] and title for a web page back to ECCO.<ref name="pc_1996-04-23">
{{cite news
|publisher=PC Magazine
|date=23 April 1996
|title=Editors' Choice: ECCO Pro
|first=Kathy
|last=Yakal
}}</ref> Searching improved with a query tool based on forms<ref name="pc_1995-09-12"/> and support for boolean filters.<ref name="pc_1996-04-23"/>


ECCO Pro version 4.0 added 32 bit support and OLE 2.0.<ref name="pc_1997-02-18">
Thus, a user could write a note that read "Meeting with John Smith about Generic Project" and by placing it in folders named "Calendar," (assigned to a certain date), "John Smith," and "Generic project," the user could relate nearly any item to any other. This, combined with the built-in networking ability allowing free or controlled sharing of files and parts of files (online and offline), are seen as the core of ECCO's power. Each item, and each of that item's sub-items can be assigned to thousands of different folders of various types (text, numeric, date, pull-down, or checkmark).
{{cite news

|publisher=PC Magazine
]
|date=18 February 1997

|title=Netmanage Inc.: ECCO Pro
Assignments to a date folder can include complex repeating date rules, alarms (including file/program execution), show until marked done options, advance notice options, advance warning, and follow-up rules and alarms. The items displayed in the Views can be filtered based on multiple criteria. Very basic auto-assign rules can be applied for each folder in native ECCO Pro, and very powerful rules can be auto-assigned by use of a free add-on extension.
|first1=David

|last1=Haskin
With a small fix, a hot link to any file can be added anywhere to the outline.<ref>http://ecco.empowers.us</ref> When the user double clicks on the link, the item appears. Any file can be placed directly inside of the ECCO data file. OLE objects appear, can be edited, and then saved within the ECCO file. With the MagicView add-on, RTF/HTML pages can also be attached as folder values inside of the Ecco data file<ref>http://EccoMV.com</ref>, or seamlessly linked to external data sources.<ref>http://eccortf.srules.com</ref>
|first2=Nelson H.

|last2=King
]
}}</ref> as well as integration with NetManage's Chameleon and Z-Mail.<ref name="pc_1997-02-18"/> Version 4.01 has support for Palm Pilot.<ref name="pc_1997-08-01">

{{cite news
The use of outlines and columns can be used to create powerful user interfaces. Outlines are compiled by collecting the items in a folder. Users can display these outlines with columns relating to other folders, very much like a ]. The use of other features such as filtering and "views" allow it to be customized to meet a wide variety of purposes such as ], project management, bibliography handling, contact management, project management, and printable checklists.
|publisher=PC Magazine

|date=1 August 1997
ECCO also provides native ] support (for ] and ] devices) and sharing over a network, and 3rd party add-ons provide for pocket PC (windows) and outlook hot syncs.
|title=NetManage Inc.: ECCO Pro 4.01

|first=Wayne
]
|last=Kawamoto

}}</ref>
==Revitalization==

Although the source code to ECCO is unavailable, development has resumed through the time consuming step of disassembling and modifying the binary executable, with active community participation at the 'New' , and the EccoMagic Forums. Free tutorials and information are available on-line<ref>http://forums.eccomagic.com</ref> and a new tutorial focused on some of the advanced features (such as project management with dependencies, and programming with the ]) is actively underway at Ecco's official wiki site EccoWiki.com <ref>http://EccoWiki.com</ref>

Thousands of pages of information about the new add-ons, free, and shareware extensions are available at the eccotools forums and in downloadable format form the files library of the 'new' Yahoo! Ecco_Pro group. The revitalization project and availability of new extensions has been the subject of technical books and publications.<ref>Scott Rosenberg, Dreaming in Code; http://orcmid.com/blog/2008/04/dreaming-in-code-long-tail-to-my-little.asp</ref>


==History== ==History==
Ecco Pro was originally developed by Pete Polash, who had sold an early Macintosh based presentation program to ] and Bob Perez, a Harvard-trained lawyer hired by ] as a programmer and ] in the 1980s.<ref name="guardian1"/> It was first released in 1993 by Arabesque Software, Inc., based in ].<ref name="pc_magazine_1993-09-14">
The ] application was released in June 1993 by Arabesque Software, Inc., originally based in ], ], and later ]. In March 1997 ] intruduce support for Microsoft Exchange 5.0 <ref>{{Citation
{{cite news
| title = March 11, 1997 - NetManage's ECCO(R) Pro Provides Support for Microsoft Exchange 5.0
|last=Keizer
| url = http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-19193810.html
|first=Gregg
| accessdate = 2009-10-11
|newspaper=PC Magazine
| publisher = PRnewswire
|title=ECCO:Your life as an outline
|date=14 September 1993
|page=50
}}</ref> ] awarded ECCO Pro their Editor's Choice award in 1996 and 1997<ref name="pc_magazine_1996-04-23">
{{ cite news
|last=Yakal
|first=Kathy
|title=Editor's Choice: ECCO Pro
|date=23 April 1996
|newspaper=PC Magazine
}}</ref><ref name="pc_magazine_1997-08-01">
{{ cite news
|title=Editor's Choice: Information Managers
|date=1 August 1997
|newspaper=PC Magazine
}}</ref> }}</ref>
Development by ] ceased in the fall of 1997 after the July 1997 release of version 4.01, however, NetManage premitted continued distribution of the final version as a free download at the official Ecco_Pro user group forum's file section.


Development by ] ceased in 1997 after the July 1997 release of version 4.01.<ref name="pc_magazine_1998-04-07">
] selected ECCO Professional for their Best of 93 issue and in their May 17, 1994, issue awarded ECCO their Editor’s Choice. PC Laptop Magazine named ECCO Professional the Top Software Application of the Year. These were but a few of the awards that the product received.
{{ cite news
|last=Krasnove
|first=Brett
|title=Ecco of discontinuity
|date=7 April 1998
|newspaper=PC Magazine
}}</ref> Andrew Brown wrote in ]: "So what happened to the paragon of a program? The market killed it. First it was sold to a much larger company, Netmanage; presumably doing this made the original programmers a lot of money. Then Netmanage panicked when Microsoft Outlook came along as a "free" part of the Office suite, and killed development on the program."<ref name="guardian1"/> NetManage chief executive officer Zvi Alon noted that 'As soon as Microsoft decided to give away Outlook with Office, we started getting phone calls questioning the value of Ecco Pro'.<ref name="PCAZ">{{cite news
|last = Williams
|first = Brian
|title = NetManage Claims Outlook Killed Ecco Pro
|url = http://www.pcworld.com/article/5909/netmanage_claims_outlook_killed_ecco_pro.html
|access-date = 17 August 2010
|newspaper = PC World
|date = 17 August 2010
|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20101127022547/http://www.pcworld.com/article/5909/netmanage_claims_outlook_killed_ecco_pro.html
|archive-date = 27 November 2010
|url-status = dead
}}</ref>


Even though the source code for Ecco Pro is not open source, development of plugin extensions to the software continues. According to ], a programmer using the handle "slangmgh" developed an extension to Ecco Pro posted to ecco_pro users group on Yahoo which includes fixes and upgrades to the program, and may incorporate the ] scripting language.<ref name="wordyard1">
Peter (Pete) Polash co-founded ], Inc., with Robert (Bob) Perez in 1990. As an independent developer, Polash wrote ], a business presentation software application for the ]. He sold its marketing rights to ] in 1988. Perez, a 1977 ] graduate, joined ] in the 1980s as a software engineer and eventually managed the Macintosh Software Evangelism Group at Apple. Perez has returned to practice as a criminal defense attorney in Bellevue, Washington<ref>http://www.robertperezlaw.com</ref>.
{{cite news
|url=http://www.wordyard.com/2007/09/04/ecco-pro/
|title=Ecco Pro — back from the dead, again
|date=4 September 2007
|last=Rosenberg
|first=Scott
|publisher=Scott Rosenberg's WordYard
}}</ref><ref name="Forbes">
{{cite news
|url=http://eccopro.com/netmanage/
|title=How Impossible Dreams Can Destroy Value in Mid-Sized Firms
|date=30 May 2013
|last=Alon
|first=Zvi
|publisher=Friedhelm Dohmann
}}</ref>
The EccoPro to Android Synchronization Software MyPhoneExplorer able to synchronize Contacts, Calendar, Tasks and Ecco Outlines to Android Phones and Tablets was released on 9 July 2013.<ref name="MyPhoneExplorer">{{cite news |url=http://eccopro.com/myphoneexplorer-ecco-edition-released/ |title=MyPhoneExplorer Ecco Edition Released |date=9 July 2013 |last=Dohmann |first=Friedhelm |publisher= EccoPro.com |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150216083548/http://eccopro.com/myphoneexplorer-ecco-edition-released/ |archive-date= 16 February 2015 |url-status= usurped}}</ref>


==References==
On August 19, 1994, ] announced that it had agreed to acquire Arabesque Software for up to $6 million cash, with $3 million payable upon closing and the balance subject to the achievement of certain revenue levels and technical milestones. In addition to obtaining ECCO, the Arabesque acquisition provided NetManage an entry into the retail marketplace established by ECCO. NetManage's product line at the time, primarily the Chameleon suite of internetworking applications, were primarily sold by a direct sales team.
{{Reflist|30em}}


==External links==
Netmanage's release of Ecco Pro version 3 was at the time, major industry news.<ref>http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_1995_June_20/ai_17093574/</ref>
* {{cite web |url= http://creativeservices.us/wikipedia.html |title= History about the efforts to keep EccoPro alive |date= 24 November 2015 |last= Dohmann |first= Friedhelm |website= CreativeServices.us |access-date= 26 November 2015 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20151108023536/http://creativeservices.us/wikipedia.html |archive-date = 8 November 2015 |url-status= dead}}
* {{cite web |url= http://creativeservices.us/clients.html |title= World Wide EccoPro Users as of 06/05/2015 |date= 5 June 2015 |last= Dohmann |first= Friedhelm |website= CreativeServices.us |access-date= 15 July 2015 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150716040538/http://creativeservices.us/clients.html |archive-date= 16 July 2015 |url-status= dead}}
*


{{Calendaring software}}
Since that time, Ecco Pro Software has become an icon of good ideas not embraced by the mass market.<ref>http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2007/jul/26/comment.guardianweeklytechnologysection</ref> Insiders saw the failure of Ecco as the handiwork of Microsoft's global domination in all things PC in the mid to late 1990.<ref>http://lists.essential.org/1998/info-policy-notes/msg00002.html</ref> Others saw the fall as a failure of product support and not of the product itself.<ref>http://www.organizationquest.com/organization_quest/2008/10/pdas-and-organi.html</ref>

Still, a decade after NetManage acquired Arabesque, Ecco Pro was still the 'insiders outliner of choice'.<ref>http://john.redmood.com/organizers.html</ref> Even as the 2000's drew to a close, new entrants to the PIM/Outliner market compare themselves to, and offer themselves as the 'next' Ecco Pro.<ref>http://sqlnotes.wikispaces.com/</ref>

Around 2006/2007 some free-lance programmers started updating Ecco's feature set, and technology editors declared Ecco Pro 'back from the dead'.<ref>See Wordyard "Ecco Pro" Sept 4, 2007 article, supra.</ref> Currently, Ecco Pro while far from its historical significance and #1 ranking in 1996, is still ranked within the two thousand best applications by technical sites such as CodeWeavers.<ref>http://www.codeweavers.com/compatibility/browse/name/?app_id=966</ref>

In 2009 a 'pre-install' version was made available at the eccotools board for installation in Windows 7 and 64bit operating systems, and although is freely downloadable, requires also downloading the officially released (also free) version at the Ecco_Pro site for licensing.

== Version History ==
Versions of ECCO include<ref>Journal of Corporate Accounting & Finance Volume 14 Issue 5, Pages 41 - 47.</ref>:
* ECCO Professional 1.0, June 1993
* ECCO Professional 1.1, Fall 1993
* ECCO Simplicity 1.1, Fall 1993
* ECCO Professional 2.0, April 1994
* ECCO Simplicity 2.0, April 1994
* ECCO Lite 2.0
* ECCO Pro 3.0
* ECCO Pro 4.0
* ECCO Pro 4.01, July 1997

ECCO Lite: (] $59; sold direct by NetManage $9.99)
* For standalone users
* Calendar, PhoneBook, and Outlines
* No networking or synchronization

ECCO Internet address book (SRP $69; sold direct by netManage for $19.95)
* ECCO Lite with an ECCO file of more than 2,000 Internet ]

ECCO Simplicity (SRP $99; sold direct by NetManage for $80; street price $65)
* For network or standalone
* Calendar, PhoneBook, Outlines
* Cusotmizable PhoneBook forms
* Group scheduling, synchronization
* Shared Calendars, PhoneBooks, and Outlines
* Integration with Delrina ] PRO

ECCO Professional (SRP $279, street price $175–$199)
* For network or standalone
* Calendar, PhoneBook, Outlines
* Cusotmizable PhoneBook forms
* Group scheduling, synchronization
* Shared Calendars, PhoneBooks, and Outlines
* Integration with Delrina WinFax PRO
* Customizable folders, and columns for categorizing and organizing info
* Filters and sorts for selective viewing of info

'''ECCO Pro''' was marketed as the world's first SuperPIM. ECCO competed in the PIM space against several formidable competitors. These included Polaris Packrat, ] ] (now Sage ACT!), ], and Microsoft ] (predecssor to ]). Also in this product space at the time was ], Starfish Sidekick, and Jana Contact.

The marketing budget for ECCO languished under NetManage's tenure. NetManage closed the acquired Bellevue, Washington office and disbanded the ECCO development team in fall 1997 after the release of version 4.01.

When the Bellevue office of NetManage was closed, the principal software development engineers for ECCO formed their own non-related software company in Bellevue, Washington named Accumen Associates. That company continues today under the branding name metrohispeed.com with no ties to ECCO.

Although ECCO development by NetManage ceased in 1997, the program is available as a free download, and development continues by 3rd party vendors.

Problems which had been an irritation for users, such as a Year 2000 (]) bug requiring manually fixing the ending period of recurring dates, have been solved with add-on 'eccotools' and a new 'eccoextension'. There is a still a per-file limit to the number of total outline items count (64k items, which can be up to 32k of text per item or an OLE object, and which can additionally have tens of thousands of text, numerica, pulldown, and date 'folders' (fields) attached to each item), but the EccoMV extension allows up to 100 Gigs of data to be included in each ecco file by linking to externally stored data. Ecco allows for the development of extensions utilizing a ] interface, and ECCO still works in the ] environment of Windows XP and ] environment of Windows7x64, however, system upgrades since Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) have resulted in the normal installation process to fail for some users. An alternate install procedure from a .zip file is available for free that enables a successful install<ref>http://forum.eccomagic.com/forum/YaBB.pl?board=FILES2</ref>.

==Attempts to Duplicate Ecco Pro==
Over the years, many plans were laid, and many attempts begun to capture the market of devoted uses who find the outline/data/calendar integrated structure of Ecco to be uniquely powerful and useful. NetManage promised numerous times to release Ecco Pro as an open-source project, but did not materialize. NetManage was bought out by MicroFocus, and the Ecco Pro open-source project has not yet been heard of again. ] seemed initially to be going on the Ecco path, but it is clear now that it will not (as Chandler development has reached its own termination point).

The following list previous aborted attempts to rewrite an outliner/PIM Ecco Pro like program:

* ADM21 - promised 4.0 version was beta since 2007
* PIMFlash - Company defunct. It had Ecco-like GUI features.

The following list the latest outliners/PIM being developed as 'EccoPro like':
* ]
*
*



==Ongoing Ecco Pro Software community support==

]
Ten years after Netmanage's development ceased, ECCO continues to have a growing and dedicated following, still supported by community-based support groups:


*

*

A couple of downloadable archives of reference material from the ECCO Pro forums are available providing reference material.

Video guides for Ecco are available

Older information and discussions are also available on several Web sites:
*
* (Freeware and Paid Templates) '''Ecco Pro Templates''' can be found on Wil Ussery's website.

An older program called now released as freeware, provides a minimal interface for adding notes and tracking time. The functions have been superseded by the modern add-ons and extension.

There is still at least one known active developer, eccomagic.com, who provides information, tools, fixes, and freeware utilities for ECCO.

Ecco Pro also contains a DDE API which exposes many elements of the database to external manipulation. The API can be accessed directly via DDE, and there are several bindings with functions specific for Ecco Pro. Information, examples, code and specs available at:
* (Freeware)
* (Freeware)
* (Not freeware)
* (which has (freeware) full visual basic ecco specific coding.)
==References==
{{reflist}}


]
] ]
] ]
] ]
] ]
]

Latest revision as of 11:18, 6 March 2024

ECCO Pro
View of very basic outline with graphics. Notepad view in ECCO Pro.
Developer(s)NetManage, Arabesque Software, Ecco UserGroup Members
Stable release4.544 / 11 June 2010; 14 years ago (2010-06-11)
Operating systemWindows
TypeOutliner / Personal Information Management

Ecco Pro is a personal information manager software based on an outliner, and supporting folders similar to spreadsheet columns that allow filtering and sorting of information based upon user defined criteria.

The software was originally produced by Arabesque Software in 1993, then purchased by NetManage, and discontinued in 1997.

Overview

The product offers three primary types of views – phone book views, calendar views, and notepad views. Central to the program's design is an outlining structure and the ability to easily manipulate information regardless of in which view it was entered. Multiple notepad, calendar, and phonebook views can be opened, and each item seen in each view can be a collapsible outline, with each line assignable to folders/categories which can themselves be their own views, text field, pulldown menu, calendar date (including repeating date), or phonebook entry.

Product functionality

ECCO Professional was introduced by Arabesque Software in 1993, as a Personal Information Manager (PIM) with a database backend. This version supports calendar and contact data, as well as to-do lists, and allows integration with other software via import and export capability, Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE), Object Linking and Embedding (OLE). A feature called "Shooter" puts a cut and paste tool at the top of the screen facilitating copy of data to and from ECCO. The user interface is based on a "universal outliner" and folders, which allow the user to build a variety of views organizing related information of mixed types. Data is stored as discrete objects, and can be dragged as dynamic links to multiple folders creating cross references. Ecco version 1.x supports shared folders and outlines for network access to data, but does not support windows workgroups. Ram based, the program was considered fast and relatively easy on laptop batteries, but a heavy consumer of system resources.

ECCO version 2.0, released in 1994, added support for workgroups, including group scheduling via email systems compliant with MAPI or VIM protocols, and Microsoft Schedule Plus, and sharing of contacts, calendars, and outlines, as well as file synchronization and reconciliation via intranet connections or email. In 1995 PC Magazine praised ECCO as a workgroup tool for scheduling and task management and noted its ability to handle free form data, but considered version 2.0 a "poor choice as a contact manager" which requires customization to match features of contemporary products, and lacks structured and complex search queries, good reporting, logging and correspondence functions.

ECCO version 3.0 was released in the summer of 1995 with an updated user interface based on a ring binder. Other additions include an Internet launch tool equipped with an address book containing links to over 2,000 sites. Internet support for the Shooter tool allows the user to push a URL and title for a web page back to ECCO. Searching improved with a query tool based on forms and support for boolean filters.

ECCO Pro version 4.0 added 32 bit support and OLE 2.0. as well as integration with NetManage's Chameleon and Z-Mail. Version 4.01 has support for Palm Pilot.

History

Ecco Pro was originally developed by Pete Polash, who had sold an early Macintosh based presentation program to Aldus and Bob Perez, a Harvard-trained lawyer hired by Apple as a programmer and Evangelist in the 1980s. It was first released in 1993 by Arabesque Software, Inc., based in Bellevue, Washington. PC Magazine awarded ECCO Pro their Editor's Choice award in 1996 and 1997

Development by NetManage ceased in 1997 after the July 1997 release of version 4.01. Andrew Brown wrote in The Guardian: "So what happened to the paragon of a program? The market killed it. First it was sold to a much larger company, Netmanage; presumably doing this made the original programmers a lot of money. Then Netmanage panicked when Microsoft Outlook came along as a "free" part of the Office suite, and killed development on the program." NetManage chief executive officer Zvi Alon noted that 'As soon as Microsoft decided to give away Outlook with Office, we started getting phone calls questioning the value of Ecco Pro'.

Even though the source code for Ecco Pro is not open source, development of plugin extensions to the software continues. According to Scott Rosenberg, a programmer using the handle "slangmgh" developed an extension to Ecco Pro posted to ecco_pro users group on Yahoo which includes fixes and upgrades to the program, and may incorporate the Lua scripting language. The EccoPro to Android Synchronization Software MyPhoneExplorer able to synchronize Contacts, Calendar, Tasks and Ecco Outlines to Android Phones and Tablets was released on 9 July 2013.

References

  1. ^ Brown, Andrew (26 July 2007). "Bad ideas spread like wildfire, so why didn't a good one catch on?". The Guardian.
  2. ^ Keizer, Gregg (14 September 1993). "ECCO:Your life as an outline". PC Magazine. p. 50.
  3. ^ Krasnove, Brett (7 April 1998). "Ecco of discontinuity". PC Magazine.
  4. Bean, LuAnn; Barlow, Judith; Hott, David (June 2003). "PIMs: Is It Time to Give Up Your Day Planner". Journal of Corporate Accounting & Finance. 14 (5). Wiley: 41–47. doi:10.1002/jcaf.10182.
  5. ^ Grimes, Brad (29 June 1993). "Arabesque brings outlining to personal information managers". PC Magazine.
  6. Keizer, Gregg (29 June 1993). "ECCO Professional". PC Magazine.
  7. ^ Rettig, Hillary (17 May 1994). "P is for personal". PC Magazine.
  8. Keizer, Gregg (29 June 1993). "ECCO: your life as an outline". PC Magazine.
  9. Keizer, Gregg (14 June 1994). "ECCO 2.0 gains group scheduling and data-sharing". PC Magazine.
  10. ^ Keizer, Gregg (1 August 1995). "Ecco Professional 2.0: can it manage contacts?". PC Magazine.
  11. ^ Keizer, Gregg (12 September 1995). "Ecco Professional 3.0: the Internet information organizer". PC Magazine.
  12. ^ Yakal, Kathy (23 April 1996). "Editors' Choice: ECCO Pro". PC Magazine.
  13. ^ Haskin, David; King, Nelson H. (18 February 1997). "Netmanage Inc.: ECCO Pro". PC Magazine.
  14. Kawamoto, Wayne (1 August 1997). "NetManage Inc.: ECCO Pro 4.01". PC Magazine.
  15. Yakal, Kathy (23 April 1996). "Editor's Choice: ECCO Pro". PC Magazine.
  16. "Editor's Choice: Information Managers". PC Magazine. 1 August 1997.
  17. Williams, Brian (17 August 2010). "NetManage Claims Outlook Killed Ecco Pro". PC World. Archived from the original on 27 November 2010. Retrieved 17 August 2010.
  18. Rosenberg, Scott (4 September 2007). "Ecco Pro — back from the dead, again". Scott Rosenberg's WordYard.
  19. Alon, Zvi (30 May 2013). "How Impossible Dreams Can Destroy Value in Mid-Sized Firms". Friedhelm Dohmann.
  20. Dohmann, Friedhelm (9 July 2013). "MyPhoneExplorer Ecco Edition Released". EccoPro.com. Archived from the original on 16 February 2015.

External links

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