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Review: Qusnetsoft NewsReader from Qusnetsoft.ru
This Review Was
Originally Posted on iGlobility.com from 20061102 to 20070602.
Now That Is A LONG TIME!
I like to think of myself as an Old School Hacker. Someone that still
appreciates the value of a good UNIX joke. Like the one My friend Steve M once
told me. He and I worked Unix support for a Web Hosting company in the DFW Texas
Metroplex. He created a file called
de gallo
and to edit it, he of course invoked the command
pico de gallo
Yeah, we thought it was pretty funny too! This brings us to NNTP New Readers. To
quote some chick from some movie, "that is so five minutes ago!" Not if you are
an active UseNEt user! There used to be a few available on the market for the
Windows CE/Pocket PC platform, but as time moved forward, there were fewer
choices and the ones available were pretty minimal. With no quality offerings
out in cyberspace, this old UseNet junkie felt relegated to the ilk of AvantGo
and other pitiful interfaces that try to pass themselves off as new/RSS readers.
Granted, for what AvantGo and the others offer, they do a good job, but if you
want UseNet, these will not work.
Enter Qusnetsoft NewsReader.
I read about this in some post on some board, and thought, what the heck. I
pulled up the developer's website, and found what appeared to be a very nice
program. I contacted Dmitry G. Qusnetsov, the developer and asked if he would
mind providing a license so I could review his product. He responded very
quickly, and I was on my way to using a very full featured, and useful UseNet
reader!
I have used a few NNTP apps, and while they have gotten the job done, they have
always felt quite sparse, and not very capable. Coming from those experiences, I
expected Qusnetsoft
NewsReader to be no different. Boy, was I wrong! I found it to be very full
featured, with features I would never even think to ask for in a Usenet reader,
like the Today plug in!
OK, on to the review.
My criteria for a quality UseNet Newsreader...
1. Easy to use
2. Reliable updating, wired or wirelessly
3. Ability to purge articles, or groups
4. Ability to store database on storage card
5. Ability to pull articles from multiple NNTP servers
6. What is the deal with that Today Plugin!?!
TOP
Initial setup for me was a bit of a challenge, because I am a guy, and
as a guy, I am determined to do it without reading the fine MANUAL! I
did finally read the fine manual, and I was off! Once I understood what
the program was looking for, I found it quite easy to use. It also
helped that I finally got the user credentials correct for the NNTP
server I was using! Once I had this critical piece of information,
things just seemed to work better! Go figure!!!
The menus are quite intuitive, and once learned easy to navigate. Truly,
there are more features than I can discuss in a short review, but
suffice it to say,
Qusnetsoft NewsReader makes the UseNet a joy to read again! If I
were to attempt to compare this to a desktop equivalent, I would
probably look at the Agent newsReader from
www.ForteInc.com.
Qusnetsofr
NewsReader has all the feature one would expect to find in a desktop
version, yet it fits in the palm of your hand!
Yes, it is very easy to use! For ease of use, I give it Five Globes!
2. RELIABLE UPDATING, WIRED OR WIRELESSLY
Well, I got it setup, but did it actually work. With other NNTP readers,
there was always something that get in the way of it fully working. Much
like the transporters (Wireless updating) being on the fritz at the
critical moment Kirk and his crew needed to get off some rock, many NNTP
readers would call in the shuttlecraft (ActiveSync Connection) to get
the job done. I would usually only be able to update via he desktop
connection provided by ActiveSync. Trying to do it via the WiFi
connection was problematic at best, and a complete failure most of the
rest of the time.
Qusnetsoft
newsReader did not have these problems. Once I got it setup, it
updated just fine, and I am able to get my news in the car, on the road,
in the bathroom, or anywhere else I have a signal. That is quite nice,
and I really appreciate all the work Dmitry and his team put into this
product.
TOP
The only setback I have encountered is when the application comes across
an improperly posted article. It will return an error, referencing the
article, and then stop updating altogether. I would like to be able to
get past the problem article, and continue updating. The way I get
around it is that once I get an article error, and updating stops, I
just start it again, and off it goes! Not a huge problem, but it makes
unattended updates difficult. I have not found a way around this, ancd I
did not find anything on the
qusnetsoft.ru
forums for this particular problem. It is probably a setting.
Overall, updating is quite reliable. It just works! WIth the article
error problem however, I can only give
Qusnetsoft
Newsreader Four Globes for this criteria. Still damn good!
3. ABILITY TO PURGE ARTICLES OR GROUPS
I have been working really hard at minimizing my wordiness when it is
not necessary. In this case, only one word is needed...
Yes!
Five Globes for this criteria
4. ABILITY TO STORE DATABASE ON STORAGE CARD
Again with the short answer! Absolutely,
Qusnetsoft
NewsReader does this!
Again with the Five Globes!!!
5. ABILITY TO PULL ARTICLES FROM MULTIPLE NNTP SERVERS
I do not know if other products provided this feature. mostly because I
just felt lucky to get any news at all! I found that
Qusnetsoft
NewsReader provides this feature, and actually works quite well! It
all seems rather seamless once you have the server info and newsgroups
selected. All the groups, regardless of which NNTP server they reside on
show up on the main screen. This makes for a nice presentation, and
makes all the news very easy to manage.
TOP
It seems like Dmitry and his crew are on a roll here. Five Globes again
6. WHAT IS THE DEAL WITH THAT TODAY PLUGIN!?!
At first, I thought, great another today plugin that I will have no use
for. Nope! The
Qusnetsoft NewsReader Today Plugin is actually quite handy. It
provides a realtime view of read/unread and new articles. It is a bit of
a battery hog because of its active status, but that really does no
matter because of the utility it provides. If you are watching a
newsgroup closely, it is quite nice to know when new articles are posted
so you can get to them when they arrive. Very nice feature, one you will
use if you are an active UseNet user.
No Globes awarded as this was not really a criteria but something I felt
warranted mention.
CONCLUSION
While the world of UseNet users is getting smaller every day. It is nice
to know that there are folks out there that care enough about the
remaining users to produce a quality product. Because of the dwindling
UseNet user population, this review was not in depth as some in the past
have been. If you are a UseNet user and a Windows Mobile aficionado,
then all I really need to say is GET
QUSNETSOFT
NEWSREADER. You Understand!!!
RECOMMENDATION
It would appear that I have already made the recommendation above, but
let me reinforce that recommendation: If you are a UseNet user and a
Windows Mobile aficionado, then all I really need to say is GET
QUSNETSOFT
NEWSREADER. You Understand!!! If you are not a UseNet user, but have
an ISP that provides NNTP service, and have a Windows Mobile device, GET
QUSNETSOFT
NEWSREADER! You will become a UseNet User in short order!
On a One to Five Globility Scale, I give Qusnetsoft NewsReader 4.5
Globes.
Way
to Go Dmitry and all the folks at
Quesnetsoft.ru!!!
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