No More Watson (as we know it)?

jaredjared
Posted:
in Mac Software edited January 2014
Quote:

Sun Microsystems revealed as Watson buyer

At the recent JavaOne Conference in San Francisco, Sun Microsystems revealed that it is the company behind the purchase of Karelia Software's popular Watson utility. Sun's version of the software, code-named Alameda, is still "in rough form," according to CNET, but was demonstrated at the conference and will run on any Java-enabled computer. An updated FAQ on Karelia's site notes that the company will continue to provide support of Watson until October 5, 2004. "Hopefully, by that timeframe, Sun will have turned this project into a product that Watson users should be able to migrate to."





http://www.macnn.com/news/25341



Bummer

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 8
    hmurchisonhmurchison Posts: 12,424member
    Dashboard Gagets would have replaced both Watson and Sherlock.



    Web apps need to be easily accessible. Firing up an app is fine but hitting a key to see a page of your favorite web apps is killer. I'm curious to see what Sun does with the tech.
  • Reply 2 of 8
    jaredjared Posts: 639member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by hmurchison

    Dashboard Gagets would have replaced both Watson and Sherlock.



    Web apps need to be easily accessible. Firing up an app is fine but hitting a key to see a page of your favorite web apps is killer. I'm curious to see what Sun does with the tech.



    Let's see how much sense I can make here from just crawling out of bed



    I disagree. Watson and Sherlock yes, are like little Widgets but there are six plug-ins that I actively use on a weekly basis (I use others to, just not as much) in Watson and having them all on my screen at once as Widgets would take up to much screen real estate. I understand that only one would show up at a time. Watson is nice because everything is centralized and easy access.



    In theory I suppose I see where you are going but I much prefer an application like Watson then having a dozen Widgets.



    I still think it sucks that Watson will be no more. It was really the second killer app (OmniGraffle being the first in my opinion) and really showed the power of what Cocoa could do. It will be a sad departure.
  • Reply 3 of 8
    hmurchisonhmurchison Posts: 12,424member
    Well it'll be interesting to see what Sun does with it as a Java app. Tiger should have better Java speed so perhaps this isn't so bad. We'll see. I'm going to like seeing how Dashboards progress.
  • Reply 4 of 8
    wjmoorewjmoore Posts: 210member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Jared

    ...having them all on my screen at once as Widgets would take up to much screen real estate.



    That is why they appear and dissapear when you press F8 (I think), they essentially take up no real-eastate, they just appear when you want to use them.

    Quote:

    Originally posted by Jared

    I understand that only one would show up at a time.



    Widgets or Watson? There can of course be many widgets active at once.
  • Reply 5 of 8
    sushiismsushiism Posts: 131member
    Why would you use a widget to search on ebay???

    Widgets can work well with watson, e.g telling you status of a package, current auctions your bidding on, etc. But its by no means a replacement to what watson and sherlock do, not that I use them myself but anyway.
  • Reply 6 of 8
    rb3rb3 Posts: 2member
    I am most curious to see if another good front end for EyeTV recording emerges, as this is my primary use for Watson, and the TV web site HTML changes often, meaning that the module will break quickly and not get fixed by Karelia. This was one-click recording, but it'll be no more.
  • Reply 7 of 8
    brussellbrussell Posts: 9,812member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by sushiism

    Why would you use a widget to search on ebay???



    Why wouldn't you? Or, to put it another way, why would you use Watson to do it, but not Dashboard?
  • Reply 8 of 8
    brussellbrussell Posts: 9,812member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by rb3

    I am most curious to see if another good front end for EyeTV recording emerges, as this is my primary use for Watson, and the TV web site HTML changes often, meaning that the module will break quickly and not get fixed by Karelia. This was one-click recording, but it'll be no more.



    That's a good point. There will definitely be a market for a nicely made TV guide widget that integrates with EyeTV. If someone did a good job with it, they could probably make some bucks selling it.
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