Directory Opus 5.5.
Now here is a thing the PEE CEE bods could do with, a nice easy directory manager! This one now on version 5 is very different from opus 4, perhaps you might even say it's a completely new way of doing things for the Amigas workbench? | ||
 | Before I get going on this review I feel I must tell you I am an avid fan of directory opus 4 and I still use this instead of Opus 5. I do try to use Opus 5 now and then, but it's like a question I once asked a friend who was using two steel tape measures, one more often than the other! "Why don't you use the new one" I asked, "well its got different marks on it, and I haven't got used to the new sections yet" what a twat I thought if he just used the new one all the time he would soon get used to it! | |
Ok the steel rules were different makes, which gave them contrasting looks, but this also applies to Opus 5, made by the same people. Maybe he's not such a twat after all? | ||
The good points of Opus 5 are quite numerous, for instance the listers now open as a completely separate task, open another and tying them together as source and destination allows you to kick off an operation and they will happily do it while you open other listers to do the same thing. There are loads of preference editors' which can be launched simultaneously if you feel like a fiddle (with the prefs) during a long copy session. No waiting, just open another lister and start working on the next task. |  | |
Button banks are now editable as well, any way up, length, and almost any size, even resizing, not forgetting colour and operation of buttons, also you could now have an image in the button, rather than text. Suffice it to say the configuration options are superb, almost obscene. | ||
 | As with opus 4 there are extensive file-type recognition prefs. It also seems every support aspect of the built in text, graphics, sound viewers and players are improved over version 4. GP Soft who make Directory Opus have decided to leave out a module player in version 5. It's easy to launch any PD module player and have them iconify on opus while playing your favored modules. Another great point worth a mention is built-in FTP (if you fancy setting it all up!). | |
I feel, I myself have only scratched the surface of Opus 5, and it has this underlying power, which provides true multitasking and efficiency like you would not believe, it takes quite some setting up and tweaking to get it useful, but its potential should out strip Opus 4. The manual is very good, compact, well laid out and easy to read.Just one more word of caution. With the new version you can set up prefs to simulate the old style interface, but thanks to resizable windows and horizontal scroll bars, it can be more clumsy to use. Also, if you can't display large screen modes like my over-scanned productivity (704x600), these buttons and sliders can add to the clutter of the screen and take up just that little bit to much room. Opus 5 is still a great piece of software but it may not suit everybody, especially if you are used to Opus 4, or that old steel rule. You can contact the Wizard Developments sales team at sales@wizard-d.demon.co.uk
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Score - 80%