Let’s begin at the start.
What is already available for Ecco?
Several websites are dedicated to Ecco, the free-to-use super-PIM. Everything you need
and everything I know is from these websites. Pretty much every site has a free Ecco and a
free EE (Ecco Extension) for download. Some sites charge for other extenders and add-ons
(To-Do --> what is the difference anyway? I don’t know. Nail down.) One extender puts Ecco in the
cloud while another turns Ecco into into a surf & clip monster. Most sites offer some type of
support. One company has a modern Windows XP-Vista-7-8-10 “EccoProX” installer and
support ticket system on yearly subscription basis (Ecco & EE are free, support is
subscription based) while another has a pre-packaged DIY installer on its forum for those who
like to roll up their sleeves a bit. Two Ecco websites are “Yahoo Neo” (no longer Forums) but
still have Files sections with lots of freebies and information-based goodies. The Neo posting
boards are often active and where long-time Ecco meisters and gurus have helped me over
the years. In fact, the germ-seed of EverEcco came from the original Yahoo Forums, the
meisters and of course the work of EE author Slang.
A round of “atta boys” and “atta girls” is in order to everyone who has collectively gotten Ecco
to this point. Alot of energy and inspiration has gone into bringing Ecoo forward, and despite
all odds. Ecco’s functionality has yet to be commercially duplicated so the old lady keeps
getting a new dress and EverEcco is an example. And in general, development continues, so
you all must agree :).
Here is the Ecco Resource List from an EverEcco perspective. The verbal summaries are
mine. If I am off-base, please contact me w/ corrections and I will update. The list should be
current and accurate. Click here for the EverEcco Resource List.
The award-winning super-PIM Ecco has been free-to-use since 1997 when orphaned by its then-corporate parent
NetManage. Beginning in 2007 and concluding in 2015 (or just taking a break we hope:), a person signing as
slangmgh added significantly to the Ecco legacy with a succession of releases which became known as the Ecco
Extension or EE. EE gave creaky old Ecco a modern set of features and allowed Ecco to regain - we believe -
leadership status in the PIM field. Since Ecco+EE is not a commercial product, Ecco users will not see new
awards. Just the same, most old software goes away over time while Ecco has not. Significant development
continues outside of EE with the MPE (MyPhoneExplorer) Android App, the Extenders from EccoMagic and
EccoTools and the EverEcco template project.
More: Why we still use Ecco in 2016
This page is being written and will be peer reviewed before publishing. If you can offer a peer review &/or
have knowledge of Ecco’s development history - either from an end-user point of view or from the
trenches, please contact me.
Masthead: I am author & editor of these pages. My goal is to make this website accurate and complete. I
am reporting Ecco’s developmental history using professional newspaper/magazine editorial guidelines
and standards, therefore sourcing of info and fact checking are part of the job. However, this is not a
professional or a commercial endeavor. It is an Open Source “labor of love” performed by volunteers and
what is contained herein is a combination of mostly fact, some conjecture, some mistakes, and is for
personal use and entertainment purposes only. As such, individuals involved in the “EverEcco Template
Project” are protected under the various laws that govern ‘fair use’ and ‘open source’ conduct in the United
States of America.
In support of “super-PIM Ecco+EE & more”,
Mark Heleniak alias airchecklover
Long answer: Is three-fold and who could have thought this one up? .....
1) Five or so years ago I needed software like Ecco for a podcast project. I’d been using Ecco since the early 90’s but
in 2010 it seemed good only for looking up passwords and phone numbers and such. I looked and asked around but
couldn’t find current software that was up-to-task. I Googled “Ecco” and learned EE was under development - maybe
half way to where it is now. Coming from a techie-arts background, I could appreciate what the gurus where doing and
it seemed promising, but development was being conducted in a style and syntax I could not understand so I never got
on-board. Then I got sick.
2) Now I am a stage IV cancer survivor. It took two years to get healthy and during recovery I began learning Ecco+EE
- first to where I liked the easy stuff like mouse wheel support and Item locking. I started ‘right clicking’ and digging and
realizing just what EE can do for Ecco - which is miraculous albeit rough around the edges. Thing is - and speaking in
my native tongue for a moment - learning Ecco+EE has been a bitch! It’s one of those “easy enough if you know how”
type of things. Ha, and as we get older it’ll become an “easy enough if you remember how” type of thing. Problem is
there are no tutorials. The information on what EE can do has not yet been compiled into a nice neat package and
spelled-out by an “explainer” type. Due to “circumstances beyond my control” I had time to dig around in six different
websites and ask the meisters and gurus on the Yahoo forums questions. From talking to other users, it’s obvious many
would love to use EE but aren’t sure where to start. It can be daunting.
3) After much time spent looking for an alternative, it turns out Ecco+EE is one of only two softwares on the planet that
is ‘right’ for why I think I’m still here - to create “thoseCwords.com - Life support for people dealing with cancer & other
Cwords”. Ecco is the program I like best. I want to use it but I have to teach it to others working on the project and I
am still exploring Ecco+EE’s power and capabilities and I worry about those infamous internal memory issues and I
have no cash flow so DIY is great. Therefore EverEcco was hatched!
And you have chipped in if you work and live in the USA in that she became legally blind in her 30’s and am a stage IV
cancer survivor getting back on my feet and we’ve needed help getting back on our feet.
(sick almost 2 years) and my wife became legally blind about 10 years ago. Truth is we are currently not keeping the
roof over our heads without the help of others.
We see doing the EverEcco Template Project as an investment. Having this tool will help us do our next job. Speaking
in ‘native tongue’, the situation sucks! According to the New England Journal of Medicine, my medical treatment has
paved the way for me staying on the planet up to 25% longer. Doing EverEcco is part of a bigger project which is our
way of saying “thanks” and earning our keep. That said and all things considered,
The memory registers the act as gatkeepers between the GUI and the database and the data caching scheme is
straight out of Win3 & Win95. That means if there’s a lockup and if you are lucky, maybe you’ve only lost Ecco data. In
testing Ecco+EE’s memory limits, I have managed to fully lock a 64 bit Win7 machine. So yes, if we users veer off
course, we deal with the nasty side of ancient code. Some of Ecco’s GUI is so old it has 8 bit roots, but that makes it
lightweight and fast in todays 64 bit world. EE adds the ability to custom color almost every aspect of Ecco’s display
pages and text in those pages, and to swap out the majority of Ecco’s 16 color bitmapped icons and replace them with
256 color versions. Bottom line is Ecco was always good looking but is now perhaps better. Certainly it is more
functional with the modulating/colored Lock Icons.... a very cool discovery if I may say so myself** :)
**The Lock Icons work perfectly 90% with one non-exact but not critically wrong indication in the Phone
Book & Calendar sections. (To-Do’s --> Add “Fix Lock Icons in PhoneBook”)
