CatDV is an application for cataloging media and logging movie clips. Supported media are video, audio and still image files, as well as project files from applications such as Final Cut Pro and interchange formats such as HTML. Every clip or file is represented by an object in a CatDV file, which can be annotated and previewed. Its purpose is to complement video editing applications with its cataloging functions.

I have to admit that I was limited in my capabilites of testing every aspect of CatDV, as I don't have any experience managing media files professionally and the software seems to have a huge array of functionality. This means that I cannot talk much about the workflow of the application, and will therefore concentrate on more general issues with the user interface. CatDV is a cross-platform application, but I am reviewing it on Mac OS X 10.1.

Swing

CatDV was developed using Java and uses the Swing library for its user interface. Although Swing on Mac OS X uses native Aqua interface elements, it still doesn't look and feel quite native. This is partly because Swing arranges interface elements according to some predefined Layout Managers, which can be very restrictive and often result in layouts that are far from optimal. Other Swing-isms that will seem unusual to most Mac users are the fact that all controls can have a focus-ring around them and that dialogs (even modal ones) always have a close widget. Also, there are some bugs in the Aqua implementation of Swing that can get slightly annoying. Pop-up menus, for example, behave very inconstently, changing their selection even when the mouse is moved outside the open list of items. Lastly, Swing interfaces feel quite sluggish compared to Cocoa and Carbon applications, especially in redrawing. At least this is the case on my PowerBook G3, whose graphics accelerator is not supported by Mac OS X. It might well be that Java applications feel snappier when run on a system with accelerated graphics. I will disregard most of the basic problems with Swing and rather discuss issues with CatDV's interface that are unrelated to the use of Java.

The Toolbar

CatDV has a toolbar at the top of each project window, offering one-click access to frequently used functions. There are a few problems with this toolbar, however. Firstly, the functions have different scopes. The buttons for saving, printing and chaning the view mode are related to the document the toolbar is in, while those for creating and opening files and for editing preferences are not document-specific. Other applications do this as well, but ideally, only document-specific functions should be shown inside a document's window. Secondly, the buttons all behave differently. Most of them react on clicking by executing a command, while others toggle between 'on' and 'off' states. Yet others behave like radio buttons, where only one in a group can be currently active. Unfortunately, the appearance or grouping of the buttons gives no clue as to how they will behave when clicked. Thirdly, some of the icons used don't communicate the buttons' functions very well. There are two sets of icons the user can choose between in the preferences, but neither is optimal.

I think that the toolbar could be greatly improved if file commands were removed, as these are easily accessible through the File menu anyway. Fewer items are always easier to handle by the user's eye. The icons for searching, randomising and showing information work pretty well, but the ones for grouping mode, summary mode and for filtering could do with a redesign. Especially since the filtering button behaves differently from the other two, despite its similar appearance (It executes a command, while the other two toggle.)

Other Issues

Here are some other general issues I found while playing with CatDV's interface:

• Some of the column headers in list view are unreadable. Make the text smaller or the columns wider.
• Confirmation buttons should have more meaningful button captions. "Yes" and "No" require reading and analysing the grammar of the dialog message, while "Save" and "Don't Save" allow much faster action.
• In dialogs, the buttons should be grouped and ordered differently on the Mac. The default button, e.g. OK, should be on the far right, with the Cancel button next to it. Other buttons should be on the left side. This might be possible to implement by using a separate layout manager for these button panes under the Mac look-and-feel.
• Dialogs have close widgets and are resizable, which is uncommon. This might be unavoidable in Swing, though.
• After choosing Import and cancelling the file dialog, an error message is shown.
• Cancelling a folder import in the file dialog imports anyway.
• If possible, the "Preferences" item in the application menu should be used instead of the Edit menu.
• Dragging thumbnails to rearrange clips in grid view doesn't give visual feedback during the drag. The result is only visible after the mouse is released. Understanding what exactly has happened can be tricky for the user this way.
• The application's about-box should ideally contain a button for closing it or should have a title bar with a close widget.

Conclusion

This application was a tricky one to review, since I had to take into consideration the limitations of the Swing interface library and the fact that CatDV is a cross-platform application. However, its interface is quite simple and therefore any issues I found with it were related to things like the toolbar and dialogs. I think that some rethinking of the toolbar and making some parts of the interface more platform-sensitive will make it more pleasant to use. Overall, a good piece of work showing how Java applications can use the native Mac OS X look-and-feel. 

Links

CatDV product information
http://www.squarebox.co.uk/catdv/index.html

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