Project Iffy gets a D (for originality?)

• Project Iffy is now Project Diffy.  And yes, it is a diff tool.  It will let you open two text files, and it will show you the difference.  I’ll give you a moment to let it sink in… 

Ok, I know what you’re thinking…  the world needs another diff program like it needs a 3rd Bush term.  Maybe a glimpse at the exciting feature list will change your mind: 

• Differences highlighted with color!  Maybe even Icons!
• Open files, modify them, and then save!  With dialog boxes and everything!
• Syntax highlighting for your source!  Maybe even little squiggly lines under mis-spelled words!
• Uhhhmm….  3 way merge… in V2… maybe?

Maybe you’re still unimpressed, and I ok with that.  Like any product in a crowded marketplace, it needs a Unique Selling Point (USP) to succeed.  And I think I’ve got one.  Without a real USP, yet another diff tool is a non starter, so this USP will very much be a make it or break it feature for Diffy.  And I’m very interested to hear from other developers if this one little thing is enough to make it.

So, without further ado, here is what I can tell you about the Diffy USP:

• It has something to do with making diff better
• I’ve never seen it implemented in a shipping product*
• I’ve seen posts by other people with the same idea
• I’m very surprised that it has not been done yet
• There are commercial applications that do something similar; the Diffy USP is a generalization of this

*this does not mean it doesn’t exist.  I expect to be informed of no less than 10 programs that already do this exact thing when I unveil the USP.

Tune in next time, when I unveil the Diffy USP…