I’ve looked at online databases and spreadsheets rather extensively a couple of months ago, and DabbleDB had hands down the most powerful yet usable user interface of the bunch, significantly ahead of what Zoho or Google (among others) have to offer. Too bad DabbleDB is right now heavily focused on private use. Its dynamic features cannot be embedded in a high-volume public site though it’s on their roadmap to support such scenarios. All you can share publicly are static snapshots which don’t reflect the added value of what their UI does in the backend.
Their pivot table-like functionality and mapping integration not only show the way of what modern intranets should embed – this is also what professional online news publishing should be about.
Now, look at their snapshot archive. It’s a calendar-based interface (no doubt inspired by Windows Restore) that lets you roll back to older versions of your online database. This is, again, a level of control that most web app vendors don’t even think of, let alone execute properly. Go go DabbleDB, you stand above the crowd!
Updates
01/07/2016: out of curiosity, where have they gone?
- Andrew Catton: Twitter, PeerPortrait
- Avi Bryant: Twitter, Etsy, Stripe
- Ben Matasar: Twitter, HelloCivil
- Luke Andrews: Twitter, Change.org
Nice talent retention, Twitter…
03/17/2011: sadly, this:
“We would like to notify you that we will be shutting down the Dabble DB service on May 18, 2011. After exploring other options including finding another home for Dabble DB or continuing to try to support it ourselves, we’ve come to this difficult decision. We deeply regret any inconvenience this may cause you.”
06/17/2010: Smallthought is acquired by Twitter but it’s their Trendly software they’re interested in.