PackRat has been updated yet again to version 1.6. This version fixes a couple of synching problems with the Backpack API as well as adding a preference for using an SSL connection (instead of having PackRat try to figure out whether it should use SSL on synching).
For more details, see the PackRat 1.6 blog post.
I sometimes make mistakes. When I first used Leap, it was in the early public beta, and when Ironic Software released Leap 1.0 with no release notes (they never publish release notes outside of the download, which is annoying) and tiny, skewed screenshots I had no idea that Leap had changed drastically between the initial public betas and the final version. Thankfully a reader called me on my error, and so I’ve taken a second look at Leap.
Although I still think it’s priced a bit high, I was completely in error about Leap’s existence in limbo between file system taggers and file libraries. Leap is a full-fledged file system tagging solution that is unlike any of the other solutions currently on the market. It certainly isn’t perfect, but Leap provides a number of different ways to access your tagged files and introduces a unique way of working with files in your current folder hierarchy that no other tagging software provides. [read more...]
PackRat has been updated to version 1.5.4. This minor update fixes the outstanding problems with Backpack whose recent big update to include multi-user support broke the API and caused a bunch of problems for PackRat.
For more info about the update, see the 1.5.4 blog announcement.
It really is a leap day: Leap, the pseudo-file system tagging software that I asked a few questions about back in October, has at last been released. Leap is billed as an alternative Finder, and provides tagging, Spotlight searching, and more for your files. Unfortunately, it isn’t a true file system tagging solution; Leap’s tags are stored in its database, so you’ll have to use have Leap running to tag and browse your files (rather than being able to tag in the file system) (Update: a reader brought to my attention that there’s a lot more than meets to eye to Leap, so I took a second look). If file libraries are too restrictive for you and Spotlight comments tagging inadequate, then Leap may well be a useful middle ground.
Unfortunately, it costs $60 to register (or a discounted price for Yep owners). Given its comparatively high price (file libraries hover around $40, Punakea is free, and TagBot is $20) and the drawbacks of being not quite one thing and not quite another, Leap will likely be a fairly niche product. However, if you’re not happy with the available file system tagging options, Leap is well worth a trial.
TaskPaper, the ultra-slimmed down task management software from Hog Bay Software, is on sale today, February 25, 2008 only for $12 (down from its current introductory price of $18.95) over at MacZot.
Been a while since MacZot had anything halfway worthwhile, but TaskPaper is definitely a well-designed app. Although TaskPaper isn’t fully-featured enough for me, for some people it’s the perfect minimalist way to keep track of your tasks. Even if you don’t end up buying it, I highly recommend trying to use it for a week just to discover which features actually matter to you in a task management app and which you can happily live without.
Hot on the heels of the 4.0.1 update, St. Clair Software has delivered Default Folder X 4.0.2. This minor release includes proper behavior in Carbon apps that use sheets on windows with toolbars, corrects selection and window activation problems, and includes a hidden setting to make Finder-click available when the Finder is hidden.
For more information and to download, see the release notes. For those who haven’t tried it yet, Default Folder X expands the capabilities of the OS Save dialog in ways that not only help you roll your own tagging system (if you’re into that sort of thing), but generally make you wonder how you lived without it before.
Yurk! I got bogged down by work last week, and so here’s a couple things that got updated that I failed to note (there’s a third, too, but OmniWeb lost one of my browser workspaces somehow and I can’t recall what it was; oh well). Hopefully next week will be calmer and more conducive to blogging.
Default Folder X has been updated to version 4.0.1, including numerous bug fixes, more options for the display (including an old-style gray option for people who don’t like the new HUD look), and more. For complete details, see the release notes. Together was updated to 2.0.7, an update that consisted mainly of bug fixes. Read more about it at the Together download page.
Although not strictly tagging software, VoodooPad has been updated to version 3.5. This update brings a large number of bug fixes, and includes several new features such as the ability to open images in an external editor (such as Flying Meat’s own Acorn), the ability to edit pages and sort results in the search window, and several improvements to the web export for both the standard and pro versions.
For details, see the release notes. VoodooPad is a desktop wiki program that offers a very powerful way to take notes and jot down ideas while having them silently and automatically link themselves to one another. It also offers tagging, although the feature is not particularly well-integrated into the program.
StoryMill, the creative writer’s workshop once called Avenir, has been updated to 3.0.1. This minor update introduces some new features, including the ability to edit scene text in the scene editing window (previously you could only edit the scene’s notes), and fixes several bugs including some problems with the new timeline view.
The update is available via the in-program auto-updating or from Mariner Software’s download page. Unfortunately, release notes are only available via the ReadMe bundled with the download.
Yojimbo, one of my three favorite file libraries, has been updated to version 1.5.1. This maintenance update contains no new features, but fixes a number of bugs including column widths forgetting their width under Leopard, numerous problems with PDFs, and issues with the Quick Start Movie command and Adobe Illustrator files.
For more information, see the current release notes.