Bookends 12.5 Feedback

[Jon]

Have you downloaded the silent update? I gave more space to those fields, they can display two lines (and part of a third) without scrolling. And Keywords is intended to be a scrolling field with one per line.

Jon
Sonny Software

[Nhaps]

I too would like to be able to decide what fields appear where and in what order. I'm rather better able than others to decide the relevance of fields like Abstract and Notes to my workflow.

I second the ability to custom position the fields. As for looks, the edit window looks much better than in the last version, good job Jon.

[Jon]

I've been working on a simple standalone reference edit window, and the results are encouraging. In fact, there might be a nice unanticipated bonus with the approach I'm experimenting with. :-)

I'll post on this forum as work progresses. Note that the next update, 12.5.1, will primarily be a bug-fix release, any editable reference window would come after that.

Jon
Sonny Software

[tineline]

Yes, please bring back the standalone reference window. For disability reasons: If you need to have the display enlarged, like me (or probably if you have a small screen), you can only see fragments of the title and author (list) at the time. This resulted in the auto-complete adding in many authors that were not on the paper, simply because they had worked with the same author that was last in a reference's author list. And it is really annoying to not be able to scroll to other refs while the separate window is still open on one, as was mentioned.

I second!

[grebmar]

12.5 is a great new look! I would also second the request to put publisher and location above notes and abstract, or have the ability to change the location. I don't need a separate edit window, since I have a second monitor to place the PDF files.

I do have another small request--in the groups pane, the selected group is highlighted in gray, but it doesn't stand out very much. Can that be changed to blue, like in the reference pane (or made customizable)? This is one of the disappointments I see in the latest versions of OS X generally--the removal of most colors on windows. It makes it more difficult to pick things out at a glance.

[ZC1ifi]

It is good to hear you are thinking about putting the separate edit window back. Look at it this way, what is the point of a using windows for different programs if you have to make some of them so big that they cover a large part of the screen to be useful. The separate edit window took up place but was gone again as soon as the editing was over. Surely, you are not thinking about getting rid of the separate window for on-line searches?

[Jon]

The move toward single unified window apps on OS X began long ago. And yes, some other reference management apps integrate online searches into their main window. There's a lot to like about that approach. But I think it would be overkill for Bookends, we've already got a lot going on in the 4 panes.

Actually, the implementation of a standalone editable reference window is coming along very well. I think I'll probably ask for beta testers on this forum tomorrow (please don't anyone reply here, you'll see a forum post when I'm ready).

Jon
Sonny Software

[alango]

Hi, I only like to know, when version 12.5 is ready for the app-store? I bought my bookends-version via app-store, so I have to get the update via this store. Thanks.

[Jon]

Not for a bit. I can post bug fix releases on our site instantly -- it takes 7-10 days to get them approved by the Mac App Store review team. Therefore, I hold off submitting a release to the MAS for a few days after releasing it on our site. In the case of a major release, like 12.5, more problems are found in the initial release than usual, and so submitting to the MAS is delayed.

I've fixed all of the bugs that have been reported thus far, and I plan on releasing 12.5.1 in a few days. If 12.5.1 is stable, it will be submitted to the MAS a few days later. So my best guess is that 12.5.1 will be available on the MAS in 10-14 days (again, the bulk of the delay is usually due to Apple's approval process).

We discuss this issue on our FAQ: Should I buy from Sonny Software or the Mac App Store?

http://www.sonnysoftware.com/faq/faq.ht ... ny_Softwar

Jon
Sonny Software

[alango]

Thanks a lot. I bought in the MAS, so will be patient until the update is there.

[Jon]

A beta version of Bookends that has the option to have standalone reference editing windows is ready for testing. If you'd like to test it, please send an email tech to support (support@sonnysoftware.com).

Jon
Sonny Software