Advenio News

Ah, another year gone, and 2005 was a very busy year for us here at Advenio. We'd like to thank everyone who helped make this year a successful one. With the close of 2005 it's a good time to review the year that was.

2005 featured updates of all of our products:

MacXword hit minor version 1.3 and was joined by the MacXword Puzzle Collection, a pack of 50 original crossword puzzles created exclusively for MacXword users. It also saw a price drop from $15 to $10.

MacGourmet passed its first "birthday," hit minor version 1.1 and featured maintenance updates all the way up to the current version, 1.1.8. In addition, MacGourmet became available on CD for the first time, we partnered with RealCajunRecipes.com and TheOtherWhiteMeat.com for sample recipe packs, and the MacGourmet Recipe Swap was added to MacGourmet.com.

Finally in product updates, the SQLGrinder 2 beta was released in August, with a bunch of new features and a totally redone user interface.

So, what's on tap for 2006? Well you can expect at least a final SQLGrinder 2, and a sizable update for MacGourmet. Hopefully we'll take another trip to WWDC. We've also got lots of other things in the planning stages, so stay tuned. Happy 2006 from Advenio!

The first beta of MacXword 1.3.1 is now available for download. This is a bug fix release to resolve a couple issues encountered by our users. Representation of the horizontal ellipsis ( … ) will no longer cause the insertion of a new line in clue text. The Los Angeles Times source has been removed from the Sources menu as they no longer provide an AcrossLite crossword. The registration cost of MacXword is now correctly specified on the registration window. The user guide has been updated to show the correct cost of registration. MacXword and its Spotlight importer have been rebuilt as Universal Binaries in preparation for the release of Intel processor based Macintoshes.

If you would like to participate in the beta process simply download the beta and try it out. Please be sure to file any bug reports from the Help menu.

We'd just like to wish everyone a merry Christmas, a happy Hanukkah, and a happy new year! Happy Holidays!

(Expect support to be a little slower at this time of the year, but we'll still be around to help, thanks for your patience!)

MacGourmet 1.1.8, a small maintenance release, is now available.

This free update is available from the MacGourmet download page.

As always, you can find a full list of the changes here.

This is just a small update that fixes database errors that were being displayed during file imports. The errors were benign, but shouldn't have been displayed.

Because last year people asked for it, MacGourmet is now available on CD for your unique holiday gift giving! For just $29.95 (plus shipping and handling*), only $5 more than the download version, you can now order MacGourmet on CD. The CD edition includes the latest version of MacGourmet and a serial number, the print-quality version of the documentation (in PDF format) and sample recipes, all packaged in a DVD case.

To order your copy, visit the Advenio online store, and just select the CD edition when you place your order. Happy Holidays from Advenio!

*Currently only shipping to addresses in the U.S.

MacGourmet 1.1.7 is now available.

You can find a full list of the changes here.

This free update is available from the MacGourmet download page.

This release again benefits from the development of the next major version. It resolves a handful of usability issues and includes a couple of optimizations. As bugs are fixed in the next version, they will continue to be pushed out in maintenance releases, so that you won't have to wait for small improvements.

There are a lot of changes being worked on for future versions of MacGourmet, some of which could be significant. I'm looking for a bunch of people to join a team that can be available to test things first, and give feedback on prototypes for potential changes. There are only a couple of requirements. The first is that members download, sign, and fax (866-830-9080) a simple one page NDA and not discuss future changes or prototypes publicly in any way. Not to be paranoid, but the recipe app field is surprisingly competitive. When MacGourmet was released, there were maybe two non-Filemaker recipe organizers for the Mac. Now there are, at last count, at least 12. Matching of features to be competitive will always be the norm, and imitation is the sincerest form of flattery of course, but I'd rather see imitation of new features show up after a release, not before, hence the requirement.

The second requirement is that members must be completely comfortable backing up and restoring their databases. As with any test software, problems can happen.

If you are interested in becoming a member, first join the discussion boards if you haven't already, and then use the "Send Feedback" menu item in the MacGourmet Help menu to send me your user name, and a request to join the team. Members will be added to a private beta team discussion board where new features can be discussed. Space is limited, so don't wait too long.