Posted by Ben Jackson Wed, 31 Dec 2008 21:40:07 GMT
Or at least we all do, at some point over the next 12 hours, voluntarily or not. Like the poor Zune owners who woke up today to an unpleasant surprise.
I haven't posted much this year. Blogo has taken up more of my time than anything else, and the release last week marked the end of a long, difficult stretch. Hopefully next year will be easier.
Good luck to all of you.
Posted by Ben Jackson Thu, 11 Dec 2008 00:22:41 GMT
Yesterday Brainjuice launched Blogo 1.2 beta 2 (a release candidate, or preview of the final version), the new version of our blog editor for the Mac. After a low-profile launch of version 1.1 (due to it being less stable than we would have liked), with this version we've gotten much closer to what we planned for the application.
Together with the launch, other good news: a new site with a lot of new content, including a series of 8 screencasts to be launched together with the final version. And this time, we've (finally!) taken the leap and translated our site for international audiences (Brazil and Portugal will be the first to benefit). We've also earned another mention from Apple, this time in the development area, and have maintained our status as the only blog editor included in the official "staff picks".
But then, you didn't come to hear about us. On to the new features:
Stability and performance
We received more than a few complaints about instability in the first version, many due to problems with third parties (RubyCocoa still has some bugs to work out and is slowly but surely being overshadowed by MacRuby on Leopard, and Twitter's server crises took their toll on Blogo as well). With those issues resolved, and our application performing well, Blogo can finally live up to its potential: to be the definitive solution for Mac bloggers.
Interface redesign
Definitely one of the most important changes. We refactored the entire interface, redesigning all of the buttons and freeing up 20% more space for the editor. We also added a quick access button for the categories list, making the process even easier. And we opted for the black interface as a default, giving a more professional look to the application and making it fit in better with Leopard (though the blue version is still available in the preferences for those who miss the old style).
Posted by Ben Jackson Sat, 06 Dec 2008 20:25:26 GMT
What should show up in the Brainjuice referrer logs today but the website of another company taking credit for the design?
I'm flattered, but more importantly incredibly pissed off. I only hope that this scumbag amateur reads my email before I have to call a lawyer.
Posted by Ben Jackson Sat, 06 Dec 2008 00:58:30 GMT
This has been making the rounds of the internet lately, but still deserves a mention if for nothing else than the fact that it's a perfect mix of outrage, timing, and a group of pissed off comic geniuses.
