→ AppFresh Development Preview 3 (Mac OS X 10.4 only)
We just finished Preview 3 of AppFresh that hopefully solves most of the important issues of previous versions. We also tried to add the most requested features including the possibilty of manually marking applications as up to date to overwrite wrong version detection. The requested feature of linking applications was not fully implemented, but you can now add single applications to the exlude list.
Please note that some keyboard shortcuts and the toolbar main actions Check and Update have changed. Using AppFresh should be more intuitive now. When first starting AppFresh Preview 3, the cache will be cleared!
Complete list of changes:
- Check and update actions are more intuitive
- Fixed and improved application download and extraction
- Fixed misplaced ad banners from webpages (GraphicsConverter bug)
- Fixed .pkg/.mpkg handling
- Fixed several crashes
- Fixed broken context menu keyboard shortcuts
- Improved version detection
- Improved progress sheet descriptions when downloading
- Added menu item to manually mark applications as up to date
- Added menu item to exclude applications
- Added new keyboard shortcuts
- Added AppFresh user agent string for all downloads
March 30th, 2007 at 12:32 am
I’d love to see path finder support (add the reveal in pathfinder instead of finder)
March 30th, 2007 at 12:45 am
Sweet stuff!
I’m having no luck with updating ChocoFlop by the way (a free Photoshop competitor), any ideas?
March 30th, 2007 at 8:25 am
Great new release.
Just some ideas for you:
* Option to refresh all/selected apps’ local information (after updating while running appfresh)
* Download-UI comparable to Safari downloads in an extra window, including a “stack” of other apps to be downloaded later (only 1 dl at a time, we need to install them anyway).
* Removing from the excluded-list doesn’t make them reappear in the list. Not even after restarting appfresh.
March 30th, 2007 at 8:29 am
The only way to get Appfresh to recognize newly updated software seems to be to quit and restart Appfresh. Have tried Check for Update, Recheck all Updates, Reset and Remove and then check again, but nothing seems to work short of restarting Appfresh…
March 30th, 2007 at 8:31 am
Sorry to be so rude as to start with a bug comment – what I meant to say first is, of course:
Thank you very much for a great app that’s been sorely missed until now!!!
March 30th, 2007 at 8:54 am
So you mean it does not work with preview 3. we changed the finder definition within AppFresh. If it does not work please give some feedback.
March 30th, 2007 at 8:55 am
Please report ChocoFlop as broken app by selecting it and the go to Application > Report broken.
March 30th, 2007 at 8:56 am
You must recheck for updates so AppFresh scans the applications. It will be removed from cache when excluding.
March 30th, 2007 at 8:59 am
No problem…we are glad to get your feedback. Was on our list for preview 3, but seems to be still not working correctly. Please stay tuned for preview 4!
March 30th, 2007 at 9:09 am
First, I want to thank you to have done this update !
Second, I have some more suggestions to improve :
- don’t delete the cache (the user may have tweaked the applications list and maybe, he don’t want to have to do the same thing) it’s my case !
Why not trying to convert it to the new format or telling the user what will happen on the first launch of the new version ?
- add some categories to the left panel :
– up-to-date : for the apps already up-to-date,
– check manually : for the apps which are on iusethis.com without version number (don’t smile : it exist !) so that the “unknown” will really be for the apps really unknown by AppFresh AND iusethis.com
AppFresh has some problems with versions beta of some software (Shiira (version 2.0 b2 is read as 2.0.2 beta), checked both on app info.plist and on iusethis.com) and is truncating the version number of others !
I plan to send you the list of suspicious apps after check !
I love this little app !
Michel
- add a new submenu
March 30th, 2007 at 9:38 am
Great suggestions. We’ll try our best.
We needed to remove the cache. There was no other way, since we updated the db. This are limitations of the underlying CoreData framework. Without the cache clearing AppFresh would probably not have started without crashing. This will hopefully not be needed again. Sorry.
March 30th, 2007 at 9:58 am
Marking apps as installed (Cmd-P) doesn’t survive a restart
March 30th, 2007 at 10:24 am
How about enabling the ‘role back to version’ even if you already have the latest version installed?
This incase you tried to modify the application or it’s preferences and want to role back to a working copy?
This would be great for back ups.
March 30th, 2007 at 12:29 pm
Hi
Would you be interested in a localization of the app?
It seems to be a very nice and useful app.
Keep up the good work:)
March 30th, 2007 at 3:30 pm
We’ll start thinking about localizations as soon as there is a reasonably feature-complete version of AppFresh. It doesn’t make sense to add localizations in such a fast-paced development phase. Are you generally interested in providing a localization? If so, which language?
March 30th, 2007 at 3:33 pm
In my case, I could do dutch.
March 30th, 2007 at 4:24 pm
I had a doubt it was needed !
Sorry to not have thought about that before writing !
And if you need a french translator, you have it !
(I just have read the offers of Sebastian and Vidal)
I am also the french translator of Aurora and as I also have read the reply of Jonas, I’ll wait !
Michel
March 30th, 2007 at 6:49 pm
Yes I am – and I could do other apps as well, if you have some
I’ll do Danish, since it’s my mothertounge
March 31st, 2007 at 1:21 pm
Thanks for the update
Here are some bugs/improvment ideas:
1. Managing Snapshots still doesn’t work as expected.
2. As mentioned, AppFresh doesn’t handle beta/alpha releases too well. I nice addition would be a per-app preference for looking out for beta releases or not.
3. When an update is in an image, AppFresh creates a folder and puts the image file in it. The right way to do this would be to put the images directly in the desktop and mount it.
March 31st, 2007 at 6:34 pm
I am still preparing my comparison list of problems between applications and appfresh (preview versions 2.1 and 3) but I have forgotten that I DO NOT have version 2.1 as I have done the update from within AppFresh. So my question is : Is that possible that somebody or the developer(s) have a copy of version 2.1 to send me ? (I have something to check in the unknown and updates categories that I want to check before putting my list in the hands of the developers !
Michel
March 31st, 2007 at 7:12 pm
No problem. Just go to the AppFresh Hints and Preview 2.1 entry here in the blog and download…
March 31st, 2007 at 7:15 pm
Snapshots must be impoved and fixed. Thats right. The handling of alpha and beta releases must be tweaked, but unfortunatley there are tons of different ways to define version numbers. We are sure to get this more and more reliable.
We’ll have a look on mounting dmg images. Good hint.
March 31st, 2007 at 7:15 pm
Thanks Thomas,
Michel
April 1st, 2007 at 12:48 pm
Quinn’s entry in iusethis knows about the current version, “Get Info” of my local app package shows a version, but AppFresh tells me, there’s no version information available? Is there a reason for this, could you look into this one?
I think it’s strange anyway that about a quarter of my apps have unknown status
April 1st, 2007 at 12:49 pm
Oh, and you should probably have a “Window” menu item that re-opens the app window, maybe eben with a hotkey.
Window recreation when bringing AppFresh to the front would be great, too
April 1st, 2007 at 12:52 pm
Sorry for repeated posting …
Maybe you should deactivate the “Update” button in the toolbar if not applicable instead of showing a message?
April 1st, 2007 at 12:57 pm
AppFresh always forgets about “marked as up to date” status after quitting
April 1st, 2007 at 12:58 pm
Quinn is reported as broken app. We are still tweaking the version detection and will hopefully soon have better results. If you have more Unknown state apps that should be detected correctly from your point of view, please use the Application -> Report Broken function within AppFresh. It will send useful informations we need to tell whats going wrong.
We’ll think about your other comments too. Glad to get feedback.
April 1st, 2007 at 1:00 pm
Will be fixed in next preview. With lots of other cool stuff.
April 1st, 2007 at 1:24 pm
Even though it has been reported couple of times this is not reproducable with out current version. Did AppFresh quit correctly? The cache data is saved on closing the app, so if it crashes or will be terminated by hand the changed data is lost. Can you please check this, or contact me via mail.
April 1st, 2007 at 9:09 pm
Hi all, I have finished my little, personal and comparative audit of AppFresh (Previews 2.1 and 3)
Here are the results :
Preview 2.1
Before tweaks and after one relaunch :
All 272
Updates 14 x (AppFresh 0.3 included)
y (Magical Update found)
Unknown 101
After Adding Widgets Folder
All 274
Updates 14 x,y
Unknown 103
After Tweak
All 274
Updates 14 x,y
Unkwown 85
Tweaks : Archive Assistant, BackStage, Boinc Installer and Manager, Cha-Ching (x), Curio Pro, DropStuff, DVD Manager, File Buddy, Gimp (xx), Gizmo Project, Inbox, MagicMenu, NetBarrier, Snö Desktop (xx), SteerMouse Installer, Stuffit (Archive Manager, SEA Maker, Setup Assistant), VirusBarrier, Zinio Delivery Manager
(x)not on iusethis
(xx) on iusethis but not detected
Preview 3
Before tweaks and after one relaunch
All 271
Updates 17 (No Magical Update ?!)
Unknown 103
After Adding Widgets Folders
All 273
Updates 17 (No Magical Update ?!)
Unknown 105
After Tweak
All 274
Updates 17 (No Magical Update ?!)
Unkwown 88
Preview 3 (Fresh Install)
Before tweaks and after one relaunch
All 271
Updates 16 (No Magical Update ?!)
Unknown 103
After Adding Widgets Folder
All 273
Updates 17 (No Magical Update ?!)
Unknown 105
After Tweak
All 274
Updates 17 (No Magical Update ?!)
Unkwown 88
Tweaks : Archive Assistant, BackStage, Boinc Installer and Manager, Cha-Ching (x), Curio Pro, DropStuff, DVD Manager, File Buddy, Gimp (xx), Gizmo Project, Inbox, MagicMenu, NetBarrier, Snö Desktop (xx), SteerMouse Installer, Stuffit (Archive Manager, SEA Maker, Setup Assistant), VirusBarrier (xx), Zinio Delivery Manager
Apps in r-1 :
Moneydance, Snö Desktop, TuxPaint Stamps Installer,
Apps not recognized in P3 (were in P2.1) :
1Passwd, Virus Barrier
The tweaks are the same between 3 and 3 FI
For ME, 2.1 is the most reliable : it has not found all the apps but the ones it has found need an update ! with some errors !
April 2nd, 2007 at 8:33 pm
OK. Improving the version detection is one big point for upcoming releases. As more input we get like yours the better it will become since we do not have insalled. If there is an obvoius problem please do also use the Report broken feature, but I’d guess you already did. This is great help. Keep it up please.
April 3rd, 2007 at 4:52 pm
Wer seine Software-Sammlungs stets auf den neuesten Stand halten möchte, sollte mal ein Auge auf das Tool AppFresh werfen. Die Software liegt derzeit in der Preview 3 vor und soll später einmal, wie mir der Entwickler auf Nachfrage verriet, …
April 4th, 2007 at 8:33 am
Thomas and all,
One more thing, I have two folders of snapshots I have taken during the audit : one for 2.1 (“all” and “updates”) and one for 3 (same categories) ! Thomas and Jonas, are you interested by them ?
One option for P4 that will make me very very happy is a basic printing function that will export the content of the window (and its category) to a text file !
I just have read the new entry for version collector : downloaded it, extracted it and run it !
September 25th, 2007 at 5:49 am
I couldn’t understand some parts of this article, but it sounds interesting