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Quick software review
Jan. 31st, 2013 12:51 pmOkay, the Macgourmet recipe organizer app really is worth paying for. If you have a ton of recipes clipped, and /especially/ if you have a ton clipped from the web, it's kind of glorious. The import function is amazing for supported sites, and a darn sight quicker than typing by hand even for un-supported ones.
As a compulsive organizer, I also kind of love all the fields. There are so many. So much organization! So much metadata! *wallows in it happily* That may actually overwhelm some people, when they first open up the dialogue to put in a new recipe, but I got used to it very quickly, and just skip the tabs that aren't important to me. And you can always just paste everything into one entry in the directions and not worry about entering prep time or servings or notes separately, if that's how you roll.
The categories and list of utensils, not to mention the pre-loaded lists (groups, collections, recipe playlists) need editing to individual needs, but they give you a decent base to start with and the editing process is simple, so that's a definite plus. There are parts that aren't wholly intuitive, but the directions that come with are generally pretty good about explaining the basics. For the rest, when in doubt drag and drop.
Do note, if you get the trial version from macgourmet.com and then upgrade with the Mac App Store version (which is cheaper than the .com upgrade purchase), the two will not talk to each other. You'll have two apps, and the app store version will tell you it doesn't know how to import your recipes from the .com version. Do not panic. Just make sure you manually copy the database file from the .com version into the (very differently located) database folder of the app store version. Voila, like magic, all your recipes and metadata will be there when you re-start.
The sync between desktop/ipad/iphone versions isn't perfect, yet. In fact, at the moment it's pretty pitiful. So you may or may not want to hold off on those, especially if you have a laptop and can just take that into the kitchen with you.
General feel: loving this one kind of a lot.
As a compulsive organizer, I also kind of love all the fields. There are so many. So much organization! So much metadata! *wallows in it happily* That may actually overwhelm some people, when they first open up the dialogue to put in a new recipe, but I got used to it very quickly, and just skip the tabs that aren't important to me. And you can always just paste everything into one entry in the directions and not worry about entering prep time or servings or notes separately, if that's how you roll.
The categories and list of utensils, not to mention the pre-loaded lists (groups, collections, recipe playlists) need editing to individual needs, but they give you a decent base to start with and the editing process is simple, so that's a definite plus. There are parts that aren't wholly intuitive, but the directions that come with are generally pretty good about explaining the basics. For the rest, when in doubt drag and drop.
Do note, if you get the trial version from macgourmet.com and then upgrade with the Mac App Store version (which is cheaper than the .com upgrade purchase), the two will not talk to each other. You'll have two apps, and the app store version will tell you it doesn't know how to import your recipes from the .com version. Do not panic. Just make sure you manually copy the database file from the .com version into the (very differently located) database folder of the app store version. Voila, like magic, all your recipes and metadata will be there when you re-start.
The sync between desktop/ipad/iphone versions isn't perfect, yet. In fact, at the moment it's pretty pitiful. So you may or may not want to hold off on those, especially if you have a laptop and can just take that into the kitchen with you.
General feel: loving this one kind of a lot.
