The Big News

There are big changes afoot for MacJournal. For the past three years, MacJournal has been a freeware product with no marketing. It has survived on word of mouth and a good review here and there. But that doesn't reach a large portion of the potential users. If you've got a quality product you have to let people know about it. That's why MacJournal will now be republished by Mariner Software as a commercial product! With this new arrangement, MacJournal finally has the marketing attention it deserves and it is poised to reach a whole new audience. In time you could see MacJournal in a box at your local Apple Store. It wasn't an easy decision because I like how things work right now and I could easily go on as before, but I think MacJournal deserves more. It has evolved into a very capable application and it is only getting better. I'm confident this will be a positive move for MacJournal and will ensure it's survival for years to come. More details will be available in the coming days, but here are some answers to questions you might have right now

When will this happen?

Soon. The goal is to have a new version of MacJournal for the MacWorld Expo in San Francisco. This will be MacJournal 3.0 (formally known as 2.7). MacJournal 2.6 will be the last version of MacJournal as a freeware product.

What will happen to 2.6?

Version 2.6.1 will be released shortly before 3.0 and will address any serious issues with 2.6. The biggest issue that exists is with Multiple Spaces To Spaces (it can produce unexpected results over long selections of text).

Will there be upgrade pricing?

Yes, there will be an upgrade path for current users of MacJournal. Contact sales@marinersoftware.com for upgrade details. I will handle a few special cases personally.

What does this mean for the future?

Good things. This will ensure the future of MacJournal better than I can by myself. Who knows what the future holds and this deal will put MacJournal in a better position should anything unexpected happen. Mariner Software has competed against Microsoft™ Word for many years and is still around so they know a thing or two about that. I will continue to develop MacJournal for many versions to come. I have big plans for the next version after 3.0 and I already know it will be great

Is this just so you can get more money?

No, this is to gain a greater exposure for a product that I feel deserves it. I am not a good marketer (marketeer?) and I can't get it into stores by myself. There are a lot of people that might like MacJournal and this is a great way to let them know about it. Expect to see MacJournal show up in more places and be more visible.

When is 3.0 coming out?

3.0 will be out on January 4th. It will be available on CD and as a download with a time-limited trial. Stop by and see us at booth #2410 at MacWorld in San Francisco to chat if you can and pick up a copy. I'll try to post on the News page when I will be there.