Apple Mac HQ

If you’ve been following the blog lately you’ll likely notice I’ve talked a lot about iBank and Cha-Ching. In my opinion those two applications are two of the best Mac money management applications. I’ve used them both a lot and while I think iBank is the more full featured application, I’ve stuck with Cha-Ching based on the UI and ease of use.

In my iBank vs Cha-Ching comparison, I noted the versions I tested. Since that comparison, iBank 3 was released. Now, the folks behind Cha-Ching have released some mockups for Cha-Ching 2.0 (below).

The folks behind Cha-Ching have released about 8 mockups of what Cha-Ching 2.0 might look like. While these aren’t screenshots of the actual application, you can probably expect some of the design in the mockups to make their way into the released product. You can view the entire set of mockups in their Cha-Ching 2.0 Mockups Flickr Set. There is even an RSS feed so that when new mockups (or maybe screenshots) are added to the set you’ll be notified.

There is no word on a release date for the Cha-Ching 2.0 beta. The current version is 1.2.2 and it will set you back $40. You can download a demo of the current version from the Midnight Apps website today.

Popularity: 50% [?]

One of the heavyweights in Mac money management software received a significant update yesterday. iBank 3 was released by IGG Software after about three weeks in public beta. The update to iBank 3 will cost existing users $29.99 and new users will pay $59.99. iBank 3 is Leopard only.

There’s a gallery of screenshots available if you want to see the new interface. iBank 3 includes the following new features:

• Direct transaction downloads from your financial institution
• Interactive graphs via Core Animation
• High resolution category images
• .Mac syncing and editing with iPhone and iPod touch
• Cover Flow for your transactions
• Drag and drop support
• Loan management
• Export your tax records to various tax software packages

I played with one of the iBank 3 betas and thought it was OK. I didn’t really use some of the new features so I uninstalled it after only a day or two. I’ve been going back and forth over using iBank or Cha-Ching for my money management needs so I’ll probably take another look at iBank 3 since I’m a paid iBank 2 user.

If you’ve tested the new iBank post your comments below.

Popularity: 28% [?]

One category of software that I’ve come to rely on recently is money management software. A few years ago I was single and had to keep track of only one bank account, one credit card, one checkbook, and one person. Since I’ve gotten married, I found a definite need to keep track not only of how much money we have, but where it’s going, and when it’s leaving our bank account. I’m going to review two popular Mac money management applications and hopefully this review will help you decide which is right for you. Throughout this review if you see a picture that appears small, clicking on the picture will bring up a larger one.

For the last half of 2007, I used a product called iBank. As I came to rely on iBank more and more, I also began to notice its strengths and weaknesses. I relied on iBank so much, that I named it one of the applications I couldn’t live without in 2007. iBank was missing one feature that would make it complete (more on that later), and because of that I decided to look at another application.

Included in the MacHeist bundle was an application that initially I didn’t think much about, Cha-Ching. Cha-Ching is billed as a “fun and easy to use money manager with a slick interface”. Since I was using iBank, I didn’t really have a need for Cha-Ching. As I began to make a budget for 2008 however, I decided to give Cha-Ching a try.

Application Information
In this comparison I’m using Cha-Ching 1.2.2 and iBank 2.3.12. Pricing for Cha-Ching is $40, while iBank will set you back $50. You can download a transaction limited demo of each application from the developers websites. In addition to the current release, each developer is working on a beta version of the next version of their software.

Supported Accounts
Both Cha-Ching and iBank support checking, savings, credit card accounts. In addition to those, iBank also supports an investment account and even liability and asset accounts. Each program uses a simple add account dialog box to setup a new account. Edge: iBank

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Popularity: 71% [?]

IGG Software released a public beta of their popular money management software today. iBank 3 is Leopard only and will cost $59.99 when it’s released sometime in February. If you purchase iBank 2 ($49.99) after January 14th you’ll get a free upgrade to iBank 3. The upgrade price for existing iBank 2 users is $29.99. iBank 3 was a 2007 Apple Design Award Runner-Up for Best Mac OS X Leopard Application.

Among the new feature of iBank 3:

• Direct transaction downloads from your financial institution
• Interactive graphs via Core Animation
• .Mac syncing and editing with iPhone and iPod touch
• Drag and drop support
• Loan management

I’ve been using iBank 2 for many months and it was even one of the applications I couldn’t live without in 2007. I’ll take iBank 3 for a test drive this weekend and report back my findings. The iBank 3 public beta expires on February 20th and can be downloaded here (direct link to dmg). As with any beta program, it’s a good idea to backup your data before using and installing iBank 3.

Popularity: 19% [?]

This wouldn’t be a blog without some type of end of the year list. So without further ado, here is my first end-of-the-year-list post on Apple Mac HQ. I have very much enjoyed my first year of using the Mac. I’d like to thank the developers of the applications listed below as they made life on the Mac great. These are the applications I couldn’t live without in 2007, in no particular order.

Blogging wouldn’t be as fun or as easy without MarsEdit. The ability to draft posts offline allows me to work anywhere and publish once I get online. The addition of the Media Manager in v2.0 made the decision to upgrade a no-decision. I love the ability to add new categories without visiting my Wordpress powered site. If you blog without MarsEdit you aren’t being as productive as you could be.

While there are a number of good ftp clients for the Mac, many of them aren’t free. I’m not a power ftp user and Cyberduck allows me to get the job done. Cyberduck supports ftp and sftp and has integration with Spotlight, the Keychain, AppleScript, and Growl. If you don’t want to spend money on an ftp client, give Cyberduck a try. If you try Cyberduck and use it frequently, consider a donation to the developer (I donated).

Caffeine is a one trick pony but it works like magic. When watching TV shows or movies, just activate Caffeine and it will stop your display and Mac from going to sleep. You don’t have to mess with your power settings, just a click to activate and a click to deactivate it when your done watching your video. Preventing your display or Mac from going to sleep couldn’t be easier.

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Popularity: 21% [?]