Hey everyone,
Here's what's new in Tap Forms for Mac and iOS:
Mac version 3.0.3:
- New fix for crash after you logged in to an encrypted database and didn't have a form selected previously. This was a different case than the 3.0.2 fix.
- Fixed crash when switching to Fields tab when logged in then out then in again to an encrypted database.
- Added Select All and None to Fields list for printing and for Select a Field list for choosing which fields to display in multi-column list view.
- Fixed issue with photo from camera coming in upside down.
- Added button to refresh records list. This will re-compute all records that have $now in a Calculation field's formula.
- Added Find Form function.
iOS version 3.9.4:
- Fixed issue with off checkmark values not being found when searching.
- Duplicating a record will now maintain any many-to-many links.
- Support for Short, Medium, Long, and Full date formats for imports and exports.
I'm sure there are other things that I worked on but haven't included in this list but have missed. I've been primarily working on bug fixes for these releases.
I am also working on Dropbox Sync for the next updates (barring any interim bug fix releases that may be necessary). I had previously been working only on a performance update, but I've re-directed my attention to Dropbox Sync for now. Today in fact is the first day that I've managed to get database changes syncing between my two MacBooks. I haven't yet integrated it into iOS, but will once I get the Mac version working perfect. Also currently it's just syncing database changes. I haven't dug into syncing regular files such as photos, file attachments, etc. just yet, but that should come fairly quickly once I get database sync working right.
The cool thing about having Dropbox sync is it allows me to do a couple of things:
- I can provide the ability for iOS 8, OS X 10.10 and OS X 10.9 to sync. In fact, I've been primarily testing sync between Yosemite and Mavericks during development. iCloud Drive syncs only between iOS 8 and OS X 10.10. Plus of course if you want to sync with your spouse, you can have a shared Dropbox account while still having iCloud used for all your other personal stuff.
- I'll be able to offer a version of Tap Forms for sale directly from my website. Right now since the only sync solution is iCloud, I can only distribute the app on the Mac App Store due to Apple's entitlements and signing requirements for apps which use iCloud. You'll be able to choose between iCloud or Dropbox sync, but only on the Mac App Store version.
Another cool thing about Dropbox sync is that it so far appears to be much faster than iCloud sync. That is, within a few seconds of clicking the upload to iCloud button on one Mac, the other Mac begins to download the file and then Tap Forms kicks in and syncs the files. My tests have been relatively small though at the moment. The time required to transmit from device to device is dependent on the amount of data being sent of course.
Thanks for your time!
Brendan
Great that you are working on Dropbox sync. I was considerably annoyed that Apple had (again) broken a perfectly working service with the change to iCloud sync. As far as possible, I avoid using any Apple services as they break them far too frequently.
I just want to encourage you in your efforts to support DropBox sync. I paid a lot of money to get TapForms on all my devices and I was using it extensively, until iCloud sync totally messed up and I lost a bunch of data and much time was lost. I couldn’t afford to have this happen again so I stopped using TapForms completely. Now I avoid apps that use iCloud sync completely. DropBox sync has been much more stable from my experience with other apps too. I am hoping that you can have the entire database synced on DropBox, not just the updates because that’s a much more thorough solution. If I install the app on a new device, I want to be able to syncronize the entire database on DropBox, not just the latest updates. Anyway, I just wanted to chime in and let you know that I am one (of many I hope) who are anxiously awaiting the dropbox sync feature to be added so that I can start using TapForms once again. This app is amazing, if I can just trust the sync features on it (with DropBox) then I’ll finally feel like I’m getting my money’s worth. Thanks again for all your hard work on this! I really appreciate it!
Hi Timothy,
I am working on Dropbox sync integration. However, it won’t store the entire database in Dropbox. It will still just store the change files in Dropbox. The reason for this is I cannot get access to the database file to read and write to it using the standard Dropbox Sync API in a way that allows me to do queries against it.
Thanks,
Brendan
I tried to give iCloud sync another chance so I could actually use Tap Forms again today, but to no avail. I tried everything and cannot get my devices to sync with each other at all. I tried reinstalling the app on all devices and restoring from a backup and resetting the iCloud sync, but still nothing. My frustration is that with only the latest updates being synced, if a device isn’t synced for a while, or if a new device is added to the sync, the only way to get all the data synced initially is to do a restore? But even that doesn’t seem to be working because I’m not able to restore a backup on my iPad that I made on my mac. It seems incompatible. So at this point, I have all the data I want on my mac, but I cannot find any way to get it back on my iPad, let alone in sync?? This is really frustrating. I’m starting to want my money back. Am I missing something?
Hi Timothy,
Backup files are compatible between iOS and Mac as long as you’re using the latest versions of each app. When you say “but still nothing”, what exactly do you mean by that? If you want to continue this discussion via my support email, please email to support@tapforms.com.
Thanks,
Brendan
Also, please take a look at how other apps do full and true dropbox sync of the whole DB. Apps like Appigo Todo and Day One are wonderful examples. If you could integrate dropbox sync like these apps do, I would finally be a happy camper again! :)
Hi Timothy,
It would be great if I could do this, but how do I handle the situation where perhaps the database file has grown to 200 or 300 or more MB in size? Should I upload that entire database to Dropbox or iCloud for every small change? Because that’s what would happen. I looked into Appigo Todo and I see that their database file is very small and probably doesn’t grow to the same sizes that the Tap Forms database does. There’s no import function in Todo so you can’t easily import thousands of records like you can in Tap Forms. If I were building a simple Todo app where the user is required to type in all the data and not be able to import any data, then I would probably upload and download the entire database file like they do too. However, in order to make it so sync doesn’t use up a ton of your bandwidth constantly shuffling possibly multi-hundred megabyte files back and forth all the time, then I must send only the changes. I hope that makes sense. Perhaps enough for you to modify your “Piece of junk sync” 1 star review of Tap Forms? Also, I believe a part of the troubles people have had with sync is due to the fact that iCloud does not always deliver the files I create in a timely manner, so people get frustrated waiting for sync to happen. So far in my current development and testing, Dropbox is quicker at transferring files. It’s also a bit noisier with notifications on the desktop, so you get a better idea of what and when things are happening than you do with iCloud.
Thanks!
Brendan
I use Tap Forms high volume for a myriad of reasons.
Can the “speak” mode be adjusted? It speaks super-rapid and making adjustments to entries with several paragraphs is challenging if I cannot grasp words due to the pace.
Hi Art,
You can control the speed of the speech in the Dictation & Speech System Preference panel on your Mac. There is a “Speaking Rate” setting you can adjust. Tap Forms doesn’t specifically do anything with speech. That’s just built-in.
Thanks,
Brendan
By far the most critical feature still inexplicably missing from TapForms is Batch Editing (Bulk Edits), and many of us are really really hoping it will be added soon. Any form of data management requires updating multiple records at once, yet currently Tap requires every single record to be changed individually, an incredibly tedious and time-wasting task. I have no doubt that Tap’s market and user base will grow significantly once this essential feature is added. Is there any official word on how soon this can be fixed? Thanks!
Hi William,
The next update for Mac will have a new multi-column list view which will let you do a Fill Down/Up function. With that you’ll be able to enter in a value in one cell, then drag down or up to copy that value into all other cells. I know it’s not find and replace, but it’s a start anyway. It basically works just like Numbers and Excel in that respect. You can even undo/redo if you make a mistake.
Thanks!
Brendan
on my iPad I downloaded latest version a couple of days ago.
When I use the drawing feild, I only have option to make different solid colored circles and squares.
Please tell me what are the drawing capabilities of this feild.
Thanks
Hi Juan,
On the button that shows you the tools to select, you should see 3 options. A square, a circle, and a squiggly line. Tap on the squiggly line and you’ll be able to draw your own lines. Can be used for capturing a signature, etc.
You can also control the fill colour and the stroke colour. There’s a paint can for the fill colour and a paint brush for the stroke colour.
It’s a pretty basic drawing component. Not very fancy.
Thanks,
Brendan
Hi Brendan,
Is there any uses of “if” “then” in the formulas or calculation fields
Hi Brendan,
I just found your app on the Apple App store,and would really like to have it. However, I do not have El Capitain (have Yosemite and am not planning to upgrade in near future), so I would like to buy the older 3.xxxx??? version which will work with Yosemite. Do I need to be on the internet to use this program? I don’t want i cloud etc, or to be linked to Facebook or other sites, so is version 3.??? useable without being on the internet , other than downloading the program? I have bought other apps NOT from the Apple app store, and can’t use them at all, either on or off the internet (office for mac, lightroom, elements) I trust the Apple app store, everything i’ve bought from there works…. my question is this, can i get your older version of Tap (compatible with Yosemite) through the app store? Thank you
Eve Beck