Archive for category apps

Artwork Tracker v1.6 update now available for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch

Feb 12

Posted by Andrew in apps | Comments off

The Artwork Tracker v1.6 update is now available on the App Store for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.

Artwork Tracker is a must-have mobile app for artists, art collectors, or art dealers. Keep track of artwork and submissions on the go, with access to all your data and full-screen artwork at your fingertips.

Artwork Tracker

This update contains the following changes:

  • Artwork Report export feature. View your art collection on your computer’s web browser! Great for keeping track of your art for inventory or insurance purposes.
  • Bug fixes.

If you’re enjoying the app, please take a moment to rate or review it on the App Store!

You can learn more about Artwork Tracker at my website or on the Artwork Tracker Facebook group.

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What Can Writers Learn From The App Store Gold Rush?

Jan 19

Posted by Andrew in apps, writing | 2 Comments

You’ve all seen the breathless media reports covering the stunning success of writers like J. A. Konrath, Amanda Hocking, and John Locke in the eBook market. You might even agree with the indie eBook pundits who tout self-publishing as the one true way, endlessly proclaiming the imminent death of traditional publishing. There’s a self-publishing revolution, no doubt, but haven’t we seen this somewhere before? You don’t need a crystal ball to guess at the possible futures. All the evidence points to eBooks and self-publishing heading down the same path recorded music and software have in the past.

From my perspective as both a developer of mobile apps and a fiction writer, I’ve seen first-hand how the market is likely to pan out. I think there’s some useful knowledge to be gained by taking a closer look at how the app market works currently, and seeing what we can apply to self-publishing. In this post I’ll be covering a potpourri of topics comparing eBooks and apps, with a particular focus on Apple’s iTunes App Store, since that’s what I’m most familiar with.

Farewell, Dinosaurs?

I’m firmly in the camp that believes traditional publishers won’t die out completely, but will continue to adapt to the changing marketplace, even if they never again maintain the dominance they once had. We’ve already seen the steadily decreasing advances paid to writers and back-list eBook rights grabs indicating the big publishers will fight tooth and nail to stay in the game. In the long-term their value might be proven more as back-list aggregators or fixed-price service providers, though it remains to be seen whether they can move quickly enough to make it to that point.

In the early days of the App Store (before Angry Birds!), independent developers ruled the roost. Games and apps like Trism, iShoot, Doodle Jump, and Brushes promised a burgeoning app marketplace where even a lone coder could hope to strike it rich, or at the very least make a decent living writing and selling apps. It didn’t take long for the big game studios to take note. Now the corporations clash head-to-head with indies on the App Store charts. Don’t count the big publishers out yet!

Packaging and Pricing

By now everyone is accustomed to the rock-bottom prices on the App Store. It’s also becoming increasingly common with eBooks, with 99 cent or free eBooks giving thrifty readers no shortage of options. This still seems to be a viable way of climbing the top-seller charts on Amazon and elsewhere, but for how much longer? As we’ve already seen with the app market, at a certain point even free or 99 cents isn’t enough to attract eyeballs and open wallets. You’ve also got to consider the signal this sends to readers. You can’t necessarily expect those readers to follow you to higher price-points when they consider your work cheap and disposable entertainment. Value your work, but keep the lower price-points in mind as part of your promotional activities.

How do you survive when even 99 cents is considered an excessive price? Freemium! This is the latest buzzword among the app community. You give the app away for free, but include in-app purchases (IAP) as a means of generating revenue, typically with consumables rather than one-time purchases. This is the direction the App Store seems to be heading now, with premium (i.e. paid) content becoming increasingly rare. If you’ve been paying attention to the Top Grossing charts lately, you’ll see it can be a highly effective strategy.

The obvious equivalents to the freemium approach with eBooks are free samples and serialization. In addition to the short description on an eBook’s sales page, readers can typically download a free sample of the work before deciding to buy. Just as with apps, giving customers a free taste of your work is almost essential in such a competitive marketplace. Selling individual installments of a longer work is another option, though this may mean settling for a lower royalty rate (due to the lower sale price) and might give readers the impression you’re nickel-and-diming them. Your mileage may vary. Giving away the first novel in a series (as a loss-leader) also seems to be a common, and often successful, approach.

You’d think packaging eBooks as apps would be an interesting idea, but I think the time has passed where you could just slap your eBook into a text-browser app and expect great results. It was probably an effective strategy before the App Store became cluttered with them. For an eBook app to be successful, you need to add value over and above the text itself. A great example of an eBook app done right is The Three Little Pigs popup book for the iPad, designed by Game Collage. Not only do you get the story itself, but there’s also the engaging popup aspect and the behind-the-popup X-Ray feature. However, development of such an eBook involves considerable investment which the writer or publisher is unlikely to recoup.

Needle in a Haystack

How do you make an app or eBook stand out in such a crowded and competitive market? Without any effort to promote your work, it’s unlikely a significant number of customers will ever notice it. At a minimum you need a well-designed website to showcase your work, along with download links. Be sure to include affiliate links, which can be a nice income supplement. The products themselves should contain links back to your website and possibly also contact details, with links to your presence on social-networking sites like Twitter or Facebook.

You should value editing and good cover design. The cover is the first thing a reader sees, and it needs to be especially eye-catching at the postage stamp sizes it’ll be shown as online. This has been proven time and again in the app world, with attractive icons standing out from the crowd. If you skimp on the cover or editing, expect readers to notice. It’s all too easy to develop a reputation for sloppy typos, poorly crafted sentences, and a lack of attention to detail. Don’t expect to be able to do it all yourself, particularly the editing. As Kristine Kathryn Rusch advises in her post Common Sense And The Writer, you should prefer fixed-price quotes for editing, rather than offering a percentage of revenue.

Assuming you have a great cover and you’ve hired a top-notch editor to look over your work, the next hurdle is reviews. Reviews are hard to come by for both eBooks and apps, though I tend to think reviews by big publications, review sites, or critics are a little over-rated these days. While I’m not completely familiar with the review sites for eBooks, app review sites are springing up like weeds lately, and far too many demand payment for reviews. It’s hard to trust a site’s objectivity when their reviews are more akin to paid ads. Like apps, eBooks usually have reader reviews on the sales page to help prospective buyers make a decision. There are also social networking sites like Goodreads and Librarything that can help with word-of-mouth.

What about paid advertising? That’s a sure-fire way to attract eyeballs, right? If eBooks are anything like apps in this respect (and I believe they are), you’re unlikely to get a return on investment from paid advertising. The margins simply aren’t there when you’re selling your product for five dollars or less. If your prices are higher and you have some room in your budget for paid ads, I’m still not convinced they’re effective in driving sales. I talk more about my experiences with paid advertising and review sites in my Six Months on the App Store post. For traditional publishers this will be less of a concern, since ads are typically an integral part of their marketing efforts.

Your app or eBook may be able to stand out better if it fills an under-served niche. While less competition can be helpful, don’t expect to make your fortune in a niche. All of my productivity apps fill particular niches in the App Store, but as I’ve outlined in my Year on the App Store post, I’ll be lucky to break-even, despite minimal development costs. I’ve heard it said many a time that there’s money to be made in the long-tail of the market, but you have to consider this is over the long-term, and the concept is more applicable to aggregators with a lot of product to sell, like Amazon. Making sure your app or eBook is easily found via search is particularly important with niche products, since you typically won’t get exposure from the top-selling sales charts. The App Store currently relies on the app name and a short list of keywords to locate apps via search, ignoring the descriptive text entirely. For this reason it pays to choose your category and keywords carefully. eBook sellers don’t seem to be quite so limited search-wise.

If there’s one thing that attracts attention like nothing else, it’s featuring on the App Store. I don’t mean the smaller category features, but the big banners or staff picks that showcase apps on the main screen, either on-device or within iTunes. Likewise for eBooks, if you can gain a position high in the sales charts or get featured by your favorite eBook seller, sales are likely to shoot through the roof. Getting featured or rapidly climbing the charts is difficult though, and tends to be short-lived. There’s not much you can do here short of putting out a quality product and hoping you get noticed.

At the end of the day, you’ve just got to keep on writing. Don’t focus on promotion to the extent that you neglect your writing. After all, do you want to be a full-time marketer and promoter, or a writer? Without an ever-increasing body of work, readers who love your work will become frustrated that you don’t have more available, and new readers are less likely to find it. I particularly like the investment mindset suggested by Dean Wesley Smith in a recent post.

What’s next?

Just as with the app market, the eBook market continues to grow at an incredible rate. In 2011, estimated U.S. eBook sales grew by 131%, and are forecast to rise even higher in the coming years, with estimates of total mobile eBook sales of almost $10 billion by 2016. Thankfully we’re not yet at the saturation point for apps or eBooks, and for the foreseeable future we can rely on a steady stream of new devices coming online. This growth will eventually taper off, however I don’t see this happening anytime soon, particularly for eBooks.

I’m going to refrain from speculation about the Apple announcement later today, but I suspect whatever they announce will have game-changing implications in the eBook market. We’ll see soon enough.

Where do you see eBooks and self-publishing heading in the future?

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2011 Retrospective

Jan 1

Posted by Andrew in apps, bonsai, writing | Comments off

During the first few minutes of 2012, it’s time to cast one final glance back at 2011 for my traditional year-end retrospective.

Overall I’d say 2011 was a good year. While there was still some overtime at the day job, it didn’t seem to be quite as insanely busy as 2010, and I was able to devote a fair amount of time to after-hours pursuits. I released a new iOS app and tonnes of updates for all of my apps, attended more Bonsai meetings and workshops, visited Disney World, and wrote two-thirds of a novel. Not bad at all.

Since 2008 my fiction writing has essentially been non-existent, with only minimal effort devoted to submitting stories to various markets and keeping them in circulation. Even this died down to nothing in 2011. The bulk of my spare time was devoted almost entirely to app development and marketing. Writing and maintaining apps, dealing with customer support, and somehow trying to get the word out in a crowded marketplace all takes a huge amount of effort. I think this is something many writers would agree applies equally to writing, especially now that many are finding their way in the eBook market and exploring self-publishing. By October it was looking like yet another year would pass without any new activity on the writing front. And then in the final week of October, I got caught up in the excitement of various blog and Twitter posts talking about National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo, for short). In years past I’d toyed with the idea of participating, but quite frankly the idea scared the hell out of me, and it was always easy to dismiss it and use excuses like the massive time commitment required, or not having a novel-sized idea in mind. In that final week of October, the idea that I should finally throw my hat into the ring and participate became steadily more insistent. So without having a clue about what to write, in a brief blog post I announced my insane plan to try to write a novel in a month. As the last of the trick-or-treaters left our front porch on Halloween night, I threw together some rough ideas that would soon snowball into a novel. While I didn’t meet the 50,000 word quota, I wrote consistently throughout November and learned a tremendous amount about what it takes to write a novel. By the end of the month the novel-in-progress had become the longest single piece of fiction I’d ever written. The momentum came to an abrupt halt in early December when I felt burnt-out and decided to relax and spend more time with family. That, and some quality time with the Portal, Portal 2, and Left 4 Dead games 😉 After all, I’d spent most of my evenings and weekends in November hunched in front of the computer working on my novel…

If there’s one thing I regret, it’s that I wasn’t able to read more fiction. Even my comic reading took a back seat to the writing and app work. Here’s my paltry list of reads for 2011:

Drawing out the Dragons
Elephantmen, HC Vol 1 – Wounded Animals
Invincible Ultimate Collection, HC Vol 3
How I Sold 1 Million eBooks in 5 Months
No Plot? No Problem!

Audio books used to be how I kept myself amused during workouts and the daily commute, but this year I continued listening mostly to music or podcasts. Among my favourites were the Comic Geek Speak podcast, and the Comic Book page podcasts (The Mayo Report and Spotlight episodes).

Here are some of the various statistics I’ve been keeping track of each year:

2011 Stats:

New apps released: 1
App updates released: 24 (includes Lite and Paid versions)
2011 Word count: 35,769
Stories written: 0 (novel still in progress!)
Total submissions: 0
Total acceptances: 0
Total rejections: 0
Waiting for response: 0
Books read: 5
Comics read: 89

When 2011 arrived, my app plans for the year were fairly hazy. I knew I’d be updating my two existing iOS apps, Artwork Tracker, and Story Tracker, incorporating feedback from customers and generally adding more polish. I knew the Mac App Store was to be announced early in the new year, but I wasn’t yet committed to developing for the new platform. That soon changed when I had a chance to play around with it and download some apps for myself. The ease of use was astonishing, and it didn’t take long for me to realize this would be a fun and viable new platform for app development. I posted some thoughts, including the announcement of Story Tracker for Mac. So began several months of study and initial development on the new app. Unfortunately this proved to be more complicated than I thought, and several new developments conspired to make life difficult: iOS5, iCloud, and OS X Lion. With iOS5, I would have to re-test and update my iOS apps, and the impending arrival of Lion and iCloud would mean I’d need to either upgrade my slow, aging Mac to Lion (and not be able to test on OS X Snow Leopard, the other Mac App Store platform), or buy a new Mac. Finances being what they were, the latter was not an option in mid-2011. Meanwhile, I’d had an intriguing idea for a new iOS app. I’d been looking for an app to keep track of my Bonsai collection and various related activities, but there were slim pickings on the App Store. As soon as I’d wrapped up some updates to my existing apps, I wrote up some requirements for a new app called Bonsai Album and wrote a quick blog post about it. I put everything else on the back burner and spent the next three months working on Bonsai Album. On October 6th, it landed on the App Store. Initial feedback from the Beta testers was promising, and since then I’ve been very pleased with how well it has been received. Bonsai Album has been reviewed by App Advice, and even got a mention in the Midwest Bonsai Society newsletter (my club!), among others. While the app has had only modest success so far, it’s doing far better in its first few months on the App Store than either of my other two apps did. While I’m still yet to recoup my overall development costs for all three apps, 2011 is the first year in which I’ve made a small profit.

I continued to attend the monthly meetings of the Midwest Bonsai Society in 2011, along with the shows they run at the Chicago Botanic Garden. This year I again visited 4 Bonsai shows, three of which were at the Chicago Botanic Garden, and one at Morton Arboretum. I also attended 2 workshops (Satsuki Azalea, and Pomegranate) and added a new tree to my growing collection (a Bald Cypress). I’ve learned a little more about the art of Bonsai this year, unfortunately mostly related to the impact of pests and long-delayed repotting. Like most things, I anticipate this hobby will involve a lifetime of learning.

We didn’t plan much travel this year. We’d intended to just make some short road trips to Michigan and Wisconsin, but that was about it. What actually ended up happening was a totally unexpected trip to Disney World in Florida with my wife’s parents. We decided to make a big trip of it and spent a few days at each of the parks: The Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios, and the Animal Kingdom. We also made some side-trips to visit SeaWorld and Cape Canaveral, including catching up with some Florida-based relatives. We had an absolute blast, and our trip was definitely the big highlight of the year. For Thanksgiving this year we spent some quality time in Green Lake, Wisconsin.

One of my goals for 2011 was to get back into a regular workout habit. I managed to keep at it for about half the year, until hurling myself back into app development and writing the novel. I returned to it in December and promptly realized exactly how out of shape I’d become. Ouch!

Sadly, I wasn’t able to make much of a dent in our massive photo backlog this year. I’m still over a year behind! I think it has helped having to at least keep ahead of my wife’s scrapbooking. When she needs the photos, I make the effort to get them organized in time.

As is usual in the waning hours of the year, I like to come up with goals and hatch devious plans for the New Year. So what’s cooking for 2012? I’m glad you asked 😉

I’d like to at least reach my previous level of fitness and build on that for 2012. I’m probably not going to bench press 170 lbs again anytime soon or start running marathons, but regular workouts and a decent level of fitness are definitely achievable. The pain of having to start all over again from square one should be sufficient motivation!

For apps, I’d like to put out more updates for my existing iOS apps, possibly including those much-requested language localizations for Bonsai Album. If the app continues to do well, that’s definitely on the cards. The big one, of course, is to finally launch Story Tracker for Mac. I know a lot of people have been waiting patiently for this one, and I hope they won’t have to wait too much longer. I finally bought that new Mac Mini, and I’ve spent the last few hours getting it all setup for app development. After I get Story Tracker for Mac out the door and have a few updates under my belt, then I’ll think about what comes next.

In 2012 I’d really like to get back into writing in a big way. Starting a new novel in 2011 was a good start, but now that I know what it takes, I’d like to build on that and finally break the writing drought of recent years. Task one will be to complete my novel, Plague Magic. You can track my progress on the sidebar on this blog. Task two is to get back into writing short stories and start submitting again. I may do some dabbling in self-publishing. I also plan to ramp up my fiction reading, not only for enjoyment, but also in support of my writing efforts. You can’t be a writer without being a reader, right? And though it’ll be a stretch, I plan to write at least one more novel in 2012.

While I intend to update the blog periodically, I spend most of my social networking time on Twitter these days. I mostly follow other iOS developers, writers, and Bonsai fiends. You can look me up at @andrewnicolle.

I wish everyone the best for 2012, and hope you have a happy and productive New Year!

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Bonsai Album – Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Oct 27

Posted by Andrew in apps, bonsai | Comments off

Bonsai Album

I’ve had a bunch of questions about the app that aren’t answered either on the website or on the Facebook page. The following will hopefully address any questions or concerns you may have about Bonsai Album. I’ll be updating this post as new questions arise. Let me know if I’ve missed anything!

1. Is Bonsai Album available for my Mac, PC, Android phone, or other platform of choice? If not, when?

Bonsai Album is currently available on the Apple iTunes App Store for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. There’s also a Mac version available on the Mac App Store, with a trial version downloadable from my site. The Mac version may also be purchased direct from my site. You can learn more here. There’s also a PC version. An Android version is currently under development – sign-up here to be notified when the app launches. I currently have no plans for any other platforms.

2. I have an iPad and an iPhone. Do I have to buy the app twice?

No, Bonsai Album is a universal app, so provided you use the same iTunes account on all your devices, you only have to buy the app once, and it can be installed on all your iOS devices.

3. I’m not sure if Bonsai Album will suit my needs. Is there a free trial version available?

Yes, Bonsai Album Lite is also available on the App Store, for free. This contains all the features of the full version, other than the database import and restore. It’s also limited to 3 bonsai, 3 pots, and 3 log entries with 3 photos each. That should be enough to give you some idea of whether the app will work for you.

4. Will Bonsai Album (盆栽アルバム) be localized into my language soon?

Possibly. Bonsai Album is currently localized in English, Japanese, Spanish, Italian, French, German, and Portuguese. If there’s interest, I may also consider Simplified Chinese (盆景相册) or Traditional Chinese (盆景相冊). Let me know!

5. Can I export photos from the database?

Yes – see question 20. Also note that the originals are left undisturbed in the photo library on your device. Photos taken within the app are saved to the camera roll on your device.

6. Is it possible to sort the bonsai by species, rather than name?

Tap the Settings button on the Tools screen and select the “Sort bonsai by species” button under Sort Options. Tap Done, and you’ll find all bonsai are now sorted by species. Repeat these steps to sort by name again.

7. What is the purpose of the button next to the plus button on the bonsai and pot screens?

This button is used to toggle between the table view and the photo grid view. The photo grid displays larger versions of the thumbnail photos seen in the table view, with empty cells for those bonsai or pots without a stored photo. With a large collection, the photo grid view is scrollable, and it should be easier to locate a particular bonsai or pot than with the table view. Tapping a photo in the grid will display the information associated with that photo.

8. What is the purpose of the Type field on the Log Info screen?

The type field is used by the app to determine what should be displayed in the Logs list for that log entry. For instance, selecting Bonsai will show the bonsai name selected in the Bonsai field, selecting Pot will show the Pot name in the Pot field, and Note will show a brief summary taken from the Notes field. Select either Bonsai, Pot, or Note in the Type field depending on what information that particular log entry is recording.

9. How do I re-order the photos on the Bonsai Info, Pot Info, or Log Info screens?

After the entry has been saved, tap on it and then tap the Photos button in the upper-right part of the screen. This will show all the photos associated with the Bonsai, Pot, or Log. Tap and hold on the photo you’d like to move on the Info screen, then drag it to its new position. When you return to the Info screen the photo slots will reflect the new order.

10. How do I add text captions to my photos? How can I hide them to take a closer look at the photo?

Tap on the photo you’d like to add a caption to. Tap the word balloon icon at the bottom of the screen (the one in the middle), then type in the text caption you’d like to associate with that photo. Tap Done. The new or modified text caption will now be displayed. Note that only the first few lines of the caption will be superimposed over the photo. To hide the captions along with the icons and navigation bar, tap once on the photo. You can scroll between the photos by swiping left and right, and zoom-in by making a pinching gesture, or double-tapping.

11. How do I capture sold, stolen or dead trees, broken pots, or other events?

The place for capturing these events is on the Log Entry screen. Create a new Log entry, tap the Event field followed by the Add New Event button. Type in the new Event (Sold, for instance) and tap Done or outside the field (on iPad). The new Event will now be available for use with this and other log entries. Select the Event, then on the Bonsai field (or Pot field), select the corresponding tree. Set the Type field to Bonsai (or Pot). Set the date the Event occurred, and add any relevant photos or notes. Tap Done, and the new dated Log entry will appear in the list. Now when you tap the Log History button on the Bonsai Info (or Pot Info) screen, you’ll see the complete history of the tree (or pot).

12. How do I backup the Bonsai Album database to my computer?

To transfer the data to your computer, you’ll need all devices on the same local WiFi network as your computer (Mac, PC, or other). Note that all the data is still saved on your device and backed-up whenever you do an iTunes backup.

To transfer to your computer and also to a spreadsheet, follow these steps:

(1) Tap the Backup Database button on the Tools screen within the app. If you only want to backup bonsai and pot data, tap Export Data instead. The app will display a message with the IP address (some numbers) of your device on your network. It might look something like this: http://192.168.1.104:8080
(2) Enter the address displayed by the app into the web browser on your computer. You should see a Bonsai Album page appear. This is actually from the app on your device.
(3) Download the Bonsai Album DB to your computer. You might also want to download the CSV file. This CSV file can be imported into a spreadsheet program on your computer, while the DB file is only readable via the app. Note that only the DB file contains the bonsai, pot, and log photos.

13. I have a Bonsai Album database on my computer. How do I transfer it back to my device?

As with database backup, you’ll need all devices on the same local WiFi network as your computer (Mac, PC, or other).

(1) Tap the Restore Database button on the Tools screen within the app. If you don’t want to completely overwrite the database on your device, you might want to select Import Database instead. Note that if you’re importing, you may see duplicate entries on your device after the import is complete. The app will display a message with the IP address (some numbers) of your device on your network.
(2) Enter the address displayed by the app into the web browser on your computer. You should see a Bonsai Album page appear.
(3) Within the web browser, select the Bonsai Album DB file on your computer. Click the Restore (or Import) button in your browser to send the database to your device.
(4) Your device will receive the database and will ask for confirmation, displaying some info about the database.
(5) Tap the Restore button on your device and the database will be processed. If you’re importing instead, you’ll see another screen where you can select what you want to import (All, only Bonsai, only Pots, or Bonsai and Pots).
(6) Once complete, the app will display a popup letting you know the transfer is complete. The data from your computer will now be on your device.

14. I have an iPad and an iPhone. How do I keep the databases in sync between them? Does the app have iCloud support?

Bonsai Album currently doesn’t have a simple means of keeping databases synchronized on separate devices. However, it is still possible to transfer the database between devices manually:

1. Select Backup Database on the first device.
2. Enter the address into the web browser on the second device.
3. Tap the “bonsaialbum.bdbi” link and wait for the file to download.
4. Tap the Open in “Bonsai Album” button.
5. Bonsai Album will load. Tap Restore to transfer the complete database.

Bonsai Album does not currently support syncing via iCloud. This could be technically difficult to support, since the app was designed before iCloud launched.

15. I have Bonsai Album Lite and just bought the full version. How do I transfer my data from the Lite version?

After you’ve purchased the full version and run it at least once, load the Lite version and tap on the tools icon on the bottom-right of the screen. Tap the “Export to Full App” button, then “Open in Bonsai Album.” When the full version appears, tap the Restore button to transfer the database.

16. I have a whole spreadsheet of data I’d like to import into the app. How can I do that?

Provided your spreadsheet program can export to CSV format and allows you to specify comma separators and dates in a particular format, you should be able to import it into the app. Bonsai Album expects to receive CSV data according to the CSV template file, available in the Downloads section of the site. This template file can also be downloaded when connecting to the app via your web browser.

17. Can you incorporate some new fields into the app? Can I change the names of any of the data fields?

Incorporating new fields may be possible, but keep in mind that screen real estate is very limited on the iPhone and iPod touch. I’ve tried to select fields that would be useful for most bonsai enthusiasts, and have tried to minimize clutter as much as possible. The notes fields may be used to store additional data for each bonsai, pot, or log. Sorry, the names of the data fields cannot be changed.

18. My bonsai tree doesn’t look so good, or they keep dying. Help!

Unfortunately it’s normal to lose some trees, especially if you’re just starting out. Read as much as you can before making a purchase! That said, there are some basic things you can do:

  • Is the tree indoors? It’s a common misconception that bonsai should be kept indoors. Where possible, they should be kept outside to obtain the most sunlight, to reduce disease or pest problems, and for better humidity. Depending on your climate, certain trees will need to come inside during winter, or should be kept in a sheltered location. Here in Illinois I put all the deciduous trees (like maple, pine, juniper etc) in our unheated garage during winter, and only water them maybe once a week or two, or even less. I don’t water them at all when the temperature drops below freezing. All the tropical trees go into our basement under fluorescent grow-lights for winter when it drops to 30/40F outside at night. They don’t like spending winter indoors, but they don’t have much choice! The air is so dry and they’re only getting a fraction of the light they would receive outside. The deciduous trees come outside again around April, and the tropicals not until mid-May (after the danger of frost has passed). When you relocate your trees very much depends on the climate in your region.
  • There are plenty of good bonsai books available for information on caring for your trees. I like The Bonsai Workshop by Herb L. Gustafson. I also highly recommend the Bonsai Conversations, put out by Dallas Bonsai.
  • Ask questions on one of the bonsai forums online, like Bonsai Nut, or Bonsai Tree Forums.
  • If you’re truly interested in learning more about the art of bonsai, I highly recommend you attend a meeting of a local bonsai club. You’ll learn more than reading in books, and the locals will know the best way to care for trees in your particular climate. If you live in the US, there’s a good listing of bonsai clubs on the American Bonsai Society website. In Illinois, you can attend Midwest Bonsai Society club meetings held monthly at the Chicago Botanic Garden.

19. How do I use the reminder feature?

First, pick a log entry or create a new one. Select Yes next to the Reminder field, and a popup will appear asking if you want to add a reminder to the calendar. Tap Add and another screen will appear where you can create a calendar entry. If there’s already an entry, it’ll allow you to edit it (or delete it). If Reminder is set to Yes, changing the date will also show a popup asking if you want to add/edit on the calendar. If you leave the app and check your device calendar, the entry should be recorded against the date/time you set.

The idea is you set a future date, set Reminder to Yes, and the log entry will be highlighted on and after that date. The number badge at the bottom of the screen and on the app icon will be updated to reflect the number of Reminders Due (ie highlighted on or after the stored dates). The Reminders Due statistic is also updated. Once you’ve taken care of the task (fertilizing, repotting, etc), set Reminder back to No.

20. How do I use the bonsai report feature? How do I view the bonsai report?

The bonsai report feature is enabled by default. To change the report options, tap the Settings button on the Tools screen. From there you can scroll down to the Database Export settings and configure the following options:

(1) Generate bonsai report – tap this to turn bonsai report generation On or Off.
(2) Small photos / Medium photos / Large photos – tap this to select the size of the photos that will appear in the bonsai report. Small photos will display thumbnail versions of each photo, while Large photos will display full-size photos, as they would appear on an iPad. Medium photos are half the size of the large photos.
(3) Clear cache – tap this to clear the photo cache. This setting is usually not needed.

Once set, the options above will apply whenever the bonsai report is generated. There is no need to change them every time.

To generate the bonsai report, tap the Backup Database or Export Data button on the Tools screen. The database may take several seconds or minutes to be prepared, depending on the speed of your device and how large your collection is. Once the database has been prepared, a popup with an address (numbers) will appear. Enter this address into your web browser exactly as it appears. Click on the Bonsai Report link at the bottom of the web page that appears in your browser. The bonsai report shows a summary of your collection, followed by the data and photos for every bonsai, pot, and log entry in your collection. This report can be useful for inventory or insurance purposes, and may be saved or printed from within your web browser.

21. How do I save or print the bonsai report?

To print the bonsai report, use your web browser’s print feature. To save the bonsai report, you can use the web page archiving feature of your web browser. Most web browsers allow you to create an archive of web pages, including all images, for saving to your computer.

In Safari, select the Save As option in the File menu. Ensure the Format or Save as type field is set to Web Archive. Enter the filename and click Save.

In Internet Explorer, select the Save As option in the File menu. Ensure the Save as type field is set to Webpage, complete or Web Archive, single file. Enter the filename and click Save.

In Mozilla Firefox, select the Save As Page option in the File menu. Ensure the Save as type field is set to Web Page, complete. Enter the filename and click Save.

In Google Chrome, select the Save Page As option in the File menu. Ensure the Format field is set to Webpage, Complete. Enter the filename and click Save.

22. When I view the bonsai report in my web browser, why are some of the photos different to those shown in the app?

The bonsai report feature uses a cache, which is another way of saying it stores the photos for fast access later. Sometimes the cache may be out of date, causing the app to become confused and start displaying old photos in the bonsai report. While this is unlikely to occur, you can fix the problem by tapping the Settings button on the Tools screen. Scroll to the bottom of the list to the Database Export settings. Tap Clear cache, and the photo cache will be cleared. Regenerate the bonsai report to confirm the photos are correct.

23. I just bought the full version of Bonsai Album, but the app only allows me to store 2 photos per tree (iPhone / iPod), or 5 photos on the iPad. Why don’t you increase this limit? How can I show the complete life of my tree with such a limitation?

While it is true that you only see this limited number of photos on the main Info screen for each Bonsai (or Pot, or Log), there is actually no hard limit on the number of photos you can store, other than the space available on your device. There is limited screen real-estate available, and the small number of photo slots are designed to both fit in the available space and allow you to quickly add a few photos for the tree.

To add more photos, tap the Photos button in the top-right corner on the Info screen for the Bonsai (or Pot, or Log). This will present you with a scrollable photo grid displaying all of the photos for that particular Bonsai. To add more, tap the + button in the top-right corner of the Photos screen.

You may also decide which of your photos best showcase your tree for display on the main Info screen. To choose these photos, tap on any photo, swipe between them, and tap the button on the bottom of the screen that looks like two squares with a ‘1’ contained within (2nd button from right). A popup will appear, where you can select from “Set to 1st Photo”, “Set to 2nd Photo”, etc. Repeat for all of the other available photo slots.

24. I have questions, feature requests, or concerns that aren’t listed above. How can I contact you?

You can reach me via email (BonsaiAlbum@andrewnicolle.com), on the Bonsai Album Facebook page, or on Twitter (I’m @andrewnicolle). I can usually respond to queries within 24 hours. If you like Bonsai Album, please spread the word! Share your thoughts with other bonsai enthusiasts by rating or reviewing the app on the App Store. I use this feedback to gauge continued interest in the app and to plan future updates.

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Artwork Tracker v1.5 update now available for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch

Oct 25

Posted by Andrew in apps | Comments off

The Artwork Tracker v1.5 update is now available on the App Store for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.

Artwork Tracker is a must-have mobile app for artists, art collectors, or art dealers. Keep track of artwork and submissions on the go, with access to all your data and full-screen artwork at your fingertips.

Artwork Tracker

This update contains the following changes:

  • Fixed EXIF orientation handling when saving photos.
  • Fixed progress pop-up view orientation bug.

If you’re enjoying the app, please take a moment to rate or review it on the App Store!

You can learn more about Artwork Tracker at my website or on the Artwork Tracker Facebook group.

Bonsai Album v1.3 update now available for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch

Oct 25

Posted by Andrew in apps, bonsai | Comments off

The Bonsai Album v1.3 update is now available on the App Store for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.

Bonsai Album makes keeping track of your bonsai or penjing collection easy, whether you’re new to bonsai, a collector, a dealer, or even a bonsai master.

Bonsai Album

This update contains the following changes:

  • Fixed EXIF orientation handling when saving photos.
  • Fixed progress pop-up view orientation bug.

If you’re enjoying the app, please take a moment to rate or review it on the App Store!

You can learn more about Bonsai Album at my website or on the Bonsai Album Facebook group.

Story Tracker v2.1 update now available for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch

Oct 18

Posted by Andrew in apps, writing | Comments off

Story Tracker v2.1 is now available on the App Store for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.

Story Tracker

This update contains the following changes:

  • Bug fixes for iOS 5.0
  • Fixed crash when deleting stories or markets in a large list
  • Fixed crash during CSV import when either stories or markets are missing
  • User interface improvements

If you like what you see, please spare a moment to rate or review the app on the App Store!

You can learn more about Story Tracker at my website or on the Story Tracker Facebook group.

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Artwork Tracker v1.4 update now available for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch

Oct 18

Posted by Andrew in apps | Comments off

The Artwork Tracker v1.4 update is now available on the App Store for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.

Artwork Tracker is a must-have mobile app for artists, art collectors, or art dealers. Keep track of artwork and submissions on the go, with access to all your data and full-screen artwork at your fingertips.

Artwork Tracker

This update contains the following changes:

  • Bug fixes for iOS 5.0.
  • Fixed crash during CSV import when either artwork or clients are missing.
  • Fixed bug where Artwork For Sale/Loan setting would change when the Artwork Info screen first appears.
  • User interface improvements.

If you’re enjoying the app, please take a moment to rate or review it on the App Store!

You can learn more about Artwork Tracker at my website or on the Artwork Tracker Facebook group.

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Bonsai Album v1.2 update now available for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch

Oct 17

Posted by Andrew in apps, bonsai | Comments off

The Bonsai Album v1.2 update is now available on the App Store for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.

Bonsai Album makes keeping track of your bonsai or penjing collection easy, whether you’re new to bonsai, a collector, a dealer, or even a bonsai master.

Bonsai Album

This update addresses a few of the things I’d missed in version 1.1, released last week. Between them, these updates contain the following changes:

Version 1.2:

  • Fixed tab bar textures on iOS 5.0.
  • Fixed data form alignment on iPad.

Version 1.1:

  • Bug fixes for iOS 5.0.
  • Fixed problem with pot to bonsai mapping when importing a database.

If you’re enjoying the app, please take a moment to rate or review it on the App Store!

You can learn more about Bonsai Album at my website or on the Bonsai Album Facebook group.

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Introducing Bonsai Album

Oct 6

Posted by Andrew in apps, bonsai | Comments off

Bonsai Album (盆栽アルバム) is now available on the App Store for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.

Bonsai Album

After 3 months of effort, I present my third iOS app, Bonsai Album. Available for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch with iOS 4.0 or higher, Bonsai Album is an indispensable tool for keeping track of your bonsai or penjing tree collection, pots, and notes. Bonsai is the ancient Japanese art of growing miniature trees in containers, similar to the Chinese tradition of penjing.

The highlight of the app, in my opinion, is the ability to store multiple full-screen captioned photos for each tree, pot, or log entry. The photos are captured either via the device camera, or from the photo library. They are stored internally in high resolution, scaled up or down when displayed depending upon the capabilities of your device. Bonsai Album takes full advantage of Retina and iPad displays, but also works great on previous generations of hardware.

The Bonsai Album database itself is portable between your various devices, so you can back it up to your computer over a local WiFi network from either an iPhone, iPad, or iPod, and restore it onto another Apple device. You can also import or export data without modifying the existing data on your device.

The first three tabs of the app display thumbnail images in table form for each bonsai, pot, or log entry. In addition, the bonsai and pot thumbnail images can be viewed in a scrollable grid. This makes it easier to locate an item in your collection visually, or based on the title or species. As with my other apps, the Bonsai Album user interface has been customized extensively, ranging from the distinctive navigation and tab bars, down to minor details like the buttons and table section headings. Besides providing a fancier, more polished appearance, I hope these customizations improve the user experience and encourage bonsai enthusiasts to share their collections with others.

You can find more details on the main page of my website or on the Bonsai Album Facebook page. If you’re not entirely convinced Bonsai Album will work for you, there’s even a free Lite version you can try out. This version is limited to 3 bonsai, 3 pots, and 3 log entries with 3 photos each, and only supports backup and export over WiFi. Otherwise it’s identical to the full version.

In case you’re curious what prompted me to create such an app, you can read all about it in my earlier blog post.

If you’re into the art of bonsai or penjing, I hope you find Bonsai Album useful, and I welcome any feature suggestions and comments you may have. Enjoy!