Apple Briefs

After a little bit of a lull, I have been buying more software recently. The reasons why, I think, is that many of the websites have used screencasts to promote their software. Screencasts make for a much more compelling sales presentation. I probably would have looked right past OmniFocus if it hadn’t been for a very long screencast The Omni Group posted to their website. Screenshots and feature lists simply can’t capture the subtle interface details of many great programs.

Another such program, and the reason for this post, is 1Password. I took another look at it because of a post by Aaron Pelley over at his Criminal Defense Law with an Apple blog. I purchased a family license for 1Password today, and it was all thanks to the screencast on the 1Password website. I actually looked at 1Password a while ago when I was searching for an encrypted data manager. I wasn’t that interested in 1Password because it looked like a simple browser plugin that just upgraded the built-in auto-complete and password memory features. As the screencasts demonstrate quite well, 1Password is much more than that.

I ended up purchasing Data Guardian. I am quite happy with it, but it isn’t very well integrated with the browsers. As it happens, I am still glad I purchased Data Guardian because it is a great place to store credit card numbers, email passwords, and software license codes.

If my experience is representative, we will probably start seeing more and more screencasts as smart software publishers take advantage of a great way to market sophisticated software. I am a little surprised, though, that people aren’t picking up on this trend faster.