Mac version is available in public beta
What's missing compared to the Windows version
What's more than in the Windows version
Pro Trial registration
Mac version Roadmap
Changes to the Windows version
Conclusions, and what's next
Visual SEO for Mac, the first public beta is available for download
"Beta" means that the Mac version is not officially commercialized yet because it is not complete and it might be not 100% stable. A beta version is given for free to permit the public to try it and give feedback, and report unknown issues.
Visual SEO Studio on Mac, HTML Suggestions (click to enlarge)
That said, we thoroughly tested both manually and with repeated automated test to avoid regressions in the Windows version (Windows and Mac version share the entire code base, except the User Interface definition).
In most cases, we ended up with a better Windows version as well. Many fixes and performance improvements in the past 1.9.x releases are a consequence of the work to make the code portable.
At first we thought to start the Mac version beta stage with only the limited Community Edition feature; we changed our mind and decided to wait a little longer and offer the (almost) full product with the Professional Trial edition.
Porting a Windows .net program to the Mac world has been challenging, but what a ride!
It took us longer than we expected, with obstacles, changes of route and unexpected difficulties. We are proud of the way our team pursued the goal.
As a software house we gained tonnes of experience and knowledge we could even resell.
What's still missing on the Mac version
Compared to the Windows version there are still a few features missing:
- Purchase of the Mac product is prevented, because it still is in beta stage.
We encourage you to test it and report any issue you may find. - Pro Trial evaluation period is longer (see below)
- Data Extraction feature non available yet... but it's almost there!
The porting of the feature is complete, just it needed some more internal testing before shipping, so we decided to publish it in a successive release. - Custom Filters not ported yet.
- Screenshot management non ported yet.
- HTML content missing color highlight at the moment.
- Data grids missing row headers.
- Some parts of the Polish and Russian translations of the installer package are missing
We may in the imminent future release incremental updates of the Mac version alone to fill the gaps.
What the Mac version has more than the Windows version
Not much, and the two versions will be kept aligned; there are some minor changes though you might find useful. For example, you can maximize any window without having to resize it.
Pro Trial evaluation period of Mac version
In order to permit user testing and reporting to us we decided to give a Trial period longer than the traditional 15 days.
While the in-app screens will tell you the Trial period is 15 days, it actually is from 15 days to up to 60 days.
What does it mean? We unofficially set the Trial period to be 60 days long, and in case we'll decide to ship before, we might decide to invalidate the Trials older than 15 days.
Mac version Roadmap
We are working full steam to take the Mac version out of the beta stage. The goal is to ship the official Mac Professional Edition in May 2019. This is not carved in stone: first we want to make sure the product will be stable and complete enough to sell it, and to have the internal resources ready to support the Mac version as well.
Changes made to the Windows version
While version 1.9.6 "Godot" is a major milestone because it sees the first appearance – albeit in beta stage – of the Mac OS X version, it also is a recommended update for the Windows version.
We added Usability Experience improvements, minor performance gains and important bug fixes to make your favorite SEO tool increasingly better!
For a full list of the changes, please consult the Release Notes.
Conclusions, and what's next
We are looking forward to complete the Mac version beta stage as soon as possible, and start releasing cool new features we use internally but were forced to keep on hold.
Stay tuned!
That Mac box in your office is keen to get a brand new Visual SEO Studio installation, don't waste time!
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