BattleScribe 1.15.02 Released on Android and Desktop!

Today's release is mostly just bug fixes and tweaks, resolving a couple of nasty crashes that came up after the last release. It's available on Android and desktop right now, and as usual is currently being reviewed by Apple for release on iOS devices. I'll post again when it becomes available in iTunes.

One other thing to note: If you have had problems with your data (e.g. missing categories) since the last update, it might be worth deleting and re-downloading your data. This FAQ answer describes how do do that.

Without further ado, here's the release notes:

Android

• Improved loading times when creating or loading a roster.
• User interface tweaks.
• Fixed occasional crash when moving between screens.
• Fixed crash on startup on Sony Xperia Z devices.

All Platforms

• Fixed crash when adding certain selections to your roster.
• Fixed crash when opening certain categories or scrolling through the list.
• Fixed "Direct Parent" conditions not working in some cases.
• Fixed output showing needless decimal points for characteristic values.

BattleScribe 1.15.00 Released!

Important: This release changes the roster file format. You should update BattleScribe to 1.15.00 on all your computers and devices to avoid problems! It may take a little while to start up the first time as BattleScribe converts your files to the new format.

Release day is here again, this time on all platforms: Android, iOS, Windows, Mac and Linux.

Today's release brings a big overhaul of something that's needed work for a long time: The "view roster" output. This is probably the last bit of creaky old code that needed a serious update - and I must admit it's a big improvement!

The output now looks much nicer - whether as HTML, text, BBCode or Markdown - and there are several new options so you can customize the printout to your taste. Special mention goes to the new "minimal" output option - it reduces the length of the output by omitting selections that aren't relevant. This really cleans things up so that copying/pasting your list into forum posts and social networks works really nicely.

Here's some screenshots of the minimal text output on mobile and desktop:

All Platforms

• "View Roster" output completely overhauled, with new customization options and cleaner layout.
• Performance improvements.
• Roster and data files from before version 1.13.00 are no longer supported.

Desktop

• Redesigned "View Roster" dialog.
• Improvements to printing.
• Removed preview popups/tooltips. Instead, you can right click items and view them via the menu.
• Added a "What's New" dialog :)

Android

• Sort order of list items tweaked - all "single row" items are sorted together.
• More options when sharing or copying your roster.

iOS

• Sort order of list items tweaked - all "single row" items are sorted together.
• Small user interfance fixes and adjustments.
• Fixes and improvements to menus and sharing on iPad and iOS 8.

BattleScribe 1.15.00 BETA Released on Android and Desktop

Warning: Files created or opened with these betas will not be compatible with 1.14.xx on iOS and other devices/computers. If you want to try out the beta and you use Dropbox to sync your files with your iOS device, it is recommended that you disconnect Dropbox from the Android devices and desktop computers that you're using the beta on. Otherwise, you may loose access to your rosters and data on your iOS device(s). If you are signed up to the Android beta channel and you wish to skip this beta, you can use one of the links at the bottom to opt out of the beta channel.

This update brings a much needed overhaul to the roster output/printout, particularly some additional formatting options and a "minimal" mode that massively reduces the length of the printout. While I'm happy that this update is solid (I may tweak a few odds and ends, but nothing significant), the nature of this update means that the format of the roster files needs to change.

This format change renders the beta incompatible with the iOS version until 1.15.00 is ready for iPhone/iPad too. I'm in working on that right now (probably about two weeks to complete and wait for iTunes approval). Since things are ready for Android and desktop however, I decided to give you all the option to try things out if you so desire.

Links to download the beta on desktop can be found on the BattleScribe Beta Google+ community. In order to get access to the beta for Android, you will need to be a member of that community (Google's rules, not mine) and sign up to the beta via one of the following links (you can also use these links to opt back out of the beta - you will continue to get beta versions in future until you opt out again).

Free: https://play.google.com/apps/testing/net.battlescribe.rostereditor
Pro: https://play.google.com/apps/testing/net.battlescribe.rostereditorpro

If you run in to any problems or have any other feedback about the betas, please comment on the appropriate Beta community post. Thanks!

BattleScribe 1.14.08 Released on iOS!

After an extended review time (I guess Apple had a backlog of apps to review...), 1.14.08 is now available in the iTunes store for your iPhone or iPad. This version fixes up a couple of nasty issues that arose after iOS 8 came out. Thankfully there is a silver lining - fixing these problems has actually led to an unexpected boost in performance, so things should be a little snappier when adding/removing items from your list.

Release Notes

• Performance improvements when adding or removing items from your list.
• Fixed freeze after creating a new roster under iOS 8.
• Fixed issue where the loading spinner would occasionally get stuck when adding or removing items from your list.

BattleScribe and iOS 8

There were two bugs that appeared under iOS 8:

1) The app freezes after creating a new list. You are unable to navigate or click any buttons or anything. Opening an existing list works fine.

2) Occasionally, usually after the device goes to sleep for a while and you later return to BattleScribe, the app would lock up with the loading spinner showing when you try to add or remove something from your list. (This might also occur on older versions of iOS, not just 8).

Both of these are now fixed and 1.14.08 was submitted to Apple for review a week ago. We are now waiting for that review to complete before it shows up in iTunes.

It seems that Apple have a backlog of reviews (I guess BattleScribe isn't the only app having problems) so it's taking more time than usual to complete the review. It usually takes about a week, but it's already been longer.

Of course I'll post here when the update becomes available.

There is a silver lining: fixing these bugs has resulted in an unexpected performance benefit, so things should be noticeably snappier when the update finally comes through.

Thanks for your patience and apologies it’s taken some time to resolve these issues. They were some tough bugs to pin down!

BattleScribe 1.14.07 Released on iOS!

It's finally here, 1.14.07 for iOS!

This release delivers a huge user interface overhaul which brings BattleScribe into line with modern iOS 7 apps - and it's looking very nice if I do say so myself. It also (at last) brings support for iPad! The app will now use all the space available on the larger screened devices and isn't reduced to a blown-up iPhone interface. There is still more work to do to make better use of all that screen space - perhaps some kind of two-panel design - but this is a huge step forward.

If you like the app, I'd really appreciate a review on iTunes! If you find any bugs, please contact me and I'll get it fixed as soon as possible.

On a side note, as some of you may have noticed, the free version of 1.14.07 was available several days ago, while pro has only just shown up in iTunes today. I have no idea why, but the free version was approved for the App Store within a couple of days, while the pro version was left hanging for about a week. Needless to say, this was frustrating for anyone who upgraded to pro during the last week, only to find they were back on the old version. My apologies to anyone in that situation - in future I will be holding back releases on iOS until both versions can be put out at the same time (at least for significant updates).

Without further ado, here's some screenshots and the short-but-sweet change notes:

• Huge user interface redesign! All the same functions are there as before - check the menu if you can't find something.
• iPad support!
• Added "report a bug" option to the menu.
• Free: Occasional full-screen ads. These are only shown during long loading screens, they can be easily dismissed, and they are limited to a handful per hour. See this post for more details.
• Bug fixes.

BattleScribe 1.14.07 Released on Desktop and Android!

Not much to say about this release. It's just a small clutch of bug fixes that came up while working on the 1.14.07 update for iOS. I figured (since it's easy) that I'd put out a quick update so we're all on the same page no matter which platform(s) you use BattleScribe on. I'll get straight to the release notes:

• Fixed modifiers that increment the maxInRoster value (mistype... oops)
• Fixed crash/hang where a catalogue contained root rules with modifiers
• Fixed crash/hang in Catalogue Editor when a link had "no target"
• Fixed situation where points/error messages wouldn't be correctly updated

So... Not a lot ;)

But...

I've just submitted 1.14.07 to Apple which contains a huge user interface update and iPad support! I'm expecting it to become available within a week. I'm very happy with how this has turned out and it should really bring the iOS version into line with modern applications (finally!). I'll announce when it becomes available, but for now take a look at this:

BattleScribe 1.14.06 Released on iOS!

This release brings the bug fixes from the 1.14.06 release on desktop and Android, along with the first layer of user interface updates. These are just initial changes to colours rather than a full blown layout update.

Considering the week long approval time for iOS apps, I thought it important to get the bug fixes out as soon as possible rather than holding things up. I'll be following up very soon with a larger overhaul that will provide iPad support and a much improved interface - I'm hoping to submit this update in the next couple of days. After that it'll be about a week before it's approved and becomes available for download. Keep your eyes peeled :)

Here's the change list for this release:

• User interface refreshed (more to come!)
• Improved error reporting when opening or creating a roster. It now shows you details of any selections removed from your roster and any problems with the data files you're using.
• Fixed bug where root items with "hidden" modifiers would (nearly) always give errors.
• Fixed bug where roster points wouldn't be updated if items were removed from your roster due to a data file change.
• Fixed bug where points/errors wouldn't get updated in some cases.
• Bug fixes.

BattleScribe 1.14.06 Released!

It's been a long time coming, but this release finally brings a complete user interface redesign to Android! This really brings it up to date and makes it look at home on modern Android devices. Personally, I'm really happy with how it's turned out!

There have also been a few more bug fixes that get rid of the last few known issues, so this release is also available on desktop. I'm now working on bringing these fixes (plus some user interface tweaks) to iOS, so expect to see an update on iTunes soon. Full change list is below.

Here are some before and after screenshots:

Android

• Complete user interface redesign! All the same functions are there as before - check the menu if you can't find something.
• Added "report a bug" option to the menu.
• Improved error reporting when opening or creating a roster. It now shows you details of any selections removed from your roster and any problems with the data files you're using.
• Pro: You can now share your roster with another device via Android Beam (NFC)! Just bring the devices together (usually back-to-back) to send the file across. (Requires Android 4.1 Jelly Bean and devices that support NFC).
• Pro: You can now customise a roster's notes/description - for keeping track of your epic victories.
• Free: Occasional full-screen ads. These are only shown during long loading screens, they can be easily dismissed, and they are limited to a handful per hour. See this post for more details.

Desktop

• Added "report a bug" button to the toolbar.
• Improved error reporting when opening or creating a roster. It now shows you details of any selections removed from your roster and any problems with the data files you're using.
• Fixed tooltip/popup text in the edit (right) panel in Roster Editor.
• Repeating modifiers can now be based on roster points limit or total number of selections.
• Fixed sorting of links in Catalogue Editor.

All Platforms

• Fixed bug where root items with "hidden" modifiers would (nearly) always give errors.
• Fixed bug where roster points wouldn't be updated if items were removed from your roster due to a data file change.
• Fixed bug where points/errors wouldn't get updated in some cases.
• More bug fixes...

BattleScribe 1.14.05 Released!

1.14.05 has now been released on Desktop and Android which fixes a crash when adding items to a roster that's made up of multiple forces. This fix is also on it's way to Apple for approval, and I've requested that they expedite their review process due this bug - it should be available on iOS in the next couple of days. Apologies for the inconvenience.

---

Another release today, on all platforms: Desktop, Android and iOS.

This version carries on with the work from 1.14.03, tying up some loose ends and a couple of bugs that came to light since that release. In particular, it sorts out a lot of issues with validating global items in rosters, which were sometimes giving errors when they shouldn't, or weren't giving errors when they should.

All Platforms

• Error message text re-written so all errors are more consistently worded and give better information on the problem.
• Data file version numbers displayed when creating a roster.
• Added min/max in force limits, distinct from min/max in roster.
• Fixes to error reporting for "global" entries (min/max in force/roster).
• Improved memory usage, which should help when editing large rosters (especially on mobile). There is still more work to do in this area however.
• More minor bug fixes.

iOS

• Changes from 1.14.03 are now rolled up into 1.14.04 (see the last release on Android and Desktop).
• Fixed "Errors Loading Data" message when creating or loading a roster.
• Fixed problems saving rosters with certain characters in their names.

Desktop

• Saving your roster as HTML now respects the view settings from View Roster.
• Fixes to moving data when you change the location it's stored in.
• Moving your data will now check the destination folder can be written to (solves "parameter is not a directory" error message once you've gone through the process of moving your data again).
• Fixed error message when trying to open a catalogue for editing when you don't have the appropriate game system.

Phew! There are still one or two gaps in global roster validation, and there may be another release or two to fix those and any other niggles that might come up. But for now, it's time to continue working on something a little more... visual.