Bee Docs Timeline 2.5 - Released!

Thursday, March 05, 2009

I just published the 2.5 version of Bee Docs Timeline. This is one of our biggest releases since the launch of the 3D Edition almost a year ago. We (yes, we!) will be working on some more detailed blog posts and some videos to demonstrate the new features, but I wanted to give you an overview as soon as possible.

First, we have made bulk edit more stable. Bulk edit mode has not been as stable as the chart view modes and certain combinations of actions, usually involving undo, would sometimes freeze the application. I put an emphasis in this release on tracking down and fixing these bugs.

Second, I have improved the quality of video exports. I won't get into the technical details here, but the bottom line is that your video exports should look better (and render faster). I have also added professional quality motion blur for video exports. Motion blur is a advanced topic, but it basically makes the motion of your timeline look smoother and more realistic. Please note that turning on motion blur will significantly increase your video export wait times.

Third, this version allows you to export video segments to Keynote! Not only that, but you can choose to pause only on selected events which will allow you to highlight the parts of your timeline that you choose. See an example Keynote export here.

Finally, I added an automatic importer for Things by Cultured Code. Things is a new application winning rave reviews that allows you to create To Do lists. If you have To Do items with due dates, you can now import them into a timeline with just a couple of clicks.

Version 2.5 is a free upgrade. So please use "Check for Updates" in the "Timeline 3D" menu to update today!

Release Notes - 2.5

• NEW: Export full motion 3D QuickTime to Keynote slides
• NEW: Option to skip to selected events for 3D exports
• NEW: Professional quality motion blur for 3D video exports
• NEW: Automatically import To Do items from Things by Cultured Code
• IMPROVED: Video export is more efficient (faster)
• IMPROVED: Quality improved for video export presets
• IMPROVED: When entering 3D mode, current selection is respected
• FIXED: Removing an event in bulk edit while editing text caused freeze
• FIXED: Undo was not working properly for deleted events in bulk edit
• FIXED: Undo was not working properly for newly added events in bulk edit
• FIXED: QuickTime chapters are no longer added to HD exports for compatibility with iMovie

Labels: 3d timeline, keynote, motion blur, software update