6 replies to this topic

[dennydeaton]

I've been using Beersmith for a while and overall like it. It has its quirks but all of the other home brewing software I've tried does too. I've tried Promash, Beer Alchemy, BeerTools and a few iPhone-based apps. I've also played around with hopville and a few other online recipe tools but each left something to be desired. Beyond the desire for an overall interface improvement and a more streamlined recipe creation process, I'd like to be able to manage my recipes and information from any computer or device, not just the one I have the software installed on. This could be solved by a web-based application which would only require a browser. I'm an application developer and also I have a bit of experience with UI design. I've also been home brewing for over 9 years and have a good understanding of the underlying calculations/conversions and overall needs for such a tool. I'm considering building a site that would serve as an all-in-one recipe and brew day tool. I'm still in the brainstorming process, but here are the core features I have in mind. - Recipe creation tool (with a preloaded ingredients based, which would also configurable). I'd also like i to have a place to keep general notes for each recipe. - Recipe Manager - Brew Day (a page that you could load your recipes up in a "brew day" style, listing out the important information in order of need throughout the brewing process). - Common Tools - Conversion/Unit Tools - Base profile (brewhouse setup, water configuration, batch size, etc) I'd like to keep the feature list short and sweet at first. Another problem I have with other tools I've used is that they have features and data that I never use. I want to revisit every single function and data point before including it in the tool. I'm interested to know if this is something that more brewers are seeking or would use? If so, is it something you'd pay for, and how much (annually)? What other features would you like to see, if any? It's a big endeavor and there are associated hosting costs for such an application, but I think it might greatly benefit the home brewing community. Thanks in advance for the feedback. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!

[positiveContact]

a yearly subscription would be okay but I'd expect updates and improvements - otherwise I'd want a one time fee.

[Deerslyr]

I wouldn't mind having something like that. In order to be competitive these days, you should probably make sure it crosses platforms over to an iPad/iPod App. Know what I mean? I use BeerSmith right now and am pretty happy with it, but do wish that it crossed my devices. I typically sit at the desktop to generate recipes, but have the laptop with me out in the garage while brewing. If and when we get a Tablet device, it would be great just to use that. Probably a better bang for your time and effort if you have annual subscriptions, but as Studs pointed out, upgrades along the way.We use a web based software for a lot of stuff here at work. The only complaint is that it just doesn't run as quickly as the desktop software.

[bigdaddyale]

I want it free and would feature a "water builder " database. List every town's water profile.User would be allowed to upload their town's water profiles.

[MtnBrewer]

I would prefer a non-online version. I don't want to have to have an internet connection just so I can brew. I think a rich client can also provide a much better user experience than Javascript.

[positiveContact]

I would prefer a non-online version. I don't want to have to have an internet connection just so I can brew. I think a rich client can also provide a much better user experience than Javascript.

makes platform portability a little more challenging.

[MtnBrewer]

makes platform portability a little more challenging.

I'm willing to pay for it.