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TidBITS Watchlist: Notable Software Updates for 3 November 2014

Microsoft Outlook 15.3 for Mac — After recent leaks of screenshots for the next version of Outlook for Mac surfaced on a Chinese site, Microsoft officially released Outlook 15.3 (the version number noted by Ed Bott at ZDNet) — but only for those with an Office 365 subscription. Offering a user interface that’s more consistent with the Windows edition of Outlook, the new Outlook for Mac promises enhanced performance thanks to a new
threading model and database improvements, as well as improved scrolling when switching between Ribbon tabs (according to an Office 365 blog post). The update also receives online archive support for searching Exchange archived mail, push email support for real-time email delivery, and improved Master Category List support for syncing Outlook across platforms (Mac, Windows, and Outlook Web Access). It’s compatible with Macs running Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard and later.

The new version of Outlook for Mac is available for commercial customers and Office 365 Home, Office 365 Personal, and Office 365 University subscribers. If you’re not an Office 365 subscriber, you can try it free for a month, after which you’ll be charged a monthly fee. Subscriptions range from $6.99 per month ($69.99 annually) for Office 365 Personal (for a single user) to $9.99 per month ($99.99 annually) for Office 365 Home (for up to five users). Microsoft’s Office 365 blog post also notes that public beta downloads for the next version of Office for Mac will become available in the first half of 2015.

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Audio Hijack Pro 2.11.4 — Rogue Amoeba has released Audio Hijack Pro 2.11.4, which can now capture phone calls from your iPhone using Apple’s new Phone Relay feature via FaceTime on your Mac. Phone Relay requires OS X 10.10 Yosemite on your Mac and iOS 8.1 on your iPhone (for more, check out this Rogue Amoeba blog post). The update also updates Instant On to version 8.0.3 to improve compatibility with OS X’s VoiceOver function, and fixes an AppleScript regression that
caused a variety of issues. ($32 new with a 20 percent discount for TidBITS members, free update, 9.1 MB, release notes, 10.7+)

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CloudPull 2.6.1 — Golden Hill Software has released CloudPull 2.6.1 with a big change — the Google data backup application will no longer be available through the Mac App Store. Previously, Golden Hill had released CloudPull 2.6 with added support for OS X 10.10 Yosemite, but Apple rejected that version from the Mac App Store. The app will now be available exclusively from the Golden Hill Web site after John Brayton (Golden Hill’s owner and developer) decided not to work around the issue at the heart of Apple’s rejection and instead focus on delivering CloudPull directly (and more quickly) to his customers. CloudPull
2.6.1 will honor Mac App Store purchases and will import data from the Mac App Store edition. The latest version runs on 10.9 Mavericks and 10.10 Yosemite; CloudPull 2.5.5 remains available for those running 10.7 Lion or 10.8 Mountain Lion. ($24.99 new with a 20 percent discount for TidBITS members, free update, 9.7 MB, release notes, 10.9+)

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1Password 5.0.2 — AgileBits has released 1Password 5.0.2, a maintenance release that follows its recent elevation to version 5.0 (see “1Password 5.0,” 17 October 2014). The popular password manager fixes a compatibility issue with Firefox 32, squashes a bug that prevented 1Password 4 licenses from migrating to 1Password 5 automatically, ensures that Macs with longer names show up in iOS Wi-Fi Sync, fixes several crashes, and adds a Turkish localization. If you have a 1Password 4 license, you can upgrade to 1Password 5 for free. AgileBits continues to offer 1Password 5
at the reduced price of $34.99 from both its own Web site as well as the Mac App Store for a limited time. ($49.99 new with a 25 percent discount for TidBITS members when purchased from AgileBits, free update, 32.6 MB, release notes, 10.10+)

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Downcast 1.1.1 — Jamawkinaw Enterprises released Downcast 1.1 in October 2014 with several additions and improvements to the podcatcher app. In addition to adding support for OS X 10.10 Yosemite and iCloud Drive, the update added a new bookmark storage system that enables Downcast to maintain access to content that was moved or renamed using the Finder, Quick Look support for artwork, and the capability to set custom artwork for podcasts. The release also significantly improved performance and stability throughout the app, condensed contextual menus to include only options valid for the current view, tweaked the layout of the
podcast and episode detail views, and fixed numerous crashes. Jamawkinaw followed that release by updating Downcast to version 1.1.1 with fixes for several crashes introduced by version 1.1. ($9.99 new from the Mac App Store, free update, 20.5 MB, release notes, 10.8+)

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