IMatch 5 Official Release

[Mario]

This is the official discussion thread for the official release of IMatch 5. Feel free to join the party.

[Mario]

And we have the first official user who bought IMatch. Thank you very much, Ansgar!     And Kim, who made second place

Looks like everything is working smoothly. My heart rate is dropping a bit already...

[Menace]

Great. Finally I can pay for my favorite tool, which I already used for month; almost daily. Thank you, Mario! 

[Mees Dekker]

Mario

congrats to this major step forward, both for you and all photographers.

I missed the official release by one 1 minute and submitted/committed my last translations a mere 2 minutes before your official release --> DAM(n). I guess they will be included in the next release.

Hope your "French liquid" will be as good as IMatch 5 is. If so: your weekend will be perfect, weather included. Go out, relax and enjoy.

Mees

[KimAbel]

Almost made it first

IM5 started ingesting my 60.000 files 


Congratulations Mario 

Kim

[pajaro]

Congratulations, Mario!  I have just purchased and now installing IMatch  .

Pavel.

[medgeek]

Congratulation, Mario, and may you sell a bazillion copies!

[jch2103]

Congratulations, Mario! A huge accomplishment! My copy is purchased, installed and in use.

Get some rest and recuperation while you have a chance!

John

[sinus]

GRATULATION!!!
CONGRATULATION,
MARIO!!!

You have worked hard, and I hope you get a lot of money of your awsome product!
I Adobe or Google or someone else knocks on your door and want buy IMatch ... hmmm, better, I do not think about it! 

If your french liquid is champagner, then it could be, that you must buy some other bottles.
I got last year, say, 20 bottle of DIFFERENT champanger, like Moet Chandon, Söhnle, Veuve Cliquot, Taittinger, Pommery and so on, from a man, who had them into his cellar for several years.
One bottle was even a 1.5 Liter bottel from the house Sacher in Vienna.

So, it was quite a lot of money in my hands.... and say, 75% I must throw away, it smelled like vinaigre.
I think, the "time limit" is between 3 - 6 years, it depends, where you had them (light is not good, and heat also not) and from what house they are and also simply it depends on .... luck.

So, I hope, you are lucky with IMatch (surely) and also with your french liquid.

Have a nice Pfingsten!!!

Boah, IMatch hat eigentlich mein Leben seit 2001 auch mehr oder weniger stark "bestimmt", mal mehr, mal weniger, aber ich habe jedenfalls IMatch praktisch an jedem Wochentag verwendet ... ... mhhh  - ein Superprodukt, das mich nie im Stich liess.
Alles Gute, Mario!

[Mario]

Congratulation, Mario, and may you sell a bazillion copies!

Hah! That would be nice financially, but not very good for my users. I can only provide so much support, despite all the cool features we have now, including this community. Better to have less users (millions  ) and keep up with development and support.

I'm so glad that I have done most of the work with the new web site, Facebook, Twitter, the new shop system, voucher processing and writing all that copy about IMatch 5... this took so much of my time. Having all that set up is important of course. Users need to know about IMatch 5 (SPREAD THE WORD!).

But I will be a real happy camper when I can again spend 70% of my time with fixing bugs and implementing new features and enhancements. 20% with providing support to my users and maybe 10% for documentation, press and the like.

IMatch 5 is really a BIG milestone.

[Mario]

So, it was quite a lot of money in my hands.... and say, 75% I must throw away, it smelled like vinaigre.
I think, the "time limit" is between 3 - 6 years, it depends, where you had them (light is not good, and heat also not) and from what house they are and also simply it depends on .... luck.

I've kept it in my special stash in my vine cellar (which is actually a set of plastic boxes). My cellar is dark, not too dry and about 13° the whole year. We'll see if the bottle survived the long IMatch 5 development phase. If not, I'll open a regular bottle of cheap wine instead.

[medgeek]

Bazillion is a large but indefinite number:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indefinite_and_fictitious_numbers

Translate in any way you like & make lots of $$$ for all your hard work on IMatch.

[herman]

Congratulations Mario!
I can understand this must be some emotional evening for you.
I just want to say thank you very much for all you support, your perseverance, your focus on getting this product out.
Your baby flies now!!
I hope you can find the time to take some rest, enjoy your French booze, enjoy your weekend.
We will try to keep the community going in the meantime 

[bonsai]

You've made it, Mario 
I was not the first one, but ordered right now...
Great product, thanks for all!
And celebrate your french liquid 

[dadu]

Just awesome, Mario!
As someone who got very quick and personalized service from you (you added support for Samsung .SRW raw files), I will be purchasing IMatch 5 pretty quickly! 
Pricing is VERY fair.

Well done!

[Richard]

Hi Mario,

It has been a long, long haul but I am sure that it will be worth all the time and effort it took to develop the best damn DAM on the market.

CONGRATULATIONS

[sinus]

So, it was quite a lot of money in my hands.... and say, 75% I must throw away, it smelled like vinaigre.
I think, the "time limit" is between 3 - 6 years, it depends, where you had them (light is not good, and heat also not) and from what house they are and also simply it depends on .... luck.

I've kept it in my special stash in my vine cellar (which is actually a set of plastic boxes). My cellar is dark, not too dry and about 13° the whole year. We'll see if the bottle survived the long IMatch 5 development phase. If not, I'll open a regular bottle of cheap wine instead.

EXACTLY! PROSIT!

[Ger]

Mario,

It's been a long (and winding) road between the first teaser and today's official release... but definitely worth waiting for!

Congratulations and... enjoy this wonderful moment!

Groeten van Ger

[pbaraby]

Congratulation. I'm getting my copy right away.

[Mario]

Hi Mario,

It has been a long, long haul but I am sure that it will be worth all the time and effort it took to develop the best damn DAM on the market.

CONGRATULATIONS

Thanks, Richard

And, thanks again, for your invaluable help and proof reading with the IMatch 5 help files. All users owe you one for making the help so much better!

[Erik]

Congratulations...

This is the most excited I've been to buy software in a long time (my gaming days are past).

Hopefully, I'll convince some people to check it out. 

Thanks,

Erik

[Mario]

This is the most excited I've been to buy software in a long time (...)

Hah! I say.

(...) my gaming days are past.

Nonsense!
There are so many exciting games today. We don't need to battle with fourteen year olds sitting behind a tuned-up gaming PC. But we can still have lots of fun with all the cool games....

Hopefully, I'll convince some people to check it out. 

If you think IMatch 5 is great, please spread the word. Word of mouth is the only marketing I can afford. And, all things considered, the only 'marketing' that really counts. If somebody is satisfied with a product, (s)he should let others know about it.


PS.: That's my last post for today. The strange French substance seems to have some unexpected and rather irritating side effects so I'd better call it a day now. I'll be back (?) in 8 hours.

[lenmerkel]

Rarely have I been so eager and pleased to part with hard-earned money 

Many, many congratulations on a superb product and a monumental task supremely well accomplished!

I can now show off my brand spanking new DAM tool to my friends, and point them to where they can find it.

[jch2103]

Mario - Is there an existing official press release that could be used to spread the news to various photo and tech sites? It's pretty standard practice in the US, but I don't know what's usually done in the EU.

[hro]

Congratulations Mario to this mega milestone.
I am proud to have had a chance to participate in the beta in some small part.
I look forward to reading the fantastic product reviews that will appear and will certainly spread the message.

[picolo]

Congratulations to the release of a super software!

[dpop100]

Congratulations Mario! I can't wait to start using the new product. I have to admit there were time in the past years that I thought we would never see a new version.  I've been fending off the temptation to turn to the competitor products - ultimately an easy task because they just can't do what yours does - even more so now in v5.1. Great accomplishment.

[Sorted]

***********Congratulations and Jubilations!***********

Well Mario, I have just opened up the computer here in Western Australia to find this brilliant news. You must have been feeling light-headed enough before partaking of the plonk . What an achievement! Someone else used the term 'monumental' and it surely is. I really cannot fathom how you have developed this complex software single-handedly and I must admit to visiting these forums as much to gain an insight into the process, and the trials and tribulations you have faced, as to learn about the software. I'm sure there is a 'human' story here which the media would be interested in.

Thank you for offering a substantial discount to IM 3.5 (and above) users which is about the price I can afford and hoped for. I wish you great financial success (I imagine you have to make up for years of loss of income during its development). Thanks too for those who have made their contributions with testing, documentation etc. A marvellous effort.

[hluxem]

Congratulations Mario!

Just purchased my copy and I hope you will have lots of customer for this awesome product!

Thanks a lot for all the hard work, I hope you get a chance to take a day off and do something you enjoy besides working on Imatch.

Heiner

[Frank]

Congratulations Mario!!

I have just bought it :-)

Frank

[Aubrey]

Woke up this morning...reading Community on my iPad, found release.
Jumped out of bed and ordered, I did feel a little beastly accepting the 40% discount - thank you Mario.

Best wishes,
Aubrey.

[Mario]

Mario - Is there an existing official press release that could be used to spread the news to various photo and tech sites? It's pretty standard practice in the US, but I don't know what's usually done in the EU.

I'll be working on that over the next couple of days. I have now a press section at www.photools.com where press members (after contacting me) can download the IMatch 5 Reviewer's guide and some screen shots. When I have finished the press release I will see which (affordable) options I have to reach the right people. Most press release services send the thing to every contact address they have, from "Hounds and Horses" to "Wok Cooking". Not really the target audience...    

I think it will be better to first contact the main photography blogs and web sites, and try to find a press release service which can really target users interested in DAM.

[Ferdinand]

Coming in at reply #32 I'm not sure what I can say that's new.

I really am pleased for you Mario and I wish you every success with this product, because you have demonstrated over and over again to us testers that you deserve it.  Over the past several years there has been blood, sweat and tears. There has been frustration, perspiration and inspiration.  It's not often that I feel so good in shelling out some money for a piece of software.

And that discount.  To take it or not to take it?  I did one of each.  I have used IMatch for so long and so intensively (ten years) and I've paid you so infrequently (twice before now I think) that I didn't feel I could take the discount and look myself in the mirror.  So I didn't.  But my brother's license is newer and he doesn't use it quite so much, so I didn't feel so bad in taking the discount when buying his copy.

I thank you for this release, and after more that a five year wait, my brother thanks you too.  Or he will when he wakes up and downloads his new s/w.

[Lincoln]

Congratulations Mario!!
Many thanks for your dedication to this fantastic and extremely useful piece of software!

[sinus]

I thank you for this release, and after more that a five year wait, my brother thanks you too. 

I have several brothers.
They are waiting - maybe - even longer than your brother, at least equal long.

One of them ... gave up!  He is an IT-man and said, has never waited that long for a new product and will not do it. So he has another product ... but, be sure, after a while, when he sees IM5 on my computer, he wants to have it 

The other brother has waited and waited and will have now joy to use the new IM5, though he will have to wait a bit, before I will give the copy to him.

Because, when he has questions - and he will have - then he comes to me! 

[Ferdinand]

Because, when he has questions - and he will have - then he comes to me! 

I know about this only too well.  And they ask their questions when you don't have much time, like this weekend.

[cytochrome]

Bravo Mario.

When I bought IM3 (was 2006) the price was around 59€. And now 53€ !!! I wonder how you manage to stay alive. It's your choice but a 20% discount would have been gladly welcomed by most I am sure.

This said I have a problem:

- I bought IM5 and while the paypal thing was in process I downloaded V5.1.2 using the beta password and installed.

- then I wanted to register it with the payed password: no way. In the Help/About Imatch I see "Buy IMatch 5 now"!!

- I downloaded it again with the payed password, installed over the previous one: I am still stuck

- if I click on Update I get an error: cannot connect etc...

In 29 days it will certainly kick me out... 

There is a solution I am sure

Francis

PS Similar to what Sinus reports, my mailer (Thunderbird in french complained about non printable characters at the beginning of the password in the mail I got from Shareit

[thrinn]

Congratulations, Mario, superb dedication leading to a superb product!!!

It's your choice but a 20% discount would have been gladly welcomed by most I am sure.

I fully agree with Francis. Should be difficult to get more value for your money!

Regards,
Thorsten

[Mario]

If you see "Buy IMatch now" you have installed the trial version, not the licensed version.
To download the licensed version, log into the customerWeb site using your new license code (the one share-it has sent to you).

Can you send me a screen shot of what you see in Thunderbird? I will contact the share-it support staff and ask them what the problem is. I only deliver the unique license code to them, the rest is all their doing.

[Mario]

Congratulations, Mario, superb dedication leading to a superb product!!!

It's your choice but a 20% discount would have been gladly welcomed by most I am sure.

I fully agree with Francis. Should be difficult to get more value for your money!

Regards,
Thorsten

Well. I set a price point for IMatch 5, introductory offer, 109.99 US$. A bit more expensive that the entry-level or cheapest products, less expensive than products from brands like Extensis, Canto, FotoWare or FileMaker. I had a good laugh at ACDSee who reduced their price from 199.99 to 79.99 ().

A 40% discount is rather standard and about fair. Rest assured. I don't intent to wait for several years before I charge again for an upgrade. So, maybe in 12 or 18 months you will have to pay again an upgrade fee...and it levels out.

[Mario]

PS.: If you think that the discounted upgrade is too cheap  you can always purchase a regular license to support the future development of IMatch 

[cytochrome]

If you see "Buy IMatch now" you have installed the trial version, not the licensed version.
To download the licensed version, log into the customerWeb site using your new license code (the one share-it has sent to you).

Does not work. I entered my payed license (CTRL-C from the ShareIt mail) downloaded IM5 5.1.2 installed as administrator ===> Still the buy message!! Then I wiped IM5 using the installator "remove" and installed again ==> same. Apparently and for some reason it is always the trial version (because I first installed V5.1.2 using the beta password???)

Can you send me a screen shot of what you see in Thunderbird? I will contact the share-it support staff and ask them what the problem is. I only deliver the unique license code to them, the rest is all their doing.

Sorry, this was only the first time, when Thunderbird downloaded the Shareit message, now it displays the password OK (well, OK but not working for me...). In the first error message Thunderbird showed some characters like the Spanish quote characters.

Francis

PS Mario: Can I send to your support email my credentials (login and password) so you can see what happens?

[Mario]

PS Mario: Can I send to your support email my credentials (login and password) so you can see what happens?

Yes, please do.

You can only download 5.1.2 when you have the proper license code. There is no way to install it using a beta license or something.
When you look at the Help > About after you have installed 5.1.2, which version number does it show right at the top?

Tip: Before you install again, do this:

1. Make sure the downloaded file is named "imatch_5_1_2.exe"
2. Clean your TEMP folder before installing.

[Erik]

I had a bit of confusion because after buying a license, I didn't HAVE to use the license code Share-It gave me.

My browser still had the code for the beta, so when I entered it, I was taken to a screen where the licensed version was available.  Of course, my license code for IM 5.1.2 shows up there, but I didn't actually have to use it to access the download.

Then, when I installed 5.1.2, the Help menu still shows that I should buy the program.  However, I do not see any indication that I am running a trial version.  The About menu shows version 5.1.2.

I assume this means everything is ok.

[cytochrome]

PS Mario: Can I send to your support email my credentials (login and password) so you can see what happens?

Yes, please do.

You can only download 5.1.2 when you have the proper license code. There is no way to install it using a beta license or something.
When you look at the Help > About after you have installed 5.1.2, which version number does it show right at the top?

Tip: Before you install again, do this:

1. Make sure the downloaded file is named "imatch_5_1_2.exe"
2. Clean your TEMP folder before installing.

Hello Mario,

I did as instructed but to no avail... Still have the Buy message. And it seems EriK has the exact same problem for the same reason : he installed 5.1.2 with the beta code. You should put a warning, or better: deactivate the beta codes.

I sent you a message with a copy of the ShareIt mail. Hopefully you can solve this. Otherwise I buy it again (I have only one brother left, and he is not much interested in catalogs  )

Francis

[Imageman]

  I started up the converter last night on a copy of one of my personal data bases and went to bed. Rebooted this morning and found a perfect version 5 data base containing 79,654 images, and I'm blown away! Now off to a client file with 285,000 entries.

It makes my head spin to think of the depth of complexity involved in the converter routine, not to mention the data base itself. Mario, you are a genius!

Best Regards, Bob

[Mario]

he installed 5.1.2 with the beta code. You should put a warning, or better: deactivate the beta codes.

That is all very puzzling.

The license code is for downloading the licensed version. If you can access it, it's OK. The version does not work differently for different codes, and you don't get a trial version by using the wrong code. The trial version can only be downloaded from the photools.com web site, not from the customerWeb.

When you look at Help > About it will clearly state whether you are running a trial version or a licensed version. They cannot be mixed, even the DLL names are different between the trial and the licensed version.

[DigPeter]

On my travels, so have only just found this.  FANTASTIC.  I will purchase on my return.

This must be a great moment for you Mario. I hope that you will reap a well deserved success.  I have enjoyed working with the testing team and hugely appreciated your patient an helpful responses and those of many members of the team.

[kiwilink]

Congratulations Mario!  I just bought it. 


       Let the Record show I am the 1st in Illinois to Upgrade!!!!!   Just kidding!


Michael

[cytochrome]

he installed 5.1.2 with the beta code. You should put a warning, or better: deactivate the beta codes.

That is all very puzzling.

The license code is for downloading the licensed version. If you can access it, it's OK. The version does not work differently for different codes, and you don't get a trial version by using the wrong code. The trial version can only be downloaded from the photools.com web site, not from the customerWeb.

When you look at Help > About it will clearly state whether you are running a trial version or a licensed version. They cannot be mixed, even the DLL names are different between the trial and the licensed version.

This is what I see, this is in IM 5.1.2 downloaded with the key provided by ShareIt

Francis