Every week I am consistently amazed at how many great applications there are for the Mac. A really major factor for me in purchasing my first mac in January 06 as the great software (iLife 06), interface (OS X) and the overall simplicity of using a Mac. Not for one minute did I imagine that I would spend so much time adding application after application to my daily activities. Not least because I (naively) didn’t think I would really need any, but also because I totally underestimated the creativity and imagination of the developers.
I was skeptical yet intrigued about Shoebox Express $29.99. Skeptical because I reckoned that iPhoto was pretty much perfect and intrigued because I am fanatical about keeping things tidy and in place.
A serious word of warning though it is addictive, information rich and requires a LOT of dedication to keep it maintained, and that is after the hours it takes setting it all up. Sure, the importing, setting initial preferences etc is really easy but there is just so much information that you can add to each photo, that I suggest that you start with a VERY small section of your photo library until you are really comfortable with it.
The application is all about Organizing, Navigating, Cataloging and Storing – so don’t say you haven’t been warned. If you just want to import your snaps, give them a couple of keywords and create an album out of them then stick to iPhoto. If photographs are a large part of your life then this will be a good application for you, but seriously try the demo first.