iBiz for Mac4.1.4

If you are looking for an invoicing and time-tracking app that has Calendar synchronization (for those that like to track jobs with notes in Calendar, like me, and for those that don't like subscription-based web products) try OfficeTime. I just moved over to it from iBiz and I'm liking it.

Sad to see it go. It worked really well for me in my work flow. Cheers, Ian. Best of luck with your other products.

I believe IGG should just focus on iBank, which I have not tried and will not, while staying away from more serious software development that is clearly beyond their coding capabilities. The software is in a nutshell: UNINTUITIVE AS BUGGY AS WINDOWS 3.1 AMATEURISH AT BEST We almost lost a client because of a series of bad invoices were issued and the program did not calculate discount properly (a pretty simple task). We have had to find work-arounds for a lot of pretty basic tasks. The only reason why we chose iBiz was their ability to pull information from iCal; even that it DOES NOT DO WELL and it is quite temperamental. PLEASE DO NOT BUY IT if you are a consultant. I do not know which software I will use from now on but to be sure I will need to go back to Excel until something decent is released.

I've been using iBiz for close to two years. I chose it following a lot of research and having tested a number of other Mac offerings. While I think it's the best of the lot, sadly the bar is pretty low. I like the synchronization with iCal (Calendar) and some of the basic functions (time entry, reports, etc.) are adequate, the fact that you still can't create invoices that easily break out expenses as a separate subtotal is just frustrating. They've been promising a fix forever! Lastly, it doesn't have a companion app for the iPhone. They have created one for iBank, their sister app, so they have the talent to so. I'm jumping ship yet, but I'm constantly on the look out for a better tool.

Just updating my review to reflect the ongoing improvements to iBiz and to counter-balance the odd negative ratings iBiz has received here lately. I still find iBiz to be the best program in this category since it easily allows me to synchronize work log data between iCal and iBiz... so I can record time and work events in iCal (individual calendars for each client) and synch these directly with iBiz (specifying whatever date range I prefer) for billing. Other programs I have tried are more limiting in how they allow data synchronization with iCal, especially in selecting specific client work log events and date ranges.

Downloaded the demo to try it out. Tried to add a client several times, but each time all of the information disappeared. It's hard to make further comments because all the other features require a client in order to work.

IBIZ 4.1.4 LEAKS MEMORY LIKE A SIEVE. Why do the 4.1.4 notes say that the leak has been fixed? I upgraded recently from 2.x after many years and am now being forced to revamp my entire time tracking scenario because of this SERIOUS BUG. I just sit here in Activity Monitor and watch 1-2 MB leak every minute, and 1-3 MB every time I start a timer. THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE. And worse, why did they lie about fixing the leak in version 4.1.4 when it is leaking like crazy? This is devious. And the company has closed their forums in favor of a skimpy "knowledge base."

I've been using this crappy software for 6 or 8 years now and can't get out of it! All my business records are in iBiz and can't be exported. When it works, it's OK; keeps track of my clients, what I did for them and what they owe me and makes and sends out reasonable invoices, but the damn thing crashes about 2 or 3 times a day and the IGG tech support is non-existent. I hate to give Vermonters a bad review but this is awful software.

While I can understand that some people prefer the old interface of earlier versions (I was of the same opinion originally) I have readily adapted to the interface on the new version and better understand the reasons for the changes. Users of the old versions just need to give the new version a try for bit. This program still works best out of all similar programs I have found and tried via MacUpdate. It works perfectly within my work flow and allows me to track time either at my workstation or away at a job site (via events transcribed into iCal on my other devices.) The ability to synchronize calendars within specific time periods and the flexibility of creating very customized invoices makes this superior to other such time tracking/invoicing programs.

I used ibiz a while ago when it was called iWork, it wasn't the easiest program to use but there weren't many choices. I recently upgraded because i started freelancing again. The current version is imposible to use, it is not intuitive in the least. Its really difficult to setup a client and add projects. This type of programs should be easy its really not complicated...

Loved iBiz 2. In fact I'm still using iBiz 2 because after version 2 the dev team went and added a whole mess of HUGE icons that fill the screen unnecessarily. In addition, anything after iBiz 2 makes it impossible to see the status of a project. You are forced to use the in-app invoicing (which plainly sucks) and as soon as you do, a project is closed. You can't immediately tell if a project has been paid, needs invoicing or is open. All this was instantly possible with iBiz2. Until the dev team gets back to thinking "Business" and not "pretty graphics" the app is pretty annoying. Used to be a 5 star app at version 2.. now, the best I can give is 3 stars.

(This review is for the multi-user version) As a single-user app, iBiz worked pretty well. As a multi-user version running in a small office, it was a mixed bag. For instance, users could add new clients, but editing clients has to be done on the server. And there was no out-of-the-box easy way to link iBiz to a networked address book (LDAP or other). Data loss and corruption were infrequent, but when it would happen, there was no good way to analyze or recover from the problem. Sometimes, a month of tracked time would just vanish. As a networked business system, it leaves a lot to be desired, but it has a lot of potential if the developers pay attention.

after having lots of troubles with ibiz 3 (scrambled or lost addressbook entries, ghost-invoice or orphaned invoices with no relation to customer, unusable interface, and more of these weird bugs), I switched to grandtotal last autumn and would never never never turn back.

I've used iBiz for over two years now and thoroughly enjoy it. iBiz has made my life much easier when keeping track of the time I need to bill for, sending invoices to clients, and collecting payments, storing the information in iBiz and iBank. This program has saved more time for me than I ever thought would be possible with a time-tracking tool. I had tried about half a dozen other tools before I finally settled on iBiz, and two years later, I'm really happy I did. My one small complaint is that the new version if iBiz4 does not appear to contain a great deal of new useful features (for me at least). I think they took a small step back with the design as well, eliminating a few of the more prominent icons that I found extremely helpful.

Garbage. I tried to use iBiz 2 (starting when it was still called iWork), and experienced nothing but frustration with its endless stream of bugs and problems that were either replaced with new ones or never resolved. Eventually iBiz 3 appeared, and sure enough, many of the problems I had reported with iBiz 2 were STILL not fixed. I paid nearly $40 CAD for this junk; I thought it was overpriced, but needed something like this for my business, and at first glance it seemed nicer than the alternatives. But soon I discovered it had serious problems, such as miscalculations and data loss. One would be "fixed" and another one would turn up. No one could trust its numbers enough to actually use it for tracking time and billing clients (in other words, it's completely useless). What a waste of time and money. I find it hilarious that the price has actually gone UP as the quality of the software remains consistently poor. Billings is vastly superior, and even Studiometry (which I don't particularly like) is at least reliable and does what it's supposed to do. This developer has proven himself incompetent and incapable of creating a quality, reliable application. iBank is even worse; you know you're in the wrong business when you can't even write software that does math properly, despite the fact that a computer doing all the actual computation. Do yourself a BIG favor and steer clear of IGG's terrible software.

This program (at least the demo version I tried) has some serious issues with reliability. I like the interface a lot, especially the payment feature and the file-based timer triggers, but I would not trust it with time-tracking.

after trying v 3.1.5 for a few days i turned back to version 2.5. ibiz 3.x is incredible slow (on an macbook with 2 gb ram an 2x2 ghz!) , takes over 100% cpu and several minutes to changes from project to invoice-view, meanwhile it blocks everything else. it has still no import or export function (i.ex for excel or filemaker), ittrashes addresses, has a bad gui, and so on. this programm is not worth a dime. very disappointed.

I ditched iBiz and its performance/reliability issues long ago. For my needs, Billings is the better bet...with iRatchet placing a close second.

I quit using this app a while back due to some strange behavior and thought I’d upgrade to this new version. What I’m getting now is completely unacceptable to me: * Duplicates entries get added for no apparent reason * Manual time and date entry is messed up and frustrating to accomplish * iCal synch sometimes duplicates entries already logged * iCal calendars in iBiz drop down menu get duplicated * Inability to use custom templates for reports I realize this is beta software (the 10th!) but these issues are simply quite unacceptable. I hope that the developers get these fixed, because the software has potential. For now I will use something else. I suggest others do likewise.

I've been using iBiz (and its predecessors) for years. I've been through version one through this current beta, and the versions keep improving. This version - even though is still in beta - is incredibly build, stable, and ready for prime time. The revised invoicing section opens up a side of the program that was previously closed. While the choice of client specific billing versus project specific billing may seem to be a unique one, the billing side makes logical sense. I would never give money back on one project while another project was owing. i've been running a law office of five attorneys and support staff on this for years, and I have found it to be a wholly reliable program. I reccomend it to my clients and my colleagues without reservation. Good job!

In my opinion, after playing around with this beta for a while, this is one of the worst beta releases that ever got onto my mac. May be i was expecting too much after having to wait 2 years for the v3 release (well, beta release) to appear. May be I'm too blessed with real good mac software (mainly shareware) been released since 10.3. But the terrible interface glitches (it's like a windows developer who tries to be mac-like), the very much bugyness (i know, it's beta, but hey, this data is really critical: it's pure money, at least for me) is inacceptable. The feature set looks nice though, and I'd pray they magicallly fix all the thousand issues until release - but i already hoped so for v2 (which is really usable after all, but.. well.. it's no dream baby). I'm actually damned disappointed (so much potential, but hey, WTF!)

To bad that this new version still can't handle European taxes properly.

iBiz does not work properly in Europe. By law we have to make a state deduction of the initial value (prior of taxes) and iBiz can't handle that.What it's worse is that this problem was noticed on March 2005 and the devs just don't try to fix it at all!Why, oh why did i bought this???

I've had great luck with this software, been using it for the past year and a half. Maybe I'm one of the *lucky* ones. The developer has great support and fixes bugs if you let them know. I don't try and do whacky oddball things that might allow the program to give me messed up results. I use it, it works, I don't have to think/worry about it. A great program in my experience. This program is no "Microsoft Project" or "Quicken", but it's great for what it is, simple, small learning curve, and reliable.

Version 2.5 will not start on 10.3.9. Interface needs a major rethink, in my opinion. I have stopped using it as of a few months ago and have gone to a Filemaker solution, built from scratch. I have also been looking into iRatchet, which I think has great potential and the developer is really great.

Like a few other users who've commented on iBiz, I've finally lost all trust in iBiz. I've purchased a license for the imperfect but dependable Billings and am moving on. The "last straw" for me came last night when I (again, as per my earlier comments) tried to create a second invoice on a project that had an open previous invoice. I performed a simple test: I added up the time and dollar totals on each of the generated invoices, and compared that total to the identified totals in the project interface and the data export. The numbers didn't match. So this means, still, when a second invoice is being created on a project with an open invoice, iBiz is billing at least some events twice. That's unacceptable. This is a key feature in the software, one that I've identified bugs with several times in the past, and it continues to operate erronenously. Errors like this are not minor or inconsequential; they are fundamental operatives that threaten the legitimacy of a user's business and can create conflict between a user and his/her clients. I simply cannot trust iBiz with any aspect of my business any more. Again, as other users have pointed out, the fast and furious posting of update releases is indicative of the developers' inability to perform adequate quality assurance testing that would result in a solid, dependable piece of software. With that, I bid the product adieu (I'm sure they're just as happy to have me out of their hair -- I was the source of many bug reports over the years).

RE: Feedback I have never encountered a problem with the support from the developer, he also has a message board on his site and he responds to user's items frequently. I switched to this suite after shelling out $$$ annually to Intuit for features that I infrequently used, especially in the arena of personal checking (iBank replaced Quicken for this.)

Gosh, that screen shot is so clear and vivid. That alone makes me want to run right out and buy it. [background:sound(laughing);]

It sure would help if the demo lasted much longer than a mere 10 minutes. It's hard to evaluate a program, especially one that records timed events, that provides so little time. It seems promising but the iCal and events features are impossible to assess in 10 minutes. I don't like the manual entry of repetitive tasks, either. I agree w/ an early post that Timelog looks fairly good, but even that feels a bit clunky on the iCal events.

First blush of new beta -- AWESOME! This is an almost perfect solution for anyone who needs to do time or project billing for a small business. Superbly integrated, easy to use, powerful, and above all flexible and stable. Have NEVER lost data or project files. Beta's new riich-text export for invoices and stripping tags a truly great move. More as I play with this new release candidate. Download the demo and take a serious test drive. I did early this year -- and have been happy and productive since.

This is close to a complete solution. But as the previous poster stated, it is quite unstable. It does have great potential. However, I'm torn between iWork and TimeLog. Each has weak and strong points compared to the other. iWork's user interface and work flow is superior to TimeLog. TimeLog however, is much better at iApps integration and requires less interface w/ the actual application via Dock and Menu bar features. I feel like iWork makes me repeat a lot of tasks compared to TimeLog such as entering repeat events and selection of new events based on or similar to previous entries. Plus there are a dearth of required, stable preferences in iWork such as time rounding and formats. Still the overriding difference is iWork's workflow compared to TimeLog's stability. Right now, iWork just crashes too much to be the winner.

Works for me. nice.

Haha.. These updates are outta control. Still, I have been using this for 2 years and it's great. Mostly for keeping track of my hours... Dont think I'll ever use all other features.. Would be nice to be able to do PDF templates, and have so much more power over the layout..after all a lot of designers are using this.. Anyhow, good piece of software..

From the comments of the previous users, I'd probably stay away from this piece of software. HOWEVER, as far as I can see, this software does exactly what I need it to do, and with the new version, it does it in a simple and elegant way. I used the previous versions of iWork on and off for the past 12 months, but never felt like parting with cash to pay for the app. Each time an iWork update was release, I hoped that the interface and general clutter/organisation was scrapped for an Apple way of doing things, but each time I was disappointed. This time though, I'm glad to say, the interface feels like iCal, the estimates are properly seperated from the invoices, and the default invoice layout is easy to reach and edit. A few minor niggles, but overall, a good update. I've been designing business project management systems on Filemaker for over 5 years now, and I find that as someone who's self employed, I don't have enough time to keep my own records organised. This app does it for me, and as an experienced systems designer, I can happily say it does it well. The shareware fee's coming your way, IGG.

I'm with aqtinc on this one. As a purchaser of both AtWork and iWork I've put up with the product's limitations until now. Version 2 offers so little *needed* added functionality, and such an unituitive interface that I don't plan on upgrading. And the bugs...

Okay, 2.0.0 is kinda buggy, but 2.0.1 came out just hours later, so give the author a break. It'll be back to full glory long before it hits version 3. The only thing I am missing is the ability to set different pricing rates on a per project or at least per client base. I don't want to define separate job events for every project but rather define global ones ("Planning", "Implementation" ...) and describe the rest in the notes. Still, cool app, soon worth the every buck again.

I have been a more recent user, and watched with great interest as atWork grew and morphed into iWork, and as it in turn grew in capabilities-until now. Version 2.0 is virtually unusable for me now. There are more bugs and deficiencies as compared to version 1.4.7 than I have the time nor inclination to report. It is so unusable, that I will continue using 1.4.7 (for the time being) until I find a better product. I would expect that a usable version of iWork will not be available until at least version 3. I'm so disappointed with version 2.0, that the idea of having to pay an upgrade fee is laughable. The number of functional deficiencies, flat-out programming bugs, and loss of features, leaves me thinking that it will require moving to at least version 3 before it will become usable again. Unfortunately, I can't wait that long, and we will be solidly entrenched with some competing product by then. Don't Buy This!

looks nicer than earlier versions but failed to 'automatically' import my earlier version file. i presume it's looking for them in '/library/application support/IGG software/iwork', whereas my earlier iwork files where saved in my docs folder. personally i think it's a retrograde step forcing the use of '/library/application support/IGG software/iwork' to store data. this folder is likely to be over-looked [and hence over-written] in any back-up strategy before an OS upgrade/re-install. much better to let the user decide where to store the data.

iWork works okay now. I think we found the culprit in a contextual menu item "Notebook" The developers have been very responsive and prompt in working to get this ironed out for me!

Use the "notes" field to write a description of what was done each day.

Doesn't track expenses. Didn't find a dialogue box to include a description of what was done on each day.

This is a great program for keeping track of time. The interface is simple and intuitive and the author is very responsive. It falls a little short on the managment of payments and doesn't have templates for the inovices, but I still prefer it to all the other choices out there and the author will surely be addressing these issues in future releases. BTW, I also like his iBank program too.

everytime I try to send an invoice, the client's name never matches the one I have selected, instead it chooses one that is two clients before the one I selected from the list. :( please help! i'm using v.1.2

Absolutely BRILLIANT program!! This has improved my time billing activities 10 fold. The application is so simple to use and has a fantastic interface. It's the 'iTunes' of time billing. Absolute MUST HAVE for anyone who primarily bills based on time. Congratulations to the author. This app could have have been designed by apple is so simple and easy to use (also looks great which is a major bonus for the visually orientated... esp. if they have to look at it all day).

I really like this app much better than TimeEqaulsMoney. I've been looking for such an easy to use and integrated program. The integration between Address Book, iCal, and iWork is awesome.