Oct

9

Bento 3 Crash Report: 10-9-09

Filed Under Bento 3 Crashes | 7 Comments

I have no choice – I just created a new category: Bento 3 Crashes! I still can’t believe how unstable the app is. So please comment in detail on the crashes of Bento 3 and I will create a new post for every crash reported.

Today I was using my Library “German Legal” to practice my vocabulary to prepare for my next court case (I’m an interpreter). I had set up a Smart Collection for the words I need to practice. It includes a Check Box field entitled “needs practice.” As long as this box is checked the words remain in the Smart Collection. Today, when I tried to un-check the box, Bento 3 crashed! Luckily, my database file stayed intact (it seems) when I re-started Bento, but the same thing happened again! So now I can’t use this set-up for practicing anymore!
Bento 3 is not able to adjust that Smart Collection. Big bummer!

Summary – the crash trigger:
trying to remove a record from a Smart Collection by un-checking a Check Box field. This had worked perfectly in Bento 2.

Update (12/09): this bug was specifically addressed in the Bento 3.0 v2 upgrade and has really been fixed! Thanks Ryan.

Oct

9

Bento Tech Support!

Filed Under Bento News, Bento Tips | 4 Comments

In case you didn’t know Filemaker offers free (limited) tech support for Bento by phone. You can also report crashes and problems, of course.
The number is: 1-800-325-2747.

For more details, see the Filemaker Contact page.

Oct

7

Users Reject Bento 3

Filed Under Bento News | 7 Comments

I’m not the only one that found Bento 3 to be unstable, to put it mildly.
Just a few days after its release users complain everywhere on my site.
I’ll add more quotes as they come in.
If you’re still willing to stay with Bento 3, remember to back up your data before you do any important editing. As for me, as long as I’m only browsing Libraries and adding Records, Bento 3 at least didn’t crash anymore…

Here are the scary comments:

(John) I am so disappointed with Bento 3′s bugs, I finally had to chunk it.  I can’t believe they let this out the door. And here I am trying to export new records and templates out of my Bento 3 db, so that I can try to rebuild them now in Bento 2 since Bento 3 is so bug-ridden.

(Max) I was looking forward to some of the exact features that came with Bento 3.
But I have found so many bugs with Bento 3 in just a few days, it is unbelievable.
I’m really disappointed in Bento 3 and think the developers at FileMaker should’ve stayed and worked at the office a few extra weekends.

(Sandra) Bento 3 is crashing all over the place for me too!

(Aaron) I’ve been using Bento 3 for a couple of weeks now. Can’t say that the features they added were in any way worth a full version release. The one potential real great feature — home sharing — is so hobbled and limited that I won’t ever use it.

(RJ) Somebody better trace WHY this Engine is sputtering konking crashing???!! Cause it is happening also on iPhone Bento. Crashing so much can’t even use it on iPhone!!!

(Jolin) I have held off from upgrading to Bento 3 due to the information on this blog. I am very glad to have waited, because the instability that seems to come from Bento 3 would be a major problem for me in my work.

(Will) Bento 3 is the little engine that could… but probably never will, thanks to the company’s open willingness to cripple the software.
And a team of paid professionals spent a year to implement useless 2005-era no-server sharing capability, drag and drop Cocoa grid-view capability into the interface, graciously allow us to organize with folders (revolutionary), and add a field type? And they want us to pay for the favor? No thanks, Filemaker, Inc.

Oct

7

Bento Bugs: Export/Import Dialog

Filed Under Bento Bugs | 1 Comment

This post is filed under a new category: Bento Bugs. A “bug” for me is an application problem that causes crashes, unexpected results, or simply confusion.

There are several problems in the export/import dialog boxes.
Trying to export a single Collection template from iCal Events: Bento actually makes you believe that this is possible by using the name of the Collection throughout the process.
Actual result: ALL your iCal Events Collections with ALL forms and fields are exported (even from the main library)! Together with Bento’s “duplication bug” this creates a huge mess as described in this article. I will talk about duplication in a new post.

Bento 3 added another discrepancy: when you are trying to export a data file, it gives you a choice between exporting “all Table View fields” or “only fields displayed in Table View.” Since Bento can now display a media cell (pictures, videos, sound files) one would believe one could now export the media files as part of the data file.
Actual result: this is not true. No media files are exported or imported with a data file.

Finally, try exporting a data file of an iCal Collection. This gets really confusing. Bento does export just the records contained in the Collection. But if you choose “all Table View fields” it exports all fields of the main Library! It should just export all fields used by the Collection.
Actual result: When you import such a data file into the SAME template it came from, Bento issues the warning: “some data cannot be imported.”
Remedy: you have to go into Table View and make sure that only all the fields used in the iCal Collection are displayed. Then choose “only fields displayed in Table View” in the export dialog.

Comment: it is hard enough to re-build a Library on a different computer without being able to export both the media files and any data from List fields. The three described bugs in the dialog box make it even harder and more confusing!

Oct

6

Power Users Beware – Part Two

Filed Under Bento Bugs, Bento Tips, Editorial | 2 Comments

My problem is I’m too meticulous. I want things to run perfectly smoothly to be happy. That doesn’t mean I don’t like challenges, but when the challenge is met I want to relax again. But Bento 3 doesn’t let me relax, because it doesn’t keep its promises. Here are some of the most annoying examples:

Back to my daughter’s athletics: I created two Related Data fields side-by-side to compare results from 2008 with the ones from 2009. For this to be useful, both fields have to display the records in the same order.

Strange behavior #1: as long as I browse library records in sequence everything’s fine. But the moment I use split view and choose a record in the middle of the pack the display in the Related Data fields gets out of order AND they don’t match up anymore! Now it’s become useless for me.

Strange behavior #2: the same happens with the new Simple List field. The only good thing is I only need one field instead of two since I can enter the results from both years in the same field. So they match up at least, but still get out of order.

Strange behavior #3: Simple list field again.
You are supposed to be able to copy and paste data (says the user’s guide). If you paste spreadsheet data in Table View, all the data gets automatically distributed in rows and columns. You can’t paste something into an empty Simple List field at all. And if it has only a single cell it puts all the data in that one cell! So first you have to create enough cells so the pasted data will fit. That shouldn’t happen!

Strange behavior #4: Simple List fields again and again…
In general I like to avoid scroll bars in Bento, because they’re simply ugly. I try to design my templates so they fit on the screen, and the list fields so they contain all the data I need – all without scroll bars. It works most of the time, just takes a little extra work.
The Simple List field has two bad display problems: it shows a (redundant) empty row (for new data) even though it has a “+” icon for adding a row, and it displays an empty column (called “new column”). You can resize the empty column, making it a sliver, but whenever you restart Bento, it’s full size again! All the other List fields retain the width of their cells, NOT the Simple List field!

Strange behavior #5: Form View.
Recently I duplicated a form, because I wanted to make slight changes for displaying the final record of a collection. The duplicated form is supposed to be a separate entity. But in this case Bento 3 maintained some kind of a link between the forms. I made my changes to the duplicate and when I went back to the other form, it was messed up. SOME of the changes to the duplicate had also effected the original!

Enough for today. I will amend this article whenever I notice more of this unexpected behavior. Please also report similar problems right here.

As I commented before: Bento is just not doing its part when it comes to consistent or expected results – especially for power users.

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