Lost its charm

Loved the previous version of this app, in fact, Id have paid an upgrade fee simply to have it working under Yosemite.

The new version? Not so much. It eschews the timeline interface where new entries are seen in the timeline as soon as theyre entered, and replaces it with a drab boring list of events. After youre done making entries and looking at the gray screen, you can "generate" a timeline that looks similar to that created by the previous application. The "killer feature" here, apparently, happens when you click on an event in the sidebar and the timeline zooms to show that particular element (see screenshot above).

Its cool for presentations, but as I never used timeline for live presentations the new effect is lost on me. Id much rather have the old workflow where I can see my entries on the timeline as Im working on it.

The 3D view also leans towards invoking motion sickness. If you run the mouse over the event list it automatically expands. Moving the mouse back into the window contracts the list, and moving the mouse offscreen (even just to the menubar) hides the event list completely. The net effect is that of a 3D window thats constantly growing and shrinking and showing and hiding elements on every mouse twitch. Better, I think, to have a standard segmented control in the toolbar to show and hide the list as desired and as needed. The magically changing workflow is distracting and more than a little annoying.

Another minor nit is that the app will import old timeline files... and immediately forget the name of the file. Every document imported and saved is "untitled".

Unlike the other review, I dont mind paying for upgrades or getting a "free" app and paying to unlock functionality. Developers have to eat too. I just wish the new app had more of the flavor and charm (and workflow) of the old app.

M Long about Timeline 3D