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Version 7 for iOS 7 is here! Version 7, you might say… but where did the other versions go? Well, from here on out I plan to align the app version with the iOS version it’s targeted for, so we’re jumping ahead here to catch up. Apple has recently begun to allow downloads of older versions, and I think this type of versioning scheme will be the easiest to understand as iOS moves forward.

I want to take a moment to offer a very heartfelt thanks to everyone I’ve worked so closely with over the past few months while implementing and refining features, as well as the beta testers who offered invaluable input. This update, code-wise, was probably the biggest one to date. iOS 7 is very different than iOS 6 and earlier with respect to how screens are drawn and displayed – something Roastmaster draws a lot of. When the GM seeds of iOS 7 were released, I realized development time was going to run long. Since I also wanted to hold out for testing on the new iPad, I took the chance to concentrate heavily on both form and function – a very big undertaking to say the least, but one that was definitely due.

Form

I’ve overhauled the UI – in part to help Roastmaster blend with iOS 7’s minimalistic design theme, and integrate seamlessly with its new features. More importantly, though, I felt the new version of Roastmaster should have an interface that is familiar, but much more content-oriented – one that takes a back seat to your data – complementing it, and eschewing unnecessary elements that compete with it.

In line with this, I’ve paid very close attention to typography, colors and iconography in this update. In an app as comprehensive as Roastmaster, running on a platform that is limited to one visible screen at a time, these items are critical in helping you to navigate your data, and also in serving as mnemonic cues – helping you mentally retain your place in the app as you browse. I really hope you enjoy the new look, and find the UI enahncements helpful in presenting and navigating your data.

Function

My ever-present goal is to equip Roastmaster with the tools to help you put your data to work for you. I strive to help you easily and intuitively build on past successes – either by direct comparison of current roasts to past roasts and their cupping data, or by using this data in tandem with your ever-evolving custom profiles. This is the means to the end goal of the best tasting cup of coffee possible. In addition to this, it’s important to be able to perform tasks in Roastmaster easily – with minimal effort and thought on your part. Most of the new features are geared toward one of these two goals.

So many amazing folks have come forward with ideas and suggestions – some I’d already planned, some I’d never even thought of. Thanks to you all! Believe me, I listen to and evaluate every single suggestion. As always, majority rules – so if you see your suggestion on this list, you’re in good company.

New Features

User Interface

• Full iOS 7 compatibility
• A more simple, open and content-oriented design
• Improved typography and iconography
• Support for iOS 7 dynamic text sizing
• Easily recognizable activity icons now replace the old text-based activity choices
• All buttons are easier to tap

Support for two new probes for Data Logging Users

• Support for the BlueTherm Duo Probe – a wireless Bluetooth probe that supports 2 K Style thermocouples
• Support for the iCelsius BBQ Probe – a wired probe that attaches to the dock connector, or to a Lightning port via a Dock to Lightning adapter.

Productivity

• New inventory report type
• Analyze recent roasts to quickly view your most recent roast activity
• Easily turn a completed roast into a profile or program
• Notes for all items are now edited via a spacious full-screen editor
• Dedicated numeric keypad for editing node values and times
• Faster database operations
• Copying a roast now includes the profile and program, and applies the appropriate curve templates
• Roast alarms can now be set by tapping on the alarm marker and entering a specific time in addition to dragging on the gauge or graph
• Several of the past-roast matching algorithms have been shifted to the database side, speeding up queries and greatly reducing memory consumption
• Roaster setup assistant. Behmor users will find this particularly helpful, as it will automatically configure a Behmor roaster for using and displaying Behmor curves.
• Better curve comparison for past roast matching
• Rested age since roasting in days and hours for cuppings
• Ability to condense or expand an existing curve by intervals of 15 seconds
• Roasts, blends and cuppings now show the countries of their items in the header
• Roasts, blends and cuppings can now be filtered by country in the main list views
• Ability to two-finger tap on the main roast console graph to select a curve from a list of all curves
• Ability to have roast timers display inverted Behmor time when a Behmor curve is selected
• Ability to enter cracks for 30 seconds after the roast has ended

Roast Analyzer

• Faster scrolling and more responsive navigation
• Curve targeting mode enables you choose which curves are displayed for targeting:

1. 1. Profile/Program Mode: Current roast curves are displayed as solid, profile/program curves are displayed as dotted, all other curves hidden
   2. Past Roast Mode: Current roast curves are displayed as solid, past roast curves are displayed as dotted, all other curves hidden
   3. All (The legacy mode): Current roast and current profile/program curves are displayed as solid, other past roast curves displayed as dotted
   4. None: Current roast and current profile/program curves are displayed as solid, all other curves are hidden

• Live differential temperature projection markers. Select a curve, and create a draggable target with the predicted temperature based on the recent differential energy of the curve.
• Floating labels for curve levels, crack times and duration milestones
• Define up to three separate custom deltas to report for the selected curve or node
• Ability to plot control curves with a reduced height at the bottom of the screen – leaving the top area free for reading curve analysis
• More intuitive crack buttons: tap once to set the begin time – subsequent taps extend the duration. To clear times, tap and hold.
• Analyzer now remembers the selected curve, focus past roast and projection markers between views
• Customizable opacities for graph elements, like current curves, target curves and background
• More accurate delta times for data logging users (deltas are calculated from recent probe readings – accurate to 1/2 second)
• Easier curve selection by tapping directly on a curve, or two-finger tapping to invoke a chooser list
• Preference for alerts to remind you to enter temperature nodes at a customizable interval while in the Analyzer
• Ability to show a margin around the graph for easier selection of nodes that lie at 0 on the X or Y axis
• Preference settings to independently set the opacity for X or Y axis grid line markers.
• Selected curve remains selected when swiping through past roasts
• Analyzer display is calibrated to minutes, and remembers the last used setting between views

Looking Ahead

I’m going to be concentrating heavily on a series of screencast “shorts” – videos geared toward educating users on some of the features and how to perform standard and more complex workflow operations in Roastmaster. Please let me know if you have any suggestions on things you’d like to see showcased, or if you have any specific questions or comments on using Roastmaster.

I really hope you enjoy the new features in this update, and find them helpful in your roasting workflow. For folks celebrating Thanksgiving – enjoy your turkey, your time off and all we have to be thankful for. For those, and everyone else… as always, Happy Roasting!

Danny

Last night, Roastmaster 4.1 went live. If you haven’t installed it already, head over to the app store, grab the update and check out what’s new:

• Reporting
• Tab delimited exporting of report data
• J Type thermocouple support for Data Logging users
• Smoother temperature display for Data Logging users
• The Roast Analyzer now displays crack and duration averages from past roasts as gradient bars in the bottom x-axis legend, removing some of the clutter that could present in complex roast comparisons, and giving a clear way to see how the milestones of your current roast are occurring compared to the past roasts your are targeting.
• Selected curves in Analyzer now display as gradients, making it easier to discern between multiple current and past curves
• Tap-and-hold to clone a Bean
• Many under-the-hood and small usability tweaks
• Fixed a bug that would result in a crash when attempting to delete a curve from a profile or program, if that curve was copied from a roast in which it was instantiated from a curve template.
• Fixed a bug that would prevent deletion of a curve template from a Profile or Program

For Data Logging Users: Roastmaster 4.1 uses the latest Phidgets software – build 2.1.8.20130618. For users with a PC or Mac host, please download the appropriate software and install the Preference Pane (Mac) or Control Panel (Windows). For those with an SBC host, please open the PhidgetSBC Administration Console by double clicking the SBC in the Preference Pane/Control Panel of your desktop computer, navigating to the “System” main tab, then the “Packages” subtab, and clicking the update all packages button. Once your Phidgets software is updated, Roastmaster 4.1 will be able to link to your probes.

About the Update

As the app gradually matures with each release, I find my greatest ambition is to enhance the ways in which the data you record is made available to you as you use Roastmaster, not only in the area in which it resides, but in other areas – areas where you need to see it, and where it will be the most beneficial. Alongside of this, an ever-present ambition is to enhance the user experience – making the app as fun and easy to use as possible.

In the previous update, the Roast Analyzer screen was given a much-needed facelift. This included, among other things, the capability to display multiple roasts, and scroll through each one, seeing the current roast data compared to past roast and cupping data, to help you make informed decisions as you roast. After all, what good is dutifully recording data if you have to hunt and peck to retrieve it? That information should be easily accessible when and where you need it, in a way that makes it easy to understand and recognize patterns.

This update continues that focus with one of the most requested features this year – reporting. Whether you make your livelihood from roasting coffee, or are a coffee enthusiast who, like me, spends more than your fair share on green coffee beans, it’s important to be able to see how much you roast, blend or cup. Even if you don’t faithfully cup all of your roasts, seeing exactly what you roast is a good indicator of your own personal preferences, and is a great way to see what you like, as well a good means to bring attention to beans, countries or regions you’ve been neglecting.

What is Reporting?

Whereas the roasting mode of the home screen graph only displays totals from top-level beans in your roasts, Roastmaster’s reporting engine scours your database, descending through as many levels of encapsulation as your roasts contain to extract the exact weights of the green beans you’re using. So, for instance, if you like to roast blends that are comprised of roasts – the reporting engine will track that bean usage all the way to the beans themselves, reporting the exact weights and cost involved. Pairing this with cost analysis paints a pretty comprehensive picture of not only your roasting habits, but your spending habits as well.

Version 4.1 introduces 3 report types:

• Bean Usage of Roasts: An exhaustive actual bean use and cost analysis of your roasts.
• Bean Usage of Cuppings: An exhaustive actual bean use and cost analysis of your cuppings.
• Bean Components of Blends: An exhaustive report of bean percentages and projected cost averages of beans per lb or kg of blend.

Roastmaster’s reporting engine is equipped with flexible features:

• Advanced automatic and customizable time ranges
• Ability to group by Region, Country or Vendor, or lump everything together
• Sorting by Amount, Cost or Name
• Export to a tab delimited text file, including all of the bean details, amounts and costs, for sending to dropbox, iTunes file sharing or as an email attachment. Special attention has been paid to the data contained in the export – values are normalized and label free to allow easy sorting in your spreadsheet application.

I encourage you to experiment with the reporting feature, and, if you aren’t in the habit of recording the cost of your beans, to start recording this as you receive bean shipments. The existing bean cost feature is very easy to use, just enter the amount paid, and the weight you received. For instance, you can enter $24.57 per 5 lb – Roastmaster handles all of the math when needed. This information is very helpful when using the reporting feature – especially if you’re on a budget.

This is just the beginning of Reporting. I have ideas for more reports I plan to introduce in subsequent updates. If you have suggestions for other report types that would be beneficial to you, please let me know.

Moving Forward

Lots of things are planned for coming updates. I’ve done a lot of work under-the-hood with this release to prepare for the future. In the data logging arena, I’m in the process of securing test units and the SDKs for two interesting probes: the iCelsius BBQ and the Bluetherm Duo. Both units look promising, and both have their own individual strengths. Now that this update is released, I’ll be diving headfirst into coding and testing for hopeful support for Data Logging users in an update soon.

Lots of other general features have been suggested by users. International localization, temperature-based alarms and events and iCloud syncing are among the most popular – all things I want to tackle. I’ve even got my own personal favorite ideas that are starting to get some requests – like integrating the coffee roasting taste wheel into cuppings, bean inventory lots/batches/skids to track changing costs and bean aging, and many others. Please let me know what you’d like to see in future updates – I gauge development by popularity – so the most votes win!

As alway – Happy Roasting!