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# 4.17 Bookdog Grads’ Startup

Smarky, Synkmark, Markster and BookMacster are replacements for our older application, Bookdog. This page highlights the changes that will help a Bookdog user to get going with BookMacster.

Topics on this Page

- Which App Do I Want?
- New System Requirements
- Import, Export, Combining Browsers
- Auto Import and Auto Export
- Agents — The new breed of Bookwatchdog
- Duplicate Bookmarks
- Broken Bookmarks
- Migration
- Sort at Top/Bottom – Invisibly
- Glims Separators in Safari
- Getting a Discount when Purchasing a License
- Coexistence with Bookdog

## 4.17.1 Which App Do I Want?

If all you want your Safari bookmarks sorted (alphabetized), the answer is: Smarky. If you may want to do more, check out our Bookmarks Manager Selection Guide

## 4.17.2 New System Requirements

- BookMacster requires Mac OS X 10.6 “Leopard” or later.

## 4.17.3 Import, Export, Combining Browsers

The most important little section for a Bookdog user to read.

Bookdog’s old Bookmarks Documents were somewhat unconventional in that they did not have their own storage. Open and Save operations were actually performed on a web browsers’ bookmarks. For example, here’s how Bookdog worked with Safari:

In contrast, Smarky, Synkmark, Markster and BookMacster Bookmarkshelf Documents are regular Mac documents. Open and Save operations are performed on their own storage and do not, by default, affect the bookmarks of any web browser. To read or write external browsers’ bookmarks in the new apps, you’ll use the new commands: Import and Export.

In Bookdog, one document always opened directly the bookmarks of one browser, but the new apps do not have this limitation and can be used in different styles. To give you a quick start, we’ve identified three typical starting points. Regardless of your starting point, you can sync your bookmarks among multiple Macs.

## 4.17.4 Auto Import and Auto Export

If you’d like BookMacster to behave like Bookdog did, there are openSaveAutoAct which tell BookMacster to automatically Import after Open which we call Auto Import, and automatically Export before Save which we call Auto Export.

The Auto Import, and Auto Export settings are activated automatically for you when BookMacster creates a Bookmarkshelf by importing from only one browser, such as Safari.

Auto Import and Auto Export are analagous to the Auto Save and Versions feature of Mac OS X.

## 4.17.5 Agents — The new breed of Bookwatchdog

Bookwatchdog has been retired. Instead, a Bookmarkshelf can be configured with one or more Agents. Agents can sort and find duplicates like Bookwatchdog, but in addition can synchronize (Import, then Export), eliminating the need for Automator actions. Agents can be triggered on daily schedules, when browsers quit, when Safari bookmarks change, or when you log in. Unlike Bookwatchdog, Agents are launched by the launchd facility in the Mac OS and therefore do not require a Login Item.

## 4.17.6 Duplicate Bookmarks

The Duplicate Bookmark window which showed duplicates one at a time is gone. Instead of Analyze for Duplicates, you now Find Duplicates. Duplicates are shown in groups so that, for example if you have four bookmarks to the same web page, you see simply one group of four instead of six pairs which appeared at random. They are now shown in a table so that you can select and deal with duplicate groups in arbitrary order, and are stored when you click Save.

## 4.17.7 Broken Bookmarks

The Broken Bookmarks window, which showed a single broken bookmark, is also gone. After a Verify operation is complete, you can filter out whatever broken bookmarks you are interested in (example: Any bookmark whose Verify Status Code is not 200) in the Find tab. The status code, recommendation, and past, present and suggested URL of bookmarks with issues are now shown in the bottom drawer of the Inspector panel. The drawer opens automatically after a Verify operation completes. If you want to take a break after fixing broken bookmarks, you can save the document and re-open it later because all of the Verify results are saved with the Bookmarkshelf document.

## 4.17.8 Migration

Last but not least, the Migration document and its Migration window are gone. Instead of migrating between two browsers, you Import and Export between the Bookmarkshelf and an unlimited number of browsers.

To perform a “migration” manually, you configure a Bookmarkshelf with the browser(s) or other clients from which to Import, the clients to which to Export, with the various options. Then instead of clicking Do It, inspecting the results, and saving, you click Import, inspect the results, and then click Export.

To perform a “migration” automatically, instead of using Automator, you configure an Agent to do the same thing – Import, Save (actually this is optional), and then Export. Instead of being limited to a single source and single destination however, you can include as many clients as you want in the Import and Export.

## 4.17.9 Sort at Top/Bottom – Invisibly

It is no longer necessary to prefix empty spaces or tildes on item names in order to force items to the top or bottom when sorting. Items that you want sorted to the top or bottom of their siblings are now marked internally.

## 4.17.10 Glims Separators in Safari

The new apps detect if you have Glims 1.0 or later installed, and if so any separators in your content are exported to Safari using the Glims format. Separators in the Glims format will be imported whether you have Glims or not.

## 4.17.11 Getting a Discount when Purchasing a License

If you decide to purchase a license for one of the new apps, the new app will find your Bookdog License Information and send it to our server which will automatically award you a discount based on your Bookdog purchase date. Therefore, if you’ve purchased a Bookdog license, don’t trash your Bookdog preferences and don’t run any of those app-zapping or app-deleting apps yet.

## 4.17.12 Coexistence with Bookdog

Generally, if you’re using one of the new apps, you shouldn’t be using Bookdog at the same time. No harm will be done, but you’ll get “File Conflict” warnings and other annoyances.

More importantly, if you’ve activated syncing in one of the new apps, you don’t want Bookwatchdog trying to do the same thing. For this reason, whenever the new app or one of its Workers launches, or attempts an Import or Export operation, it checks to see if Bookdog or Bookwatchdog is running and, if so, it quits them or alerts you with an error if they will not quit.

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