BeerSmith - BeerTools - Promash. - Which is best? What do you have?

[thewurzel]

I tried beersmith and pro mash and ended up with beersmith
I think what would make it better though.
Would be if you could copy and paste one recipe into another.

 

[BigKahuna]

I need to change my Vote. I am a newly converted BeerSmith User! It's just better.

 

[HarvInSTL]

I tried all three and settled on Beersmith. Easy to use and has regular updates. Plus it had the longest free trial.

The limit in Promash was 3 recipes/sessions. It was bad enought that the software wasn't user friendly, but then limiting me to only being able to use it really three times made it difficult to purchase.

I must say that the $20 I spent on Beersmith has been one of my best purchases so far in home brewing.

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

I have used all 3 of the Windows based offerings. For the longest time my preference was towards ProMash based soley on ease of use. I later began using BeerSmith due to the recent update improvements and have not questioned the platform since.

What do you like about the program you use?

I like that it is "actively" developed. It is not in the "Beta" phase of design, has an adequate user manual, and is actively updated.

What is it missing?

The ability to user select units of measure for specific fields.

What does it do really well?

Help me build recipes and track inventory.

Why did you go for the one you did?

It is more current. See why I like it.

What improvements would you like to see?

I would like the developer to allow tools to be opened as a window rather than forcing the recipe to be closed.

 

[FlyGuy]

What is it missing?

The ability to user select units of measure for specific fields.

Perhaps you missed it Gila, but Beersmith is EXCEPTIONAL at doing this. First, to enter measures in any units (regardless of what is displayed on the recipe form), just type in something like 1.5 oz or 42 g. It will recognize the 'oz' or 'g' units, and automatically convert to whatever units are currently displayed.

Second, to quickly switch units to Imperial or Metric, just hit CTRL-E or CTRL-M, respectively.

Finally, to change the units displayed for any field in the recipe, from the menu select Tools --> Options, select the Units tab, and pick the units you want (including their increment values).

That's another nice thing about Beersmith -- it has an incredible amount of 'hidden' power that isn't always obvious, but is very powerful once you find it.

 

[digunderground]

I am a mac user so unfortunately all of the options given are unusable by me. I currently use a free mac app, but I am looking at BeerAlchemy. Does anyone have experience with beer alchemy?

-DIG

 

[DUCCCC]

I am a mac user so unfortunately all of the options given are unusable by me. I currently use a free mac app, but I am looking at BeerAlchemy. Does anyone have experience with beer alchemy?

-DIG

Yes. It rocks.
[ame="http://www.google.com/search?q=%22beer+alchemy%22+site%3Ahomebrewtalk.com&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-USfficial&client=firefox-a"]http://www.google.com/search?q=%22beer+alchemy%22+site%3Ahomebrewtalk.com&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-USfficial&client=firefox-a[/ame]

 

[devaspawn]

I use Beersmith. Off the top of my head the only thing it's missing that would be real nice to have is an efficiency calculator.

 

[Brew-boy]

I have tried all 3 and by Far Beer tools Pro(New version will be out soon) is head over heals better in my opinion.

 

[FlyGuy]

I use Beersmith. Off the top of my head the only thing it's missing that would be real nice to have is an efficiency calculator.

Beersmith calculates your efficiency automatically if you record your actual gravity (and volume) going into the fermenter. Look for it on your recipes list page.

 

[Shay]

I am a mac user so unfortunately all of the options given are unusable by me. I currently use a free mac app, but I am looking at BeerAlchemy. Does anyone have experience with beer alchemy?

-DIG

You can use beer tools pro on the mac. It's not free though.

 

[digunderground]

@ shay

Not concerned about free.. lol this is an expensive hobby. I just want to make sure the software is worth it if im paying.. Thanks for the input!!!

-DIG

 

[Chriso]

Mac users, do you have "other" windows apps you want to use as well? I ask because I am a newly-minted Mac user, and I just run my BeerSmith in Parallels Desktop. VMWare Fusion and CrossOver both do the same thing. I've also heard you can set up WINE for free.

BeerSmith here, no matter how much work it takes me to get it loaded on non-Windows OS.

I do have a few improvement suggestions / conversation points, but I'm not done drafting them. That'll be for a new thread on some other day.

 

[Stevorino]

I go promash simply because the Brewing Network uses it and I get a lot of recipes from those guys.

 

[ajf]

I voted for Promash. The dated, clunky interface suits my personality, and I find it much easier to use than Beersmith.

-a.

 

[Bobby_M]

I have beertoolspro and I think most people would like it. However, they've been running the 1.5 beta for a really long time now and are rumoured to be working on the user manual since it was so lacking in the previous releases. I have a hard time recommending it until 1.5 goes public.

 

[BeerPressure]

I used the trial versions of ProMash, Beer Tools, and Beersmith. I think i am going to end up going with beersmith.

 

[Monsterc]

The results might be skewed by Mac users, because only one of our software options (BTP) is up on that list.

Agree!

When does BeerSmith come out on iPhone?

 

[bookburn]

I have tried all 3. Beersmith and Beertools appear to be well supported because when I purchased the licensed versions I received my license keys within minutes. I cannot say the same for Promash because it has been 5 days since I applied for a registration key and have not gotten it. I have even left a message on the Promash message board but still no reply.

Creating recipes with Beersmith and Beertools is somewhat intuitive but it does take some playing around with the software to add ingredients and plan out various mash and hop schedules. I like both these products but Beertools does have a subscription service that allows you to expand on the number of recipes you can track online through their interface, as well as post your recipes for comments from others who use the software.

 

[Bobby_M]

Frankly any integration with the website recipe database should be discounted when considering BTP. I would never trust a user submitted recipe. Even around here, I only brew something when a few other people give it a thumbs up or someone claims a comp win.

With that said, I use BTP and it does just about everything I want. The inventory feature could be better and so could the printout, but overall it's solid and looks good too. It's not for people that want it to hold their hand. It has NO presets.

 

[Panzermann]

Not sure how to utilise any of them at this point, any tips would be appreciated. For now I am on my first kit (Bock).

 

[bsay]

Beersmith

What do you like about the program you use?
It does all of the calculating for me, which is nice.

What is it missing?
It has a few quirks that annoy me sometime. Like when I want to add 3 ounces of malt, and the measurement is by the pound, I have to figure out what 3oz. is in points of a pound. The delete button on the keyboard also does not delete ingredients from a recipe, which I think it should (instead, the delete button on the program has to be pressed). Finally, the inventory management system is a little wonky, but I don't use it, so it doesn't bother me.

What does it do really well?
Calculates all of the "stats" of my recipes very accurately.

Why did you go for the one you did?
Tried it, liked it. The annoyances are small, and I'm sure will be addressed in future versions. Wish it was an open source project, I'd contribute heavily to it I'm sure.

 

[Yuri_Rage]

Beersmith
...
Like when I want to add 3 ounces of malt, and the measurement is by the pound, I have to figure out what 3oz. is in points of a pound.

You're about to like BeerSmith even more. Type "3 oz" into the quantity, and it will automatically convert to pounds. That technique works with most of the quantity fields in the program, and it will even convert between metric and English units.

 

[FlyGuy]

What is it missing?
It has a few quirks that annoy me sometime. Like when I want to add 3 ounces of malt, and the measurement is by the pound, I have to figure out what 3oz. is in points of a pound.

Nope, actually it will do it for you. Just type in '3 oz' and it will convert the units for you.

 

[BeerPressure]

i am a beersmith user

 

[Chriso]

You're about to like BeerSmith even more. Type "3 oz" into the quantity, and it will automatically convert to pounds. That technique works with most of the quantity fields in the program, and it will even convert between metric and English units.

I danced a big ol' floppy jig of joy the day that someone mentioned that to me. Best Feature Ever.

You want 5 lb, 3 oz? You type 5 lb 3 oz, and you get it. Buahahahaha!

 

[edgewoodbrewery]

I have Beersmith. I just started using it though so I really don't have an opinion on it right now. I do like the inventory feature though!

 

[billtzk]

I use BeerSmith now, and I love it. I started using it about three months ago. It'll run with wine under Linux, which is a big plus for me. It is an extremely versatile tool. I used to do most of the calculations it does by hand, and some where very tedious to do. BeerSmith is a huge productivity aid.

 

[Pelikan]

I voted "other," as I use the Recipator. I'm surprised no one has mentioned it yet. From where I'm sitting, it does everything I'd want a recipe program to do (and then some).

I don't mean this as an affront, but it seems the pay-for brew software is little more than glorified recipators with some added frills like inventory, etc. I'd love for someone to prove me wrong though. I'm itchin' to spend a buck on the next gizmo, but when it comes to software I really can't justify the cost in light of the online calculators.

 

[lordbeermestrength]

I use that too... I think I mentioned it in another forum. It isn't as nice as promash, though. Promash has a lot more calculators that I find useful.

But I like to keep track of my recipes with recipator, saved on my hard drive in folders by style. I like it a lot for that.