Is Mariner Software (marinersoft.com), makers of Paperless dead?

[Mockletoy]

For up-to-date info here is the address: https://danschimpf.blogspot.com

Still fully being worked on and a release as of July of this year. Doesn't look like MacJournal is abandoned to me.

The last stable release was in August 2021, more than two years ago. The release you mention in June of this year was a minor bug fix released as a beta, with the stable release expected to come “in a few weeks” from then.

That was, as you say, 6 months ago, which is rather more than “a few weeks” by any reasonable metric. So, that puts it at 2+ years since the last stable release and nearly half a year since the last beta, which itself represented only trivial updates.

Perhaps you and I simply have different notions of what active development looks like. To me it looks quite stagnant if not outright abandoned.

It’s a pity. I really enjoyed the app back in its day, but that day seems long past.

MacJournal Version History

 

[MacHeritage]

I've just had it happen in the past, with one person developers, that something personal comes up and they have to put their app on hold for a period of months and then they come back to it etc. and talk about it after the fact. I doubt it makes a ton of money, so might not be on the top of the priority list if there is an emergency for him.

From what I know, he isn't dead. If it becomes a year with no communication or beta's etc. then there is a problem, in my opinion.

 

[wellersbayview]

Learned Paperless3 was defunct when upgrading to a new MacBook and it wouldn't accept my serial number to validate.However, the files stored on iCloud open. I haven't used the app much in the past few years so I'm not fretting.

I now use KeepIt from Reinvented software to manage all sorts of pdf and other records though it doesn't summarize invoices like Paperless attempted. OTOH, it's much more versatile as a document organizer and is actively supported with regular updates and quick response from the developer to any questions. There are also versions for iOS and iPAD.

Receipts, mentioned above, may offer additional features but is rather highly priced.

MacJournal updated today to v7.4 so is still alive. I switched to DayOne for its much more contemporary interface, regular updates, web access, etc etc. I'm skeptical MacJournal will receive continued support.

 

[H_D]

Receipts, mentioned above, may offer additional features but is rather highly priced.

It is about 80€, no subscription, no hidden fees. Paid once, been using it for years and boy do I wish Evernote had the same pricing model :-D. Also, Receipts is part of the Setapp-Package. I have zero affiliation with the App or Developer, but it really, really is one of the nicer apps you can get, easy to use, smart, flexible, open and simple structure for your files, amazing «search-ability»etc. I use it mostly for invoices and the connection to MoneyMoney and GrandTotal etc is kind of brillant (as long as the invoices have semi-readable IBAN). Also, the dev is basically constantly working on it, opts of Beta-Updates and so on. It's really one of those softwares that make the Mac so great.

 

[MacHeritage]

Receipts looks very promising compared to using DevonThink or others to replace Paperless. I love the no subscription model and no hidden fees! I will look into it more for sure.

 

[dmwesq]

I just looked at the Receipts site (assuming I was in the correct location), and it seems entirely focused on receipts (hence the name) compared with Paperless which was equally meant for scanning and organizing all types of documents. I also revisited DevonThink and both seem quite pricey.

Collects your documents | Receipts Mac App

Collects receipts and automatically recognizes values. Ideal for taxes, accounting, finances and expenses. Try it now for free!

www.receipts-app.com

 

[johnb1968]

Yeah... Receipts is much more focused on receipts. I use it for everything since that's how I used Paperless (I just tag things with different categories), but I'm hoping they expand it's functionality over time, as it's not ideal.

 

[dmwesq]

Here is the response from Receipts support:
You can archive documents without amount, but with date, contacts, categories, keywords and/or notes, in Receipts.

At the request of many customers, we are working on the integration of document management into Receipts. Unfortunately we can't give a release date yet.

 

[rampancy]

Regarding Dan Schimpf, from the MacJournal version history one would assume he's balancing his solo work on MacJournal with parenting a young child (and whatever his day job is).

So I'd expect he wouldn't be working on MacJournal at the same rapid pace as other freeware developers.

He recently released 7.4, which is available on his blog.

 

[MacHeritage]

Now that I have had a chance to work in Receipts for a few hours, I can say that this is the app to replace Paperless. It is smart, fast, has the scanning ability (even though I haven't used that part yet) and has all the necessary features to support what I was using Paperless for. Plus, it can be used for any document but if using it that way, DevonThink is way better. This is more for what Paperless was originally designed for and that is receipts, invoices etc.

Receipts is actually more flexible in many ways with support for invoices as well. Therefore, you can have your receipts like normal but also your invoices and with that, you can have all your charts and information. Paperless never had any of those things with version 2 that I was using.

Overall, very well done app that is not a subscription! Worth its price all the way and is available on the Mac App Store, which I prefer.

 

[ScottR]

Now that I have had a chance to work in Receipts for a few hours, I can say that this is the app to replace Paperless. It is smart, fast, has the scanning ability (even though I haven't used that part yet) and has all the necessary features to support what I was using Paperless for. Plus, it can be used for any document but if using it that way, DevonThink is way better. This is more for what Paperless was originally designed for and that is receipts, invoices etc.

Receipts is actually more flexible in many ways with support for invoices as well. Therefore, you can have your receipts like normal but also your invoices and with that, you can have all your charts and information. Paperless never had any of those things with version 2 that I was using.

Overall, very well done app that is not a subscription! Worth its price all the way and is available on the Mac App Store, which I prefer.

I use Paperless almost entirely for documents--bank and financial statements, tax records, etc. If I ever used it for receipts that was WAY back. From what you've seen, would DevonThink be better?

 

[MacHeritage]

I use Paperless almost entirely for documents--bank and financial statements, tax records, etc. If I ever used it for receipts that was WAY back. From what you've seen, would DevonThink be better?

Since you are talking about financial documents, it could work. You can have multiple databases as well if you want them completely siloed too. If you liked the way Paperless worked, you should like Receipts as well. They are similar for the basics. According to my knowledge of Paperless 2 and my basic knowledge of the latest Receipts app:

• You have Contacts which is similar to Merchant in Paperless for receipts but can also be used differently because of its name. This will go well for it when Documents are added.
• I haven't found any Smart Collections like in Paperless but you have lots of other options. I never needed Smart Collections myself.
• Journal is the same as Collections in Paperless was.
• There currently is no types (receipts, documents, contact) in Receipts but I hear that is coming later (above post).
• Reports do not have the each receipt with info beside it kind of Report output like Paperless has but you have richer reports in the other areas that were lacking in Paperless 2 (don't know if Paperless 3 had them).
• No Burn to DVD/CD option, for hard backups.
• Haven't found any encryption options yet like in Paperless, if one wants that option.
• Overall, if you used every feature of Paperless, Receipts might leave you wanting more and DevonThink would be your only option, with a whole different way of looking at it and doing it. Completely different beast there. But if you don't need every feature in order to "survive," then it will do great as a replacement.

They also have a help file that you can read through for more info of the options available: https://www.receipts-app.com/en/help

It is just a different app that is still at v1 and improving. Remember Paperless at v1? LOL Yeah, it took some years of major investment and time to get it to where it was when they quit on us. They also started with a different purpose in mind compared to Receipts.

The best thing is to actually try it out with the demo. No other way of really knowing if you are going to like it or not. If the demo doesn't do it for you, then try DevonThink, which will be more complicated but with more power, if that is what you want.

I personally think you should give Receipts a try first before tackling DevonThink, for the purposes you are stating. It is very similar to Paperless, just with some more modern features and yet less feature rich.

Did that help at all?

 

[zamboknee]

I've been wondering what happened to Mariner for a while now too.
Been using Contour off and on and still works though some other program to replace it would be great.
Dan's Macjournal works great. He's good about replying to questions too.
Would have been nice to have gotten a heads up on their shuttering. At least some sort of notice that they've sold off this app or that app to some other developer(s).
🤷‍♂️

 

[Chip Chanko]

Glad to see I'm not the only one missing paperless! I still wonder what happened, though.

 

[macscreenwriter]

Hey Folks, I actually worked for Mariner back in the day in tier 1 support and did video tutorials for them. Since I resigned due to lack of hours, they revamped the website, but they probably went under when COVID hit. I first hooked up with them because they were creating a screenwriting program called Montage but they abandoned it because of lack of development dollars. They would then acquire different titles and would put their spin on them. At the time, Michael Wray ran the show. I'll reach out to their in-house developer to find out what the heck happened and report back.

 

[nomanisan]

I ended up moving all my Paperless docs to DevonThink, but that app was much more complicated than what I needed, so I moved everything again to Microsoft SharePoint, and I may try out Receipts or an app called Keep It.

 

[MacHeritage]

I'll reach out to their in-house developer to find out what the heck happened and report back.

That would sure be nice! Thank you.

 

[MikeDr206]

Hey Folks, I actually worked for Mariner back in the day in tier 1 support and did video tutorials for them. Since I resigned due to lack of hours, they revamped the website, but they probably went under when COVID hit. I first hooked up with them because they were creating a screenwriting program called Montage but they abandoned it because of lack of development dollars. They would then acquire different titles and would put their spin on them. At the time, Michael Wray ran the show. I'll reach out to their in-house developer to find out what the heck happened and report back.

(bump)

Just curious if you heard back from anyone.

 

[Ledgem]

Hey Folks, I actually worked for Mariner back in the day in tier 1 support and did video tutorials for them. Since I resigned due to lack of hours, they revamped the website, but they probably went under when COVID hit. I first hooked up with them because they were creating a screenwriting program called Montage but they abandoned it because of lack of development dollars. They would then acquire different titles and would put their spin on them. At the time, Michael Wray ran the show. I'll reach out to their in-house developer to find out what the heck happened and report back.

Thirding the bump - just because I'm nosy.

I still use MacJournal regularly and am glad that it went back to Dan. Maybe it isn't as flashy as DayOne or some of the other journaling apps, but it's reliable and gets the job done.

 

[zamboknee]

but they probably went under when COVID hit.

I was having issues getting in touch with them long before COVID. Pretty sure their website wasn’t up before then too.

 

[rebmark]

I've used Paperless since 2009. I've been holding off on upgrading my OS from Ventura to Sonoma for fear of my database not opening. At this point, I only use it for referral purposes as I'm in the process of testing DEVONthink (based on the discussions here). Can anyone confirm what happens with Paperless under Sonoma?

 

[MikeDr206]

I've used Paperless since 2009. I've been holding off on upgrading my OS from Ventura to Sonoma for fear of my database not opening. At this point, I only use it for referral purposes as I'm in the process of testing DEVONthink (based on the discussions here). Can anyone confirm what happens with Paperless under Sonoma?

I have no issues using Paperless on Sonoma.

 

[ScottR]

I've used Paperless since 2009. I've been holding off on upgrading my OS from Ventura to Sonoma for fear of my database not opening. At this point, I only use it for referral purposes as I'm in the process of testing DEVONthink (based on the discussions here). Can anyone confirm what happens with Paperless under Sonoma?

I haven't noticed any issues under Sonoma. My old ScanSnap (S1500) is a bigger issue, since it's a retired product, but it still scans fine with Paperless.

 

[adib]

Finally, I find some news about Mariner Software. Would have been nice to have some warning. Even the worst companies (Neat, for example) gave customers time to find alternatives. I'm referring specifically to receipt management software. Paperless works(ed) really well on my Mac platform. Any suggestions for an app owned by a reliable and stable company?

I've been using DevonThink for receipt storage and archival, among other things.

 

[johnb1968]

So after the tedious and semi-painful transition from Paperless to Receipts a year ago (Paperless's inability to export anything useful being the main reason), I'm happy to say Receipts is still chugging along nicely with regular updates and improvements. It's far from perfect (you can't label/edit multiple files, for example, which would be a huge productivity boost), but at least it's not abandonware.