[Macworld]

Post your comments for Review: Now Up-to-Date & Contact 5.3 here

[Bizzkit]

I was a NUDC user for years but finally gave up in frustration waiting for a new version. The next version of NUDC code named "Nighthawk" has been in the vaporware stage for a couple of years now. You should read some of the comments of the Nighthawk forums from folks who prepaid for it.
http://www.nowsoftwa...site/index.html

[Jeter2Fan93]

I know last January "Nighthawk" was scheduled for release sometime in the spring. Then, like Leopard and Delicious Monster, the date kept slipping with some lame excuse. And unlike Leopard and Delicious Monster, this has yet to be shipped. Read the forums and see how upset people are.

[plazamac]

I too, like many others, have grown weary of the never-coming update to Nighthawk. I've moved on to other solutions. It seems like Now has thrown all of it's eggs into one basket. If Nighthawk doesn't deliver, I think it may be the beginning of the end for Now.

[Axl]

How come address book and iCal aren't scalable? Didn't Apple recently switch to use these apps internally?

[philipmarch]

RIDICULOUS! I have led many of my clients astray believing that Nighthawk was around the corner. I can't believe another summer is here and a product they paid for OVER 15 MONTHS AGO is still not delivered. These guys deserve to be sued - not for being incompetent developers (which is forgivable) - but for making empty promises and cashing in on them. Here's what the 'lead tech' at Now Software says: "In the end, NightHawk will speak for itself." I believe he's referring to the End Time.

[philipmarch]

Second thought: Why is Macworld even re-reviewing this stuck-in-the-mud product if it only has bug fixes? It was a 5.3.1 to 5.3.2 update. How about doing a story about their customers feeling hoodwinked and lighter in the wallet? Seriously. Why isn't the Mac-related press covering this? If people knew the history of this vaporware - and that it has been over a year and a half (maybe more? - someone correct me) since they have been touting Nighthawk they would think twice before purchasing this product. Come on, Jeffery Battersby-- Go to Now Vaporware's website and check out their forums - there are a lot of angry customers out there...

[gajones]

having tried both i'd recommend xcconnect over this - cheaper, more robust, and intregrates fully with address book/ical and entourage.... plus outlook on the windows side.

[Robair]

I agree with the outrage here. I have been a loyal supporter (since the Alarming Events days!) and feel duped. I notice that people are asking and getting refunds for the pre-payment made in March of LAST YEAR. After seeing the WWDC intro to MobileMe, I finally made the switch to Address Book and Mail (from Eudora - and I have also pre-paid for Odysseus...). Frankly, I am shocked that it took me this long to make that switch. Both Apple programs serve my purposes much much better... Integrate will with each other and many other apps (PhoneValet!). PhilipMarch is right: do an article on this vaporware issue.

[iluomo]

Here, here! and add me to the list of people giving up on Nighthawk. It is truly pathetic. Macworld, do an article on this as suggested above and push Now to answer some serious questions about this situation, please.

[macgyverh]

I download the demo for the latest version of NUDC from their website yesterday morning and spent most of yesterday and today trying to get the programs wiped so that I could get control back for my system. I'm running the most recent version of Leopard on a MacPro. Never seen this type of problem previously. Finder menu disappeared. Log-on screen gone on restart. Unable to rename file folders such as the Preferences folder. Solution - re-install Leopard and update it from Apple's website. Lots of hassle just to see a demo of an old and familiar program from years gone by. Needless to say that I'm not interested in buying this software at this release.

[jantar]

I've been a NUDC fan in the past but have given up on them with Nighthawk as well.
It would seem to me that even if they can get it out soon it will be swamped by the next generation of iCal and Address book or other companies equivalent aimed at the iPhone.
If it takes them this long to bring out this much touted version the next one will years away.
Pity but they have missed the boat.
If they have any respect for customers they would refund everyone who has made a loan to the company while waiting for this product.

[donnhobson]

First, I would like to thank Jeffrey and Macworld for reviewing Now Up-to-Date & Contact. To think this application has been around for 17 years is a tribute to all those that worked on it, listened to customers and built what they needed. Now Up-to-Date & Contact is a widely-used product, and is important in the Mac market. Many people use it to run their businesses/organizations, their personal lives, profit, non-profit, and EDU. We too, believe that one of its strengths is multiple users can share the same data even between Macs and PCs. And the reason one of our largest user groups is the film industry, both big screen and small, is the ability they have to schedule all the people and equipment they need on a daily basis.
We began working on our next generation productivity app, code-named "NightHawk" and announced at Macworld '07. NightHawk is an ambitious project that creates a new platform for business productivity apps. The first modules we're releasing are the Calendar and Contact modules, but NightHawk is designed to go well beyond that, with future modules targeting project management, CRM, and others. The contact and calendar modules are now in testing. We've also recently acquired additional capital from a state-sponsored fund and hired more developers to accelerate the process. Development is proceeding and we make a weekly post on our forum about development status. We missed our original ship date, and for customers who pre-purchased NightHawk and can't wait for our release later this year, we have been offering refunds.
NightHawk has a modern interface that folks will really like. It is a single app so the category set-up will be much improved over NUDC. It syncs with Sync Services so the mobility of your data easily syncs to the iPhone, Address Book, iCal, or any PDA that syncs with Sync Services. It is truly cross platform with free server software. Some of the other great new features are e-mail integration, drag and drop background pictures and attachments. One of my personal favorites is the feel of NightHawk. Things are exactly where you expect them to be, closer to the surface, less mouse clicks, simpler to use.
If you are interested in NightHawk, and would like to have a say in the next generation of our products, please visit nowsoftware.com and participate in our forums. John's goal is to develop a product that people love to use, so your feedback is important. As always you can contact me by e-mail at donn@nowsoftware.com or my direct line is 866-527-0533.
_
Donn Hobson
COO - Now Software, Inc. - dhobson@nowsoftware.com

[philipmarch]

Funny how the COO of Now Vaporware writes of Nighthawk in the present tense-- As if it exists. Have some respect for our intelligence and our frustration.