BBEdit 8.5 may only be a 0.5 update from 8.0, but it feels a whole point different. First, code folding has arrived. The programmers in the audience are cheering already. I know it. By clicking a little arrow icon, whole sections of code can collapse out of the way. That’s a big time-saver.
The Clippings feature replaces the Glossary and enhances the functionality. You can customize the menus to keep them trim for how you use BBEdit. More languages are supported (including Ruby!).
We’re Mac users though. What about the GUI improvements. It’s all there. The toolbar is prettified with big icons (love them or hate them, the war has already started). The preferences window is greatly improved (it’s even searchable). Finally, BBEdit’s icon has been retooled again. Gone is the roundish capital “B” that represented 8.0. It’s back the hardcore B, but now with a more contrasting color scheme and a slight tilt (that again, some love, some hate).
Bare Bones has also revamped the pricing structure. Gone is the cross-product upgrade from products like BBEdit Lite and TextWrangler (both of which are freeware anyway). The full price is $125. Upgrade from version 8 is $30, from version 7 or below is $40, and if you bought in 2006, the upgrade is free. It’s definitely got a BBEdit 9 feel to me.
