DEVONtechnologies News
The year is slowly but surely coming to an end, and once again faster than we had hoped. But before it does so, let us enjoy a few wonderful festive days. Days best spent with our loved ones, sitting on the couch and peeling tangerines or cracking walnuts. We just have one or two little things for you before you hopefully say goodbye and silently close the office door for the holidays.
For example, we have updated DEVONthink To Go and DEVONagent with performance improvements and bug fixes. We also show you what all the little icons in DEVONthink mean, and our user Benoît Pointet explains what a search in DEVONagent actually does. And, of course, at the end of the year, we do not only want to give something back, but also invite you to WinterFest, our traditional celebration of hand-made software!
We wish you a relaxing time and a good start into a new and hopefully productive year!
Join the WinterFest
As in previous years we will once again come virtually together with other like-minded Mac software makers for our traditional WinterFest. It's the time of the year when we give our applications into your hands at a great price. From DEVONthink and DEVONagent to Tinderbox, Scrivener, and many more, they all build bridges between research and art.
Buy DEVONthink or DEVONagent Pro for 25% off directly at the workshop gate with the coupon code WINTERFEST2024 or have a look at the other apps on the official WinterFest page for a similar discount.
WinterFest is a joint effort of the participating companies. For us it starts December 19th, 2024, at 9 a.m. UTC, and ends January 8th, 2025, at 9 a.m. UTC. The WinterFest discount can be used for upgrades but not be combined with other offers such as the students & educators discount. See our Business Principles for more about on how we do promotions. We are not responsible for how the other participating companies handle the promotion.
Made to Work Together
All of us who come together at WinterFest are small software developers with a similar idea: we want to equip you as best as we can with tools that help you meet the various challenges of your digital life. And because often one app does not do it all, our apps work so well together. Here are a few examples:
DEVONthink and Bookends: Write your paper with everything you need, regardless whether it’s stored in DEVONthink or Bookends. Import references with a few clicks and never again lose control over your knowledge collection.
DEVONthink and Scrivener: Collect and organize papers, snippets, and bookmarks in DEVONthink. And when you're ready to write your dissertation or next novel, open Scrivener and start typing. Keep them open side-by-side and drag quotes and links from your collection directly into your text.
DEVONthink and Tinderbox: Store all the data you need for your project in DEVONthink, then switch to Tinderbox and knot the web of information that will become your work. Both apps are designed to work seamlessly together.
HoudahSpot searches not only Spotlight but also DEVONthink databases. And Trickster keeps your recently used files at your fingertips, including documents you work with in DEVONthink.
DEVONthink is probably the most extraordinarily useful and incredibly capable software an ordinary Mac user will ever have the opportunity to use.
@jeffmoth 
DEVONagent 3.11.9
The new version of DEVONagent filters results more thoroughly so that you quickly get to the information that is relevant to you. It handles the found HTML pages better, for example when indexing and converting, and highlights search terms faster. We have also optimized DEVONagent for macOS Sequoia and extended its VoiceOver support.
Benoît explains DEVONagent
Speaking of DEVONagent: Have you ever wondered how DEVONagent works and for what searches it is actually useful? Our power user Benoît Pointet from our forum did so and wrote on his blog about it. Benoît explains step-by-step what a search with DEVONagent does and has even created a diagram to illustrate it.
Have a look at Benoît's text, and if you like you can leave him a few nice words here in our forum.
DEVONagent is not getting enough love from me —fantastic app for deep research. I'm happy to have it.
Malik Alimoekhamedov 
DEVONthink To Go 3.8.8
In the new version of DEVONthink To Go you can add databases to your favorites and let Verify & Repair either repair or remove invalid favorites. Also, the Info popover now shows where duplicates are located. We have fixed a few bugs, too, for example related to keyboard shortcuts or the Clip to DEVONthink extension.
DEVONthink's Property Icons
You've probably noticed the little icons in DEVONthink, such as a speech bubble next to a document. But what do they mean? These icons indicate a particular property of that item. For example, the little speech bubble indicates that the object has a Finder comment. Check out the Appendix > Iconology section of the built-in Help for a list and explanation of all the icons used in DEVONthink.
Giving Something Back
This year, we were once again able to donate to the organization ForAfrika, which provides humanitarian aid in Africa. We were also continuing to support the organization Deutsche Cleft Kinderhilfe (German Cleft Children Aid), providing funds for cleft lip and palate surgeries on children in countries whose healthcare systems do not pay for them. And we helped again to maintain two orphanages in Kyauktan and Taunggyi in Myanmar, which are organized and financed alone by paediatrician Dr. Wassilios Amanatidis. He collects money for his cause at the markets in the small town of Bietigheim-Bissingen, Germany.
And finally, we have been supporting the World Wide Fund for Nature and the small Scottish initiative All Shapes and Sizes for many years. We offset the carbon dioxide emissions for all of us — our families, homes, offices and travel — with Atmosfair.
