You can tell new software is coming along nicely when its developers start to feel a pull, swelling to an irresistible compulsion, to use it on a daily basis. Yet, there’s bound to be a second thought or three when that software is a major upgrade to a well-established application like CheckBook. On the one hand you’ve got tons of nifty new features – which you’ve worked ages on – and by gosh it’s time to put them to use for your own greater good. But on the other hand, even taking into account your superhuman tendency to do no wrong, there’s a tiny voice in the back of your mind, that little somersault in your stomach: you know there’s a chance something will go wrong. For a moment, all four wheels of your smooth-running operation could leave the ground. It might return to the pavement with a little bounce, but it may just sail through the air and wrap itself around a telephone pole.

It doesn’t matter in the end. It finally gets to the point where you just have to find out. And so it is with CheckBook 2.0.

With more new features in one release than any two or even three of 1.x’s updates, CheckBook 2.0 makes 1.x look like a toy. It’s a very sweet machine. And it’s been calling to us for some time. Not so much at first, while we laid out the framework and wired up the basics. But lately, while we’ve been buffing up the interface and tricking out the engine it’s been begging us to top off the tanks, bring our years of financial history over and take it for a joyride.

It’s just too much to resist…

So Randy gave in and made the jump last week. And…everything’s fine. Even better, his wife updated her copy of CheckBook at the same time, and her own accounts are just peachy-keen. Sure, they’ve seen plenty of interface bugs – no show-stoppers – but they both plan to use 2.0 from now on. And, as the code for the remaining features falls into place in the coming weeks, things will only get better. Maybe then we’ll see about a public preview release…

Now, pending a few adjustments to the way Account Summaries handle Categories and Subcategories, we’re focused on our next mini milestone: my wife.