MarsEdit 2.1 is the best blogging software on the Mac

I know the title is a bit subjective but I had to make the claim. You see, I am one of those Windows converts to the Mac you read about and I really like it. I admit I am not a 100% convert as my daily work includes writing applications on .NET and, well I still use my Windows XP desktop and Dell laptop. I have been doing almost all of my blogging from Windows because I use Microsoft Live Writer. Live Writer is by far the best blogging client for Windows and using it is a pleasure but the only problem is does not run on the Mac. I started searching for a good blogging tool for my work on the Mac, trying both ecto and older versions of MarsEdit. Even though both tools have a nice user interface and worked reasonably well, neither have the features of Live Writer. I am not a power blogger or anything but one feature I really like is posting drafts to my blog from Live Writer so I can work on them later from a different system. This is just a nice feature and one I relied on more than I imagined. So, along came MarsEdit 2.1, released only a few days ago. I downloaded the evaluation version and gave it a shot. Release 2.1 has something new, posting drafts to your blog. This was the killer feature I was looking for in a Mac blogging client. I gave it a run through it it worked as advertised. I paid my $29.95 right away and now am writing this post from MarsEdit. Very cool application, for sure. There are plenty of other features I am sure I will use in the coming months which include many updates:

Hot off the presses in MarsEdit 2.1:

Search Your Drafts and Entries

Now you can quickly filter your posts and drafts by keywords. Just type a word or phrase into the toolbar search field, and MarsEdit will restrict the post listing to only items that contain the text you’ve typed.

Native Tags Support

For supported systems, including Movable Type and WordPress, MarsEdit now offers a field for capsule-style tagging of your posts. It even remembers the tags you’ve typed before, so you’ll be able to reuse them in a jiffy on future posts.

Improved Web Preview

MarsEdit’s built-in preview sports a sleek new default appearance, massively enhanced performance, and fine-tuned usability. Now previews update quickly and without flickering or jumping around as you edit your post.

Save Drafts To Server

A new Post Status popup in the options pane lets you choose between Published and Draft status. Server support for this feature is somewhat hit-or-miss, so be sure to test with something not too embarrassing! Added not all that long ago in MarsEdit 2.0:

Beautifully Refined User Interface

MarsEdit 2.0 extends the simple elegance of MarsEdit 1.2, incorporating new features while continuing to simplify the user interface. Much more than just a pretty face, MarsEdit’s beauty and simplicity help you be a more productive weblog author.

Seamless Flickr Integration

The streamlined Media Manager now sports a dedicated tab just for Flickr! Browse your most recent photos, or your entire collection. You can even search by tag or photo title. When you find the perfect picture, insert it into your post with the click of a button.

Powerful Markup Macros

Nobody likes to type HTML code, which is why MarsEdit’s markup macros are so invaluable. With the ability to transform text from the editor or the pasteboard, you’ll find it a breeze to customize macros for the most tedious of your HTML tasks.

Streamlined Post Editor

The post editor was completely rethought for MarsEdit 2.0, giving you the power to show or hide fields in the window so that only the useful elements are visible. On supported weblogs, you can even add new categories, or edit the slug (short URL name) of your posts, without ever leaving MarsEdit.

New Printing Support

MarsEdit makes writing on the web a real joy, but sometimes it takes marking up a paper copy of your masterpiece to make sure you’ve gotten all the kinks out. With MarsEdit 2.0 you can print both the raw text of your post or the HTML preview, making it a snap to take your work-in-progress offline for yourself or others to review.

And More?

A huge number of “tiny tweaks” have been made to MarsEdit, moving it ever closer to perfection. Take a look around and see how well it suits you!

It looks like development is moving along nicely with MarsEdit and I look forward to using it and seeing future updates.