Ulysses 18

We’ve just released Ulysses 18 to both the App Store and the Mac App Store. It is primarily a compatibility update to bring Ulysses up to speed with Apple’s recently released operating systems, namely iOS 13 and iPadOS. We’ve also added the ability to use Ulysses files in external folders, such as Dropbox. If you haven’t already, go grab the update, it’s free!

Ulysses 18 on iOS 13 & iPadOS

The main changes in this release include the use of the system’s new Dark Mode and iPadOS’ native Split View.

This means that Dark Mode now follows Apple’s aesthetics and activates automatically whenever you switch the system to Dark Mode (e.g., automatically from dusk till dawn). For Split View on iPad, it means that you can now use all of the cool new multitasking features Apple provides in iPadOS, such as multiple windows in multiple spaces and slide overs.

Ulysses 18 & External Folders

To use Ulysses files in external folders, make sure to untick “Read and write Markdown files” in a folder’s settings

One of our most requested features, like… ever, was to allow Ulysses files to be stored on Dropbox (or any sync service for that matter). Well, with Ulysses 18, you can finally do it!

We’ve added the option to use native Ulysses files in external folders, no strings attached. These files offer the full feature set, from Markdown XL right down to attachments, goals and everything else. So if you don’t want to use iCloud (or are not allowed to), you now have an alternative means of syncing your work.

Chaos Theory

Let’s have a word or two on iOS 13, especially the way it was released to the public, and what this means for developers: It’s a mess. It was a moving target from WWDC up to release, down to 13.1, and it’s still moving.

As a result, our own release is a bit of a mess too. Ulysses 18 was supposed to coincide with the new OSes, but Apple’s iOS releases were suddenly split in two, then pushed forward, then followed by a .1 update which should have been .0 — ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

So we’re a week late on iOS, but more importantly: We’re not completely satisfied with how our adoption has turned out. Quite frankly, the new Dark Mode is not up to our standards yet, as are various corners in the user interface. Apple has introduced some cool stuff, mind you, but the state of iOS 13 betas made it impossible for us to implement and test and rework all of this properly. And SF Symbols? Don’t get me started on SF Symbols.

But… we’re on it, and you can expect us to push further changes during the coming months.

Of course, this is just us being overly picky — Ulysses 18 is perfectly fine (yes, perfectly, really), so stop reading and go grab it already!

Have fun.