14 DAY TRIAL // In an era when all the information is transmitted digitally and even your bills and statements come in electronic format, a simple, but very organized, database can be a life saver. Forget about all the boxes stuffed with bills that collect dust in your closet, or about the folders from your computer that give you a headache every time you open them: Records Master will do all your "dirty work".
The Looks
The interface is really simple and clean but, most of all, highly functional. On the left side of the main window, you can see all the files and folders that are contained in your database while in the right side, the content of the selected item is displayed. Most of the functions required to manage your files are very efficiently situated on the bottom of the window.
The Works
In order to add a file to your Records Master database, you must first use the import function that you can find under the File menu, although you may also use the following key combination: cmd-shift-I. Dropping the file or folder on the Records Master icon or directly in the browser have the same effect, placing the imported file in the "Unfiled" folder that is automatically created each time a new database is started, and that can never be deleted. Once a file is imported, you can easily move it in the desired section using drag and drop. The application supports the following file types: RTF, Microsoft Word, HTML, plain text files, image files, PDF files, and QuickTime video and audio. Any other type of file can be opened using its default application from inside the Records Master.
The idea is to create hierarchical folders in order to organize them, but the best part is that you can add notes or tags and make them easier to find when later searching for them. On the top of the display area, you can see information about your place in the database while on the bottom, you can find buttons that zoom in or out the selected item, rotate it left or right by 90 degrees, reset it to the original size or open it through the Finder using its default application. If the file is an image or a .pdf, it can also be opened in Preview or Adobe just by pressing one button.
Under the browser area, you can find the buttons that allow you to add or remove folders or items. You may also open or close folders, sort the items or folders by alphabetical order or by date, modify the name of a folder, create smart folders or display information about each item. Using the last function, you can set reminders for your folders, beginning and ending dates that create year and month folders, or to associate a certain folder to a URL. The aim of the last operation is to automatically access and download files from websites using your username and password so you will have your latest account information directly in the database.
The application also allows you to export files or folders, to print or to send them by email. The incorporated, powerful search feature can look for expressions contained in the file or folder name, its path, notes or date. Using the information that you entered in the smart folder, it is able to produce graphs or reports.
For security reasons, you have the possibility to encrypt your database but all your files will be available for viewing, printing or exporting. The only difference is that they will require the password each time it's opened. Just uncheck the Encrypt Database option in order to decrypt the data base but remember that you cannot do that if you do not remember your password. In that case, all your information will be lost. It can also securely delete information which means that before a file is deleted, random information was added to the file. This way, the information can never be retrieved.
The Good
Records Master provides a very logical system to organize your account information but it also offers really handy options like the possibility to actually see the file in a quick and easy way.
The Bad
It usually takes some time to get all the intricacies of the system and considering the importance of the information that should be stored in this data base, you should thoroughly read the tutorial made available by the producers before handing important information.
The Truth
The application provides an easy and simple way to store your information but the fact is that you can never be too careful: so keep backups at any time, you may never know what can happen.
Here are some snapshots of the application in action:
