update

Bear beta 2 is here: fuzzier, Markdown-ier, and all sorts of new goodies

It's been a month since we introduced the first beta of Bear, our beautiful, flexible writing app for crafting notes and prose. The response has been far greater than we hoped, and we've received some stellar feedback from our team of over 12,000 beta testers!

We've been working hard to implement a number of additions, tweaks, and fixes based on what you've told us, and today we're back with Bear beta 2 for iOS and macOS! There's some great stuff in here, from better options for converting text on its way in and out of Bear, to automating Bear with apps like Launch Center Pro and Workflow, to more ways to control and change text styles.

There's plenty of new stuff to test and play with, so glance over the full release notes below and update Bear to give it a try (iOS users: you'll get a in-app prompt. Mac users: use the download link in the beta 2 email that should be waiting for you). If you want to start helping us beta test Bear for iOS and/or macOS, head to Bear's homepage and use the signup form front and center.

Then, we'd love to hear what you think at bear@shinyfrog.net, in our forum, and on Twitter @BearNotesApp.

New stuff

  • Markdown Compatibility Mode - if you prefer strict Markdown syntax instead of our specialized, fancy-ified syntax, enable this in Preferences → Markdown Compatibility Mode.

  • Copy As... - Add currently selected text to the clipboard as Markdown, HTML, or “text without markers”

  • Paste From... - Paste Markdown or HTML text in your clipboard to be formatted, pretty, and workable in Bear

  • New import and export options - Add a custom file name, export all attachments, import using original modification/creation date, use an imported filename as the note title, or convert the first line of the file into the title

  • Attach Anything - You can now attach any file to a note. Yes, any.

  • Lots of x-callback-url action - Automate lots of Bear features and tasks with apps like Workflow and Launch Center Pro.

  • Handoff support - Built into iOS and macOS, Apple's Handoff feature allows you to work on a note on one device, then instantly switch to that note on another device, right where you left off.

  • Text Expander support - use text snippets from Smile's excellent utility to save minutes, hours, perhaps even days of typing.

General Improvements

  • The style button will now replace similar styles. For example, if a list is selected, the button will remove a todo if present and vice versa. This should work for all styles Bear supports.

  • You can now paste images directly into Bear's editor (tip: it also supports drag and drop!)

  • Search will find text regardless of the input order—"mac app" and "app mac" will have the same results.

  • Numbered lists now support multiple paragraphs. For example, while creating a list, you can create a new graph and indent it

  • Now with 100% more headers! Bear beta 2 supports h4, h5, h6.

  • Code blocks now accept the language for syntax highlight without adding a space between the ``` and the language name.

  • The spell checker is now on by default (it can still be toggled in the Edit menu).

iOS improvements

  • Custom keyboards will now work correctly.

  • Smoother scrolling everywhere—in tags, the notes list, and editor.

Bug fixes

  • Many tweaks to export and import.

  • The mac window can now be dragged from the editor even when you've scrolled far into a document.

  • Bear for Mac will restore its status independently of the "close window when quitting an app" macOS preference.

  • Bear now maintains search result highlights when switching from one note to another without changing the search query.

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