More Good Site News, More Bad Site News

Good news: the new PHP and database code is working on the new server!

Bad news: the move messed up the database character set, and in the process of fixing it, my fat fingers destroyed about a month's worth of data. So if you sent any updates after about April 15, please send them again.

I have a lot of typing to do.

UPDATE: Thanks once again to RealBeer's Jeff Scott, who restored a backup from May 14 and thereby saved me a whole bunch of typing! I owe him a lot of beers.

Good Site News, Bad Site News

Good news: Beer Me! has moved to a new server. I had to change a bit of the code, which was a challenge since I hadn't touched it since 2007, but I got it done.

Bad news: the old code is running — and failing — on the new server, and I don't yet have access to upload the new code. So that's why you're seeing a blank page there.

I'll post an update when I know more.

UPDATE: The site is working again! There are some cosmetic glitches that I'll work on fixing, but it looks like all the functionality is back. Thanks to RealBeer's Jeff Scott for helping me through this!

Site problems

Beer Me! is having some weird problems today. The main page works, but lots of other stuff doesn't, including the section that serves up data to the Android app. I'm trying to track down somebody who can help me get it fixed.

Relax, have a beer, etc.

Android 2.2 or less?

First of all, thanks to everyone who has purchased the Beer Me!™ mobile app! There are some major new features in the works that I think you'll really enjoy.

Having said that, the store's reports tell me that the app is installed on a few devices running Android 2.2 or earlier. If you're one of those people, please let me know! Otherwise, I'm going to be updating a lot of the code to support the more modern versions.

Also, if you haven't upgraded to the latest version — 1.11.2 — now might be a good time to do so.

Thanks again!

Beer Me!™ mobile for Android, version 1.11.1

This new version of Beer Me!™ mobile for Android fixes a problem some users were having with brewery searches failing when GPS was not enabled.

Automatic updates should begin tonight. But you can't get an update if you don't buy the app!

Version 1.11.0 problems fixed

I've received reports of "Network error" messages when users searched for breweries using the app. I'm pretty sure this is fixed, and a new release won't be necessary. Let me know if it's working — or not — for you.

Beer Me!™ mobile for Android, version 1.11.0

I just uploaded the latest version — 1.11.0 — of Beer Me!™ mobile for Android. It should be available on Google Play by this evening.

Changes in 1.11.0
=================
- Now you can actually try again when you see the "Network error, try again" message
- Clicking on a link in a Beer Note will take you to the appropriate screen in the app instead of to beerme.com
- The hardware Search button works again
- Brewery names are not included in map searches, resulting in more accurate results
- The Beer Detail screen displays more details about the beer
- Entering your own Beer Notes should be a little easier now
- And more...

Down

Beer Me! is down at the moment due to database issues.

Beer Me! mobile uses the same database, so it's not working either.

Thanks for your patience while we get this resolved.

Android app version 1.10.0

Version 1.10.0 of the Beer Me! mobile app for Android will be available for download sometime this evening. If you've already purchased the app, thanks! You should be getting an automatic update shortly. If you haven't purchased the app, what are you waiting for?

Version 1.9.6 search bug

I just got a bug report regarding ClassNotFoundException
in BaseDexClassLoader.findClass().

It looks like this will only happen if you're trying to search while in landscape mode, especially if you're using a large-format device like a tablet.

It shouldn't take me too long to fix this; in the meantime, if you search in portrait mode, you won't see this problem.

Beer Me! comes of age

With all the excitement the past couple days, fixing app bugs and attending the grand opening of a new brewery, I forgot to note a landmark date:

Thursday was Beer Me!'s 21st birthday!

Actually, some of the very very early files were posted around 1990, but I consider that to be the gestation period. The first (dated) beers in my notebooks are from January 3, 1992. There's a brief history of the site here.

The occasion seems worthy of some schwag. I'll get some designed and uploaded later this week.

Thanks to everybody who has helped with the site over the years!

Beer Me! mobile for Android — Version 1.9.6

A few users were experiencing crashes in certain situations; fortunately, it was an easy fix!

Changes in 1.9.6
================
- AND0093: RuntimeException in Handler.<init>()

See http://beerme.com/forum/index.php/board,20.0.html for details.

9,000

River North Hypothesis is in the book as tasting note number 9000!

(It's only beer #7550 due to duplication, but what the hell.)

Keep those cards and letters coming, folks!

There are a couple hundred site updates in the queue, just as there have been for about three weeks. As soon as I make some headway, dozens of new ones come in, and I'm not making much progress just now.

But I'm working on catching up as I find time, so keep sending those updates! And thanks for all your help.

Beer Me!™ mobile for Android — Version 1.0!

Well, that took long enough. Beer Me!™ mobile for Android is now for sale on the Android Market! Just $2.99 gets you mobile access to the most complete source of brewery information worldwide.

You can download Beer Me!™ mobile from the Android Market, or if you're using the Market App, search for com.beerme.android.



Thanks to everybody who helped with the testing these past few months. I couldn't have done it without you!

Android app is ready for launch

The testers have responded with a unanimous "go"; I'll be packaging and uploading version 1.0 of Beer Me!™ for Android to the Android Market tomorrow!

Palm App update, Android App status

HP/Palm asked me to upload a full update of the app to try to fix the "Install Failed" problem. I did so this morning, and it will be available for download as soon as they approve it.

The Android app seems to be just about ready to go. I'll ask my testers to give me their final feedback by next Monday.

Favorite styles

I am often asked what my favorite style of beer is. Of course, this question is just as difficult to answer as the "favorite beer" question. But I thought I'd ask my database what it thinks my favorites are, and here's what it came up with:

+-----------+-----+--------------------------------------------------------------+
| score     | n   | style                                                        |
+-----------+-----+--------------------------------------------------------------+
| 18.785714 |   7 | Other Belgian-Style Sour Ale                                 |
| 18.750000 |   2 | Black IPA                                                    |
| 18.000000 |   1 | American-Style "Light" Amber Lager                           |
| 18.000000 |   1 | Dark American Wheat Ale or Lager without Yeast               |
| 17.938776 |  49 | Wood- and Barrel-aged Strong Beer                            |
| 17.666667 |  24 | Belgian-Style Gueuze Lambic                                  |
| 17.607143 |  14 | Imperial or Double Red Ale                                   |
| 17.562500 |  16 | Wood- and Barrel-aged Dark Beer                              |
| 17.506849 |  73 | Imperial or Double India Pale Ale                            |
| 17.348485 |  33 | Coffee Flavored Beer                                         |
| 17.323529 |  17 | Wood- and Barrel-aged Beer                                   |
| 17.218750 |  16 | German-Style Eisbock                                         |
| 17.200000 |   5 | Strong Ale                                                   |
| 17.166667 |   3 | European-Style Low-Alcohol Lager / German-Style Leicht(bier) |
| 17.100000 |  10 | Other Belgian- and French-Style Ale                          |
| 17.060000 |  25 | Baltic-Style Porter                                          |
| 17.059524 |  42 | Belgian-Style Flanders/Oud Bruin Ale                         |
| 16.894309 | 124 | Imperial Stout                                               |
| 16.864341 | 129 | Belgian-Style Dark Strong Ale                                |
| 16.834783 | 115 | Belgian-Style Pale Strong Ale                                |
| 16.833333 |  30 | Bamberg-Style Rauchbier                                      |
| 16.833333 |  15 | Experimental Beer                                            |
| 16.833333 |   6 | American-Style Strong Pale Ale                               |
| 16.684874 | 243 | Barley Wine-Style Ale                                        |
| 16.654762 | 128 | Old Ale                                                      |
| 16.615385 |  13 | South German-Style Bernsteinfarbenes Weizen/Weissbier        |
| 16.595833 | 122 | German-Style Strong Doppelbock                               |
| 16.586957 |  23 | Chocolate/Cocoa Flavored Beer                                |
| 16.578125 |  32 | Belgian-Style Pale Ale                                       |
| 16.541667 |  36 | South German-Style Weizenbock/Weissbock                      |
| 16.516667 |  60 | Other Belgian-Style Ale                                      |
| 16.500000 |  10 | Modern Strong Scotch Ale                                     |
| 16.470588 |  17 | Standard Cider / Perry                                       |
| 16.350000 |  10 | American-Style Stout                                         |
| 16.333333 |  27 | Other Strong Ale or Lager                                    |
| 16.322430 | 107 | Belgian-Style Tripel                                         |
| 16.316176 |  68 | French-Belgian Style Saison                                  |
| 16.285714 |  21 | French-Style Bière de Garde                                  |
| 16.281250 |  48 | Smoke-Flavored Beer (Lager or Ale)                           |
| 16.268657 |  67 | Belgian-Style Dubbel                                         |
| 16.245614 |  58 | South German-Style Dunkel Weizen/Weissbier                   |
| 16.195205 | 146 | Specialty Beer                                               |
| 16.184000 | 381 | American-Style India Pale Ale                                |
| 16.166667 |   6 | Belgian-Style Lambic                                         |
| 16.162879 | 136 | Herb and Spice Beer                                          |
| 16.133333 |  15 | NULL                                                         |
| 16.106061 |  33 | Foreign (Export)-Style Stout                                 |
| 16.078358 | 134 | Münchner-Style Helles                                        |
| 16.000000 |   2 | Specialty Cider / Perry                                      |
| 16.000000 |   6 | Non-Alcoholic (Beer) Malt Beverage                           |
| 16.000000 |   2 | American-Style Malt Liquor                                   |
| 16.000000 |   9 | Berliner-Style Weisse (Wheat)                                |
| 15.926471 |  69 | Traditional Strong Scotch Ale                                |
| 15.858491 | 108 | Oatmeal Stout                                                |
| 15.833333 |   3 | Leichtes Weizen/Weissbier                                    |
| 15.833333 |   3 | Braggot                                                      |
| 15.815789 |  19 | Garden (Vegetable) Beer                                      |
| 15.792857 |  70 | German-Style Schwarzbier                                     |
| 15.791667 |  12 | American-Style Premium Lager                                 |
| 15.776316 |  38 | Belgian-Style Fruit Lambic                                   |
| 15.760870 |  47 | Dortmunder/European-Style Export                             |
| 15.750000 |  10 | Scottish-Style Light Ale                                     |
| 15.746183 | 262 | South German-Style Hefeweizen/Hefeweissbier                  |
| 15.740838 | 191 | German-Style Pilsener                                        |
| 15.695455 | 111 | Sweet Stout                                                  |
| 15.649123 |  57 | Classic English-Style Pale Ale                               |
| 15.617021 |  96 | German-Style Heller Bock/Maibock                             |
| 15.602273 |  44 | Irish-Style Red Ale                                          |
| 15.556000 | 125 | Belgian Style White (or Wit) / Belgian-Style Wheat           |
| 15.553435 | 131 | European-Style Dark/Münchner Dunkel                          |
| 15.544444 |  57 | American-Style Brown Ale                                     |
| 15.530612 |  49 | English-Style India Pale Ale                                 |
| 15.500000 |   1 | Other Fruit Melomel                                          |
| 15.500000 |   2 | Bohemian-Style Pilsner                                       |
| 15.500000 |   1 | South German-Style Hefeweizen-Hefeweissbier                  |
| 15.472222 |  18 | Ordinary Bitter                                              |
| 15.454545 |  33 | American-Style Rye Ale or Lager                              |
| 15.397059 |  69 | Scottish-Style Export Ale                                    |
| 15.383065 | 125 | Traditional German-Style Bock                                |
| 15.375000 |  29 | California Common Beer                                       |
| 15.375000 |   4 | American-Style (Extra Special) Strong Bitter                 |
| 15.346154 |  13 | English-Style Dark Mild Ale                                  |
| 15.282328 | 239 | Classic Irish-Style Dry Stout                                |
| 15.280822 | 146 | Bohemian-Style Pilsener                                      |
| 15.263959 | 201 | English-Style (Extra Special) Strong Bitter                  |
| 15.166667 |   3 | American-Style Märzen/Oktoberfest                            |
| 15.132000 | 127 | (Special) Best Bitter                                        |
| 15.127907 |  43 | English-Style Pale Mild Ale                                  |
| 15.090686 | 207 | German-Style Märzen/Oktoberfest                              |
| 15.062500 |  16 | American-Style Pilsener                                      |
| 15.023220 | 331 | Robust Porter                                                |
| 15.000000 |  12 | South German-Style Kristal Weizen/Kristal Weissbier          |
| 15.000000 |   1 | Traditional Mead                                             |
| 14.933333 |  16 | Light American Wheat Ale or Lager without Yeast              |
| 14.928571 |   7 | English-Style Summer Ale                                     |
| 14.915739 | 649 | American-Style Pale Ale                                      |
| 14.839286 |  28 | Scottish-Style Heavy Ale                                     |
| 14.791139 |  80 | German-Style Kölsch/Köln-Style Kölsch                        |
| 14.772727 |  44 | American Lager/Ale or Cream Ale                              |
| 14.720264 | 229 | English-Style Brown Ale                                      |
| 14.712871 | 102 | German-Style Brown Ale/Düsseldorf-Style Altbier              |
| 14.642857 |   7 | Dark American Wheat Ale or Lager with Yeast                  |
| 14.642857 |  56 | European-Style Pilsener                                      |
| 14.637441 | 432 | American-Style Amber/Red Ale                                 |
| 14.610759 | 161 | Golden or Blonde Ale                                         |
| 14.606742 |  89 | Vienna-Style Lager                                           |
| 14.571429 |   7 | American-Style Light Lager                                   |
| 14.486111 |  36 | Specialty Honey Lager or Ale                                 |
| 14.383333 |  30 | Garden (Fruit) Beer                                          |
| 14.271186 |  60 | Brown Porter                                                 |
| 14.083333 |  30 | Australasian, Latin American, or Tropical-Style Light Lager  |
| 14.031250 | 196 | Light American Wheat Ale or Lager with Yeast                 |
| 13.721429 | 210 | American-Style Lager                                         |
| 13.500000 |  22 | American-Style Amber Lager                                   |
| 13.325000 |  20 | American-Style Dark Lager                                    |
| 13.146825 | 127 | Garden (Fruit Wheat) Beer                                    |
+-----------+-----+--------------------------------------------------------------+

Granted, the sample sizes are pretty small for many styles at the top, but I had no idea that I rated barrel-aged beers so highly, nor Imperial IPAs. I thought Bamberg-Style Rauchbier would be much higher on the list. I'm guessing that Altbier is near the bottom because it's so difficult to find fresh, authentic examples in this country.

For the most part, the styles at the bottom of the list are no surprise. I despise fruit beers, with grudging exceptions for well-made fruit lambics.

There are probably more sophisticated statistical techniques for analyzing this, but it's interesting as it is. Think I'll have a beer now.

"Beer Me!" for Android: last call for testers

I just sent version 0.11.0 of the "Beer Me!" for Android app to the testers. It's getting very close to publishing-quality, so this is the last call: if you want to help test the app and be eligible for get it for free when it's available, contact me now.

You want screenshots? We got screenshots!

Main screen

Brewery list

Brewery details

Beer list

Beer notes

Disaster! ...almost.

Fired up Eclipse this morning, meaning to make some more progress on my Android app.

Shocked to see all my code, settings, everything...gone.

Scrambled to find my USB drive containing the backup. The twelve-days-and-two-versions-old backup.

# find / -name 'Android*' -print

Relieved to find that my ever-so-helpful cats had moved my code folder to another location.

All is now well. And I'm creating a new backup.