February 7, 2008
The Beer Hacker: Web-based beer brewing software
One year ago I wrote about Beer Brewing Software, reviewing five Windows programs and ultimately picking BeerSmith as the overall best brewing software available. (It still is, by the way.) At the time, I wrote:
I only looked at programs that run on a single computer—even though in this wired-internet-"web 2.0" world it seems like a no-brainer that there should be web-based brewing sites that do all the same things, only online and shareable with other users out there. Perhaps there are, but that's a subject for a future article.
Well, that future article is finally here, and in surveying the field of online, web-based beer brewing software, I've found three sites that aim to fit that niche, but my overall conclusion is that the field is wide open.
Now, my criteria might be a bit limiting: like many of the "next generation" websites out there, I want a "Web 2.0", free-and-unlimited-access web application. (It could be ad-supported, or offer pay-for-premium access somehow; but generally, I want to be able to create, save, and share as many recipes as I want without being charged. I'm greedy, I know.) Essentially, I want to be able to access and manage my brewing recipes and notes from anywhere online.
Let's take a detailed look at those three sites, and then cover just what it is that should go into such a website.
Posted by jon at 2:42 PM: Comments (6)
August 17, 2007
The Beer Hacker: Writing a Beer Blog: Part 2: Finding Stuff to Write About
Back in Part 1 of this mini-series I covered how to start a blog. The question that often arises after starting one is, what do I write about? In the case of a beer-themed weblog, you'll want to stay on topic, but there are a bunch of options: news, other beer blogs, beer tastings, brewery reviews, and more.
Of course, the reality is, the sky's the limit—but to keep things simple I'll cover a few of the broader categories.
July 12, 2007
The Beer Hacker: Writing a Beer Blog: Part 1: Setting Up
A few years ago there were only a handful of beer-related blogs, but that number has been steadily growing, thanks in large part to the availability of free weblog-hosting services such as Blogger and WordPress.com and the low barrier to entry these services have introduced
In fact, today it's easier than ever to start a beer-themed blog, and over the next several Beer Hacker articles, I'm going to cover just that. The focus will primarily be on the free online services that have sprung up around blogging to get you accomplishing this goal—writing about beer.
Part 1 of this series will focus on setting up a new blog with two of the most popular and easy-to-use blog hosting services, the ones I already mentioned: Blogger and WordPress.
April 19, 2007
The Beer Hacker: Finding inexpensive beer
It's the ongoing dilemma: you want to drink well, but are on a budget. Sure, you could always bite the (silver) bullet and go with the always-cheap "American macro lager" a là Budweiser or Coors. But notice the headline says "inexpensive" beer and not "cheap" beer—the distinction is important because all too often, "cheap beer" means those very same American macros I'm hoping to avoid—and of course when I write "drink well," I mean not drinking those industrial pilsners.
Seeking out those inexpensive "step up" beers can be a bit of an adventure—often you'll come across beers you've never heard of before, some of which will just barely be a step up from MGD and some which will be jewels in the rough. Sometimes you'll find some excellent, well-known microbrew for a really good deal, too.
But be warned: if you have to have that really good bottle of Rogue or Dogfish Head, most of the time you'll just have to suck it up and pay the premium price for it.
February 2, 2007
The Beer Hacker: Beer brewing software
Wonder of wonders, I've finally written another Beer Hacker article! To anyone not familiar with "The Beer Hacker," check out the introduction here.
A few years ago I posted on my other blog on the subject of brewing software, and had laid out a set of criteria for what I'd like to see in such a package. It's been a long time since I've looked at brewing programs, and figured revisiting and reviewing a bunch of them would make a good topic for the Beer Hacker.
I only looked at programs that run on a single computer—even though in this wired-internet-"web 2.0" world it seems like a no-brainer that there should be web-based brewing sites that do all the same things, only online and shareable with other users out there. Perhaps there are, but that's a subject for a future article.
Since I use Windows XP, I'm unable to test any software that runs on Mac or Linux, so if there's a fantastic non-Windows brewing program out there, let me know. The programs I found and tested are shareware—there is a trial period which you can use the software, then you must buy it at the end of that period for the full-featured version to continue using it.
March 3, 2006
The Beer Hacker: 5 Tips for Extract Brewing
Having brewed extract-based beer for years (I still haven't made the jump to all grain), I thought I'd share some hacker-ish tips to help improve your extract brewing. These are tips that are aimed more for the beginning homebrewer, though hopefully more advanced brewers will appreciate them too.
February 18, 2006
The Beer Hacker: Beer and brewery maps
I've blogged about the Beer Mapping Project before, but I thought it deserved an in-depth look and would make an ideal topic for this Beer Hacker column.
For the uninitiated, the Beer Mapping Project is a great resource that combines the power of Google Maps with one of the most complete listings of breweries, brewpubs, beer bars and even beer stores that I've ever seen. They have larger-scale US Brewery Maps, organized by region, that show brewpubs and breweries; and a growing selection of city beer maps that include the beer bars and stores, focusing on much more detail for that particular city.
February 11, 2006
The Beer Hacker: Best of the cheap beers?
At the risk of using an inflammatory headline, "cheap beers" seemed easier to convey than what I really mean: American macrobrewed light lagers. Yes, the Millers, the Buds, the Coors... if you have to drink them (say you find yourself at a party with only the cheap stuff), which one(s) should you choose?
I thought this would be an amusing topic to write about for my first "Beer Hacker" column, though I kind of wish I'd written it to be timely with the Super Bowl. Ah, well, better late than never.
February 10, 2006
The Beer Hacker
No, "The Beer Hacker" doesn't refer to a new blog or site (that I know of), but rather the name of a new "column" I'll be writing here semi-regularly (once a week or so). They will be longer articles covering all sorts of beer-related topics, with (I'm thinking) the underlying theme of getting the most out of beer in various ways (homebrewing, relating to the internet, etc.).
Why am I doing this? I think it'll be a fun addition to the site; it forces me into a more regular writing schedule (I keep telling myself I want to be a writer); I'm inspired in part by sites like Lifehacker and it would be fun to do a beer version.
And yes, "The Beer Hacker" is a riff on "The Beer Hunter", which is the nom-de-plume of beer writer Michael Jackson. You can't take yourself too seriously. :)
So keep an eye out. First one should be up today or tomorrow.
