Today we're releasing Deskzilla 2.0, a major upgrade of our Bugzilla desktop client. We are also changing prices for Deskzilla and releasing a free edition of the product called Deskzilla Lite.

Deskzilla Lite, the Free Edition

Deskzilla Lite is a free edition of Deskzilla for small projects. It is a fully-functional Deskzilla that requires no license key, and it has a couple of limitations:

1. Deskzilla Lite allows connection to only one Bugzilla server.
2. Deskzilla Lite works only if you have 1,000 or less bugs in Bugzilla for those products you work with.

Additionally, Deskzilla Lite allows unlimited connections to well-known Bugzilla servers that host open-source projects. We keep a list of sponsored Bugzilla servers and update it upon request.

To start, you only need to download Deskzilla Lite and connect it to your Bugzilla.

What's New in Deskzilla 2.0

The highlights of the new version are:

• Support for Bugzilla 3.4;
• Time tracking;
• Basic integration with Microsoft Visual Studio 2008;
• UI improvements for Mac.

About Time Tracking

Deskzilla is able to track time that you spend working on bugs and post it as "Hours Worked" to Bugzilla. It works as follows:

• You can select a bug as your current work with Right Click | Work on Bug menu item or Ctrl+G keyboard shortcut. The bug becomes your current task and time tracking is started — you can see that in the Time Tracker window, opened with Time | Open Time Tracker menu or with Ctrl+M shortcut.
• Using Time Tracker window, you can start, stop and pause time tracking. To change the issue you're working on just select it in a query result and hit Ctrl+G.
• At any time you can review the accumulated time statistics and publish it as Hours Worked. Use Time | Edit and Publish Time menu or Ctrl+Shift+M shortcut.
• Deskzilla detects periods when you're not using your computer or when it's asleep, and can automatically turn on pause in time tracking. You can adjust settings for auto-pause using Time | Time Tracking Options menu.

About Integration with Visual Studio 2008

Deskzilla comes with TrackLink.NET, an add-on to Visual Studio 2008 that allows viewing bugs in the IDE. It works by connecting to Deskzilla and pulling out the results of a search.

To install TrackLink.NET from Deskzilla, use Tools | Integrate with IDE menu. More information is available at the TrackLink page.

Changes in Licensing Model and Pricing

Licensing options for unlimited edition (Deskzilla Pro) are now simpler. There are fixed-quantity team licenses for 5 users, 10 users and so on. For your team or company, you need to get a license that's large enough to fit everyone who would use Deskzilla. A single-user license remains to be used by individual users.

Floating and personal licenses are no longer offered. Site licenses and team licenses for more than 100 users are available upon request.

The prices for team licenses start at $490 for a 5-user license. (Check out all prices.)

The price for support and maintenance renewals is 50% of the base license price, per year. Renewing maintenance subscription is optional, but advised, as it ensures that you can receive timely support and latest upgrades.

Upgrading to Deskzilla 2.0

Upgrading to this version requires an active maintenance subscription. Your maintenance subscription allows using Deskzilla 2.0 if you have purchased Deskzilla license on November 7th, 2008 or later, or if you have purchased maintenance renewal for period covering the date of release. If you'd like to purchase a renewal, please request a quote.

To upgrade from a previous version:

• Make sure you have an active maintenance subscription.
• Backup your workspace.
• Install the new version over the old one and start Deskzilla.
• Perform full synchronization using File | Synchronize.

Thanks to everybody who sent us comments and feature suggestions! Please do not hesitate to get back to us with any feedback, via discussion board or e-mail. You can also post directly to our issue tracker. If you have any questions on the new pricing, feel free to contact sales@almworks.com.

Igor Sereda
ALM Works Team

Links:

• Download Deskzilla
• Change log
• Discussion forum