Cloud Outliner - Outline Maker App Reviews

I love the simplicity of this. It has just enough but not too much. I used to think that an app that could do everything was just the coolest thing. But after having major Evernote burnout, I now know that I would rather have an app do one thing really well instead of a Frankenstein app that does a lot but is too bloated. The one thing that seems to be missing for me is the ability to make links (I’ve searched for this but can’t find it, maybe I am overlooking it). I write my posts in Google Sheets and I was creating outling in Sheets and linking to the actual article that I’m working on. I would love to be able to create my outline in Cloud Outliner 2 Pro and link to my Google sheet post. That would make it 5 star for me. Thanks

I think I’ve tried them all and this is currently the best outliner out there. Carbon Fin Outliner was my go to prior to Cloud Outliner. The iDevice apps still have some minor bugs but not enough to shy you away. The new color option is great. The syncing is pretty good, there is sometimes a delay that could potentially create an issue if you start editing before the sync finishes. The subfolders are a huge improvement for organizing the outlines/lists. One big thing is doesn’t have is the ability to sort a list alphabetically. I use this app mainly for packing list for all the trips I take. When I first creat a list I just jot down items as they come to me. Once I sort the items into the main categories (clothing, tech gear, pre-flight, etc.) I would like to have the subitems sorted alphabetically. I’m sure this feature will come. If you want the ability to outline/list things with subsets and have it sync across all your devices then this is the app.

;I use outlines every week, and I love the fast cloud sync that this product has. It is customizable and the developer is responsive. I like it and use it.

I love outliners and have been unhappy since the days Grandview was done in by a suite of apps taking over the computing universe. Nothing yet matches that program, BUT whatever anyone else may like or dislike about this app, it has one great appeal for me: it works everywhere. My heavy-duty outliner doesn’t work on iPhone. This app works on Mac, iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch. Syncing is fast and accurate. For this reason I love it. Today I had to attend a webinar which took over my whole computer. Cloud Outliner to the rescue on my iPad. Kudos. This is also the very first review that I have posted unprompted. Before I always said, “Yeah, theyre right. I should at least give them a good rating and even review.” For this app no prompting was necessary. It does what I need and makes me very happy. Thank you to the providers.

The new version has many nice features, but sync is still broken. Make a change on one device, sync, go to the other device and sync there. They are not the same. Changes are sometimes picked up and sometimes not. You never know where things stand. It’s maddening. If they would fix this, the programs would be fabulous, but...

I have this app on my Mac, iPad, and iPhone. I truely love it. I’m in school and use it for taking notes on chapters in my textbook. It is very simple to use and the sync works flawlessly.

There are tons of expensive apps out there for outlining—but this inexpensive option is clean, intuitive and packed with more features than most people will ever need. The fact that is syncs effortlessly with all devices makes it easily the best in a very crowded field of outlining apps. The iOS version is spectacular as well.

I write a lot of short speeches as part of my work and have used outliners since CP/M days in the Eighties. In recent years, I have searched for a straightforward outliner without a lot of formatting and other tricks that didn’t get in the way of your writing. I really needed one which synced between the iPad, iPhone and Mac. And I mean synced with no bother, not export an OPML version and reformat at each end of the transfer. Voila! The latest version of Cloud Outliner 2 Pro in iOS and OS X fills the bill. I can start an outline using the research tools on my Mac and work on in using the mobility of the iPad. I can even work back and forth with no bother. Five stars and three cheers and thank you!

UPDATE for version 2.1: Tried to delete my data so I could do a clean test with the new version, but deleting a folder just froze the app. From bad to worse… seriously doubt that this program will ever be usable. UPDATE: Unreliable sync and continued crashes have forced me to lower my rating. This should be listed as a “beta" app… it was not properly tested before release. Good start, but it is easily overwhelmed with large outlines - giving a spinning wheel or simply crashing. Needs work…

UPDATE #2: Glad to see an update out so quickly from the author that improves the responsiveness of the UI. I also figured out a way to assign the TAB key to the normal indent/outdent via the preferences. I still think that when moving items up and down through the hierarchy the items should retain the same depth level, instead of diving into the depths of each sub tree. UPDATE: While the design is beautiful, this program would benefit hugely from thinking through the user workflow a bit more carefully. For example: if I move an item up or down using the keyboard shortcut then I will almost always want it to stay on the same indent level, not traverse the depth of the tree along the child nodes. Indenting and outdenting are likely the most common operations, so why not assign the most simple Tab key to that instead of using Tab for the relatively infrequent focus sheft between editing and file management? Delay between key presses on my 15” 2014 MBP is far too slow, not possible to do rapid keyboard navigation. ORIGINAL REVIEW: I have been looking for for years for a mac/iphone/ipad outlining combination that will allow me to use native formatted outlines (not OPML exports) across all platforms. I am a longtime OmniOutliner user who gave that up years ago due to the bloated UI and exhorbitant prices. Finally as of this release there is now an option for the cross-platform outlining that I want. I have been using Tree 2 up until now, which has been rock solid stable, but lacks the iPad/iPhone option. There are still a few issues with the initial release of Cloud Outliner for Mac, but it’s a very nice looking app that I am happy to support continuing development on. I wish it had an ability to Hoist/Focus on topics. Could also use some finishing work on the UI responsiveness.

I have tried many outlining apps in the past. Cloud Outliner 2 Pro is by far the best that I have ever used. Superb design, excellent support, and being able to sync between my Mac, iPad, and iPhone make this a 5-star app. I have been a long-time user of many apps from XWaveSoft and have been impressed with their frequent improvements and upgrades.

UPDATE: I’ve tested to see at what point the app stops saving new data. I have an outline that at a specific point, when I add new notes, will simply lose those notes as soon as the app is closed; upon reopening the app the outline is always at the state at which I’d previously began working. Saving the outline as OPML results in a 61 kb file; saving the outline as a PDF results in a document that is approximately 12.25 pages long. Anything more than this will not be saved by the app. ORIGINAL REVIEW: Cloud Outliner 2 Pro has been relatively reliable for short outlines. For long outlines on which I’ve worked, however, it has been extremely unreliable, frequently losing significant amounts of data from the end of the outline. This data loss occurs not only when syncing to other computers running the app and to my iPad Air 2, but even on the same computer on which the entries were made. Another problem (albeit less significant) is that on longer outlines, when the number of entries reaches the bottom of the screen, the screen does not scroll as my typing goes onto the next line. This means that I cannot see what I’m typing, and therefore need to manually scroll down for each new line as I type (and, as another commenter mentioned, the app is extremely particular about where your cursor is when you scroll — attempting to scroll from the right side of the screen will frequently result in the screen not scrolling down). I can recommend Cloud Outliner 2 Pro for brief outlines, but find it worthless for longer work.

UPDATE for 2.1 - I raised my rating from 3 to 4 stars. The update has made the program more stable. The crashes from right clicks on outline points seesm to be fixed. I’ve been using Cloud Outliner 2 on my iPad since September, and while it works well, it is harder to copy and paste and move things on the iPad than on a Mac, so I’ve been anxiously waiting for Cloud Outliner 2 to come out on the Mac. I’ve installed it and all my outlines from my iPad instantly synced without a problem. I’ve found three glitches so far after 2 weeks. if you have the cursor on the right side over or in an outline point, the cursor will not scroll from the trackpad. You can scroll via the scroll bar on the far right, but not with a normal trackpad scroll. The most frustrating glitch is that it is often extremely difficult or impossible to select text within an item in an outline to edit it. The third glitch is much more serious and warrented me downgrading the app to 3 stars. It crashes often, mostly when right clicking on an outline point. It crashes as soon as you do the right click. I’m on a 2014 version retina iMac.

I use this app (on both my MacBook Pro and my iPhone) for some specific purposes and it’s just great. What makes it great for me? It’s simple, unadorned, and it syncs for free. For those checklists that I need handy, it’s really perfect.

I use this app on both OS X and iOS. In my iOS review, I noted my initial skepticism at the fawning reviews for this outliner—they looked like paid placements. But, whether that’s the case or not, this is a nice little outliner. My needs are pretty simple—I want to outline what I read. I don’t need fancy presentation features, and the more uncluttered the interface, the more I like it. I gave the iOS app high marks on both points, and I give this version the same high marks The OS X version synced up immediately with the iOS version, which means I can use the OS X version when I’m working at my desk, and the iOS version when I’m not. For ten bucks, it’s a great lille outliner. Paired with the iOS version, it’s about all I need. I can recommend it without reservation.

Just what I needed. A simple outlining tool that worked on all my platforms. I can quickly add ideas during the week with my I phone or iPad and then easily move them around for best presentation flow and clean it up on my MacBook.Works intuitively without having to learn a whole new interface.

This is a very simple outliner to use. It syncs perfectly with Evernote. There is no learning curve as the navigation is very intuitive. If you like the way the screenshots look, you’ll be quite happy with this app.

This is the best outline program of any. It’s better because it isn’t bloated with gee whiz stuff. I use this to organize my tasks. So I will create lists like a “WalMart” list or a “Home Depot” list. Then when I accomplish an item I simply remove that item. It’s also very easy to reorganize the structure of the outline. Simplicity and speed is why I use this app. I also use the iPhone / iPad app side-by-side with the desktop app. Everything is perfectly synched between them. This is the most flexible and direct approach that I have found. I tried other more robust apps an I found them to be too time consuming. With Cloud Outliner I simple open up an outline, accomplish my task and move on to the next task. Simplicity, speed and perfect synchronization is what makes this a winner. PS: I alos use the outline to flesh out concepts for chapters and the contents of chapters is a book. Outlines are useful. I so glad that I found this app.