Earlier this week I released a new Fuji X Weekly App update, which I’m excited to share with you. I didn’t announce this right away because there was a minor bug that I wanted to fix before telling everybody about this, which has since been fixed and updated, so, as of late last night, that’s no longer an issue. There are two major new features, plus several really minor things you’re unlikely to notice—we’ll just focus on those two big things in this article.
First up is something that’s been under development in one way or another for five years. I explored many different ways to implement this idea in principal, and there were a couple failed attempts, just because of the complications in making it function smoothly. Ultimately, the approached that worked best and most consistently was less intuitive than what I would have ideally preferred, but it was the best option all things considered. I actually rolled it out first in the Ricoh Recipes App, just so I could work out any unforeseen issues before adding it to the Fuji X Weekly App. What is this new feature? Backup/Restore.
Notes, Favorites, and Custom Recipes are stored locally on your phone within the App’s data, and there has not been a way to share them among devices. If, for example, you have both an iPhone and iPad, you’d need to manually input all your Custom Recipes into both devices—they don’t synch. If you switched phones or lost your phone, it was possible to lose your Notes, Favorites, and Custom Recipes. Now, with Backup/Restore, you can save a copy, and share it among devices.
To save a backup, tap the Gear icon, then choose Back Up Data. You’ll be prompted to either Cancel or Continue. If you select Continue, you’ll have the opportunity to choose where you want the .zip file to be stored—it can be on your device or in cloud storage. Once saved, you can share this .zip file with any device that has the Fuji X Weekly App. To restore, simply choose Restore Data, locate the .zip file and tap on it (if it’s a different device, you may need to download the .zip file onto that device). One note of caution: when you Restore Data, it will override and replace whatever you may have added and/or changed since the Backup file was created. For instance, if you have a Custom Recipe on your iPad that’s not on your iPhone, but you Back Up Data on your iPhone and Restore that .zip on your iPad, you’ll lose the Custom Recipe on the iPad. It doesn’t add the backed up data on top of what’s already there; instead, it replaces it.
My recommendation is to periodically Backup the Fuji X Weekly App, even if you don’t have intentions of sharing it to another device. If you add a new Custom Recipe, or you made some changes to your Favorites, that might be a good time to select Back Up Data and create a new .zip file. Cloud storage is probably the most ideal place to keep it, just so if you lose your phone or change devices, you’ll have it available. Should something unforeseen happen, which does occur now and then, it’s better to be safe than sorry. With Backup/Restore, you can now have that peace of mind, and also match up your Notes, Favorites, and Custom Recipes between multiple devices.
The other big feature of this update is a major overhaul to Custom Recipes. Not only is adding Custom Recipes easier and more intuitive now, but they look and behave more like the 400+ Fuji X Weekly Film Simulation Recipes that come in the App. For example, you can add them as Widgets. You can Filter them, and Search them. You can add them as Favorites. If you sort alphabetically A-Z/Z-A, they will be in the correct place. This is a very significant improvement.
All of the fields (except Sensor generation) are freeform text; however, many have a dropdown menu or -/+ field for easier selection. If (for example) you type Velvia instead of selecting it from the dropdown list, the App will still include this Recipe in Filter by Velvia (just as long as it’s spelled correctly). Custom Recipes created prior to this update are fully compatible and will automatically be transformed to the new system (which was probably the trickiest part of revamping it). If you leave a field blank, that field will not appear in your Custom Recipe in the App. For instance, those with X-Trans III cameras can skip Color Chrome Effect, Color Chrome FX Blue, and Clarity, since X-Trans III cameras don’t have those options, and they will simply not show in the finished Recipe. Once you save it, at the very bottom of the Recipe you’ll notice a Notes field, which wasn’t available in the old system.
Those who use the Custom Recipes feature of the Fuji X Weekly App will absolutely love this update. This has been in the works for a long time, and I’m very happy with how it turned out. And it needed to be done prior to the implementation of Backup/Restore. In a sense, as far as the coding goes, these two features go hand-in-hand, and that’s why they were done together. While this update is mostly beneficial to Patron subscribers, there are some small under-the-hood improvements that affect everyone, so even if you are using the App for free, I do recommend updating to the latest version, if your phone did not do so automatically.
The Fuji X Weekly App is free to download and use. Consider becoming a Patron subscriber to unlock the best App experience and to support Fuji X Weekly.
Well nice update with necessary added features indeed for the Patrons.
I’ve put a bunch of recipes as favourites (& classified by colour) + stored quite a few homemade & find elsewhere recipes. I could have hated to redo everything in case of loss of my smartphone.
Super & cool.
Using Android, update done and backup done without issue.
Being an IT infra guy, and extremely precised in my file naming convention, it is the very first time I’m not renaming a bloody backup file from an app giving ‘weird’ names & dates.
Here I just like at it is with well place name and date with correct separators.
Congratulations, well done and worth the wait 👏
I kind of felt like this update was a lot of work over a long period of time, but that maybe it would be under-the-radar and not really appreciated by most. I’m glad to hear the positive feedback. Thank you! 😀
Welcome Ritchie
Can’t wait to try this out! I especially love the idea of having custom recipes not automatically sit at the top of any list. And the backup function is very welcome!
I appreciate the feedback! 😀
Definitely an “old school’ approach.
Personally, I would never overwrite. The very heart of backup systems is to at least run Grandfather, Father, Son.
Peel it back when it inevitably goes wrong.
Some like using the “Cloud”.
To me, it is as watertight as a colander and can never be anything else.
In addition, bad actors who trawl the “Cloud” looking for suckers, won’t find you if you are not there.
Personally, as I keep nothing of interest on my Android devices, everything goes onto my Windows driven server system.
The long story is that the original intention was for automatic syncing between devices. The problem encountered, which is a problem because this feature wasn’t released at the very beginning back in 2020, was if one device has (for example) a Yellow Star for a certain Recipe and another device has a Red Star for that same Recipe, how do you resolve that conflict? Unfortunately, it caused a lot of crashes in beta testing. Whenever there is a conflict, that conflict must be resolved in order to have a stable coding. The only way to resolve it is for one device to override the other.
Another issue with syncing is what you mentioned: cloud storage. Not everyone has cloud storage (not everyone wants to use it), and many who have cloud storage are maxed out at the data limit. There’s also the issue if devices are on different systems or the same system but different app store accounts. I would have to collect data (I don’t collect any data, not even user names or emails—it’s 100% anonymous) to create accounts with user names and passwords, something I have no interest in doing because it is a security concern.
In the end, going “old school” resolved many of the problems. It’s not as slick or intuitive as I would most ideally like it to be, but having it function without introducing crashes or security risks was a major win. I hope all that makes sense.
I like old school for such feature. Like Malcolm, I’m not storing much on my Android device (security issue too), and being able to do what you want with the backup file and store it the way and where you want it (like Malcolm on my Windows servers and private NAS but also on Cloud drives) is a must for me. Giving user flexibility is always better than none.
Futhermore, I like KISS principle 😉😀
Thanks! I definitely didn’t start with KISS, it would have been better if I had begun there… this would have all been done a lot sooner if I had.
Thanks for the update; it’s nice to have the backup option.
But I am very disappointed, as I’ve discovered today on your app that you’ve linked Amazon for shopping Fujifilm gear. It’s either a big mistake or a deliberate choice.
Amazon belongs to Jeff Bezos, and he’s very close to Donald Trump; he gave him a lot of money for his campaign and is now producing a movie about the First Lady (millions of dollars involved).
Amazon has not much respect for their workers, and I am quite sure for climate matters either.
Anyway, it’s your political choice, and I am fine with it.
Of course it does not mean that I have to use Amazon, which I never do. But why not try to help people or shops that need customers by putting in other links?
For me, supporting in any way Amazon and/or Donald Trump is against my policy.
Political choices matter!
I’ve decided to stop using your app. I feel very sorry, as I believe it’s a great app and your simulations are very nice. Thanks for all these years with your app. Alex
Yeah, I’ve been using Amazon Affiliates for years and years, just like most people who earn a buck from blogging. It’s not a political statement, nor should it be seen as such by me or the 90%+ of other bloggers who also have affiliate accounts with the company. I also have affiliate links with B&H and Moment and Nuzira. It has nothing to do with politics, it’s simply trying to earn a buck to keep the lights on.
I’m sorry to see you leave. Fujirumors and PetaPixel and DPReview and most other sites (photography and non-photography) have Amazon Affiliate links, so you might have to power off the internet altogether. I get that politics matter, and you’ve got to make whatever stand you’re going to make, but this one seems very strange to me (punishing me for who the richest man gave money too, which apparently includes politicians from both parties after a quick Google search). You do you, though.
I’ve been very careful to keep politics out of this website, because it’s not a political website by any means. It has no place here. It’s just so disappointing to receive this message. It reflects just how poor the political climate is right now that such a thing as having Amazon Affiliate links, which has existed for so long now and is so widespread in use, would cause someone to write such a message. It’s just so much better when we don’t let those people (whether rich CEOs or Washington politicians) divide us and sour us towards each other. I feel like most people across the whole world can be friends when we check our politics at the door and just treat each other with kindness and love.
I can only concure with you Ritchie in your statement to treat each other with kindness and love.
On normal situation it is already important. On current obnoxious situation, this is paramount!
I feel very sad too, only proving their dividending actions is succeeding as they intent.
Old political axiom: divide for ruling…
But it seems at ladt, people are beginning to wake up after being put KO. Dividing too much can force people to unite and care.
So indeed political choices matter!
But I’ll keep using your app, go on your website like Fujirumors and many others as I’m using strong publicity blockers.
Sorry for the extra bucks, but I’m compensating this by being a Patron for your app, so no add in it, along the extra cool features I’m using daily 😉
This is another way to go around the imposed system…
Keep the good work and good spirit here on your website.
This crucial / paramount for me (especially as a former forum moderator).
I think there’s a lot of division, and a lot of people benefiting from that division, unfortunately. I hope to see more unity, and as a result more caring. My opinion is that we all have a lot more in common than we realize, even people who seemingly have nothing in common are more alike than not. Those who read this website are from all over the world with as many different political ideas as there could possibly be, yet we’re all photographers who like Fujifilm cameras and don’t always want to edit our pictures. That’s a lot in common right there. It’s better to focus our attention and energy more on what we have in common than what is different. We’re all people, and we’re all on similar journeys. Better to learn from each other than to fight with each other.