Posted By Paul Kafasis on August 21st, 2025

In the realm of computers, bugs are generally a bad thing. Every year, our team ships dozens of free updates to eliminate bugs that are an inescapable byproduct of the countless variables in software development. Rarely, though, a bug can be beneficial. Back in 2002, a software bug saved Rogue Amoeba.

It started when we shipped the very first version of Audio Hijack. We wanted to give potential customers the ability to fully test the app prior to purchase, but we weren’t sure how best to limit that free trial. Our initial download provided 15 full days of completely unlimited usage.

The app’s functionality only became constrained after that 15 day trial period had elapsed. Our documentation at the time explained what would happen:

After 15 days, Audio Hijack will nag you to register at launch and will quit after 15 minutes. Additionally, the recording feature will be disabled.

We hope that before your 15 days are up, you’ll want to register Audio Hijack, so you won’t have to worry about this.

Unfortunately for our business, what we hoped for seldom came to pass. Sales were middling. Though we knew we had a useful tool, it seemed unlikely Rogue Amoeba could ever be more than a side project.

Still, we continued developing the software and shipping new versions, eventually releasing Audio Hijack 1.6. It was a relatively minor update, without any eye-catching new features. Given that, we were shocked when we saw sales jump to a new (and viable!) level. Then, they stayed there.

As days of sustainable sales turned into weeks, we were thrilled but confused. Initially, we couldn’t figure out what had happened. Eventually, though, we tracked down the change. It was a bug! In version 1.6, we accidentally broke the intended 15 days of unrestricted usage. Instead, from day one, the app was limited to 15 minutes of recording. After that, all trial users were confronted with this dialog:

Compared to giving away two-plus weeks for free, this stricter limitation led to dramatically higher sales. We had unwittingly created a vastly superior trial. It’s stuck around, too. Though we’ve refined things further, our current trial limitations directly descend from this rogue idea we stumbled into.

With this change, our low sales rose to a level where it was worth continuing to work on and improve Audio Hijack. Within a year, Rogue Amoeba became a full-time job for the three founders, and our company now employs a dozen people. If not for this fortunate mistake, it’s very likely we’d eventually have given up long ago. It’s no exaggeration to say that this bug saved both Audio Hijack and our company.

Footnotes:

1. That tagline existed because the fair-use right to time shifting was not yet well-established. Given that, we focused our early marketing on the audio adjustments the app made possible. While Audio Hijack can still help with that, nowadays, we recommend SoundSource as the best solution for applying effects to any audio on your Mac. ↩︎

Posted By Paul Kafasis on August 7th, 2025

As you may already know, I relish the chance to celebrate employee milestones. Making outstanding audio tools requires an outstanding team, and we’re honored to work with such stellar staff. We’re particularly proud that so many of our employees have long tenures with us. Today, I’m delighted to induct the first member into Rogue Amoeba’s 15 (!) year club: Chris Barajas.

Looking Back at Fifteen Great Years

Way back in 2010, Chris joined us to handle all of our front-line support. In that role, he answered countless emails and assisted tens of thousands of users in getting the most out of our products. That work alone is worthy of much acclaim, but it’s only part of how Chris has contributed to Rogue Amoeba’s successes.

In 2017, our lone Support position grew into a two-person team. Chris and Robert Charlton worked side-by-side, but Chris’s years of experience enabled him to take the lead on many things. For several years, Chris and Robert acted as a fantastic tag team. In 2020, however, the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 lead to a huge uptick in usage.

At that point, our Support team grew to three. Soon after, Chris was promoted to the new position of Support Manager. He’s been officially leading the Support team ever since, continuing to answer customer emails while also guiding our renowned Support operation. Chris now works on a wide variety of related tasks, from streamlining tools to help customers to refining our marketing. His direct contact with customers continues as well, making him an invaluable part of our product development cycle.

For fifteen years and counting, Chris has helped shape Rogue Amoeba. We couldn’t be more pleased to celebrate him today.

The Watch Anniversary

In honor of this anniversary, we recently presented Chris with some gifts. Everyone appreciates a nice monetary bonus, and the custom cards our designer Neale creates are always tremendous as well:

To commemorate his decade and a half with the company, we also wanted to provide Chris with a special object. Knowing that 15 years is the watch anniversary, we decided an Apple watch would do nicely. Do note the capitalization there, though, because we’re not talking about a smartwatch. Instead, we tracked down the original Apple watch:

Here’s a closer look:

This strange beauty was a promotional giveaway way back in 1995. And speaking of capitalization, this watch’s original band even correctly uses an uppercase “M” in “MacOS” (or maybe that’s “Mac OS”? Still good!):

That text is actually rather incongruous, because the Mac’s operating system was still called “System 7.5” in 1995. That didn’t change until 1997, with the arrival of Mac OS 7.6.

Odd branding aside, this watch is both a functional timepiece and a charming reminder of years gone by. Chris’s career has been tied to Apple and the Mac, and this memento is a tribute to his fine work over many years. We hope it brings a smile to Chris’s face, whether he’s wearing it or just glancing at it on a shelf.

Three Cheers for Chris

Chris’s tenure spans almost two-thirds of Rogue Amoeba’s existence, and his impact in that time has been immeasurable. In countless ways, Rogue Amoeba is better because of Chris. So on behalf of the entire Rogue Amoeba team, I want to express our tremendous appreciation. It’s been a privilege to work with Chris since 2010, and we hope for many great years to come!

Posted By Paul Kafasis on June 9th, 2025

Apple has now announced MacOS 26 (Tahoe), the next major OS update for the Mac. Though we’ve only just received the initial version of Tahoe, we’re already hard at work on updates for our entire product line. We expect to have full support for Tahoe ahead of its release in the fall.

Current Status

Our helpful Status page always provides information about support for new operating systems. Give it a look and you’ll see that all of our current releases already run on Tahoe! That’s the result of a lot of hard work, including the transition to our new ARK backend. We hope our users who install MacOS betas will appreciate it.

It should be noted, however, that our apps are not yet well tested on Tahoe. The current versions of the apps will warn you of that fact:

As you can see, Apple’s decision to increase the OS version by 11 instead of 1 was unexpected.

That testing has begun, and will continue throughout the summer. Even when it’s complete, however, we always recommend sticking with officially released versions of MacOS for production environments.

The Road Ahead

In the coming weeks, we’ll issue test releases that run without showing a warning on Tahoe. You can opt into those now, then you’ll be alerted once they’re available.

Those test releases will eventually be followed by full releases with official support for Tahoe. That will come later in the MacOS beta cycle, when Apple is less likely to make breaking changes.

Stay Informed

You can always check the aforementioned Status page to get the latest information. You might also subscribe to this blog via RSS and follow us on social media as well.

As for us, we’re off to do more testing. Stay tuned for more soon.

Posted By Paul Kafasis on June 5th, 2025

Recently, we created a new web tool aimed at helping our existing customers. Our Customer Dashboard now provides fast access to details on all purchases you’ve made from Rogue Amoeba, including your personalized license keys, as well as relevant download links. Here’s what it looks like:

If you’re an existing customer, check it out yourself right here:

Visit the Customer Dashboard

You won’t need an account or password, just your email address. Enter the address you used to purchase, and you’ll receive an email with a link that lets you access the dashboard.

Once inside, you can:

Retrieve Lost Licenses

If you ever lose your license keys, the dashboard will get you set. Your exact license keys are displayed here, and it’s easy to copy the name and code to unlock your apps.

Download Software

No matter how long ago you purchased, we always provide you with access to your software.¹ In the Customer Dashboard, the Download buttons shown with each license make provide you with the latest version that license can unlock.

View Purchase History

The dashboard also provides a de facto record of your purchases. See everything you’ve bought from Rogue Amoeba in one place, as well as when you bought it.

Update Your Email Address

Last but not least, you can now control the email address under which your purchases are stored. If you bought under multiple addresses over the years and want to combine things, or need to move all your purchases to a new email address, you can now do so easily.² Click the Update button to get started.

There When You Need It

This tool isn’t something we expect folks to use often, but it’s an important one nonetheless. When you update to a new Mac, the dashboard will make it a snap to get up and running with our apps. And if you ever need to locate a lost license key or access the correct download, the Customer Dashboard will be ready for you.

Footnotes:

1. That’s true all the way back to our original customers who purchased Audio Hijack 1 way back in 2002. The collection of compatible versions on our Legacy page is comprehensive. ↩︎

2. If you no longer have access to the email you used to purchase, we’ll need to get you set manually. Contact us directly with your new address, and be sure to include your old email address so we can locate your information. ↩︎

Posted By Paul Kafasis on April 8th, 2025

As mentioned back in January, we’ve working on some big updates to Audio Hijack, Loopback, and SoundSource. While those updates are still some ways off, we’re now looking to recruit some folks to help us test things before they ship to the general public.

In the near future, we’ll distribute private betas to a small number of testers running MacOS 15 (Sequoia). If you’re interested in being part of that group, apply through our form.

In your message, be sure to include:

• Your exact current version of MacOS

• Your favorite kind of bird

Update (April 13, 2025): We’re all full up on testers for now, but keep your eye on this blog for more news in the months ahead.

We’ll get in touch with chosen applicants later this month, so watch your inbox. If you don’t hear from us, just keep an eye on this blog for more updates.