CNET Editors' review
Bare Bones Software's Yojimbo provides a fast, intuitive way to collect and store all kinds of information--from text and images to bookmarks, software serial numbers, passwords, and complete Web page archives that you can read offline. Yojimbo also lets you sync up with your iPad.
Yojimbo makes it extremely easy to add new bits of info: You can scan something directly using TWAIN plug-ins, you can drag and drop almost anything onto Yojimbo's Drop Dock (a tab that sits at the edge of the screen and holds all your "Collections"), or you can hit F8 to add the current contents of your clipboard through Yojimbo's Quick Input Panel, which also lets you quickly add comments, tags, and labels. You can print PDFs directly into Yojimbo (perfect for sales receipts), and the app comes with optional encryption for some items, which is ideal for saving passwords, credit card numbers, and other confidential data.
Yojimbo has a flexible tagging system and a Tag Explorer, which can help you sort and search through all those disparate pieces of data later--although note that Yojimbo doesn't support nested folders inside its Collections, so you're almost required to use tags if you hope to navigate any sizable sets of data. Yojimbo also has recently added a helpful Sidekick feature, which lets you easily export data as standalone Web pages for access from any computer, phone, or device with a Web browser. Overall, Yojimbo excels at helping you input items very quickly and by supporting so many different kinds of data.
Publisher's Description
From Bare Bones Software:
Yojimbo makes keeping all the small (or even large) bits of information that pour in every day organized and accessible. It's so simple, there is no learning curve. Yojimbo's mechanism for collecting, storing and finding information is so natural and effortless, it will change your life, without changing the way you work. There are as many uses for Yojimbo as there are users of it. It accepts almost anything -- text, bookmarks, PDF files, web archives, serial numbers, passwords, or images -- by dragging, copying, importing or even printing. You can get anything out of Yojimbo you put into it, too, in its original form. There's no lock-in, export any time.
What's new in this version:
Additions
- No new features were added in Yojimbo 3.0.4.
Changes and Fixes
Fixed a crash which would occur when displaying certain web archives on 10.8.
Worked around OS bug which was the cause of drawing glitches and crashes in PDF item display.
If the Sidekick export folder is not available at launch, you'll now have the opportunity to choose a new export folder (doing so will restart Sidekick) or to turn Sidek... See all new features
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All versions:
4.3 starsout of 6 votes
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Results 1-7 of 7
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"The best I have tried"
Version: Yojimbo 3.0.2
Pros
Easy to earn
Easy to use
Flexible
Stable
Now has a list of tags for consistency
Easy to add selected content from any application without leaving that applicationCons
A bit expensive, but I'd buy it again.
Summary
The best application I have tried for storing and finding all sorts of information. I was so frustrated with Circus ponies, that I dumped it after 1 day with Yojimbo.
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"Not really necessary"
Version: Yojimbo 3.0
Pros
I didn't find the products features useful for my purposes.
Cons
Just another way of taking money from people for a service that is easily covered by freeware.
Summary
I took one look at the features and saw that it offered nothing that I wanted to pay additional money for a convenience I would probably never use.
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"The BEST Application for Archiving!"
Version: Yojimbo 2.2.1
Pros
It is elegant and simple to use. Very stable and reliable. Well thought out. I used it for ALL my archives. The best is the search function, it returns results as I typed on a library of couple of thousand of documents.
Cons
I just hope the developer will produce more frequent updates to the program. For a program of such quality, it is a bit underdeveloped.
Summary
I have being using this everyday for a few years
With 6 GB of datas, the app is still very snappy! Never crashed on me.
I have tested many archiving applications, this is the best! -
"Forget it..."
Version: Yojimbo 2.2.1
Summary
This review was originally posted on VersionTracker.com.
DevonThink leaves this for dead. I bought version 1 but this upgrade is feeble in the extreme.
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"Very good place to store and organize your mscl. data."
Version: Yojimbo 2.1
Pros
Very easy to use, stable and fast. It consolidates all the mscl. stuff I had scattered all over my computers into one nice interface. Combine with Webjimbo and you have your own personal "cloud" solution. Love it.
Cons
How to back up your stuff is not very clear. I use Time Machine so it's covered, but there should be some sort of backup protocol outlined somewhere.
Summary
I've been looking for a solution like this for a long time to keep text snippets, pdfs, and other sorts of files in one place that could be indexed and searched. Also I wanted to access this data remotely in a secure fashion. With Yojimbo and Webjimbo I am a very happy guy.
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"Excellent start to a difficult challenge"
Version: Yojimbo 1.5.1
Pros
Intuitive tool through following patterns of other Mac OS X applications. Well-designed functionality for input of information.
Cons
Missing an easy list of tag words to aid consistent tagging. Could do with some outlining and basic spreadsheet functionality.
Summary
All those with active digital lives find themselves with lots of bits of information that do not have an easy home. Bookmarks in web browsers are not easily catalogued; PDF files from receipts or statements can get lost in a mass of folders; some images just grate when put in iPhoto; it is hard to organise fragments of notes. What Yojimbo supports is the organising of these fragments of information that do not fit easily into a larger 'bucket' or 'project'.
It does a good job of this. Its combination of folders, tags and Finder-like labels provides sufficient flexibility to organise information in ways that are easy to find.
I have only few wishes: it could do with an easy to view list of tag words so that I can use them consistently; it could do with simple spreadsheet functionality so that I could add in small amounts of numerical information, such as a price list of items, or a simple analysis of some statistics.
Being a heavy user of personal organiser tools and outliner functionality I was initially sceptical about the benefits of Yojimbo. However just a couple of weeks use I have committed to the product. -
"Very useful for disorganized people"
Version: Yojimbo 1.5.1
Pros
I am a loyal user for quite some time. I just "throw" all my miscellaneous stuff into Yojimbo to keep me organized. And the service is great. When I had sync problems, they were there quickly to offer solutions.
Cons
Sometimes confused as to when a web page shows up or just a link to the page.
Summary
Worth every penny and then some - for organized people AND disorganized people.


















