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Archive for February, 2007

Run A Widget Without Installing It (Neat Trick)

Dashboard IconWhile gathering links the other day for my “1 Month Later… Software That I Use” article I ran across a really neat trick. Have you ever wanted to test a widget on your computer before actually installing it on your system? The developer of the iStatPro widget blogged about a trick to do just that. I think I’m in widget heaven now! Just follow the instructions outlined below and you’ll be testing widgets like a madman… or madwoman if you prefer :)

Double-click the widget to install it from the Finder. When the widget installer asks “Do you want to install the widget “widget name” and open it in Dashboard?”, simply hold down the Apple and option keys and “Install” will change to “Run”. Click “Run” and the widget will be run from its current location rather than being moved to /Library/Widgets/. Brilliant!

What does this mean to you? Well if you’re like me you are fairly hesitant to install new software in fear of bloating your system. Sometimes I just want to give check out a widget, but don’t because I’m lazy and don’t want to uninstall it if I don’t like it. Now you can check out all the widgets you want and never have to worry about installing them. Just remember that if you do like the widget you’ll need to go back and install it the normal way.

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The Accessories And Peripherals That I Use

As you know, yesterday marked my 1 month anniversary as a Mac switcher. If you found the list of software I posted yesterday useful todays article will just as handy. Today I’m talking about hardware and accessories. Since I purchased my MacBook Pro I’ve began acquiring a decent amount of goodies to take on the road with me. The following list consists of all the accessories and peripherals that I currently use.

Marware Sportfolio SleeveMarware Sportfolio Sleeve: If you spend any amount of time traveling with your MacBook or MacBook Pro then you know the importance of protecting your computer. I’ve chosen the Marware Sportfolio and its proven to be an excellent sleeve. My Full Review

RadTech BT600 MouseRadTech BT600 Bluetooth Mouse: Everyone needs a mouse at some point. Why not take advantage of the built in Bluetooth capabilities of your Mac and get a Bluetooth wireless mouse? There are many mice on the market, but I’ve found the RadTech BT600 mouse to be the best Bluetooth solution. My Full Review

Belkin ExpressCard Multimedia Reader/Writer IconBelkin ExpressCard Multimedia Reader/Writer: I can’t stand carrying my digital camera’s cable around with me. I already have enough cables getting tangled up in my bag I don’t need another. So when I found I could eliminate the cable with a multimedia card reader I purchased the Belkin ExpressCard Reader/Writer. My Full Review

Tripp-Light Traveler 100BtTripp-Lite Traveler 100Bt: Don’t leave your new toy at the mercy of the utility company. Keep your laptop protected with a surge protector at all times. Its not easy to carry a large surge protection strip with you with you travel. Thats why I use this small portable unit by Tripp-Lite. My Full Review

RadTech ScreenSavrzRadTech ScreenSavrz: Have you ever had a laptop’s keys scratch or smudge your LCD display? I know I have. Are you always looking for a soft cloth to wipe down your laptop’s display? I was. RadTech’s ScreenSavrz LCD protector and cleaner is perfect for taking care of both of those situations. My Full Review

TRENDnet Wireless HotSpot DetectorTRENDnet HotSpot Detector: Most coffee shops and motels these days have a WiFi connection. However, unpacking your laptop to check can be cumbersom. By using a HotSpot detector you can quickly and easily check for a wireless internet connection at the push of a button. My Full Review

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1 Month Later… Software That I Use

Today marks my 1 month anniversary as a Mac switcher. I’ve enjoyed every moment with my MacBook Pro. Each day I look forward to what new features of OS X I’ll find. Normally what amazes you one day you will take for granted the next. This is not the case with my MBP or OS X. I’m amazed on a daily basis at how glad I am that I gave Apple a chance and made the switch.

The past month I’ve learned allot and found many tools that help me accomplish tasks. I’d like to share those tools with you today. With a few exceptions, most of the software that I use and have come to love is FREE! This means that you’ll be able integrate most of the software listed below into your work flow at no cost. How great is that?

Desktop Software

Adium IconAdium: This is “THE” instant messenger client for the Mac. Although iChat its nice, Adium allows you to communicate through all of the major IM services. AOL IM, Jabber, MSN Messenger, Yahoo! Messenger, ICQ, .Mac, and Google Talk are all supported by Adium. (free)

Adobe Photoshop CS2 IconPhotoshop CS2: Photoshop is the defacto in terms of image editing, processing, and creation. If you’re serious about producing stunning images or want the power of a full featured image editor look no further. With layers, channels, action scripts, and filters you have all the tools to unleash your creativity.

Cyberduck IconCyberduck: Occasional to regular FTP use can be handled by this full featured FTP client. I use Cyberduck everyday while working on this site and it suits my needs just fine. It offers secure transfers through multiple protocols, bookmarked servers, external file editing, and server/host synchronization. (free)

Firefox IconFirefox: I don’t know why, but I just can’t get used to Safari. Maybe its because I come from the Windows world and have just gotten used to Firefox. I just love the all the great plugins that are available for Firefox. (free)

Google Earth IconGoogle Earth: Ever wanted to visit the Colosseum in Rome, or Ayers Rock in the Australian outback but don’t have the time/money to get away? Nows your chance. Google Earth provides fairly high quality satellite images that span the globe. This tool also gives you information about roads, restaurants, and even 3D models of buildings. (free)

iEatBrainz IconiEatBrainz: Everyone has those mp3 files that have no ID3 tag information and the filename doesn’t provide any clues either. Enter iEatBrainz. By looking at the audio fingerprint of music files iEatBrainz is able to determine the artist, track name, album and more. If you’ve been struggling to tag your mp3’s give this tool a shot, it’ll save you loads of time. (free) My Full Review

ImageWell IconImageWell: Although Photoshop is full featured and can do just about everything, for the smallest of tasks its a bit overboard. When all I want to do is crop an image or compress it a bit I use ImageWell. Its quick and does the trick. (free)

iStumbler IconiStumbler: I use iStumbler to collect information about the WiFi networks in my area. It tells you the MAC addresses, channel, signal, and noise information about any access point. If you have to do any site surveys or troubleshooting iStumbler will come in handy. (free)

Keyword Manager IconKeyword Manager: One of the readers of this blog recommended this iPhoto plugin to me. Its hard to put into words how much time Keyword Manager has saved me. I was able to quickly add keywords to my photos. This plugin even allows you to set up hierarchies of keywords. This allows you to do things like add city, state, and country tags all at once.

Microsoft Office 2004 IconMicrosoft Officer 2004: Not much to say about Office that’ll be new to any of you. One thing thats important to note is that Office 2004 is not a universal binary, so it runs a bit slow. Supposedly the next version will natively support Intel processors, which will bring it up to speed.

Quicksilver IconQuicksilver: I have yet to master Quicksilver, and I doubt that I ever will since there are so many features. Using a few simply keystrokes you can open applications, email pictures, and move files. This is the most powerful launcher you’ll ever find. (free)

TextWrangler IconTextWrangler: While working with code one of the most important features of a text editor is syntax highlighting. TextWrangler not only highlights syntax but provides tabs for open files. I still don’t have much time under my belt with this application, but the more I use it the more I like it. (free)>

Transmission IconTransmission: Want to effortlessly download a torrent file? Install Transmission and never struggle with torrents again. Other than selective file downloading this application does everything I could want in terms of torrent transfers. (free)

WhatSizeWhatSize: You only have so much hard drive space. Its best to keep tabs on your available space before things get out of control. WhatSize informs you of exactly whats eating up that precious storage space. (free)

You Control: Tunes: Listening to iTunes while you work is pretty common. But nothing kills your productivity more than tabbing back and forth to iTunes to skip or repeat a song. You Control: Tunes places back, forward, pause, and play buttons in your menu bar. Even cooler is that it allows you to rate the currently playing track via the menu bar as well. (free) My Full Review

Show Desktop IconShow Desktop: If you’ve made the switch from the Windows world you might miss the ’show desktop’ button in the quicklaunch bar. Well this application mimics that. Throw Show Desktop in your dock, then simply click it to hide all applications and minimize all finder windows. (free)

Dashboard Widgets

iStat Pro Widget IconiStatPro: If you’re into stats you’ll love iStatsPro. Literally any statistic you might want to know about your Mac is displayed in this widget. CPU, memory, hard drive, network, battery and temperature information is all displayed. (free)

RadMovieTimes Widget IconRadMovieTimes:Need to find out when the latest blockbuster is playing at the cinaplex? Fire up your dashboard, select your theater, then tab through until you find your movie. This widget has saved me many visits to Fandango. (free)

TV Tracker Widget IconTV Tracker: My cable TV package doesn’t include one of those user controllable TV guides. I only have the old school guide that you have to wait while it scrolls through all of the channels. With this widget however, I can surf the guide at my own leisure and even select which channels I want to appear in my personal guide. (free)

Image Shackle Widget IconImage Shackle: A few days after getting my MBP my wife asked me how she could easily resize images to send to friends and family. The simplest solution I could find was Shackle. Just drag your photo onto this widget, select your size and click ‘Shackle’. The resized image will appear next to the original. (free)

ImageShack Dashboard Widget IconImageShack Dashboard Widget: To post images online to use in forums or comments this tool is amazing. Simple yet powerful. Just drag the image you want ImageShack to host onto the widget. You’ll then be provided with a link to the image that you can use as you see fit. (free)

Gmail Widget IconGmail: This widget allows me to see unread mail messages in my Gmail inbox strait from the dashboard. There are many similar widgets to be used with other email services. For Gmail this was the best that I found. (free)

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Apple iPhone Commercial Debuts During Oscars

Tonight during the Academy Awards Apple’s newest commercial aired. Not an “I’m a PC, I’m a Mac” commercial, nor an iTunes ad. It was an iPhone commercial. Its interesting to note that it is in no way filmed in a similar way to recent campaigns. I’m guessing that they tailored the ad specifically for the Oscars due to the use of many, many actors/actresses both new and old. Well, enough rambling, I’ll just let you watch the video.

Apple provides a hi-quality version on their site if you prefer to watch it in all its glory.

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Shut Down OS Land Updated

Shut Down OS Land.gifIf you’ve been reading Shut Down OS Land, an Apple web comic that I reviewed a few weeks ago, you’ll be happy to know that its been updated. A.De Armas, the author has posted a massive 7 page update, which really laid the groundwork for some great future plot lines.

If you haven’t read the comic before then I recommend starting from the beginning. It’s only a few pages and its well worth it to know how the story is unfolding. If you’re up to speed on the comic then here’s a link to the first page of the update.

Small Spoiler: In this update Wozzy has created the App-L 1… aka the Apple 1. I love A.De Armas’s comic rendition of the first Apple computer.

Big Spoiler: If you’d like to find out what going to happen in upcoming updates you can read the Shut Down OS Land plot. The password is: macnn. Since english is A.De Armas’s second language he provided the script to allow readers to edit any mixed up translations, but it also allows you to get a sneak peak at whats to come!

What are you waiting for? Get to reading :)

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New Site Running WordPress!

WordPress.jpgWow, its been a long night!

As you can see, there has been some changes around here :) Most notably I’ve left the Blogger free hosting. The site is now hosted on DreamHost, with my own URL, and using WordPress for content management.

IMPORTANT: Please make sure you update your bookmarks! I currently have my Blogger pages redirecting here, but only for a short period of time. My RSS feed will remain the SAME, so there is no need to make any changes to it, just make sure you update your bookmarks.

I still have a bit of work to do around here, but it shouldn’t interfere with the usability of the site. If there is something you’d like to see, or something you don’t like, please let me know and I’ll see what I can do about it.

I’m really excited that the new site is up and running and I think that it will allow me to do some really great stuff. Please report any bugs you find and I’ll try to squash them quickly :)

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