iPhoto '08
Posted on August 10, 2007 at 12:25 PM EST
The new Events feature in iPhoto ‘08 is a great way of organizing photos, but it’s too bad this wasn’t added several versions ago. It’s going to take a long time to go through and reorganize my existing library of 2,641 photos. :(
One feature that I really like is how you can mouse over a photo while in Events view and it will flip through all of the photos in the Event when moving the cursor side-to-side.
Another great addition is the ability to create shortcuts for keywords. As long as the keyword window is open, you just need to click a single letter and that keyword will be assigned to the active photo. It even works while viewing photos in full screen mode.
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Tagged with apple, iphoto, mac, software
New Apple Keyboards
Posted on August 07, 2007 at 06:14 PM EST
Apple unveiled two new, ultra-thin aluminum keyboards today. When I saw the photos that were leaked a few weeks ago on Engadget, I knew I was going to have to pick one up if the rumors were indeed true. I had hoped there would also be an identical version that was wireless, just as they have done in the past with their previous keyboards.
When I heard they had introduced a wireless version I was thrilled, but then when I saw that it is reduced in size and does not include the normal-sized navigation keys, as well as the numeric keypad, I was extremely disappointed.
I assume Apple made it more compact so it wouldn’t be as bulky when traveling. When I take trips, I usually bring my extra bluetooth keyboard and use it with my laptop because I like having the expanded keyboard and more flexibility. The keys on the new wireless keyboard are laid out just as they are on the MacBooks, except for a few along the top row . I don’t see why anyone would want to lug around an external keyboard when it’s for the most part, the same thing that’s on the laptop.
I’ve been using a numeric keypad for so long that I cannot imagine not having one for my everyday use. I’m not sure what Apple was thinking, but it really sucks that they didn’t make them both the same.
The new look is gorgeous and the eye-pleasing brushed metal goes well with the cinema displays. I also really like how the new design is about three times thinner than the previous keyboards. I will probably end up getting the wired one even though I can’t stand cable clutter – at least it’s $30 cheaper.
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Tagged with apple, hardware, mac
My Favorite Apps for OS X
Posted on November 06, 2005 at 10:05 PM EST
Web Browser
Safari is the default web browser that ships with OS X and it is extremely powerful. There are many great browsers to choose from on OS X, but I usually end up going back and forth between this and Camino.
Font Management
My font manager of choice is FontAgent Pro. One feature that not only saves time but helps save some memory on your machine is font auto-activation. If an OS X application asks for a font, such as opening a PSD file, the font will be opened if it hasn’t already been activated. I have tried many different font management programs and this is by far the best. However, I’ve read a lot of good reviews about FontExplorerX and I’d like to try it out sometime.
FTP
Transmit takes FTP to the next level on OS X. It allows you to make server-to-server transfers, upload your files by draffing them to the dock, and allows you to set favorites that are similar to Safari. After I switched to using Macs three years ago, I tried out several different FTP clients. I’ve been very happy with it ever since and haven’t felt the need to try out any others.
News Reader
NewsFire is a nice and simple news reader that has a clean look to it. I previously used NetNewsWire as my default aggregator but I like how NewsFire isn’t as bloated and it also has a couple of nice features that NetNewsWire doesn’t have. It also supports Growl notifications so I can get a brief summary of new stories without having to click on Newsfire to read them.
Text Editor
Textmate is an inexpensive text editor that is packed with many different features that make a web developer happy. It supports many different scripting languages including XHTML, CSS, PHP, and even Ruby on Rails. I especially like the dynamic file outline that appears along the side of the main window.
Icon Customization
I like to change my icons around from time to time and by using CandyBar, it enables me to do this. If you’re tired of seeing the exact same icons on your screen all of the time, be sure to check it out then head on over to Pixelgirl to pick out some cool icon sets.
Screen Captures
If you ever need to take a full screen capture of an entire page Paparazzi! is your answer. Just enter the URL and save the image to a PNG file with the click of a button. It’s too bad the built-in screen capture utility for Mac doesn’t have the ability to do this.
Time Tracking
I keep track of the amount of time that I spend on all of my projects. Khronos is an effective project timer and best of all is free. It even has the ability to print invoices and export to various spreadsheet applications.
Wireframe Creation
A wireframe is a great way to visualize the architecture of a website before it is created to see how it is structured. MyMind is a utility that lets you build graphical representations of your site with ease.
Photo Management
iPhoto is excellent for managing photos that are taken on a digital camera. It automatically loads when a digital camera is plugged in and allows you to create separate libraries. If you have a Flickr account, then you have to be sure to use FlickrExport which enables you to upload your photos directly from iPhoto to Flickr.
Notes
Sidenote is an advanced note taking utility which is designed to be available whenever you need it. Just move your mouse to the side of the screen and it instantly appears. This comes in handy when having to make a quick note about something then you can always read it later by moving your mouse or you can tack it on the screen so it won’t disappear.
Netflix Rentals
Netflix Freak has a very clean look and enables you to completely manage your Netflix account directly through the application. No more having to click on lots of pages the find the movie you want or modify your queue. If you subscribe to Netflix this is a definate must have.
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Tagged with apple, osx, software
Video in iTunes 6
Posted on October 12, 2005 at 04:44 PM EST
Apple released iTunes 6 today, which includes support for videos. Over 2,000 music videos and select TV shows can now be purchased through the iTunes music store. Each video costs $1.99, which is certainly worth the price to be able to download high-quality TV shows that have the commercials edited out. I can see this being useful when my TiVo ends up missing a show that I regularly watch. Usually, I’d end up missing the show since many of them don’t come on again until long after the season has ended.
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Tagged with apple, itunes, music, software
Free iPod Shuffle!
Posted on October 07, 2005 at 04:03 PM EST
My iPod shuffle came today, which was sent to me for free from Gratis Internet. All I had to do was just sign up for one of their promotions and refer three friends to do the same. Also included was an i heart iPods t-shirt. This one took only two days to get here from the day I was approved, unlike the last one which took several months to arrive. My next goal is to get a free iPod nano.
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Power Mac G5 Arrived Today!
Posted on June 02, 2005 at 07:43 PM EST
My new Power Mac G5 (a.k.a. the 50 lb beast) arrived today after placing the order two weeks ago. One thing you really have to love about Apple is their first class packaging and design. You can see some photos that I took under Apple in the photographs section.
I went with the Dual 2.0 GHz model and decided to beef it up a bit. Here are the specs:
- Dual 2.0GHz PowerPC G5
- 1GB DDR400 SDRAM
- 250GB Serial ATA - 7200rpm
- 16x SuperDrive (DVD+R DL/DVD+RW/CD-RW)
- ATI Radeon 9650 w/256MB DDR SDRAM
- Airport Extreme Card
- Internal BlueTooth Module
- 56k V.92 Internal Modem
- Apple Wireless Keyboard & Mouse
- Mac OS X version 10.4 Tiger
Before hooking it up, I took off the side panel to add a second hard drive and was in silent awe for about a minute. It’s amazing just how clean and elegant the design is especially with all of the wires and parts that are inside. The two heat sinks are massive and take up about 25% of the case. The panel came off with ease after simply lifting the latch which is quite the opposite with most of the PCs I’ve worked on. It’s amazing how there’s only one company that builds machines for the Mac O/S and all of their equipment is years ahead of any of the PC manufacturers. You’d think it would be the other way around since there’s so many companies competing with one another to build a better PC, but I guess that just goes to show what kind of company Apple is.
This thing has incredible speed. Most of the apps that I’ve launched load so quick that the icons barely even bounce in the dock. Photoshop took just a few seconds to load and came up just like I turned on a light switch. Incredible! Another thing that I am really impressed with is how little noise the machine makes. Every once in a while I can hear a slight noise when the fans turn on, but it usually only lasts for about ten seconds.
Using this new machine really makes me wonder how I ever coped with my last one. I am in heaven!
I’m selling a mint condition FireWire LaCie 16x d2 DVD+RW Drive that also includes Toast 6 Titanium in case anybody is interested. The G5 has a double-layer DVD burner so I no longer have a use for the d2. For more information, please drop me an email.
Update (June 3rd, 2005)
I was just reading about the Power Mac’s design on Apple’s website and noticed something funny. The PC that is used next to the G5 as a comparison to show how little clutter the G5 has is the exact same one (Gateway Professional S) that I was using as my main workstation before I got the G5. Here’s a photo of mine, which I think would have been better to use as it looks even more cluttered than the one they used. What are the odds of that especially since it’s a few years old?
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Tagged with apple, g5, powermac
Thoughts on Tiger
Posted on May 04, 2005 at 11:25 PM EST
I finally got around to upgrading both of my Macs to Tiger. The PowerBook was updated on Friday and the iMac was done yesterday afternoon. It only took about 30 minutes to install and everything went nice and smooth.
Spotlight
Although, it’s really nice to be able to instantly search files wherever they may be on your computer (separate partitions, external hard drives, etc.), it is not as fast as I thought it would be after all of the marketing hype that I read about it. Spotlight includes a feature called Smart Folders, which contain files grouped together based on search criteria instead of physical location. If you wanted to keep track of all Photoshop PSD files, you can simply create a Smart Folder that will search for this type of file and they will instantly appear after clicking the folder.
Automator
Automator is great for repetitive tasks such as moving specific types of files around, renaming files/folders, scaling images, etc. Rather than having to do this manually like in the past, this will definitely help save me a lot of time in the future.
Dashboard
Dashboard is pretty cool and has some nice animation and effects. One thing that bugs me about it is that it doesn’t have an option to turn each widget on/off so it is permanently displayed on the desktop. Currently, you have to click the Dashboard icon to make them all appear then they all disappear when another application is selected. You can hold down F12 and drag a widget out onto the desktop, but you have to do this each time you click on the main Dashboard icon which is a pain and you can only select one widget. Here’s a list of my favorites:
- Weather - Displays your local weather conditions and forecast for the next six days.
- Unit Converter - Converts units such as currency, temperature, time, weight, length, etc.
- Package Tracker - Track packages that are sent via FedEx or UPS.
- Hula Girl - Adds some good fun to your desktop.
- Translation - Translates 13 different languages.
- Dictionary/Thesaurus - Looks up word definitions and synonyms.
Preview
Preview now offers enhanced PDF abilities, screenshot options, and saves screen captures as PNG files instead of PDFs. It also offers support for RAW camera images which is great for viewing photos that are taken from my Canon Digital Rebel XT.
Safari RSS
Safari is definitely a lot faster than it was in Panther. One of the biggest new features in it is support for RSS. This is one feature that I don’t particularly find useful since I use NetNewsWire as my news reader.
I like that it finally has an option to import/export bookmarks under the File menu. In previous versions of Safari, a separate application had to be installed in order to copy or backup your bookmarkes, unless you went into the Library folder and copied the files. I also like the option to be able to save a page as a Web Archive which will save the entire page, complete with images and links in case you would like to save it for offline viewing or save an older version of a webpage.
Default Icons
Cage Fighter Icons
The first thing I noticed after launching Mail for the first time was the tiny, hideous buttons for the mail controls. Luckily, someone created a tiny application called Cage Fighter that will remove the ugly backgrounds and just display the plain icons. One big improvement from the search functions that were in previous versions is Spotlight and also the ability to create Smart Mailboxes.
Overall Thoughts
Many of the new features that are included will help speed up the amount of time that it takes to get things done which is certainly a big plus in my book. There are also hundreds of small improvements everywhere you look that really make a noticeable difference from Panther.
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Tagged with apple, osx, review
Goodbye Panther - Hello Tiger!
Posted on April 29, 2005 at 02:41 PM EST
Tiger just arrived and I am about to begin the upgrade process on both my iMac and PowerBook. Earlier this morning I made some backups of all of my important files as I’m going to select the option to do a clean install to give it a fresh start. I will post an update once everything has been completed and I’ve given it some good tests.
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Tagged with apple, osx, software
Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger
Posted on April 15, 2005 at 12:39 PM EST
Apple announced the other day that the release date for Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger will be on April 29th. They just added a page on their site that lists over 200 new features that are included. WoW! Here’s a couple that I am really looking forward to:
- Spotlight - A new desktop search technology that finds anything (files, emails, contacts, images, movies, songs, calendars and applications, etc.) on your computer as fast as you can type. No more waiting and waiting when performing searches!
- Dashboard - Similar to Konfabulator which enables you to have nifty new mini-applications called widgets so you can quickly view stock prices, local weather, lookup numbers with the phone book, etc.
- Automater - An innovative personal automation assistant that helps you streamline repetitive manual tasks without programming such as renaming files or folders or attach files to multiple emails and automatically send them out.
Even though it isn’t due out for another two weeks, it is already the #1 seller on Amazon.com’s Software Top Seller List. They are currently offering free shipping and a mail-in rebate for the $129.99 Tiger retail box which brings the final cost down to only $94.99. I went ahead and pre-ordered it and cannot wait for it to get here!
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Tagged with apple, osx, software
Say Hello to My Little Friend
Posted on October 18, 2004 at 10:58 AM EST
My iPod from FreeiPods.com finally came this morning! Not a bad deal considering it’s worth $299 and it took less than an hour of my time to get. Gratis had emailed the tracking number to me last Wednesday and I’ve been anxiously awaiting it’s arrival the past week! It was delivered via FedEx and made it’s way from Shanghai, China -> Anchorage, AL -> Indianapolis, IN -> Greensboro, NC -> Wilmington, NC then finally to Carolina Beach, NC.
As usual, Apple did a superb job with their packaging: a cube that lifted out of a square cover (as you can see in the above photos) which had little compartments for each piece that was included. It’s brand spankin’ new and is a 20 GB (4th generation) model that can hold up to 5,000 songs. Now I just need to get Griffin’s iTrip so I can listen to all of my music in my Xterra directly off my iPod. No more burning CDs and having to change them while driving!
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Free iPod!
Posted on August 02, 2004 at 04:33 PM EST
Want a free iPod? All you have to do is go to freeiPods.com and enter your email address then complete one of the nine offers they have. You’ll then need to refer five friends who do the same thing and an iPod of your choice will be mailed to you within a few weeks. I first thought this was a gimmick but I’ve heard of people online who have already received theirs so it’s the real deal! If you’re feeling skeptical or think it’s just another pyramid scheme, check out Engadget, Wired News’ article Making Free iPods Pay Off, or Forever Geek.
I recommend the eBay offer which requires you to open a new account and place a bid on any item on their website. You don’t have to enter any credit card information when signing up and you also don’t have to win the auction, you just need to place a bid. If you find an item that has just been posted with a low starting price, you’ll most likely be outbid before the auction is over.
Update (August 10th, 2004)
They are no longer offering the eBay offer and it will not return. I recommend signing up for the RealRhapsody or AOL 9.0 with MusicNet offer.
Update (August 15th, 2004)
I currently have four referrals and only have one more to go! The Ancestry.com offer is back. The good thing about this is you get instant credit.
Update (October 18th, 2004)
I received my iPod today! See this post if you’d like to see pics.
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