Ask TUAW: 5.1 surround sound, bookmark syncing, MobileMe, MDI files, and more

This time around in Ask TUAW we'll be fielding questions related to bookmark syncing, MobileMe, 5.1 surround sound, MDI files, batch audio conversion, multiple iPods and more.

As always, your suggestions are most welcome, and questions for next week should be left in the comments. When asking a question please include which machine you're running and which version of Mac OS X, as certain answers will vary between different Macs and Tiger vs. Leopard, etc. (we'll assume you're running Leopard if you don't specify). And now, on to the questions!

Zimmie asks

I do audio work on a podcast and can't seem to find an application to do what I want it to do. I know there are batch exporters that will take a collection of files and export them all to consistent settings. I guess what I need would be an export batcher. Essentially, I want to take the stereo AIFF file and end up with four output files (mono AAC, mono MP3, stereo AAC, stereo MP3) with given encoding settings. Übercaster seems to allow this, but it doesn't let me pick certain bitrates and sample rates for the AAC encoder. Currently, I'm using iTunes and I just set the number of channels and the encoder up by hand. Is there any software that lets you take a single audio file and export it with multiple settings?

Several other readers offered suggestions of Switch and Max, however I think that the recently released AudialHub ($18.81) will do almost exactly what you want. It allows you to set up separate queues with different settings in each one that can run simultaneously. It's from Techspansion, the same folks behind my favorite video conversion software, VisualHub.

Jesse asks

I was thinking of getting the new iphone but i have more than 16 gb of music. Is there a way to sync one itunes to multiple iPods automatically without having to manually update?

Yes; in iTunes, select the appropriate iPod or iPhone in the source list on the left. Then under the Music tab you can select whatever you want. So for instance, choose "Selected Playlists" then check whatever playlists you want. You may have to create some specific playlists for the purpose, but iTunes will automatically update these playlists when you sync.

Joel asks

My wife and I are running a 24" 2.8Ghz iMac with Leopard. I work for an all Windows office environment. One of the formats that is commonly used by my coworkers is the .mdi (Microsoft Document Imaging) format. This is used to send reports from Access etc. without trying to shuffle hard copies between our multiple offices. I have as of yet been unable to open this file format with any Mac program. The only workaround I've found is opening it on a PC, re-saving as a .tff and then opening the .tff file on my Mac. That's a real pain. Is there anyway (short of running Windows with Boot Camp) for me to access these files on my lovely new Mac?

After searching around a bit I have not been able to find any native Mac software that can read the MDIs. The MDI format is a proprietary Microsoft format apparently introduced with Office 2003 (and subsequently abandoned). As for what you can do:

1. Run Boot Camp
   
2. Better yet, run Windows in virtualization using Parallels or VMware Fusion
   
3. Try running Office 2003 in CodeWeaver's CrossOver for Mac
   

There is also an application called MDI2PDF Converter, but you'll have to run it in Windows. Given that Microsoft itself has deprecated the MDI format (it's no longer natively supported in Office 2007), I wonder if I might not gently suggest that your company change its workflow.

Balls asks

I'd like to replace my Windows Desktop with a Mac Pro, and use Bootcamp for Windows work (gaming). I have 5.1 Klipsch Promedia computer speakers. Is there a way to use these speakers with a MacPro in OSX and in Windows.

You're going to have to get some additional hardware. One route would be through an A/V receiver with built-in Dolby Digital decoding. Then go optical from the Mac (TOSLINK) to the decoder and finally from the decoder to the speakers. There are some 5.1 external audio interfaces, but the FireWire-based FireWave from Griffin lacks Windows drivers, while the USB-based Sound Blaster X-Fi Surround 5.1 lacks Mac drivers. So your best bet is with an external receiver or preamp.

FunFred asks

I used to use Firefox as my primary browser (yeah, it hangs and crashes a lot...). Anyway, I just decided to switch to Safari for its AJAX rendering abilities (I use a lot of Google Apps). Sure enough, all of my bookmarks are Google Bookmarks (I would use Google Toolbar to keep them in Firefox). How do I sync my Google Bookmarks with Safari?

If all you want to do is download your bookmarks from Google and add them to Safari, you might check out this hint from Mac OS X Hints which includes an Automator action for doing this. You might also want to have a look at the bookmark management applicaiton Bookdog ($19.95) which includes support for Google Bookmarks and Safari (and much more).

emtp6811 asks

Now that .mac is turning into MobileMe, I need a new way to sync my bookmarks. My problem is that the way I use bookmarks is very dynamic. I will bookmark a page for later research, then once it is read I will archive that bookmark into another bookmark folder based on context. My bookmarks are constantly being rearranged in this way. Since social bookmarking sites are for static organisation, does anyone have suggestions for a replacement comparable to .mac? Or is there a way to move my bookmarks to the iDisk and have an alias point at them for Safari, so that they will constantly and automatically sync?

The .Mac bookmark syncing feature is not being disabled in MobileMe, but you will only be unable to view your bookmarks on a web page. To avoid losing any bookmarks, just in case, you'll want to sync them with Safari before June 30. You will be automatically migrated over when MobileMe launches, so I don't really think you need to do anything.

Kirkland asks

I'm thinking of joining the .Mac/MobileMe world and wonder if there is a way to make use of Apple's bookmark syncing in Firefox? The solution will probably not be "MobileMe push to Firefox bookmarking" but perhaps it will be bookmark syncing nonetheless.

MobileMe will not offer bookmark syncing for Firefox. However, you can already sync Firefox bookmarks with Foxmarks; they even describe a way of using Foxmarks with iDisk.

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